By
Connor Doyle
Arizona Summer Wildcat
Andy Lopez named as new baseball coach
Jim Livengood got his man - again.
Arizona's athletic director announced Monday at a press conference that Andy Lopez will be the new head coach of the baseball team, succeeding Jerry Stitt. It marks the second time this year that Livengood has been able to attract a high-profile coach to a vacancy at the UA, the first being new head football coach John Mackovic.
Livengood explained during the press conference why Lopez was picked for the job.
"We wanted a coach with head-coaching experience," Livengood said. "Someone who's had success at the national level. A coach that had great player relationships. (One who had) recruiting contacts, regionally, locally and nationally. And certainly (one with) an understanding of diversity."
According to Livengood, Lopez - who most recently coached at the University of Florida and won a National Championship in 1992 while coaching Pepperdine - is that man.
Arizona's fifth head coach in more than 80 years said the UA position was a dream job.
"I am honored and truly humbled - I cannot express my gratitude enough for the opportunity to be a part of this university," Lopez said.
Lopez said he first fell in love with the Arizona program after playing the Wildcats in Tucson while he was the head coach at Cal State Dominguez Hills in 1983.
"I remember (saying to my wife) after absolutely being destroyed for three games, 'Boy, that would be a great job one day,'" he said. "But never in my mind did I think I would be in this position.
"It really is a dream come true, I'm very thankful to be the baseball coach at the University of Arizona. And we just hope that we will please the community and please the university and everyone associated with Wildcat baseball. I hope that I'm here a long, long time. I bought a home (Sunday) - I need to be here a long time."
Lopez wasted no time in stating how he wanted to run the baseball program. Lopez is generally considered to be "old school", and said he'll expect a lot from his players.
"I've always had a tough time with players that were selfish," Lopez said. "I've always had a tough time with players that abuse the night life. I've always had a tough time with players that don't go to class. I haven't changed since I've been coaching. Those that go to class, play hard, compete, and represent their family and their university in a good way always have a good experience with me, and I have a good experience with them.
"If we do that, the community will understand that we're trying to put a good product on the field, and we're going to represent the city of Tucson - not just the University of Arizona, but the city of Tucson - in a real positive way."
Lopez beat out three other candidates for the job - Rich Alday, head coach at the University of New Mexico; Chip Hale, a former UA player and current coach in the Arizona Diamondbacks' minor league system; and Gary Ward, current head coach at New Mexico State and former head coach at Oklahoma State.
Lopez comes with an impressive list of credentials for the position, including two National Coach of the Year awards in addition to a National Championship. He also possesses a strong recruiting base in Southern California, a state that has in the past been dominated by Pacific 10 Conference rivals USC, UCLA, and Stanford. Lopez feels that he will be able to recruit successfully against these teams, and the opposing coaches seem to agree.
"Both (UCLA head) coach (Gary) Adams and (USC head) coach (Mike) Gillespie said 'Well, our jobs just got harder,' and that made me feel good," Lopez said. "I have no qualms about recruiting against anybody in the country."
Livengood also expressed hope that Lopez will be able to re-energize the Wildcats' fan base. Attendance has plummeted for a team that has three NCAA National Championships to its credit and was once had one of the most intimidating home-field advantages in the nation.
"I think to a certain degree, we've had some apathy take place with Arizona baseball," Livengood said. "Go to the park and see the number of people showing up at the park. That's no one's fault - that's what happens. We're going to count on Andy and his staff for selling Wildcat baseball to this community."
Lopez's effect on attendance at Florida may be a good sign that he can affect the downward trend in fan interest.
"When I took the job at Florida, we were averaging about 800, 900 people, and three years later they had to expand the stadium," Lopez said. "We were averaging 3,500 to 4,000 people per game. People were climbing the trees in the outfield to see the games because they couldn't get in. I know there's some time, some work, and some energy, and I'm willing to go out and meet people in the community."
One of the bigger questions surrounding Lopez's hiring - the future of Stitt - was not met with any promises from the new coach. Though Stitt has been guaranteed a job in the athletic department for the next two years, Lopez was unwilling to commit to hiring the former Wildcats coach as an assistant coach.
"I'm going to be very honest with you - I have some assistants that I have with me," Lopez said. "I'm going to open up those two positions and I'll talk to Jerry. I want the best thing for Jerry Stitt and this program."
Livengood said he expects Lopez's contract to be finalized by the end of the week. It's expected to be a five-year deal with an average salary of $85,000 per year.
