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LJ Hepp
Former USC director of basketball operations LJ Hepp has been hired as the new head coach for the Oita Heat Devils of the BJL Basketball Japan League.
The Cary News of North Carolina reported that Hepp, who worked last season for Darrin Horn in Columbia, was heading overseas with a three year contract.
Hepp was a successful high school coach in North Carolina before joining Horn’s staff.
Jerry Meyers
Old Dominion baseball coach Jerry Meyers, who was Ray Tanner’s first pitching coach at USC, is returning to that position in Columbia the BigSpur.com reported Saturday morning.
An official announcement is planned for next week.
Meyers spent six seasonas head coach at ODU. He was the CAA coach of the year in 2006 and his team was the league’s co-regular season champion the next season, but he never got the Monarchs into the NCAA Tournament. His last three teams each finished under .500.
Meyers was Tanner’s pitching coach for 8 seasons during which the Gamecocks made seven NCAA Tournament and 3 College World Series appearances. He will replace Mark Calvi who left to become the head coach in waiting at South Alabama.
As we wrap up the month in July and move into August, that means fall camp is around the corner. Defense wins the championships and the two guys charged with that responsibility at the FBS level in our state, joined the show.
USC Associate Head Coach in charge of the Defense, Ellis Johnson
Mike Morgan and The Braves Report
Clemson Defensive Coordinator Kevin Steele
Friday night’s Recruiting Report
The Associated Press is reporting that Winthrop has hired Clemson assistant Tom Riginos to become their new head baseball coach.
An initial announcement was made this morning that Winthrop had offered the position to Riginos, but the school has since announced that he is accepting the job. Riginos has spent the past eight seasons working under coach Jack Leggett with the Tigers. He was the team’s recruiting coordinator and associate head coach. He also helped work with batting and play in the outfield, and helped lead the team to two College World Series appearances.
This will be the first head coaching opportunity for Riginos, but Winthrop athletic director Tom Hickman is confident Riginos will have no problem attracting high caliber recruits to the program.
Hickman fired former head coach Joe Hudak after 19 seasons with the Eagles. They were 27-30 overall during his final season, while posting a 13-14 record within the Big South Conference.
L-R Kevin Higgins, Dabo Swinney, Bobby Lamb, Fisher DeBerry, Mike Ayers, Art Baker
Former legendary Air Force head football coach Fisher Deberry hosted the South Carolina Coaches for Charity inaugural dinner Thursday night at the Embassy Suites in Columbia. Deberry is the all-time winningest head football coach for the United States Air Force Academy. He is originally from South Carolina, and has recently moved back to the state.
Fisher DeBerry
Deberry and his wife Lu Ann lead the Fisher Deberry Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to the support and education of single parents and their children. For this event, they have united with head coaches from around the state to raise money and awareness for each of their respective organizations.
The event was roughly from 6-10 pm, starting with a meet and greet, followed by dinner. There was also a silent and live auction with various sports memorabilia up for grabs ranging from a George Rogers autographed helmet to a “Broadway Joe” Namath autographed Jets jersey, among others. All proceeds were donated to the charities involved. The evening concluded with each coach giving a speech about their respective teams and to raise awareness for their charities.
Dabo Swinney
The coaches involved were
Steve Spurrier
Various sponsors also participated in the dinner, including Founders Federal Credit Union, State Farm, Rod Walters, IPTAY, The Citadel Football Association, and Coca-Cola Bottling Co. Consolidated. Former coach Art Baker served as the Master of Ceremonies, and Burt Trembley promoted the event with the help of his team.
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