Bell sees Omaha in Pitt's future
SEE ALSO: Bell sees potential in Pitt
Mike Bell wanted to be Pitt’s next baseball coach well before Heather Lyke even knew he was seriously a candidate.
The former Florida State assistant put himself right into the conversation following an ambitious pitch to become Pitt’s next head baseball coach.
“My first impression of Mike was not actually meeting him in person,” Lyke said Friday at a press conference introducing Bell. “It was reading a packet of information that he had sent and he prepared, and it was called, ‘The Road to Omaha for Pitt’ and then we interviewed him.”
Pitt and Omaha are rarely mentioned in the same breath. The Panthers baseball program has never appeared in college baseball’s premier event, and their last NCAA Tournament appearance was in 1995, well before most of the current players were even born.
Even with that lack of history in Omaha, the site of the College World Series, the Nebraska city was mentioned more than once during Friday's press conference.
Lyke was drawn to Bell’s success as both a player and a coach. He played in the College World Series, and was a coach for three different programs that advanced to Omaha.
“When I first got to meet him, I’ll tell you he’s been to Omaha six times, two times as a player and I love that,” Lyke said. “He knows the path to Omaha and he’s walked it himself.”
In a final pitch to Lyke before the hire was made, Bell sent her an e-mail highlighting and illustrating how much he wanted the job.
“Pitt baseball needs a head coach that will be a dynamic recruiter and needs someone who will develop a culture of excellence and demand that everyone in the program be accountable,” Bell stated in his e-mail. “It needs a winner, someone who has achieved at the highest level and been part of three different programs to earn trips to Omaha - it needs me.”
He concluded the message with, “I want to be your head coach at Pitt.”
The plea obviously worked. Just days later, Pitt zeroed in on Bell, as he was chosen over four other candidates who were interviewed. Part of the decision came down to Bell’s readiness. After years of being an assistant coach, he was prepared to take over a program of his own even if it meant moving on from his alma mater of Florida State.
“Number one it’s home (Florida State) for us, but understanding and knowing the landscape of college baseball and how strong the Atlantic Coast Conference is, this is a great opportunity for anybody,” Bell explained.
The goal for Pitt now is to make the NCAA Tournament, and Bell thinks all his program needs is a chance.
"It’s about getting hot at the right time, All we’re looking for is an invitation to that," the Panthers' skipper said.
Omaha and Pittsburgh are separated by 918 miles of road; to Mike Bell and Heather Lyke, that trip just got shorter.