The recent hiring of former Oklahoma head coach Sunny Golloway was a surprise to many Auburn fans, but the head coach for 17 years is a proven winner; someone Auburn baseball needs.
When John Pawlowski came to The Plains in 2009, he had taken the College of Charleston to three NCAA regionals in nine seasons. Golloway has made the postseason in 14 of his 15 years as a head coach at Oral Roberts University and the University of Oklahoma, including a trip to the 2010 college world series. At Oral Roberts, Golloway finished first in the Mid-Continent Conference six consecutive times and had a 117-15 conference record.
The numbers speak for themselves.
Golloway has proven he can win at big schools like Oklahoma and consistently gain postseason berths. His successful career will be tested at Auburn when he competes against some of the best teams in the country each week in the SEC.
For someone who got results at Oklahoma, why would Golloway leave?
Recently, a Sooner player called Golloway "two-faced" while publicly ripping him over Twitter. Clearly, at least one player has issues with him now, and back in 2006, Golloway had a falling-out with his own nephew on the team.
Kody Kaiser decided to transfer from Oklahoma after two years of ongoing issues with his uncle. Golloway blocked his transfer, preventing Kaiser from maintaining eligibility at Oklahoma City University, an NAIA team. For Golloway, it seems a change of scenery was needed and the draw of the SEC, as well as the cash that comes with it, is too much to turn down.
The reaction from Auburn fans and its press coverage since the hire has been overwhelmingly positive and full of excitement, as it should be, but the response from Oklahoma fans has been nothing more than a shoulder shrug.
Oklahoma's reactions raise questions about Golloway and his relationship with the Sooner nation, but if he's winning at Auburn, any personality flaws can easily be overlooked.
At this point, winning is what matters for Athletic Director Jay Jacobs and Auburn. The former days of the good ol' boys has been steadily declining on The Plains. Coaches don't need personal connection to Auburn anymore to have a chance at landing a position.
Casey Dunn, a former four-year Auburn player and current coach at Samford, was an early favorite for the Auburn-Family-type head coach now and back in 2009, but lacks the big time coaching experience.
Pawlowski was the safe pick then, and he flopped. Jacobs and the department have now brought in an outside candidate with some controversy and flare to shake things up, and they should be praised for it.
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