It isn't that I believe Raffo is a bad coach. He certainly hasn't set himself apart, but I don't know if he's bad either. My main hangup is that Raffo isn't qualified for this job. I know to many MSU fans the fact that he learned under The Legend and has MSU ties is enough, and there are some MSU fans that think having ties is enough. These same people wanted JDJ as AD. I, on the other hand, view baseball as the one sport where MSU can truly be selective. We don't have to settle for someone without head coaching experience. We don't have to take a chance on a guy like Raffo, or even a top assistant like McDonnell. We can go get someone with head coaching experience that is in demand. We can do this because our fanbase truly cares about baseball, we have top notch attendance and season ticket sales, our facilities are top tier, and we have a tradition of being a very good program over a very long period of time. I truly believe this is an attractive job to any head coach out there and my belief is backed up both by those things I listed above and by the piece written by Mainieri after a regional in Starkville. To settle for a coach without head coaching experience without even doing a search would definantly not excite me and energize me.
