Former South Carolina coach Mark Kingston expected to be new head coach at Creighton

Former South Carolina coach Mark Kingston is set to become the next head baseball coach at Creighton, according to D1 Baseball’s Kendall Rogers.

Kingston spent seven seasons in Columbia where he led the Gamecocks to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances. South Carolina finished the year 37-25 and went 13-17 in SEC play under his guide in 2024.

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Kingston finished his time at South Carolina with a 217-155 record. Associate Head Coach/Recruiting Coordinator Monte Lee will serve as interim head coach for the time being.

He ultimately coached the Gamecocks through SEC play six times (no conference play due to the pandemic in 2020), where South Carolina went 83-96 (.464). Kingston finished above .500 in SEC play in three seasons, but he also finished below .500 in three other seasons. And he also never finished above third place in the SEC East standings.

Of course, South Carolina has historically had an excellent program, and the job should be an attractive one for coaches around the country. Current Athletics Director Ray Tanner led the Gamecocks to the College World Series six times from 2002-2012. The Gamecocks won the national title in 2010 and 2011 and finished as the runner ups in 2012. After that season, Tanner moved into the Athletics Director role at South Carolina, and assistant Chad Holbrook was promoted to head baseball coach.

Holbrook finished 200-106 in five seasons at South Carolina before being fired and replaced by Kingston. Now Tanner is once again looking for a new head coach.

South Carolina was inconsistent on the mound and at the plate this season. The Gamecocks had only two players hit .300 or better in sophomore Ethan Petry and catcher Cole Messina. Kingston’s club had a team batting average of .276 and an ERA of 5.09.

The Gamecocks did deal with some injuries, but they were never able to live up to expectations after reaching the super regionals in 2023 before falling to Florida, who went on be the national runner up to fellow SEC cohort LSU.

For Creighton, they finished the year with a 35-17 record but went 7-13 in conference action. Despite their record, they missed out on the postseason for the fifth consecutive season and haven’t advanced to the Super Regionals since 1991. With Kingston at the helm, the Blue Jays will be looking to turn their fortunes on the diamond around in quick fashion.