Mike Sirianni reveals what stands out about Will Bolt's coaching style

New Nebraska baseball assistant coach Mike Sirianni has long admired the way Will Bolt runs his program. Now Sirianni will get to work directly under Bolt.

Sirianni was hired as an assistant coach for the Cornhuskers last month, coming over from Wichita State. He recently spoke about what made Nebraska and coaching under Will Bolt attractive.

“Man, just consistency, work ethic and being able to be trusted,” Sirianni said. “He’s going to work at it. He’s going to show up every day, and he’s going to find good players. And he’s going to coach them. And he’s going to coach them hard.”

Sirianni spent the past four seasons at Wichita State, serving as the recruiting coordinator for the Shockers.

He is excited about joining a staff that is led by Bolt and also includes fellow assistants Lance Harvell and Rob Childress.

“That’s why I wanted to have the opportunity to come join [Bolt] and get this program going and keep it going and join an unbelievable staff like this,” Sirianni said.

Nebraska is coming off of an up-and-down 2023 season that saw the Cornhuskers finish 33-23-1. The Cornhuskers made the NCAA Tournament in five of the past 10 years but have not won a regional since 2005. That is also the last time Nebraska reached the College World Series.

Mike Sirianni shares his idols in coaching career

New Nebraska assistant baseball coach Mike Sirianni recently opened up on his coaching influences. It’s no surprise that Nebraska head coach Will Bolt is one of them.

“Man, I’ve looked up to Will Bolt for a long time. I have,” Mike Sirianni said. “I’ve looked up to Will Bolt, obviously his career path and my career path, I’ve tried to follow him very closely and I’ve looked up to him.”

While Bolt and Sirianni didn’t have a ton of career crossover, Bolt did play with Mike’s brother Jay at Nebraska in 1999. One of the assistant coaches at Nebraska at the time was Rob Childress, who is once again on staff as an assistant coach under Bolt.

Mike Sirianni said he picked up quite a bit from both, as well as other current Nebraska assistants.

“Obviously watched (Bolt) recruit and learned a lot from him, so he’s been a huge piece of it,” Sirianni said. “Coach (Lance) Harvell and I, we’ve had a long relationship for years and working together. And obviously coach Childress. What those guys have done has been really influential on me.”

Childress served as the team’s director of player development for the past two seasons but will now join the staff as a full-time assistant coach when the NCAA formally allows for that starting this summer.

Other influences on Mike Sirianni and his coaching style?

They come from his lengthy stays at Wichita State, where he spent the past four years as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator and had previously worked as a volunteer assistant coach from 2015-16.

“Some of the guys that I’ve worked with have been huge pieces for me, whether it be Brent Kemnitz, Todd Butler, you know, pieces like that,” Mike Sirianni said. “They’ve been very important in my life too.”