Tennessee coach Tony Vitello heaps high praise on Clemson coach Erik Bakich

The Tennessee Volunteers throttled the Charlotte 49ers in their first game of the Clemson Regional in the 2023 NCAA Baseball Tournament on Friday. The Vols cruised to an easy 8-1 win over the 49ers. Next up, the Volunteers will face the hottest team in all of college baseball, the Clemson Tigers.

The Tigers are coached by Erik Bakich, who has worked wonders in his first season with the program, guiding Clemson to the 2023 ACC Tournament Championship.

In his press conference on Friday, Tennessee head coach Tony Vitello heaped high praise on Bakich and said he’s been impressive all season long.

Tony Vitello has been very impressed with Erik Bakich

“Well, I’m glad you mentioned his name because that was going to be my answer. He’s about as organized of a guy, as thorough as you’re gonna find. And I think the team kind of mirrored that this year, if you were able to follow them. And of course, we were all wrapped up in the non-conference games too, but our league play. So, you keep an eye on people, and then when you get into the bracket, you take a look at all three teams,” Vitello said.

“And Lipscomb and Charlotte, being a little bit familiar of those guys than Clemson. But again, when you look at them [Clemson], they play organized, well coached ball, and rarely make mistakes. And today, I know it was back and forth but coach…I forget what was mentioned on the TV broadcast, but obviously there was some separation between the two clubs. When we were in the cages, we almost got hit with a ball,” Vitello said.

Clemson has now won 17 straight games and Bakich has been a key piece to their success. Guiding the Tigers to an ACC Tournament Championship during his first season there is no small feat.

Four Clemson head coaches have won the ACC in their first season: Bill Wilhelm in 1958, Jack Leggett in 1994, Monte Lee in 2016, and this year Erik Bakich added his name to the list.

Tennessee will face No. 1 seed Clemson at 6:00 PM EST on Saturday night in Clemson, South Carolina. The Tigers currently sit at 44-17 after defeating Lipscomb 12-5 in their opening round game on Friday.

Clemson features one of the best two-way players in all of college baseball in 2023 ACC Tournament MVP Caden Grice. It should be an interesting matchup.