Erik Bakich will leave Michigan 10 years later as head coach of Ann Arbor.
According to reports, the 44-year-old has agreed to return to where he began his college coaching career and become the next Clemson head coach.
Maize and Blue Review first reported this move on Tuesday night.
Bakitchi, a volunteer assistant at Clemson in 2002, leaves big shoes to fill the Ann Arbor. He ended his tenure in Michigan with a record of 327-216, including two big tent tournament titles and five NCAA tournament appearances.
His illustrious moment was 2019, when he led Wolverins to the College World Series for the first time since 1984. Michigan was the last team to receive a large bid for the tournament, but it got hot all at once. It went to the CWS final and won one of the best of the three series against the very popular Vanderbilt before dropping the next two.
Bakitch didn’t have a record of losing in Michigan and is tasked with turning around the Clemson program, which missed the NCAA tournament for the second year in a row after the previous 11 qualifying rounds. The Tigers fired head coach Monterey on May 31, seven seasons later.
Bakitch’s new contract has reportedly raised significant salaries. His five-year contract in Michigan was due to expire on June 30, 2024, where he paid a base salary of $ 400,000 and an annual salary of at least $ 600,000. According to his contract obtained by MLive, he is obliged to pay the college a $ 150,000 buyout.
Bakitchi has been billed as a seasoned recruiter throughout his coaching career and is heading for one of the country’s top college baseball hotbeds. A native of California, he was the recruitment coordinator at Vanderbild in 2005, marking the top-ranked class in the country. He also signed the Big Ten’s first Top 10 class in 2017 while in Michigan.
Prior to joining Wolverines, Bakitchi spent three years as head coach in Maryland. After finishing 17-39 in his first season, Terrapins improved to 32-24 in the third year.
Bakitchi’s final match in the Michigan uniform lost to 11th Louisville 11-9 on June 6th in the NCAA Regional Finals. Wolverins, who won the Big Tent Tournament as the fifth seed to win the NCAA Bath, led 9-7 in the 8th inning. But a controversial play on second base I kept using the innings for the Cardinal. The Cardinal took the lead with four runs.
