LSU has dipped into the Atlantic Coast Conference to hire its recruiting coordinator.
Josh Jordan, who has spent the past 11 seasons at Duke University as associate head coach where he was the Blue Devils’ recruiting coordinator, will handle a similar position for LSU head baseball coach Jay Johnson.
D1Baseball reported the hiring Thursday and LSU made it official with an announcement Friday, saying Jordan had been hired an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator.
“When we started this search,” Johnson said in a news release issued by the school, “it was my goal to find one of the best recruiters in all of college baseball.
“We have accomplished that and much more in bringing Josh to LSU. His work ethic, character, player relationship building, evaluation skills, and ability to connect make him second to none. … Josh is also an elite developer of catchers and a great on-the-field coach. Our current and future players are immediately better by having Josh as a part of our program.”
Jordan replaces Dan Fitzgerald, who left after one season at LSU to become head coach at Kansas. The Tigers also replaced pitching coach Jason Kelly after he became head coach at the Washington, hiring Minnesota Twins pitching coach Wes Johnson.
In addition to his duties as recruiting coordinator, Jordan was credited with working with the Duke’s catchers and outfielders and taught hitting and base running.
Duke reached unprecedented heights during Jordan’s tenure that began in 2012 as an assistant coach. He added the duties of associate head coach in 2015 and the Blue Devils have had 33 players drafted by the Major Leagues, including a record seven in 2018, with 12 of those taken in the first 10 rounds.
Duke, who slipped to 22-32 overall and 10-20 in ACC play in 2022, earned an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament in 2016 and ended a 55-year program drought in the event. The Blue Devils were ranked a program best 13 weeks during a memorable 2018 season in which they recorded a program’s best 45-18 record – the school’s first 40-win season.
Duke made the first of back-to-back appearances in the NCAA Super Regionals starting with the ’18 season, and the 45 wins extended a stretch of at least 30-plus wins for a fifth consecutive year, the longest since 1992-98.
For his efforts, Jordan was voted the ABCA/Baseball America Assistant Coach of the Year. He was previously an assistant for six years at Appalachian State.
He’s a former second baseman at Catawba, where he graduated, and went on to obtain his master’s from Fort Hays State.
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