5 college baseball coaches who also played in CWS ft. Brian O'Connor

The 77th edition of the College World Series is now underway. In the past, there have been some famous players who went on to coach NCAA baseball teams, achieving success both as players and as coaches. Here, we take a look at five such coaches who also took part in the season-ending tournament.

5 coaches who also featured in the College World Series as players

#1 Brian O'Connor

O'Connor has achieved massive success in the two decades he has served as the coach of the Virginia Cavaliers. He led them to the 2015 College World Series while also winning the ACC regular season and ACC tournament titles twice.

Brian O'Connor has arguably been one of Virginia Cavaliers' most successful head coaches ever.

However, his journey in college baseball began with the Creighton Bluejays, where he played as a pitcher from 1991 to 1994.

He was a critical part of the 1991 Bluejays team which won an NCAA West I Regional and made the College World Series. He went 20-13 in his career with an ERA of 3.78.

#2 Link Jarrett

Jarrett took over the role of Florida State Seminoles' head coach from the legendary Mike Martin last season. While his coaching career has seen him bring glory to teams like UNC Greensboro, his journey with the Seminoles is quite special.

Besides serving as an assistant coach under Martin in 2003, he also played for Florida State as their starting shortstop from 1990 to 1994. During that period, he took part in the College World Series thrice, in 1991, 1992 and in his final playing season in 1994.

With a batting average of .279, Jarrett earned an all-NCBWA American status and an all-ACC selection twice, in 1993 and 1994.

#3 Kirk Sarloos

Sarloos became the head coach of the TCU Horned Frogs in 2022. During his tenure, they won the Big 12 regular season title in 2022 and the Big 12 tournament title last season.

He was also an incredibly talented pitcher during his playing days, where he represented the Cal State Fullerton Titans.

Kirk Sarloos helped the Titans reach the 1999 and 2001 College World Series while also recording a no-hitter against the Pacific Tigers in 2001. His exploits on the mound saw the Houston Astros pick him in the 2001 MLB Draft.

#4 David Esquer

In seven seasons as the Stanford Cardinals' coach, Esquer has taken the team to the College World Series thrice. While he has not won the season-ending tournament as a coach, he has tasted success as a player, winning the 1987 edition as the team's starting short-stop.

He was also part of that season's all-tournament team for hitting 6 RBIs at an average of .350.

#5 Mike Bianco

Bianco led the Ole Miss Rebels' to the 2022 College World Series title following an incredible 4-2 win over the Oklahoma Sooners in the championship game. While he enjoyed success in the tournament as a coach, he narrowly missed out as a player.

In 1989, he was the starting catcher and captain of the LSU Tigers team that finished third in the season-ending tournament. They did so after losing to the Texas Longhorns 12-7 in the semi-finals.