Laval goes up in SMOKE

For the first time in more than 2 decades, LSU's baseball program appears to be in utter disarray.

Smoke Laval, LSU's head coach for the past 5 years and previously the head man at NLU/ULM, resigned Sunday morning, ending months of turmoil and speculation over his job security. Laval, who had the unenviable task of following the legendary Skip Bertman, now LSU's athletic director, had led LSU to 2 College World Series but couldn't fill Bertman's shoes and saw the Tigers finish eighth in the SEC this year and miss out on the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1984.

I feel bad for Smoke. The former LSU assistant was hand-picked by Bertman to be the coach's successor. But nobody wants to try to fill the shoes of a legend. It's always said you want to be the man who follows the man who followed the legend. Now someone gets that chance. But who will it be?

The News-Star's story lists Alabama's Jim Wells, Mike Bianco at Ole Miss and Kentucky's John Cohen. Other potential candidates are ULL's Tony Robichaux, Tulane's Rick Jones, Louisiana Tech's Wade Simoneaux and LSU assistant Turtle Thomas. With LSU's storied tradition, the list of potential candidates could be even lengthier.

But why would these guys want the LSU gig? The Tigers are far removed from the glory days of the 1990s, when Bertman won 5 national titles in 10 years. The SEC, arguably the best league in the nation along with the ACC, is very, very deep. And parity is beginning to seep into collegiate baseball. Sure, some of the big names are always there. But the talent pool is getting deeper and instead of the same 8-12 teams competing for the CWS every year, now there are a legitimate 20-25 teams vying for one of those coveted spots.

Let's take a look at each potential candidate and assess the possibility of their taking the LSU gig.

Jim Wells -- Has been at Alabama for the past 12 years, where he has built the Crimson Tide into a national powerhouse. In 1995, he took over the worst program in the SEC. Ten years later, what a turnaround. Won the SEC title this year and currently has Alabama ranked 4th in the nation. The Tide defeated Troy 14-5 Sunday night to wrap up its regional and will host a super regional next weekend. However, he does have Louisiana ties. Wells is a native of Bossier City and has previously coached for 5 years at Northwestern State. Wells also began his college career as a grad assistant for Bertman at LSU. Wells has coached in 3 College World Series in his career and has a good shot at a 4th this year. While it makes tremendous sense for LSU to take a shot at Wells given his success and Louisiana ties, I don't think he'd be too ready to leave Tuscaloosa -- unless the price is right.

Mike Bianco -- In his 6th season in Oxford, Bianco has the Rebels in the super regional for the second straight year after a 12-4 win over Tulane Sunday night. Bianco has completely turned Ole Miss around, winning a school-record 48 games in 2005 and another 43 so far this season. Like Wells, Bianco has ties to Louisiana and LSU. Bianco is an LSU grad and former LSU assistant under Bertman. He got his first head coaching gig at McNeese State, where he served for 3 years before moving to Ole Miss. Like Wells, Bianco has turned around a dormant program. Unlike Wells, Bianco has been in Oxford for a dozen years. After 6 seasons, especially if Bianco can get the Rebels to the CWS for the first time ever, it might be time for him to go back home.

John Cohen -- Considered one of the hot young coaches in the country, Cohen is in his 3rd year in Lexington and led the Wildcats to an SEC East title this year. He's also got UK in the Super Regional after a 12-9 win over Ball State Sunday night. Like the previous 2 candidates, Cohen has ties to Louisiana -- like Wells, he's a former head coach at NSU, where he coached for 4 years. Unlike the previous 2 candidates, he doesn't have any LSU or Bertman ties. Cohen played college ball at Mississippi State. He's a native of Tuscaloosa, Ala. After failing to win 30 games his first 2 years in Lexington, Cohen has had a breakthrough year. He might want to jump ship and take a higher-paying gig in Baton Rouge. Although he might want to build a program at Kentucky, his previous track record doesn't indicate that. He spent 5 years at NSU, 2 as an assistant at Florida and the past 3 at UK. His longest tenure was his first job, as an assistant at Missouri, where he spent 6 seasons. Of all the coaches, I think he'd be the most likely to jump ship to Baton Rouge.

Tony Robichaux -- Overall, Robichaux had a disappointing 2006, failing to make an NCAA Regional. However, for his tenure in Lafayette, he has put up some incredible numbers. In 12 years at ULL, he's won more than 400 games. In 19 total seasons, he's won nearly 700. Prior to ULL, he served for 7 seasons at his alma mater, McNeese State. While he's not quite the hot commodity he was in 2000, when the Ragin' Cajuns won 49 games and finished 3rd in the CWS, the man has been fairly consistent throughout his career. The question is his mind is can he get ULL back to the CWS? If he feels he's peaked in Lafayette, he may be looking for the next big thing -- a trip to Baton Rouge. However, the man has turned down jobs before, including LSU when Laval got the job. He's been loyal to ULL and is, at best, a longshot for the job this time. No question, though, the man can coach.

Rick Jones -- Jones has made Tulane a national power in baseball. In 13 years, he has 2 trips to the CWS. He's can legitimately say his team is a rival of LSU. Why would he want to leave? Good question. Tulane was knocked out of the NCAA Regional Sunday night by Bianco and Ole Miss. He's been to 13 regionals and the CWS in 2001 and again last season. In fact, his team knocked Laval and LSU out in 2005. But when is it time to move on? Tulane can still compete with anybody in the country. And Jones knows that. I doubt he'll seriously consider LSU should they offer.

Two other names that might get outside consideration are Simoneaux and Thomas. I doubt Sim has done enough at Tech to warrant serious consideration, and Thomas was passed over last time by Bertman. I don't see why this time will be any different. In the end, though, it should be fun to follow the saga. Will LSU ever be the same again? Depends on if they hire the right coach. In my eyes, Cohen or Bianco are the leaders in this chase.