Fullerton Expects Garrido to Go; Looking for Coach

Although Cal State Fullerton baseball Coach Augie Garrido said Monday he has not accepted an offer to take over the baseball program at the University of Illinois, Fullerton has begun the process of looking for a successor to the man who coached the Titans to two national championships.

“My assumption is that he’s going to take the job,” said Ed Carroll, Fullerton athletic director. “We’re operating on the assumption that he’s going.”

Illinois tentatively has scheduled a Wednesday news conference to announce a successor to Tom Dedin, who was fired in July. But Athletic Director Neale Stoner said he is not determined to name a coach Wednesday and insists that the offer “is not a done deal.”

Garrido said he is awaiting another conversation with Stoner--a longtime friend who hired him to the Fullerton job 14 years ago--and that he is seeking assurances that university administrators support the installation of an AstroTurf field in the school’s new $2-million baseball facility.

Earlier comments seemed to indicate that Stoner would need to secure funds for the estimated $1.5 million it would cost to install such a surface, but Garrido said Monday he is concerned only that he and top administrators agree “philosophically” that an artificial surface would be necessary to build a nationally prominent program in an area where spring rains are frequent.

Carroll, meanwhile, has begun seeking permission from some athletic directors to contact their coaches. He has not interviewed any candidates.

Garrido said he has made his contribution to the list of candidates, recommending among others Dave Snow, a former assistant at Fullerton and now head coach at Loyola Marymount.

Stoner downplayed the AstroTurf issue Monday night, saying it was “an issue, but one of many Augie has reviewed. It’s his emphasis and it’s one we have to consider. . . . We just built a brand new stadium and that’s something we hadn’t planned on. You just don’t snap your fingers and come up with that kind of money.” Illinois has interviewed “a couple” of other candidates in case Garrido does not accept, Stoner said.

Garrido said he would earn more than $100,000 at Illinois, including salary, benefits and a camp. His salary at Fullerton is $57,108.

Should Garrido, 47, accept the job, Fullerton pitching coach Bill Kernan said he also will leave Fullerton for Illinois.

Garrido has guided four Titan teams to the College World Series and has won two NCAA championships, in 1979 and 1984.