Penn State baseball has its new head coach.
Mike Gambino, who helmed the program at his alma mater Boston College for the last 13 years, will be the 15th coach in Nittany Lion baseball history, Penn State Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletic Patrick Kraft announced on Monday. He succeeds Rob Cooper, who resigned following the 2023 season after 10 years as Penn State’s coach.
Kraft and Gambino are already well-acquainted. Kraft was Gambino’s boss as BC’s athletic director from 2020 to 2022 before he took on the top job in Penn State’s athletic department.
“We worked with Mike at Boston College and know how he grows a program to find success on a national stage,” Kraft said in a statement. “Mike guided BC to the best season in program history this past season, which is impressive in a conference with historical baseball success like the ACC. Mike is a tremendous teacher and has a track record for developing players’ skills to prepare them for the next level.”
Gambino, who is second in BC baseball history with 291 wins, led the Eagles to NCAA Regional appearances in 2016 and 2023 and an NCAA Super Regional appearance in 2016. In 2023, BC had its best season since joining the ACC, finishing with a 37-20 record after spending 12 consecutive weeks in the top 25, including program-best No. 9 in April.
He developed 33 Major League Baseball draft picks, including three first-round selections, through 2022 and guided five All-Americans during his tenure in Chestnut Hill.
Just two weeks ago, BC and Gambino agreed to a new five-year contract, but he’ll be heading for a change of scenery instead.
“I want to thank Athletics Director Pat Kraft, [Deputy AD] Vinnie James and President [Neeli] Bendapudi for giving me this opportunity,” Gambino said in a statement. “I couldn’t be more excited to get to work with these young men and develop this program into a national contender and challenge to make the College World Series. We will work tirelessly each and every day to make our alumni, former players and everyone involved in the program proud.”
Gambino played for BC from 1997 to 2000 and spent two years in the Boston Red Sox minor league system before moving to coaching roles with the club. He was an assistant at BC and Virginia Tech before returning to lead the Eagles in 2011.
While Gambino’s Penn State contract won’t be made public, he likely represents the kind of investment Kraft recently told StateCollege.com is needed for a successful Nittany Lion baseball program.
“You invest everything you can to be great,” Kraft said. “I don’t care what sport it is. We should be in Omaha and I want to go win the College World Series. We absolutely can do that. That is not off the table. We have to do much like basketball, we have to invest and it’s investing in the right things.”
