Paul Mainieri did not replace Skip Bertman, but he spent his entire LSU career trying to live up to the legacy of the greatest college baseball coach in history.
As Paul Mainieri commented in his farewell press conference, he wasn’t as good as Skip. No one is. All he wanted to do was make Skip proud.
Minutes later, after Paul patiently answered every question, Skip walked up to the podium and told Paul, and everyone watching, that he was proud of him. What better way to end your career? To spend 15 years grasping for the validation of your mentor, only to have him grant you that exact thing.