South Carolina names baseball field after two-time national champion, longtime AD Ray Tanner
South Carolina names baseball field after two-time national champion, longtime AD Ray Tanner
FILE - South Carolina’s baseball coach Ray Tanner and his team bring home the NCAA Championship trophy during celebrations Wednesday, June 30, 2010, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Mary Ann Chastain, File)
FILE - South Carolina athletics director Ray Tanner speaks to the crowd at Colonial Life Arena, April 8, 2024, in Columbia, S.C. (Joshua Boucher/The State via AP, File)
FILE - South Carolina’s baseball coach Ray Tanner and his team bring home the NCAA Championship trophy during celebrations Wednesday, June 30, 2010, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Mary Ann Chastain, File)
FILE - South Carolina’s baseball coach Ray Tanner and his team bring home the NCAA Championship trophy during celebrations Wednesday, June 30, 2010, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Mary Ann Chastain, File)
FILE - South Carolina athletics director Ray Tanner speaks to the crowd at Colonial Life Arena, April 8, 2024, in Columbia, S.C. (Joshua Boucher/The State via AP, File)
FILE - South Carolina athletics director Ray Tanner speaks to the crowd at Colonial Life Arena, April 8, 2024, in Columbia, S.C. (Joshua Boucher/The State via AP, File)
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina baseball will now play at “Ray Tanner Field” in honor of the two-time College World Series-winning coach and outgoing athletic director.
The school announced the naming Friday and said it would start with the 2025 season. The stadium remains Founders Park after Founders Federal Credit Union extended its naming rights last month through 2035.
The school said a group Gamecocks athletic donors contributed $2.5 million to name the field after Tanner, who announced last month he was leaving as athletic director after 12 years once the school hires his replacement.
Tanner was South Carolina baseball coach from 1997-2012. He went to six College World Series, winning in 2010 and 2011. The Gamecocks were national runner-up in 2012 and Tanner became the school’s AD a few weeks later.
“This is a tremendous gesture from my friends and donors,” Tanner said in a statement. “I am grateful for their commitment to this project.”
Tanner hired former LSU national championship coach Paul Manieri last June to replace Mark Kingston, who was dismissed after seven seasons.
A field dedication ceremony will take place when South Carolina opens its baseball season in February.
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