September 2, 2007

Cheers all around for Horton
A "tickled" new baseball coach at UO says the Ducks will expect to win in 2009

JEFF SMITH
The Oregonian Staff

EUGENE -- The cheers began during the celebratory morning news conference Saturday, when George Horton was officially introduced as the new Oregon baseball coach before many family and friends.

They continued at the end of the first quarter of Oregon's football game, when Horton raised his right arm in the air to accept a warm ovation from the sellout 57,662 at Autzen Stadium.

"I got chills," he said at halftime. "I didn't expect that."

And few could have expected that Horton would leave his alma mater, Cal State Fullerton, and its rich baseball history to take over a college baseball program that hasn't existed since 1981.

But Horton -- still seeming a bit stunned by his decision -- boldly proclaimed that the cheers from Ducks fans will continue in 2009, when Oregon will play its first intercollegiate baseball game.

"We'll take the athletes that we have, we'll put the green and gold on them and compete with anybody in the country and expect to win," said Horton, his 2004 national championship ring glistening on his hand. "I can't tell you how tickled I am."

The feeling was mutual for Oregon athletic director Pat Kilkenny, who called Horton "the gold standard."

During the July 13 announcement that baseball was being reinstated, Kilkenny confidently said that the Ducks would hire one of the best coaches in the country.

In the past few weeks, a number of Oregon's coaching hopefuls fell through. Dave Brundage, a former Oregon State player managing in the Atlanta minor league system, took his name out of consideration. So did UC Irvine coach Dave Serrano -- a close friend of Horton's -- and Vanderbilt coach Tim Corbin.

Oregon didn't pursue Horton initially because Kilkenny said he didn't think somebody with his credentials would leave his job, comparing him to longtime Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski. In 11 seasons at Cal State Fullerton, Horton had a 490-212-1 record and reached the College World Series six times.

"The bottom line is the University of Oregon has immediate credibility as a baseball program," Kilkenny said. "The bars were always set high here. President (Dave) Frohnmayer said if you're going to do it, be the best you can be and get the best you can get. And there's no doubt we did get the No. 1 coach in America."

Horton didn't come cheap. His five-year contract, which lasts until June 30, 2012, will earn him $400,000 per year. He has a base salary of $150,000 and an additional guaranteed $250,000 for radio and television work with the Oregon Sports Network and the university's shoe and apparel agreements with Nike.

"It wasn't ever about money," Horton said. "It's about the leadership here, the direction here and the opportunity here to win another national championship in the state of Oregon, just a little farther south."