The University of Georgia parted ways with long-time head coach Dave Perno after 12 seasons at the helm, Perfect Game has learned.
The Bulldogs are fresh off a rather tough campaign in the Southeastern Conference. Perno's Georgia club finished the 2013 campaign with a 21-32 overall record, 7-20 SEC mark, and failed to reach this week's conference tournament in Hoover, Ala.
Perno's dismissal comes as no surprise, as the Bulldogs also had a tough 2012 campaign that ended with a 31-26 overall record, 14-15 SEC record, and of course, no NCAA postseason appearance.
Though the Bulldogs struggled the last two seasons, Perno put together some impressive results at times in his 12 seasons with the program. Georgia most recently played Fresno State for the national title in the College World Series in 2008, finishing that campaign with 45-25 overall record.
Perno also guided the Bulldogs to CWS appearances in 2004 and '06, along with six NCAA Regional appearances, three NCAA Super Regional appearances and two SEC regular season titles (2004, '08). Additionally, Perno made his mark as a player for the Georgia Bulldogs, being a member of the 1990 National Championship team.
With Perno's departure at Georgia, the coaching carousel now gets off to an incredibly hot start. Though Georgia still has a ways to go facilities-wise to catch up with other SEC stalwarts in the facility department, the program as a whole has endless potential. The Bulldogs have access to incredible talent in the Atlanta area, Athens, Ga., is regarded as one of the nation's premier college towns, and the Bulldogs have the money to make a strong financial commitment, if they want to, of course.
Georgia must now decide which route it wants to take in terms of a head coach. The hot name in the assistant/associate head coach department is North Carolina's Scott Forbes, who has helped engineer a pair of trips to the CWS Championship Series. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs could take a big chance at Louisville's Dan McDonnell, though, the good money would be on McDonnell staying put with the Cardinals heading to the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Other potential options the Bulldogs should consider include head coach Jim Schlossnagle (TCU), assistant coach Butch Thompson (Mississippi State), head coach Gary Gilmore (Coastal Carolina) head coach Terry Rooney (UCF), assistant coach Todd Butler (Arkansas), assistant Cliff Godwin (Ole Miss), assistant coach Kevin McMullan (Virginia), assistant coach Brad LeCroy (Clemson) and head coach Mark Calvi (South Alabama) and head coach Craig Gibson (Mercer), among others.
As usual, stay with Perfect Game as details develop.