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Greg McGarity explains how he saw UGA baseball's turnaround coming

If Georgia continues its run and returns to the tournament, Stricklin could very well have a new deal to sign.
Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

ATLANTA—Scott Stricklin and the Georgia Bulldogs are finally generating some excitement. Luckily for Stricklin, his boss saw it coming.

Georgia's baseball team has continued to rise in the national polls, winning seven of their last eight. The No. 15 Bulldogs swept the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets for a second consecutive year by beating them 3-1 in the Spring Classic at SunTrust Park on Tuesday.

Stricklin is in his fifth season with the Bulldogs. He has yet to lead them to the NCAA Tournament, contrary to his predecessor, David Perno, who led them there three times, including a trip to the College World Series final in 2008 (lost to Fresno State).

The Bulldogs went 25-32 last season, but won their final three SEC series of the regular season. That was enough to give Athletic Director Greg McGarity confidence to keep Stricklin in Athens.

"Scott and I were talking about everything. We ended the season in great shape as far as we won our last SEC series and you could see some of these young players start to blossom," McGarity said in an interview with 11Alive. "We both felt like we were on the right track and we could continue that momentum, which has happened."

Stricklin signed a six-year deal with the Bulldogs in 2014. After a 104-119-1 record in four years, some thought his time with the Bulldogs could be coming to an end. But with his team staying healthy and guys like Adam Sasser and Keegan McGovern's bats lighting up this season, the Bulldogs have nearly climbed to the top of the SEC East standings only behind the Florida Gators who are the No. 1 team in the country.

"Any time you've got to rebuild, it takes some time. And that's what we had to do is rebuild a little bit," Stricklin told 11Alive.

Not everyone saw it coming. McGarity did.

"You’ve got to have a gut feeling that things are going to work out and the ways things materialize, it’s so great to watch," McGarity said. "I’m so happy to see these young men have fun and see our fans enjoying things because it was a struggle there for a number of years, but to build it the right way and build it the way Scott wanted—to build our team through, really, high school products, as far as letting the youngsters get out there and learn how to deal with adversity and now those guys are sophomores and juniors, and next year they’ll be juniors and seniors. It’s just been so reassuring to see things workout."

"He certainly did have a lot of faith in trust in what we were trying to build," Stricklin said. "He saw this coming and he felt very good about where we're going to be this year. Certainly I'm very thankful for that."

Stricklin is in the final two years of his contract. McGarity said a new deal won't be thought about or discussed until the end of the season. Georgia recently finished an extension with head football coach Kirby Smart during the offseason, just a few months removed from the Bulldogs' appearance in the national championship.

If Georgia continues its run and returns to the tournament, Stricklin could very well have a new deal to sign.

It's safe to say fans' excitement levels are rising with comparisons to Georgia's 2008 team.

"You just don’t know. You play 56 games during the season," McGarity said. "There’s so much baseball to be played, and we’re in a great position to have a special season…there’s a lot of work to be done, and we’re very excited about that."

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