Can Wes Johnson have the Diamond Dawgs make a jump in year one?

The Georgia Bulldogs’ Baseball season will kick off in just 29 days as the Diamond Dawgs will kick off their season in a three game series at Foley Field against the Bulldogs of UNC Asheville. The Diamond Dawgs are coming into this season with a lot of excitement and flash as they have recently received brand new locker rooms and facilities that are a part of the 45 million dollar renovation to Foley field with everything expected to be completed by 2025. Along with the upgrades in facilities, the Dawgs also made a hopeful upgrade at the Head Coaching position as Georgia will now be led by first year head coach Wes Johnson.

Johnson takes over a Georgia program that finished with an overall record of 29-27 along with going just 11-19 in SEC play as it was just not an acceptable season for a program looking to be legitimate contenders in the conference as it led to the firing of Scott Stricklin. Though this will be Johnson’s first Collegiate head coaching job, he is well aware of what it takes to win in the SEC as he has been the Pitching coach for Mississippi State, Arkansas, and most recently LSU as he was a part of the 2023 National Championship staff. Johnson has a chance to build up quiet the roster at Georgia as some of the best talent on the diamond can be found within the state as there are currently over 50 players in the Major Leagues from the state of Georgia as keeping talent in state is a top priority. The biggest thing Johnson can bring to the table will be a winning culture along with his development of Pitchers as he most recently coached the first overall pick of the 2023 MLB draft, right handed pitcher Paul Skenes along with having two other pitchers drafted in the top 51.

Luckily for Johnson, he has inherited a solid Georgia roster which happens to include star Utility player, Charlie Condon. Condon is the best pure hitter that this Georgia program has seen in a while or maybe ever as he is expected to be a top 15 pick in the 2024 MLB draft. Condon put together a historical Redshirt-Freshman season for the Diamond Dawgs as he posted a .386 batting average, 25 home runs, and 67 RBI’s as he led the team in all three categories as he was named a Freshman All-American and Collegiate Baseball Freshman of the year. Though it will be tough, Condon is expected to produce similar or even better numbers in 2024 as he has the chance to put together a historical season.

From the addition of facilities and head coach Wes Johnson all the way to having a legitimate first rounder in Charlie Condon, 2024 should be one of the more interesting and exciting seasons for the Georgia Diamond Dawgs!