Money talks, nobody walks.
The rumor mill is spinning faster than a Dillon Tate fastball. Social media is on fire. Message boards are melting down. Text chains are buzzing. Read more: OPINION: Could the Gamecocks really steal Sabins?
The latest chatter suggests WVU Baseball Head Coach Steve Sabins could be headed to South Carolina for a massive SEC payday. I’m talking generational wealth.
Could it happen? Sure. Will it happen? Nobody knows.
Reality check
But here’s what I do know:
Mountaineer Nation needs to take a deep breath.
Because if there is one thing WVU baseball has proven over the last decade, it’s this: the program is bigger than any one coach. That includes Steve Sabins —even Randy Mazey.
Related: Consistent onslaught propels Mountaineers to Super Regional title, Omaha
Let’s start with reality.
If South Carolina comes calling, they’re not showing up with a coupon book.
They’re showing up with SEC money.
The Gamecocks are one of the premier baseball brands in America. They have resources, facilities, NIL money, recruiting advantages. They can pay a coach more than double what most Big 12 programs can afford.
That’s just the reality of college athletics in 2026. Nobody should blame Sabins for listening… assuming he is.
Sabins’ current contract pays him $550,000 per year.
If South Carolina hires Sabins, most industry observers would expect a package somewhere in the neighborhood of $1.2 MM -$1.5MM per year. That’s simply because that’s the SEC market and roughly what South Carolina was already paying the head coach they just jettisoned.
That’s informed speculation, not a reported figure. — but it’s generational wealth.
More than money
The bigger issue may not be salary. WVU recently strengthened Sabins’ contract and increased the buyout provisions, making it more expensive for another school to hire him away.
My read: if South Carolina decides Sabins is its guy, money will not be the obstacle. Going from roughly $550,000 at WVU to well over $1 million in the SEC is a life-changing raise. The real question is whether South Carolina prefers Sabins or Kevin Schnall, because several reports still indicate Schnall is viewed as the frontrunner.
The advantage with Sabins is several marquee players on his current roster could follow him.
But here’s where Mountaineer fans should find comfort:
This isn’t the WVU baseball program of 15 years ago, or a program hoping to make a regional, or a program begging for respect.
This is a national baseball brand that just hosted a Regional and Super Regional, now heading to its first College World Series.
It’s a program that wins 40-plus games a year like clockwork and expects to compete for Omaha every year. That foundation wasn’t built overnight.
The foundation
It was built by former head coach Randy Mazey.
Brick by brick, year by year, recruit by recruit, culture by culture.
Mazey didn’t just win baseball games, he changed expectations.
Before Mazey, making a Regional was a dream. After Mazey, it’s the standard.
That’s why all the panic about Sabins potentially leaving misses the bigger picture.
The infrastructure, facilities, fan support, and recruitment footprint remains.
Most importantly, the winning culture remains.
Now let’s talk about what would happen if Sabins actually took the South Carolina job.
What if?
The biggest issue wouldn’t be replacing the coach. It would be keeping the roster together. That’s college sports today.
Players move almost as quickly as coaches.
Naturally, fans are already speculating about whether key players could follow Sabins to Columbia. Names like Chansen Cole and Gavin Kelly keep coming up in conversations. They’re both incoming juniors and major pieces of WVU’s future.
They would obviously be attractive players for any coach trying to win immediately at a new destination.
But let’s be clear:
There is absolutely no evidence either player is going anywhere. None. Right now it’s pure speculation. Nothing more.
Still, it’s a fair concern because we’ve all seen how the portal works. The good news?
WVU is no longer defenseless in these situations.
And they have an athletic director in Wren Baker who has shown repeatedly he understands how to compete in modern college athletics.
Which brings me to the most interesting possibility of all;
What if South Carolina backs up the Brinks truck, steal Sabins, and get their man?
Further speculation
Then don’t be shocked if Morgantown hears a very familiar name: Randy Mazey.
Sound crazy? Not really.
After all, WVU already brought back Rich Rodriguez. He’s revitalized the football program and energized an entire fan base.
Mazey remains one of the most beloved figures in Mountaineer Athletics.
Related: Everything changed for WVU Baseball 14 years ago
He built the program. He knows every corner and understands the culture. The donors trust him and the fans love him.
Even his son is part of the WVU baseball family, an incoming sophomore.
Would Mazey want to return to the daily grind? Only he knows that answer.
But if the goal is stabilizing the roster, calming the fan base, and preserving momentum, it’s hard to imagine a stronger bridge than the man who built the bridge in the first place.
Maybe Sabins stays, maybe he leaves. Maybe South Carolina hires someone else entirely. We’ll know soon enough.
To Mountaineer nation
Don’t panic and assume the sky is falling.
Don’t forget what the last decade has taught us —WVU Baseball isn’t a one-man show anymore.
It’s a championship-caliber program.
Coach Sabins deserves tremendous credit for continuing what Randy Mazey built. But if South Carolina comes calling and he decides to chase SEC money, the cupboard won’t be bare.
The foundation, culture, and future is strong.
And if there’s one thing we’ve learned in Morgantown, it’s this: Mountaineers always find a way.
Trust the climb. The next chapter will take care of itself.
$550000 is already generational wealth. Stop with the greed.