Wake Forest Athletics
Terry Rooney Joins Wake Forest as Director of Baseball Recruiting
7/8/2026 4:55:00 PM | Baseball
Rooney joins the Demon Deacons having put together numerous top recruiting classes throughout his career.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Head coach Tom Walter added a key member to his 2027 staff with the announcement of Terry Rooney as Director of Baseball Recruiting on Wednesday afternoon.
"The addition of Terry Rooney to our staff is a major coup for Wake Forest baseball," head coach Tom Walter said. "Terry was an integral part of LSU's National Championship runs in 2009 and 2025 and is relentless in his pursuit of identifying and helping to acquire elite talent. We are thrilled that he, Shaun and Milly will be joining us in Winston-Salem."
As Recruiting Coordinator, Rooney will look to build upon Wake Forest Baseball's recent recruiting success, as the Demon Deacons have produced a top-10 recruiting class in each year since 2024, according to Perfect Game.
Rooney spent the last two years as Pitching Coach/Recruiting Coordinator at South Carolina. During the past season, the Gamecocks had a 4.81 ERA, which was ninth in the SEC.
"I'm incredibly grateful for the opportunity to join Wake Forest Baseball," Rooney said. "I want to thank Coach Walter for his trust and belief in me. I'm excited to get to work alongside this talented coaching staff and outstanding group of student-athletes, and I look forward to helping recruit and develop future Demon Deacons."
Rooney came to Columbia after working at LSU as the Associate Director of Program Development and Recruiting during the 2024 season.
Rooney returned to LSU, where he worked as pitching coach/recruiting coordinator under Coach Mainieri for two seasons (2007-08). Rooney helped lead the Tigers to a berth in the 2008 College World Series, and he assembled the nation's No. 1 recruiting class that contributed significantly to LSU's 2009 National Championship team.
Rooney worked as the pitching coach/recruiting coordinator at Purdue for two seasons (2022-23).
Over the course of Rooney's career, he has mentored 14 pitchers who went on to reach the big leagues. He's also coached 20 pitchers who were selected in the first 10 rounds of the MLB Draft, most recently Houston's Robert Gasser – a second-round pick in 2021.
As an assistant at Old Dominion during the 2000 and 2001 seasons, he recruited and signed future American League MVP and Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander.
Rooney worked under Mainieri as Notre Dame's pitching coach from 2004-06, and he joined Mainieri's staff at LSU in the summer of 2006. Rooney helped lead the Tigers in 2008 to the College World Series in a season that included a school-record 23-game win streak.
Rooney's first recruiting class at LSU, signed in the fall of 2007, featured future All-Americans such as infielder DJ LeMahieu, catcher Micah Gibbs and pitcher Anthony Ranaudo, which was rated No. 1 in the nation and played a major role in the Tigers' run to the 2009 College World Series title.
Rooney left LSU after the 2008 season to become the head coach at UCF, where he was the 2014 American Athletic Conference Coach of the Year.
Highlighted by a 45-win campaign and an NCAA Regional bid in 2012, Rooney led UCF to 261 victories over eight seasons as head coach from 2009 to 2016. After the Knights moved to the AAC for the 2013-14 school year, he earned Coach of the Year honors when his 36-win team went 17-7 in league play.
UCF's No. 6 national ranking in 2015 was its highest in program history. His 2010 recruiting class was ranked as high as fourth nationally by Collegiate Baseball, another program best.
Rooney worked as the associate head coach/pitching coach at Alabama in 2016, before coaching at the University of Houston from 2017-21. With Rooney as the pitching coach and recruiting coordinator at Houston, the Cougars produced the 2018 AAC Pitcher of the Year (Aaron Fletcher) and 2019 AAC Newcomer Pitcher of the Year (Devon Roedahl). Rooney also helped assemble the No. 1-ranked class of junior college recruits.
Rooney reunited with Purdue coach Greg Goff – with whom Rooney worked at Alabama – in 2021 as the Boilermakers' recruiting coordinator, and he also worked as Purdue's pitching coach in 2023.
Prior to joining Mainieri at Notre Dame in 2003, Rooney had served as an assistant coach at Stetson (2002-03), James Madison (1998-99) and George Washington (1997). In every stop in his career, he has been involved in some capacity with the pitching staff and/or recruiting.
Rooney pitched collegiately at Radford, appearing in 79 games over three seasons, a total that still ranks top five in RU history. He earned his bachelor's degree in social science in 1996. Rooney and his wife, Shaun, are the parents of a daughter, Milly Margaret.
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"The addition of Terry Rooney to our staff is a major coup for Wake Forest baseball," head coach Tom Walter said. "Terry was an integral part of LSU's National Championship runs in 2009 and 2025 and is relentless in his pursuit of identifying and helping to acquire elite talent. We are thrilled that he, Shaun and Milly will be joining us in Winston-Salem."
As Recruiting Coordinator, Rooney will look to build upon Wake Forest Baseball's recent recruiting success, as the Demon Deacons have produced a top-10 recruiting class in each year since 2024, according to Perfect Game.
Rooney spent the last two years as Pitching Coach/Recruiting Coordinator at South Carolina. During the past season, the Gamecocks had a 4.81 ERA, which was ninth in the SEC.
"I'm incredibly grateful for the opportunity to join Wake Forest Baseball," Rooney said. "I want to thank Coach Walter for his trust and belief in me. I'm excited to get to work alongside this talented coaching staff and outstanding group of student-athletes, and I look forward to helping recruit and develop future Demon Deacons."
Rooney came to Columbia after working at LSU as the Associate Director of Program Development and Recruiting during the 2024 season.
Rooney returned to LSU, where he worked as pitching coach/recruiting coordinator under Coach Mainieri for two seasons (2007-08). Rooney helped lead the Tigers to a berth in the 2008 College World Series, and he assembled the nation's No. 1 recruiting class that contributed significantly to LSU's 2009 National Championship team.
Rooney worked as the pitching coach/recruiting coordinator at Purdue for two seasons (2022-23).
Over the course of Rooney's career, he has mentored 14 pitchers who went on to reach the big leagues. He's also coached 20 pitchers who were selected in the first 10 rounds of the MLB Draft, most recently Houston's Robert Gasser – a second-round pick in 2021.
As an assistant at Old Dominion during the 2000 and 2001 seasons, he recruited and signed future American League MVP and Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander.
Rooney worked under Mainieri as Notre Dame's pitching coach from 2004-06, and he joined Mainieri's staff at LSU in the summer of 2006. Rooney helped lead the Tigers in 2008 to the College World Series in a season that included a school-record 23-game win streak.
Rooney's first recruiting class at LSU, signed in the fall of 2007, featured future All-Americans such as infielder DJ LeMahieu, catcher Micah Gibbs and pitcher Anthony Ranaudo, which was rated No. 1 in the nation and played a major role in the Tigers' run to the 2009 College World Series title.
Rooney left LSU after the 2008 season to become the head coach at UCF, where he was the 2014 American Athletic Conference Coach of the Year.
Highlighted by a 45-win campaign and an NCAA Regional bid in 2012, Rooney led UCF to 261 victories over eight seasons as head coach from 2009 to 2016. After the Knights moved to the AAC for the 2013-14 school year, he earned Coach of the Year honors when his 36-win team went 17-7 in league play.
UCF's No. 6 national ranking in 2015 was its highest in program history. His 2010 recruiting class was ranked as high as fourth nationally by Collegiate Baseball, another program best.
Rooney worked as the associate head coach/pitching coach at Alabama in 2016, before coaching at the University of Houston from 2017-21. With Rooney as the pitching coach and recruiting coordinator at Houston, the Cougars produced the 2018 AAC Pitcher of the Year (Aaron Fletcher) and 2019 AAC Newcomer Pitcher of the Year (Devon Roedahl). Rooney also helped assemble the No. 1-ranked class of junior college recruits.
Rooney reunited with Purdue coach Greg Goff – with whom Rooney worked at Alabama – in 2021 as the Boilermakers' recruiting coordinator, and he also worked as Purdue's pitching coach in 2023.
Prior to joining Mainieri at Notre Dame in 2003, Rooney had served as an assistant coach at Stetson (2002-03), James Madison (1998-99) and George Washington (1997). In every stop in his career, he has been involved in some capacity with the pitching staff and/or recruiting.
Rooney pitched collegiately at Radford, appearing in 79 games over three seasons, a total that still ranks top five in RU history. He earned his bachelor's degree in social science in 1996. Rooney and his wife, Shaun, are the parents of a daughter, Milly Margaret.
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