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Mike Bianco's son committed to LSU baseball and no, you shouldn't be angry about it

Ole Miss' head coach decided long ago that he didn't want his sons playing college ball under him, so put away those #FireBianco hashtags and settle down.

By Jeff Gray
Josh McCoy/Ole Miss Athletics

Drew Bianco is a talented middle infielder for Oxford High School who currently ranks as the 99th best player nationally in the 2018 recruiting class by Perfect Game. He's also the son of Ole Miss baseball coach Mike Bianco.

Which is why there are gonna be some Rebel fans stirred up to hear that Drew, who's slugging .588 the country's 14th-ranked team, just committed to play his college ball in Baton Rouge.

This comes just three days after Ole Miss took a critical SEC West series from the Tigers in Oxford.

A bunch of Ole Miss fans right now, probably: "THAT DAMN BIANCO CAN'T EVEN CROOT HIS OWN SON!"

But Mike actually doesn't want his son to play for him.

In a recent interview with RebelGrove.com, the senior Bianco said that he and his wife decided 15 years ago that they didn't want any of their boys (Drew's brother, Ben, is a year older and also being recruited by top-flight programs) playing under their dad.

I'd like them to go somewhere where they make it or don't and sink or swim on their own. They don't have to be the coach's son. You're not playing because you're the coach's son and you didn't fail because you're the coach's son. Let them be Drew Bianco and Ben Bianco and (youngest son) Sam Bianco.

I've always gone back to if they're good enough to play here they are good enough to play anywhere. I want them to make their marks on their own. I don't want them to always be the coach's son in the different areas of their college life... When they are 10 years old playing in Tupelo or Jackson, and they have Bianco on the back of their jersey. There are advantages to it, but there are also disadvantages. The point is that's coach Bianco's boy. Coming here they never get away from that.

Did it, like, have to be LSU though?

Vanderbilt and Louisville were also in the mix (Louisville is coached by Dan McDonnell, a former Ole Miss assistant who remains close to Bianco and his family), so it certainly would have been cool with Rebel fans if Mike had steered his son away from a division rival.

But credit Mike for not letting selfish reasons interfere with letting Drew make his own decision. LSU is a one of the nation's top programs and it's a prudent move for anyone trying to further their baseball career. And keep in mind that Mike himself played college ball in Baton Rouge.

But hey, Drew is only a sophomore, so there's still plenty of time to #FireBianco and keep his son in Oxford, right?