Teaching was almost predetermined in Sean McNally's world.
The son of history teachers, McNally earned degrees in history and political science from Duke in 1994. He says he'd probably be teaching history today had it not been for his excellence in another arena -- baseball.
McNally was a four-year starter and two-year captain for the Blue Devils from 1991 to 1994. After 12 years playing and coaching professionally, he returned to Durham in the summer of 2005 as head coach for the Duke baseball team.
Though he never made it to a traditional classroom, McNally, who played third base at Duke, is still a teacher, and he relishes the role.
"That's the other component that's a really neat part of this job -- I get a chance to teach," McNally said recently in his office under the bleachers at Jack Coombs Field. "I'm teaching baseball. That's probably the most fun that I have."
McNally emphasizes his players' academic development, in addition to their on-field progress. As he sees it, no one can be lax in one area and expect to excel in the other. This approach has proved endearing to his players.
"It's definitely nice to have somebody that you're playing for who takes as much pride in the school and the baseball program as you do," said senior Jonathan Anderson. "You understand he played here and everything means a lot to him, so you want to show him the respect."
Before returning to Duke as baseball coach a year-and-a-half ago, McNally spent the three previous years coaching in the Cleveland Indians organization. He began to wonder what his career path might be. He was unsure if he wanted to remain a coach, become a scout or move into the front office.
When he accepted the job at Duke, he got the opportunity to do all three.
"In pro ball, everything is segmented," said McNally, 34. "You're either on the field, scouting in the stands or you're a front-office guy. At the college level, you get to combine all three. It's forced me to grow much more than I would have in pro ball doing one specific thing in one area."
The Blue Devils went 15-40 in McNally's first season (6-24 in the ACC). They have not won an ACC championship or reached the College World Series since 1961. But his team, which began play Feb. 10, is young. The Blue Devils feature 10 freshmen, five sophomores, six juniors and two seniors.
"Some days we'll come out and play great and other days you don't know," McNally said. "I know we'll be excited, energetic and ready to go every single day."