Morpheus

From The D1Baseball Podcast

Remembering Skip Bertman with Ben McDonald [D1 Daily]

Published
August 18, 2026
Length
38:02
Starts at
28:47

Audio is streamed from the publisher.

Chapters

Read from the show notes

  1. 0:00 Welcome Back!
  2. 0:19 Welcome to The D1 Daily, Ben McDonald!
  3. 0:53 Youth Baseball Stories From Ben
  4. 5:08 Remembering Skip Bertman
  5. 7:13 Being Recruited by Skip
  6. 9:52 Skip: The Teacher and Motivator
  7. 15:51 Skip’s Vision Changed College Baseball
  8. 18:36 What Made Skip a Closer
  9. 21:10 Skip Sees It Coming
  10. 23:17 Clean Baseball Fundamentals
  11. 24:17 Life Lessons Beyond LSU
  12. 27:37 Ahead Of The Game - Weightlifting
  13. 28:47 A True Five-Tool Coach
  14. 30:32 Gold Touch As An Athletic Director
  15. 31:38 One More Fun (Clean) Story
  16. 37:26 Final Wrap

Not from the publisher — times may be approximate.

On this episode of the D1 Daily, Burkie and Roons welcome Ben McDonald to reflect on the passing and legacy of legendary LSU coach Skip Bertman. The conversation centers on Bertman’s recruiting power, teaching of fundamentals and pitching specifics, individualized motivation, and program-building vision that helped transform LSU and college baseball, including the early adoption of strength, mental skills, and fan-experience initiatives. McDonald shares a final hospital visit with Bertman, plus a defining “tough love” story involving Mark LaRosa that illustrates Bertman’s methods and competitive edge. 00:00 Welcome Back! 00:19 Welcome to The D1 Daily, Ben McDonald! 00:53 Youth Baseball Stories From Ben 05:08 Remembering Skip Bertman 07:13 Being Recruited by Skip 09:52 Skip: The Teacher and Motivator 15:51 Skip’s Vision Changed College Baseball 18:36 What Made Skip a Closer 21:10 Skip Sees It Coming 23:17 Clean Baseball Fundamentals 24:17 Life Lessons Beyond LSU 27:37 Ahead Of The Game - Weightlifting 28:47 A True Five-Tool Coach 30:32 Gold Touch As An Athletic Director 31:38 One More Fun (Clean) Story 37:26 Final Wrap For athletes and sports programs of all levels, AstroTurf has managed the entirety of the synthetic turf manufacturing process for decades. By focusing on quality, safety, and performance, AstroTurf continues to provide customized surfacing solutions for baseball and softball programs across the professional and collegiate ranks, including being the Official Synthetic Turf of MLB®. For more information, please visit https://astroturf.com/ Kerriston Coffee is proud to be the official coffee of D1Baseball. With over 30 years in the business, this family-owned roastery delivers fresh, small-batch coffee made for college baseball fans, coaches, and everyone in between. Kerriston Coffee ships nationwide, and as a listener to The D1Baseball Podcast, you can use code D1 at https://kerristoncoffee.com to receive 15% off your first order! SUBSCRIBE Apple: https://d1ba.se/Pod-Apple Spotify: https://d1ba.se/40Ne9Dq YouTube: https://d1ba.se/yt-sub Is your favorite team in the SEC? Make sure to check out our Highway To Hoover podcast with Joe Healy and Mark Etheridge on Apple Podcasts: https://d1ba.se/h2h-apple or Spotify: https://d1ba.se/41nyqSv Or maybe you're a fan of ACC baseball? Then you need to check out the ACC Baseball Etc. podcast with Daron Vaught and Bradley Smart on Apple Podcasts: https://d1ba.se/etc-apple or Spotify: https://d1ba.se/4tBUuF9 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.