Coach Danny Hall helps fill Wake Forest HC job

Wake Forest hires Rick Rembielak, on the recommendation of Danny Hall. Story here.

Wellman said that one of the first calls he made when the search began was to Danny Hall, the head coach for Georgia Tech. That proved to be a fortunate break for Rembielak, who has known Hall for 25 years. Hall was the graduate assistant at Miami (Ohio) in 1979, when Rembielak was a freshman there. When his professional career was over, Rembielak joined Hall at Kent State.

After serving as an assistant under Hall for six seasons, Rembielak ascended to the head job in 1994 when Hall left to become head coach at Georgia Tech.

"Danny was one of the first people I called, to run names by him," Wellman said. "He was very honest with me. Mike Martin (of Florida State) and Danny were very helpful. Jack Leggett (of Clemson) helped an awful lot."

Hall, not surprisingly, endorsed Wellman's decision.

"I think Wake Forest made a great choice in Rick Rembielak," Hall said in a statement released by the Wake Forest Sports Information Department. "They are getting a great coach who established Kent State as one of the premier programs in the Mid-American Conference and the Midwest.

"He has had several high draft picks under his watch and he has done a great job in developing talent. Wake Forest is getting a great coach, a great person and a great family. I am extremely excited for him and his new opportunity."

Sources have said that Rembielak will hire Jon Palmieri as an assistant coach, a report that neither Wellman or Rembielak denied. Palmieri, an assistant at Georgia Tech, was a two-time All-America at Wake Forest and left in 1999 as the Deacons' all-time leader with 230 runs, 338 hits, 82 doubles and 241 RBIs.