Tracy Smith already can tell ASU baseball will open up new recruiting doors

It took all of one day for Tracy Smith to discover the power of the Arizona State baseball brand.

In the first 24 hours since news broke Tuesday that Smith is leaving Indiana for ASU, he said he slept only 3-4 hours because of non-stop phone calls from well wishers including former Sun Devils offering to help in his transition.

"I don't think it's going to take any time at all to make our mark," Smith said Wednesday. "I can already tell you that advantage of just being named coach at ASU is going to get me in doors I've never had the opportunity to recruit."

Smith will be introduced at a press conference Thursday but took some time before that to discuss his decision to leave the Midwest, where he was born and raised, and take a crack at running one of the nation's most successful and historic programs.

"It was a tough decision," the 48-year-old said. "Not the baseball part of it, I felt pretty comfortable with that. But things tug at your heartstrings, the kids in the program, (leaving) my parents, my wife's family. It came down to the bigger regret being if I didn't try it. That's the type of person I am. Life is about taking chances. Once I said I was doing it, it was all systems go."

Smith said his wife Jaime told him to do what would make him happy. His oldest son Casey has graduated from college and plans to work in the West. His middle son Ty is a receiver on the Indiana football team. His youngest son Jack is a junior in high school and three-sport athlete.

Former NFL linebacker Tim Jordan lives in metro Phoenix and as a high-school friend of Jaime has offered helpful advice to the Smiths. Smith's brother-in-law does is involved with ProCamps, whose celebrity athletes include Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald.

Smith said when he was first contacted by ASU, he flashed on a memory of Barry Bonds stealing a base at the College World Series from either 1983 or '84. "I don't know if it was a clip I saw, but I remember seeing him sliding in and popping up."

During his on-campus interview, Smith met with Vice President for Athletics Ray Anderson but not President Michael Crow. He also said he and Don Bocchi, senior associate athletic director, had an immediate chemistry.

In describing Anderson to his wife, Smith said the first word he used was brilliant. "He's a very impressive man. You can tell in five minutes his passion and vision for the school, not just the baseball program or athletics, and that aligns with me and my vision as well."

Smith is leaving behind a new baseball complex -- $19.8-million Bart Kaufman Field, which opened in 2013 -- for Phoenix Municipal Stadium, built in 1964 and upgraded over the years as a spring training home for the San Francisco Giants and most recently Oakland A's. ASU is moving to Phoenix Muni starting next season.

"We bought a house one time that was on the market forever and run down," Smith said. "I saw a castle. I was thinking the same thing when I saw Phoenix Muni. The potential is unlimited, and I think it's going to be one of the top facilities in the country. And if there are any takers in construction that want to move the fences in (345 feet to left and right, 410 to center), it's not going to hurt my feelings."