LSU baseball player keeps positive mindset during pandemic

HOUMA, La. (AP) - The spring months are usually busy for former Houma Christian School and current LSU baseball player Gavin Dugas.

In past seasons, Dugas would spend most of his days playing baseball this time of year.

But the COVID-19 coronavirus has kept Dugas off the baseball diamond for now.

As the virus spread across the nation in March, the NCAA canceled all winter and spring sports seasons for the rest of the current 2019-20 academic year, ending LSU’s baseball season earlier than expected.

It has left college athletes like Dugas with rare free time on their hands. He has used it to spend time with his family and start preparing for next season.

“You get used to being back at home and enjoying time with my family as much I can,” Dugas said. “I’m just taking advantage of this because you never know when baseball is going to pick up again. You just have to stay ready for it. I’m just controlling everything I can control and having a positive mindset.”

Dugas, a sophomore who plays both infield and outfield positions at LSU, played in 13 of LSU’s 17 baseball games this season.

He got off to a slow start this season and missed a week due to concussion symptoms that came from being hit on the head from a pitch earlier this year.

But as the season progressed, Dugas was cleared by team doctors to return to action. He started to showcase his big swing ability as a hitter in LSU’s lineup.

He had his best performance of the season with two home runs in a 6-4 win over UMass-Lowell at Alex Box Stadium/Skip Bertman Field in Baton Rouge on March 8.

Dugas said he had the right mental approach at the plate that day and he was able to lift his team to an important win. The Tigers finished with five hits and Dugas contributed to two of them.

“That was very exciting,” Dugas said. “That’s definitely something you always hope to do as a baseball player for your team. Thank God I was able to swing it that well on that day. I was able to help my team win the best I possibly could.”

After the game, LSU head baseball coach Paul Mainieri praised Dugas’ efforts.

“Thank goodness for Gavin Dugas,” Mainieri told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “Otherwise, we’d probably be going home tonight not feeling too good about our hitting.”

The Tigers played one more game against South Alabama on March 11. Dugas went 2-for-4 in a 4-1 win for LSU, improving their overall record to 12-5.

It ended up being LSU’s final baseball game this season. The Tigers were scheduled to play their Southeastern Conference senior opener against Ole Miss on March 13 in Oxford, Miss., but just two days earlier, the NCAA canceled the rest of the season due to the virus.

Dugas, who finished the limited season with .286 batting average to go with eight hits, six runs, three home runs, five RBIs and four walks, said he was upset when the news broke about the season ending early.

“It’s been a very tough situation,” Dugas said. “It was a little frustrating. I started getting into a little groove. We kind of got on a little roll there in the season. I think we had a five-game winning streak at that time. We were starting to figure it out. We were all starting to click together. It was something we were really excited about going forward. I think we were going to have a special run after that but unfortunately the season was canceled. It is what it is at this point.”

Dugas said he can’t wait to return to action next season.

Although he can’t work out at LSU facilities right now due to the virus, Dugas said he has talked with Tigers hitting coach Eddie Smith to focus on areas of his game that he wants to improve.

“I want to get the right mindset of what I need to focus on for the next couple of months,” Dugas said. “I just want to work on staying strong defensively and working on my reps at bat. I just want to continue to work. I want to spend a lot of this time on preparation for the game.”

Due to a NCAA’s recent ruling that granted one-year of eligibility for student-athletes in spring sports, Dugas won’t lose his second season at LSU. He’ll return as a sophomore next year, which he said was a huge benefit for the LSU’s senior class.

“It’s just amazing,” Dugas said. “It’s a great thing. We have great senior leadership. It’s going to be great to have them back and have another chance to finish the season.”

Dugas said he is living out his dream by getting to play “in front of the best fans in the country” at LSU. He can’t wait to return to action when the games start up again next year.

“It’s definitely something I thank God for,” Dugas said. “It was always my dream to do this. It’s a blessing to be able to continue to do what I love. I can’t wait for next season. It’s going to be exciting.”

SHOWING OFF HIS ACTING SKILLS

Because of the virus shut down, Dugas has enjoyed some free time to show off his acting ability and comedy skills.

On April 5, he posted a video on his Twitter page @gavin_dugas04 entitled “COVID-19 football highlight reel. Just a kid chasing a dream.” It features Dugas doing various football workouts while wearing a LSU helmet.

The song “No Easy Way Out” by Robert Tepper is played in the background as Dugas works out in the video. The song was part of the Rocky IV soundtrack released in 1985.

LSU softball player Claire Weinberger, who is Dugas’ girlfriend, helped him create the video and is seen showcasing her strong arm by throwing him passes with a football.

As of Tuesday afternoon, the video has gone viral with over 71.5 thousand views, 151 retweets and over 1.4 thousand likes.

Dugas said he showed the video to family and friends first before sharing it on social media. He said it was a great way to pass time and put some smiles on people’s faces.

“We ended up making the video and they liked it,” Dugas said. “We decided to post it and see what it would do. It’s kind of gotten a little more attention than I expected it to. It’s great to be able to do something fun like that.”