Northeast Louisiana/Louisiana–Monroe Laval became head coach of the
Northeast Louisiana Indians (now the Louisiana–Monroe Warhawks) for the 1994 season. Laval led the team to a 241–159 (.603) record, two NCAA tournament appearances, three
Southland Conference regular season championships (1996, 1999, and 2000) and one Southland Conference tournament championship (1995). As a result of this success he attracted the attention of LSU in the wake of Skip Bertman's impending retirement.
LSU LSU hired Laval as an administrative assistant for the baseball team under Bertman in 2001, with the intention of promoting him to head coach succeeding Bertman. Bertman retired at the end of that season having won five national championships and Laval took over head coaching duties in 2002. Expectations were high for the new coach, as one would expect following a legend like Bertman. In 2002 Laval led the Tigers to a 44–22 record and an appearance in a
Super Regional in his first season. Things got even better in 2003, Laval's second season, as he led the team to a 45–22–1 record and their first
Southeastern Conference regular season championship since 1997. He was named the 2003
SEC Coach of the Year. He also led the team to an appearance in the
College World Series as the #2 national seed. However, the Tigers went home after two straight losses. 2004 saw the Tigers compile a 46–19 record and included a return trip to the College World Series. Like the prior year, LSU went 0–2 in the CWS and was eliminated. LSU fans were not used to going winless in Omaha, leading to questions about Laval's ability to maintain the program's elite status. The 2005 Tigers struggled during the regular season but still managed to compile a 40–22 record. The team lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament and did not make an appearance in a Super Regional for the first time ever (Super Regionals began in 1999). Although Laval's first four years were fairly solid, they were below Tiger fans had come to expect. He began feeling pressure from LSU fans and the athletic administration, and it was generally felt that 2006 would be a make-or-break season for him. Unfortunately for Laval, the Tigers had their worst season since 1983, the year before Bertman arrived. The team finished the season with a record of 35–24 and its first losing SEC record in 24 years. They missed the NCAA tournament for the first time in 18 years. Under pressure, Laval officially resigned on June 4, 2006. He finished his career at LSU with a record of 210–109–1 (.658) in five seasons.
Notre Dame coach
Paul Mainieri was hired to replace him. Following his resignation, Laval worked as a scouting adviser for the
Toronto Blue Jays.
North Florida In 2009, the
University of North Florida announced that Laval would succeed Hall of Fame coach
Dusty Rhodes as head coach of the
Ospreys upon Rhodes' retirement. He took over prior to the
2011 season, becoming the second baseball coach in the school's history. He led the team to its first
Atlantic Sun Conference regular season championship in 2015 and was named
Atlantic Sun Conference coach of the year that season. Laval was removed as head coach after the 2017 season.
Yearly record Below is a table of Laval's yearly records as an NCAA head baseball coach. ==Coaching honors==