OMAHA, Neb. -- Mike Martin always wanted his Florida State coaching career to end in Omaha.
He just hoped that his final trip would last a little while longer.
Martin, who is retiring after his 40th season as Florida State's head coach, saw his coaching career come to an end with a 4-1 loss to Texas Tech in Wednesday night's elimination game.
"This is where you want it all to end -- there's no doubt about that," Martin told ESPN's crew during an on-field interview following the game. "It was obviously disappointing, but you've got to tip your hat to Texas Tech. They did a great job."
The Seminoles opened this trip to the College World Series -- the 17th of Martin's career -- with a 1-0 victory against Arkansas on Saturday, but very little went their way after that. They dropped a 2-0 decision to Michigan on Monday and trailed for most of the way against Texas Tech.
Florida State got a solid start from right-hander Conor Grady; he allowed two earned runs on six hits in five innings. But the FSU offense was unable to cash in on numerous opportunities, stranding 10 runners on base.
With the loss, Florida State's season ends with a 42-23 record; the 'Noles won at least 40 games and made the NCAA tournament in all 40 of Martin's seasons as head coach. He retires as the all-time winningest coach in NCAA history -- his 2,029 career victories are the most by any coach in any sport.
This CWS appearance might have been the most unlikely of Martin's career. Midway through the season, the Seminoles appeared to be a longshot to make the postseason, and they ended up being one of the "last four" selected to the NCAA tournament. But they got hot this month, pulling off three straight wins at the Athens, Ga., Regional and then sweeping LSU in the Baton Rouge, La., Super Regional.
In the end, though, the one blemish on Martin's career will be failing to win a national championship in those 17 trips.
"It's no doubt the most difficult, the most unpredictable sport," Martin said of his postseason frustrations. "I mean, who would have ever thought six weeks ago that we would get to Omaha? I'm just so proud of the young men. They're obviously very disappointed now, but what they accomplished just will not go unnoticed."
The attention now will turn to the conclusion of Florida State's head coaching search, as the Seminoles are expected to name Martin's replacement in the coming days. Assistant coach Mike Martin Jr. is believed to be the leading candidate, but several others are said to be in the running, including North Carolina-Greensboro head coach Link Jarrett, Chipola College coach Jeff Johnson and Kansas City Royals assistant Pedro Grifol.
Former FSU assistant and current Florida A&M head coach Jamey Shouppe also has applied.
Stay connected with Warchant.com for complete post-game coverage from Omaha.
