Those who can do. Those who can’t become head coaches. Maybe that shouldn’t exactly be the axiom, but there is an element of truth in it.

Of the 8 head coaches whose teams are playing in the College World Series, only TCU coach Kirk Saarloos played in Major League Baseball. But all 8 head coaches did play college baseball, mostly at high levels and with some success. A few even played in the College World Series.

So the No. 1 spot is secured, but here’s how the CWS head coaches stack up as players.

8. Tony Vitello, Tennessee

Unlike everybody else on the list, Vitello played very little college baseball. A 3-year member of the Missouri Tigers, Vitello had 60 of his 70 at-bats in his senior season. He hit .229 with no homers and 4 RBIs in his Missouri career. That said, plenty of good came from Vitello’s time as a Tiger, as he quickly moved into the coaching ranks, serving as Max Scherzer’s pitching coach in his mid-20s.

7. Jay Johnson, LSU

Johnson’s coaching resume is impeccable, but as a player, it’s a little shakier. The good news is that Johnson was a good player, an excellent fielding second baseman who hit .326 as a senior. The bad news is that he played at tiny Point Loma Nazarene University, an NAIA school at the time. Point Loma has since moved up to NCAA Division II, although as Johnson’s first head coaching job in 2005, it was then still NAIA.

6. Tom Walter, Wake Forest

Walter was a catcher and outfielder at Georgetown University, where he was a 4-year starter. Walter was a team captain in his junior and senior seasons and earned an all-conference All-Academic team spot as a senior. He wasn’t an MLB Draft pick and did not play professionally, choosing instead to head into coaching, after a brief pitstop as an assistant general manager of the Class A Greensboro Bats.

5. Brian O’Connor, Virginia

O’Connor was an excellent pitcher at Creighton University. He finished his collegiate career with a 20-13 record, 7 saves, and a 3.78 ERA. His starting helped Creighton reach the College World Series in 1991. O’Connor was sharp enough at Creighton to end up as a 29th-round draft pick by the Phillies. He played briefly in rookie league ball, going 3-2 with a 4.28 ERA in 40 innings pitched before moving on from playing into coaching.

O’Connor is 1 of only 2 coaches in this field who guided his team to a College World Series title. He led the Cavaliers to the 2015 title.

4. Ryan Folmar, Oral Roberts

The Angels drafted Folmar in the 46th round in 1993, but he chose to attend Oklahoma State, where he had a stellar career. Folmar reached the College World Series in 1996. In 1995, Folmar earned honorable mention All-Conference status as a sophomore, hitting .306. He was even better as a senior, batting .351 with 8 homers.

After college, he signed with the Colorado Rockies organization and spent 2 seasons in the Rockies’ system, hitting .207 in 121 professional at-bats with a single home run. After his playing days, Folmar became the Director of Baseball Operations at OSU before getting into coaching.

3. Kevin O’Sullivan, Florida

O’Sullivan’s playing path started at Florida Community College, where played for 2 seasons before moving on to the University of Virginia. In 2 seasons as a starting catcher at UVA, O’Sullivan hit .351 and earned All-ACC honors in 1990 and 1991. He wasn’t selected in the MLB Draft, though, and went into coaching, starting back at Florida Community College before again ascending back to Virginia, this time as a pitching coach.

O’Sullivan coached in the Minnesota Twins organization in 1998 but soon moved back into the college game as an assistant coach at Clemson.

He has been Florida’s head coach since 2008 and joins Virginia’s O’Connor as the only coaches in the field who have won a CWS title (2017).

2. David Esquer, Stanford

Esquer hasn’t won a CWS title as a coach, but he’s the only coach in Omaha who won a title as a player.

He was a solid shortstop at Stanford, capping his career by earning a spot on the 1987 All-Tournament team from the College World Seriers. Esquer hit .350 with 6 RBIs in helping Stanford win the CWS title. He parlayed that into a 31st-round draft selection by the Baltimore Orioles. As a pro, Esquer never got above High-A ball in the Angels’ and Brewers’ systems. In 454 professional at-bats, Esquer hit .245 with no home runs.

1. Kirk Saarloos, TCU

Saarloos gets the nod for the highest profile playing resume of any of these CWS head coaches. Pitching at Cal State Fullerton, Saarloos was excellent in 3 seasons out of the bullpen and was good enough as a starter as a senior to become a 3rd-round draft pick in 2001.

Saarloos went 33-12 with a 2.96 ERA at Fullerton. He helped Fullerton reach the CWS in 1999 and 2001 and gave up just 2 runs in 15 1/3 innings pitched once there.

On the professional level, Saarloos was a legitimate big league pitcher, spending 7 MLB seasons with the Astros, Athletics and Reds. Saarloos’ best season was 2005, when he was a member of the A’s starting rotation, going 10-9 with a 4.17 ERA. For his career, Saarloos was 29-30 with a 5.02 ERA.