Terry Burrows’ professional playing career took him to Japan, a country where the concept of death over dishonor is still engrained in the culture.

Whether consciously or not, that mindset played out for Burrows in a figurative sense as he pulled the plug on his coaching career, officially stepping down from his six-year post at the helm of the McNeese baseball program Thursday night.

With voice frequently wavering, Burrows explained his decision in a Friday morning press conference at the school’s Jack Doland Field House.

“It’s been on my mind for awhile. There comes a time when everybody in this profession has to sit back and take a look at yourself. I thought about it and prayed about it and came to the conclusion that it’s best for me right now to walk away,” Burrows said. “The good thing is I’m not going to leave here on a bad note. That’s truly important to me. You never know. You wait another year or two and you could leave with sour grapes. This university means too much to me.”

Burrows entered the season with the sense it might be his last, and made his decision final the night before the regular season-ending series against Southeastern Louisiana. He told the team when they got home from the conference tournament Thursday night.

“Win or lose this year, it was going to be my decision,” Burrows said. “Obviously I would have liked to have won the conference tournament and get out on a good note. But it didn’t work out that way.”

Though the Cowboys had just wrapped up their fifth sub-.500 season under Burrows in his six years, McNeese Athletic Director Tommy McClelland made it clear that his preference was to keep Burrows employed.

“Departures are not easy, whether a person has done well or the administration has made a tough decision. Or in this case, a person has grappled with a decision and it has bothered him for a period of time and you’re invested in that person,” McClelland said.

“You’re trying to absorb the personal and professional things there and determine ‘What’s in the best interest of Terry? What’s in the best interest of the team? How do you make those things coexist?’“ It’s difficult. But we’re supportive of how he chose to go about this. It’s been a pleasure to work with Terry Burrows as our baseball coach.”

McClelland said that while fans only see wins and losses, it was everything Burrows did behind the scenes that made him a valuable asset to McNeese.

“Terry Burrows has done many things to improve our program in six years,” McClelland said. “Coming in, our academic progress rate was one of the worst in the Southland Conference at 885. To date, his APR is at 970. Our facility improvements with the grandstands and pavilion down the left-field line have been overseen with his leadership. Complete renovations of the clubhouse. But more than anything Terry has given his heart and soul to McNeese as a player and a coach.”

The school is opening an immediate search for Burrows’ successor, with Bubbs Merrill running the program in the interim.

“The timeline will go by the philosophy of be quick, but don’t hurry,” said McClelland, echoing the words of John Wooden. “We want to be as swift as we can. We’ve got student-athletes who need that leadership in place.”

Burrows said his biggest regret was not sustaining on-field success. His best season was 2010, when the Cowboys finished 31-27 and went 2-2 at the conference tournament.

“I’d definitely want to change the record, but not the way we went about anything,” Burrows said. “On the field, as a competitor, is the thing you wish you could change more than anything.”

Not surprisingly, Burrows’ best memories weren’t those made in the dugout.

“When you go through that many seasons, you may have some kids who have problems off the field and issues they’ve dealt with. To see them turn it around and get their degree, straighten their life up sometimes (is rewarding),” Burrows said. “The other thing is the friendships you make with the people in this room.”

He will be heading into the private sector, jumping out of the baseball world for the first time in his life.

“There’s two or three opportunities I have that will be outside of baseball,” Burrows said. “It’s time. I’ve had friends that have played and coached. I have a friend still playing at 42 years old. But you know when it’s time. This has been part of my life for 38 years straight. Since I was just learning to walk, I guess.”

Terry Burrows announced his resignation as McNeese State’s head baseball coach on Friday. (Michelle Higginbotham / American Press)

Michelle Higginbotham