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Kevin O'Sullivan (baseball)

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Kevin O'Sullivan
Florida Head Coach Kevin O'Sullivan
Current position
TitleHead coach
TeamFlorida
ConferenceSEC
Record717–349 (.673)
Annual salary$1.85 million [1]
Biographical details
Born (1968-12-27) December 27, 1968 (age 55)
Goshen, New York, U.S.
Alma materUniversity of Virginia
Playing career
1988–1989FCCJ
1990–1991Virginia
Position(s)Catcher
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1992–1993FCCJ (Asst.)
1994–1995Florida Atlantic (Asst.)
1996–1997Virginia (Asst.)
1998GCL Twins (Asst.)
1999–2007Clemson (Asst.)
2008–presentFlorida
Head coaching record
Overall717–349 (.673)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
NCAA Division I Tournament (2017)

9x NCAA Super Regional (2010–2012, 2015–2018, 2023, 2024)

10x NCAA Regional (2009–2012, 2015–2018, 2023, 2024)

2x SEC Tournament (2011, 2015)

6x SEC Regular Season (2010, 2011, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2023)

7x SEC Eastern Division (2009–2011, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2023)
Awards
3x SEC Coach of the Year (2010, 2014, 2018)

Baseball America Coach of the Year (2011)

D1Baseball.com Coach of the Year (2017)

Skip Bertman Award (2017)

Kevin Michael O'Sullivan (born December 27, 1968) is an American college baseball coach and former player. O'Sullivan is the current head coach of the Florida Gators baseball team of the University of Florida. O'Sullivan is best known for leading the Gators to the program's first College World Series national championship win in 2017. O'Sullivan also led the program to three consecutive appearances in the College World Series from 2010 to 2012 and four consecutive appearances from 2015 to 2018. He became the winningest coach in program history in 2021, surpassing Dave Fuller's 1975 record of 557 wins.[2]

Early years

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O'Sullivan was born December 27, 1968, in Goshen, New York.[3] O'Sullivan attended Jupiter High School in Jupiter, Florida, and played high school baseball for the Jupiter Warriors.

College career

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O'Sullivan was a catcher during his college playing career.[3] He played his freshman and sophomore seasons at Florida Community College in Jacksonville, Florida.[3] After his sophomore year, he transferred to the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia, where he played for the Virginia Cavaliers baseball team during his junior and senior years and was a member of the 1991 Atlantic Coast Conference baseball tournament All-Tournament Team.[3]

O'Sullivan graduated Florida Community College with an associate's degree in 1989, and the University of Virginia with a bachelor's degree in sports medicine in 1991.[3] He later earned a master's degree in exercise science and wellness from Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, Florida.[3]

Coaching career

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In 1997, O'Sullivan managed the Bourne Braves, a collegiate summer baseball team in the prestigious Cape Cod Baseball League, and was named coach of the year.[4] His Bourne team featured future major leaguer Mark Mulder.

On September 1, 1998, O'Sullivan was named an assistant coach at Clemson University.[5]

O'Sullivan accepted the baseball head coaching position at the University of Florida offered by athletics director Jeremy Foley on June 13, 2007, replacing Pat McMahon after the Gators failed to receive an NCAA tournament bid in either 2006 or 2007.[6] Florida is O'Sullivan's first head coaching job; he is the twenty-first head coach in the history of the Gators baseball program.[6] He spent the previous nine seasons as an assistant coach for the Clemson Tigers baseball team of Clemson University under head coach Jack Leggett, first as the Tigers' pitching coach and recruiting coordinator, and later as Leggett's associate head coach.[6][7] During his tenure at Clemson, twenty-nine of the pitchers he coached were selected in the MLB Draft.[6]

In each of his four seasons coaching the Gators, O'Sullivan's teams have improved their overall win–loss record and Southeastern Conference (SEC) standing.[8] In 2008, his first season as the Gators' skipper, the team finished 34–24 overall, 17–13 in SEC play, in second place in the SEC Eastern Division standings and third in the overall SEC standings.[8] In 2009, the Gators compiled an overall record of 42–22, 19–11 in the SEC, in first place in the SEC East.[8] O'Sullivan's 2010 Gators finished with an overall win–loss record of 47–17, 22–8 in SEC play, and SEC regular season champions.[8] In each of his first three seasons, his Gators also showed post-season improvement, too: early elimination in the NCAA Regional in 2008; progressing to the NCAA Super Regional in 2009; and a berth in the College World Series in 2010.[8]

In 2011, the Gators finished the regular season 41–15 overall, 22–8 in the SEC, and SEC regular season co-champions—sharing the regular season conference championship with the South Carolina Gamecocks and Vanderbilt Commodores.[9] After winning the SEC tournament, O'Sullivan's Gators received the No. 2 seed in the 2011 NCAA tournament,[10] and advanced to their second consecutive College World Series,[11] ultimately finishing as the national runner-up.[12]

O'Sullivan has also enjoyed recruiting success: his 2009 recruiting class was ranked No. 1 in the country by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and Baseball America.[13] It was the first time in Gators baseball history that a recruiting class was ranked No. 1.[14]

Through O'Sullivan's first four regular seasons as the Gators' head coach, his Gators teams compiled the best conference win–loss record of 80–40 (.667), just ahead of the South Carolina Gamecocks (75–45) and the Vanderbilt Commodores (65–51).[7]

Personal

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O'Sullivan has one daughter, Payton, born in December 2010, and son, Finn, born in September 2012.[3][7]

Head coaching record

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Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Florida Gators (Southeastern Conference) (2008–present)
2008 Florida 34–24 17–13 2nd (Eastern) NCAA Regional
2009 Florida 42–22 19–11 1st (Eastern) NCAA Super Regional
2010 Florida 47–17 22–8 1st (Eastern) College World Series
2011 Florida 53–19 22–8 T–1st (Eastern) College World Series runner-up
2012 Florida 47–20 18–12 T–2nd (Eastern) College World Series
2013 Florida 29–30 14–16 3rd (Eastern) NCAA Regional
2014 Florida 40–23 21–9 1st (Eastern) NCAA Regional
2015 Florida 52–18 19–11 2nd (Eastern) College World Series semifinals
2016 Florida 52–16 19–10 2nd (Eastern) College World Series
2017 Florida 52–19 21–9 1st (Eastern) College World Series champions
2018 Florida 49–21 20–10 1st (Eastern) College World Series semifinals
2019 Florida 34–26 13–17 5th (Eastern) NCAA Regional
2020 Florida 16–1 0–0 Canceled [n 1] Canceled [n 1]
2021 Florida 38–22 17–13 3rd (Eastern) NCAA Regional
2022 Florida 42–24 15–15 T–2nd (Eastern) NCAA Regional
2023 Florida 54–17 20–10 1st (Eastern) College World Series runner-up
2024 Florida 36–30 13–17 T–4th (Eastern) College World Series semifinals
Florida: 717–349 (.673) 290–189 (.605)
Total: 717–349 (.673)

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ a b Remainder of season was canceled in response to the COVID-19 pandemic

References

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  1. ^ "🚨BREAKING NEWS🚨: Kevin O'Sullivan is staying in Gainesville with a new contract extension". February 12, 2024.
  2. ^ Carter, Scott (March 9, 2021). "Gators Beat Georgia State, O'Sullivan Becomes Program's All-Time Wins Leader". floridagators.com. University Athletic Assoc., Inc., Fox Sports Sun, IMG College. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g GatorZone.com, Baseball Coaching & Support Staff, Kevin O'Sullivan Archived September 2, 2011, at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved June 4, 2011.
  4. ^ Price, Chris (November 27, 1997). "The Cape League Rundown". Barnstable Patriot. Barnstable, MA. p. 14.
  5. ^ "O'Sullivan, Hampton Added to Baseball Staff". www.clemsontigers.com. Clemson University. September 1, 1998. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  6. ^ a b c d Brandon Zimmerman, "UF Selects Baseball Coach Archived 2007-09-22 at the Wayback Machine," Gainesville Sun (June 13, 2007). Retrieved September 23, 2009.
  7. ^ a b c Pat Dooley, "O'Sullivan's travels led him to UF," The Gainesville Sun (June 3, 2011). Retrieved June 4, 2011.
  8. ^ a b c d e 2011 Florida Gators Baseball Media Supplement Archived September 2, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 109 & 112 (2011). Retrieved June 4, 2011.
  9. ^ Robbie Andreu, "Florida baseball claims share of SEC title with blowout Archived 2011-05-23 at the Wayback Machine," The Gainesville Sun (May 21, 2011). Retrieved May 24, 2011.
  10. ^ "Florida draws Miami, Jacksonville and Manhattan in Gainesville Archived 2012-03-11 at the Wayback Machine," The Gainesville Sun (May 31, 2011). Retrieved May 31, 2011.
  11. ^ Kevin Brockway, "Gators make it back to Omaha with comeback win over Bulldogs Archived 2011-06-16 at the Wayback Machine," The Gainesville Sun (June 12, 2011). Retrieved June 12, 2011.
  12. ^ Pat Dooley, "Gators' season ends with sweep by Gamecocks in title series Archived 2012-03-26 at the Wayback Machine," The Gainesville Sun (June 28, 2011). Retrieved July 14, 2011.
  13. ^ "Florida Baseball Recruiting Class Ranked No. 1," GatorZone.com (September 17, 2009). Retrieved September 24, 2009.
  14. ^ "Baseball America Names UF Recruiting Class No. 1," GatorZone.com (October 20, 2009). Retrieved October 20, 2009.
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