A five-time Atlantic Sun Conference Coach of the Year, head coach Dave Tollett enters his 23rd season at the helm of the seven-time ASUN champion FGCU baseball program in 2025. He was named the program’s first-ever head coach in August of 2001.

Under Tollett’s guidance, the Eagles made the transition into the Division I ranks by winning three straight ASUN regular season titles from 2008-10 and posting 112 wins in their first three years. En route to the conference championships, FGCU went 73-20 in the ASUN – the most conference wins by any team in the country over that span. FGCU has had 11 All-Americans during Tollett's time at the helm.

Tollett’s blue collar coaching style has helped quickly build FGCU into one of the rising programs in the country. Over his 21 seasons as head coach, Tollett has accumulated a record of 743-452-3 with at least 25 wins in 21 seasons and seven conference titles, which most recently includes the 2024 regular season title. The Eagles have won 94 of the 134 ASUN three-game series since joining the league in 2008, including all 10 in 2010.

Player development has also been prominent in the program’s history, as 52 players and signees have gone on to be drafted in the MLB Draft or signed as a free agent. In the summer of 2010, Collegiate Baseball National Player of the Year Chris Sale and Casey Coleman became the first Eagles in the Major League – separated by just two days. Sale’s ascent into the majors began when he was selected by the Chicago White Sox with the No. 13 overall pick in the 2010 MLB Draft. Coleman, a 15th round selection by the Cubs in 2008, became the first FGCU player in the MLB on August 2, when he was called up from Triple-A Iowa. Since then, former pitchers Richard Bleier and Jacob Barnes have also made their MLB debuts for the New York Yankees and Milwaukee Brewers, respectively, less than a week apart during the 2016 season. In 2019, Jake Noll became the first-ever position player in FGCU history to make it to the show. The infielder, who was selected in the seventh round of the 2016 MLB Draft by the Washington Nationals, shined during the 2019 spring training camp and was called up despite never making an appearance above the Double-A level. In 2021, Kutter Crawford become the sixth Eagle in the pros when he joined Sale in Red Sox rotation. In 2023, Edrick Felix, Mason Miller, and Jason Woodward were each drafted. Alejandro Rodriguez and LJ McDonough each signed free agent contracts. In 2024, Ian Farrow and Davian Garcia were each drafted, while Jacob Lojewski signed a free agent deal.

One of Tollett's best coaching jobs came in the 2024 season. The Eagles would go 27-26** for the year, including a 17-10** mark in ASUN play to clinch a share of the ASUN regular season championship. A major part of the improvement came by shifting Davian Garcia to the Friday night starter's role on the mound. Garcia would thrive, posting a 4-0 record against ASUN foes as a starter in the regular season en route to a First Team All-ASUN selection. Joining him on the first team would be Ian Farrow, who also earned Second Team All-American status from the ABCA and First Team All-South Region status. The Eagles would reach the semifinal round of the ASUN championship before bowing out.

The 2023 saw the Eagles go 20-18**. The trio of Felix, Alejandro Figueredo, and Joe Kinker were each named All-Americans by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association following the conclusion of the season. The Green & Blue had a ranked road series win over in-state foe Florida State University and catapulted FGCU to a No. 15 national ranking and to an ASUN Tournament championship game appearance. Felix, who became the program's first-ever ASUN Player of the Year, smashed a single-season record of 25 home runs. ASUN First Team honoree Figueredo sent 23 balls over the wall, and ASUN First Team Kinker added 19 to the Eagles' cause. Kinker's 61 career home runs broke Rivera's (2013-17) record of 46. Felix led the ASUN in home runs and in RBI (83). Figueredo's homer tally of 23 tied for second. Kinker was second across conference in RBI with 77, helping the Green & Blue snap its single-season record of runs scored (578). Statistically, the Eagles led all of NCAA D-I in runs per game (9.6), slugging percentage (.592) and home runs per game (2.37).

Also in 2023, Tollett and the FGCU program reached a milestone with the 700th win for the coach and for the program. In an Apr. 23 contest against Jacksonville State, the Eagles broke the program record for home runs in a season. Kinker and Lojewski each hit a homer, while Felix went 5-for-5 with two doubles, a triple, two RBI and two runs scored.

The 2022 season brought back a sense of normalcy after two years dealing with COVID and the Eagle got right back to their winning ways as they went 35-23, their most wins since the magical 2017 season. In the ASUN, the Eagles went 17-13 which included going 6-0 against Stetson as well as two series wins over Kennesaw State. FGCU's biggest win of the year came near the end of the season as they defeated #5 Miami, 7-3. The Eagles had five players named All-ASUN as Figueredo and Kinker earned spots on the first team, Brian Ellis and Ian Farrow on the second team, and Harrison Povey on the All-Freshman team. On the national stage, Figueredo became the sixth Eagle in their Division I era to be named an All-American as he earned third-team honors from Collegiate Baseball News while Povey was named just the second NCBWA Freshman All-American in program history. Ellis also made history as he was selected as the first baseball player in FGCU history to be named a CoSIDA Academic All-American, earning a spot on the third team.

In 2021, the Eagles took home the ASUN South Division title as they went 12-6 in conference play to go along with a 28-20 overall record. Richie Garcia and Brian Ellis were each named to the All-ASUN First Team while Mason Studstill and Joe Kinker earned spots on the second team. Studstill also earned a spot on the ASUN All-Academic Team. The Green and Blue had great success against some of their rivals as they went 6-0 against South Florida while also picking up an 8-7 win in Tallahassee over 17th-ranked Florida State.

Though the 2020 season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was highlighted by Tollett achieving his 600th career win during the home-opener over Kent State. Tollett, whose .624 career win-loss percentage ranks 30th among active NCAA DI coaches went on to finish the 16-game season with 608 wins, which sits within the nation's top 50. In his 18th season at the helm, the skipper also saw his Eagles pick up the program's 22nd win over a nationally-ranked opponent, as the Eagles downed No. 22 Pepperdine at Swanson Stadium in the first-ever meeting between the two programs. Tollett was also instrumental in securing a $1 million gift from former FGCU pitcher and current Boston Red Sox ace Chris Sale. The gift allowed the Eagles to build a brand-new, high-definition Daktronics video board at Swanson Stadium, which was ranked as one of the best ballparks in collegiate baseball prior to the new addition. 

The 2019 season was one for the books, as the Eagles opened up the first ten games of the season outscoring their opponents 93-26. The team notched a win over No. 5 Florida in Gainesville at the start of the season, holding a Gator offense that was averaging 14.6 runs over its last five games to just two. The team won six of its eight conference series match ups and did not drop a single ASUN series at Swanson Stadium. The Eagles matched their best performance by sweeping three conference teams. With the 2019 ASUN regular season title on the line, the Green and Blue took two-of-three against Liberty to secure the crown. Tollett was named ASUN Coach of the Year for the fifth time in his career and six student-athletes were named to postseason teams, including a program-high two on the All-Academic Team. The Eagles had two players selected in the 2019 MLB Draft, as senior Evan Lumbert (24th rd., 714th pick) was picked up by the Giants and junior Keegan Collett (35th rd., 1043rd pick) was signed by the Padres. 

2018 started off strong for the Green and Blue, boasting one of the nation's top offenses. The Eagles hit over .300 as a team through the first half of the season, scoring nearly 8 runs per game. FGCU strung together a nine-game winning streak, including a 1-0 win over Miami at Swanson Stadium, the program's third win in four tries against the Hurricanes. After staying near the top of the ASUN standings through two of the first three series, FGCU stumbled late, missing out on the ASUN Tournament despite finishing the season 32-21. Christian Proffitt was named the team's third ASUN Freshman of the Year in program history.

Tollett's 2017 season was the most successful in program history as the Green and Blue won a program record 43 games, claimed the program's first ASUN Tournament Championship, and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time. After starting the season 24-3 and defeating then #2 and eventual National Champion Florida, then #1 FSU and Miami in the same season for the first time ever, FGCU rose to as high as #9 in the Collegiate Baseball News poll - marking the highest ranking ever achieved by any athletics program in school history. Following the hot start to the season, Tollett was named the Perfect Game Midseason Coach of the Year. The Green and Blue suffered a number of tough losses in April, but ended the regular season by sweeping its way through its final three conference series and earned the No. 3 seed in the ASUN Tournament. After falling into the loser's bracket following a loss on day two, FGCU won an improbable four elimination games in less than 30 hours and defeated top-seeded Jacksonville twice, including an extra-inning thriller in the winner-take-all championship. With the ASUN's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament in hand, the Eagles earned the No. 2 seed in the Chapel Hill Regional and defeated No. 3 Michigan, 10-6, in its first-ever NCAA Tournament game.

Tollett re-assumed pitching coach duties and oversaw a much-improved staff that lowered its ERA from 5.33 in 2016 to 3.72 in 2017 - led by junior ace Kutter Crawford's mark of 1.71 that ranked ninth in the country. The season also saw Nick Rivera become the third ASUN Player of Year in program history, while Richie Garcia was named the second ASUN Freshman of the Year. Rivera was also named a Perfect Game/Rawlings Third-Team All-American, and Garcia earned Collegiate Baseball News Freshman All-American honors. 

During the 2016 season, the Eagles turned in a 27-32 (9-11) record before getting hot in the postseason and making the program's first appearance in the ASUN championship game despite dropping their opener against No. 2 UNF. Without two-time All-American Jake Noll in the lineup, No. 5 FGCU rattled off wins against No. 1 Kennesaw State, No. 4 Lipscomb and UNF before ultimately dropping the championship game in dramatic fashion to No. 6 Stetson. During the regular season, FGCU notched a win at No. 4 FSU for the second straight season as Noll and fellow ASUN First-Teamer Tyler Selesky combined for a trio of home runs to lead the Eagles to an 11-8 extra-inning victory. FGCU also earned a trio of walk-off wins against No. 16 FAU and in a pair of games against conference newcomer NJIT.

Tollett guided FGCU to a 30-26-1 (11-9) record during the 2015 season as the team made its second consecutive appearance in the semifinals of the ASUN Conference Championship. The Eagles recorded a pair of marquee road wins during the season as they defeated #13 Miami by a score of 8-1 and shut out #7 FSU 5-0. Nick Rivera was named a Louisville Slugger All-American and first first team all-conference selection. Brady Anderson, Jake Noll and Tyler Selesky joined Rivera as second-team selections, while Matt Reardon and Zach Spivey were named to the all-freshman team. 

Tollett earned his fourth ASUN Coach of the Year honor in 2014 when he led the Green and Blue to its fourth and most recent regular season conference championship with a 39-22 (19-8) record. The Eagles made nearly a clean sweep of the ASUN postseason awards as Mike Murray was named the Pitcher of the Year and Jake Noll was named the Freshman of the Year. Additionally, both were named Louisville Slugger All-Americans while Noll was also named the National Freshman of the Year. Outfielder Michael Suchy joined the duo as a first team all-conference selection. 

The 2013 Eagles posted a 37-20 overall record with a 19-8 mark against ASUN competition. Ricky Knapp earned First Team Honors along with teammates Brandon Bednar (unanimous) and Sean Dwyer. Michael Suchy would receive Second Team Honors while Michael Murray and Nick Rivera were selected to the All-Freshman Team. FGCU would go 0-2 in the ASUN Tournament. Following the season, the Green and Blue would see seven players chosen in the 2013 Major League Baseball draft.  

The 2012 season saw coach Tollett produce his third ASUN Pitcher of the Year in the last five years as Ricky Knapp took home the honor. The Eagles finished the season with a 26-31 (15-12 ASUN) record, and won five of their last six ASUN games to make the ASUN Tournament. FGCU advanced to Day Four of the tournament before falling to Kennesaw State. The Eagles had three members on the ASUN All-Freshmen team including Brady Anderson, Zach Tillery and Kirby Retzer.  

In the 2011 season, Tollett led FGCU to a 27-28 (16-14 ASUN) record. The Eagles had two players honored in 2011 as Mikel Alvarez was named to the All-ASUN Second Team and Ricky Knapp earned All-Freshman team honors.  

Coach Tollett earned his third-straight ASUN Coach of the Year award as he guided the Eagles to their third consecutive conference championship during the 2010 season with an ASUN record of 25-5. Chris Sale was named the ASUN Pitcher of the Year as he helped FGCU lead the ASUN in team ERA at 5.33. The Eagles had four players earn All-Atlantic Sun First Team honors including Chris Sale, Pete Woodworth, Mikel Alvarez and Stephen Wickens.    

During the 2009 season, Tollett was named the Atlantic Sun Coach of the Year after leading the Eagles to their second consecutive conference championship with an ASUN record of 23-7. The Eagles were honored as four players earned ASUN First Team recognition including Chris Sale, Tim Roberson, Zach Maxfield, and Josh Upchurch. Sophomore Stephen Wickens was named to the ASUN Second Team while Jason Forjet earned a spot on the ASUN All-Freshman Team. 

During the the Eagles first season as a Division I program (2008), Tollett, who was named 2008 ASUN Conference Coach of the Year, led the Eagles to their first ever conference championship in the ASUN with a conference record of 25-8 (38-15) overall. Senior Jason Peacock received the ASUN Player of the year while junior Richard Bleier earned ASUN Pitcher of the year. The Eagles were honored as four players earned ASUN First Team recognition including Jason Peacock, Ozzie Borrell, JJ Crumbley, and Richard Bleier. Two Eagles including Pete Woodworth and Mikel Alvarez were named with ASUN Second Team honors, while Chris Sale and Richie Erath earned freshman ASUN selections. FGCU saw three players drafted, including a pair of pitchers, in the Major League Baseball draft as Richard Bleier was picked in the sixth round by the Texas Rangers, becoming the highest player drafted from FGCU.

A 1988 graduate of Tusculum College, Tollett made his mark as one of the top high school coaches in the state of Florida. During his 10-year stint as head coach at Charlotte High in Punta Gorda, he posted a 175-96 record to become the winningest coach in school history. In six of his last seven seasons with the Tarpons, his peers selected him as the FHSAA District 16 Coach of the Year. His teams won one district championship and made five appearances in the Florida High School Athletic Association state playoffs in a district that included perennial state powers Sarasota and Venice. In addition to developing numerous players drafted by professional teams, Tollett’s teams have averaged over a 3.25 grade point average in the classroom over his last five seasons.

Tollett also spent five years as the Director of Coaching for the Southwest Florida Eagles, a developmental program that has turned out 24 Division I athletes and eight professional players. He served as the coach of the Southwest Florida All-Star team on nine occasions and served as the Florida Athletic Coaches Regional Chairman in 2002.

An active member of the American Baseball Coaches Association, he is the proud parent of twins Cal and McKenna and resides in Fort Myers.

COACH TOLLETT'S CAREER ACHIEVEMENTS