Head Coach Kevin O'Sullivan receives a celebratory shower from two-way star Jac Caglianone following the team's Super Regional victory over South Carolina in 2023. / UAA Communications photo by Ashley Ray
Gators Boast SEC’s Most-Experienced Baseball Staff
Wednesday, August 26, 2026 | Baseball
Florida leads the SEC with 126 years of coaching experience and 94 seasons in Division I Baseball alone.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The Florida Gators filled out their 2026-27 coaching staff with the additions of nationally-respected pitching guru Rich Dorman and veteran assistant Todd Butler this past offseason, giving the Orange & Blue one of the most impressive and tenured coaching staffs in the country.
Collectively between Dorman, Butler, Head Coach Kevin O'Sullivan and Associate Head Coach Tom Slater, Florida's four-man staff boasts 126 years of combined experience as full-time baseball coaches. Not only does that rank first in the SEC, but it represents 31 more years of combined experience than the next-closest program in the league (Mississippi State: 95).
Honing in on their experience, the Florida coaching quartet has spent an SEC-leading 94 years in NCAA Division I Baseball alone. Only Mississippi State (92) and Ole Miss (85) are within 20 years of combined Division I Baseball experience when compared to Florida.
Starting at the top, nearly all of O'Sullivan's 35 years of coaching experience have come in Division I Baseball (32). The winningest coach in program history began his career at Florida Community College in 1992 and worked his way up the ranks of the industry, spending time at FAU, Virginia, Clemson and the Minnesota Twins organization. O'Sullivan accepted the head job at Florida in the summer of 2007 and has donned the Orange & Blue for the entirety of the 19 years since.
Since O'Sullivan's 2008 arrival, no college program has produced more MLB players (43), College World Series trips (nine), Super Regionals hosted (nine), top-eight national seeds (11) and NCAA Tournament bids (18) than the Florida Gators. Florida also leads the SEC in regular-season titles (six), conference wins (323) and conference winning percentage (.599) in that span.
Taking a closer look at Florida's staff, Slater leads the way with 38 years of experience dating back to 1991. While 20 years were spent in professional baseball with the New York Yankees, New York Mets, Miami Marlins and Philadelphia Phillies organizations, he also compiled 18 seasons in Division I Baseball with Marshall, VMI, Auburn and Florida. Slater's resume in the college game is highlighted by head coaching stints at VMI (2001-03) and Auburn (2005-08).
As a college baseball lifer, Butler paces Florida with 34 years of experience in Division I Baseball alone. All but one of his 35 total seasons have come at the level, beginning as an assistant at McNeese in 1991. In the three and a half decades since, Butler made stops at Blinn, Alabama, Arkansas, Wichita State, Missouri and Oklahoma before bringing his talents to Florida as a reigning National Champion with the Sooners. Much like Slater, Butler had two separate head coaching runs at McNeese (2001-03) and Wichita State (2014-19).
While Dorman represents the youngster of the group by default, he still wields 18 years of full-time experience in the game. Even more impressively, he has worked 10 seasons as the primary pitching coach at the Division I level across stays at Grand Canyon and Oregon State. Dorman developed Oregon State into one of the top pitching programs in the nation during his seven years in Corvallis, producing the No. 1-ranked staff in terms of ERA and WHIP during the 2026 campaign.
Florida's full-time coaching quartet will be instrumental in the career progression of up-and-coming baseball minds Mike Rivera and Michael Byrne, who donned the Orange & Blue as players and together claimed the 2017 National Championship. Rivera currently serves as director of player development while Byrne transitions from a graduate assistant coach role to the director of pitching analytics in 2026-27.
Entering the 2027 campaign, O'Sullivan and his star-studded staff will be responsible for extending Florida's nation-high, 18-season NCAA Tournament streak. They will also be looking to advance to the program's 10th College World Series in the last 17 postseasons - by far the most in the sport.
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Collectively between Dorman, Butler, Head Coach Kevin O'Sullivan and Associate Head Coach Tom Slater, Florida's four-man staff boasts 126 years of combined experience as full-time baseball coaches. Not only does that rank first in the SEC, but it represents 31 more years of combined experience than the next-closest program in the league (Mississippi State: 95).
Honing in on their experience, the Florida coaching quartet has spent an SEC-leading 94 years in NCAA Division I Baseball alone. Only Mississippi State (92) and Ole Miss (85) are within 20 years of combined Division I Baseball experience when compared to Florida.
Masters of the craft. pic.twitter.com/yoRuvWZ2WI
— Florida Gators Baseball (@GatorsBB) August 24, 2026
Starting at the top, nearly all of O'Sullivan's 35 years of coaching experience have come in Division I Baseball (32). The winningest coach in program history began his career at Florida Community College in 1992 and worked his way up the ranks of the industry, spending time at FAU, Virginia, Clemson and the Minnesota Twins organization. O'Sullivan accepted the head job at Florida in the summer of 2007 and has donned the Orange & Blue for the entirety of the 19 years since.
Since O'Sullivan's 2008 arrival, no college program has produced more MLB players (43), College World Series trips (nine), Super Regionals hosted (nine), top-eight national seeds (11) and NCAA Tournament bids (18) than the Florida Gators. Florida also leads the SEC in regular-season titles (six), conference wins (323) and conference winning percentage (.599) in that span.
Taking a closer look at Florida's staff, Slater leads the way with 38 years of experience dating back to 1991. While 20 years were spent in professional baseball with the New York Yankees, New York Mets, Miami Marlins and Philadelphia Phillies organizations, he also compiled 18 seasons in Division I Baseball with Marshall, VMI, Auburn and Florida. Slater's resume in the college game is highlighted by head coaching stints at VMI (2001-03) and Auburn (2005-08).
As a college baseball lifer, Butler paces Florida with 34 years of experience in Division I Baseball alone. All but one of his 35 total seasons have come at the level, beginning as an assistant at McNeese in 1991. In the three and a half decades since, Butler made stops at Blinn, Alabama, Arkansas, Wichita State, Missouri and Oklahoma before bringing his talents to Florida as a reigning National Champion with the Sooners. Much like Slater, Butler had two separate head coaching runs at McNeese (2001-03) and Wichita State (2014-19).
While Dorman represents the youngster of the group by default, he still wields 18 years of full-time experience in the game. Even more impressively, he has worked 10 seasons as the primary pitching coach at the Division I level across stays at Grand Canyon and Oregon State. Dorman developed Oregon State into one of the top pitching programs in the nation during his seven years in Corvallis, producing the No. 1-ranked staff in terms of ERA and WHIP during the 2026 campaign.
Florida's full-time coaching quartet will be instrumental in the career progression of up-and-coming baseball minds Mike Rivera and Michael Byrne, who donned the Orange & Blue as players and together claimed the 2017 National Championship. Rivera currently serves as director of player development while Byrne transitions from a graduate assistant coach role to the director of pitching analytics in 2026-27.
Entering the 2027 campaign, O'Sullivan and his star-studded staff will be responsible for extending Florida's nation-high, 18-season NCAA Tournament streak. They will also be looking to advance to the program's 10th College World Series in the last 17 postseasons - by far the most in the sport.
Follow the Gators
#GoGators
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