Nolan Fontana - Baseball Coach

Nolan Fontana

Title:
Student Assistant Coach

Nolan Fontana is in his first season as a student assistant coach with the University of Florida baseball program.

Fontana was Florida’s starting shortstop from 2010-12, helping the Gators to College World Series trips all three seasons. Following his junior year, Fontana was selected by the Houston Astros in the second round (with the No. 61 overall pick) of the Major League Baseball Draft.

The Winter Garden, Fla., native spent the majority of his career in the minors, playing eight seasons amd posting a .380 on-base percentage with 478 walks, 267 runs batted in, and 376 runs scored. Fontana also had 62 stolen bases. Fontana did play in the majors with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, making 20 appearances across the 2017 and 2018 seasons. His only two hits in the majors were home runs.

“Looking in the mirror after (ending his professional career as a result of mounting injuries), I couldn’t really have been more satisfied how it went in my career,” Fontana, 28, said. “I’ve always had a vibe that [coaching] would be something that I would love to do.”

Fontana was an All-SEC Second Team and SEC All-Defensive Team honoree each of his three seasons with the Gators. As a freshman in 2010, Fontana became the first player in school history to be named to the Division I Rawlings Gold Glove Team, and garnered freshman All-America recognition from Baseball America and Collegiate Baseball.

Despite only playing three seasons, Fontana still holds the school record for career sacrifice bunts (27), ranks third in school history for career walks (153), and is sixth in school history for career assists (586).

Nolan Fontana's FloridaGators.com student-athlete bio