FGCU baseball head coach Dave Tollett has spent more than two decades building the Eagles' program from the ground up. Now, he’s taking his talents — and one of his top players — to the national stage.
Tollett was officially named the third base coach for USA Baseball’s Collegiate National Team on Monday. He’ll join the Stripes coaching staff for this summer’s international series, which includes games in North Carolina and Japan.
“For me, it’s one of the five best accomplishments I’ve ever had in my life,” Tollett said. “It’s the only colors I’ve ever wanted to wear — the red, white and blue.”
The longtime Eagles head coach, now in his 23rd year, has tallied 774 career wins at FGCU and helped produce major league talent like Chris Sale, Richard Bleier, and Kutter Crawford. Still, he says nothing compares to the opportunity to represent his country.
“I would rather coach Team USA than coach the Yankees or the Red Sox,” Tollett said. “That’s what my country means to me. That’s what the organization means to me.”
Tollett will be joined on Team USA by rising FGCU sophomore Evan Dempsey, a breakout two-way pitcher who helped lead the Eagles to the ASUN title game and just won the 2025 John Olerud Two-Way Player award. Dempsey is one of just 56 players selected to the Collegiate National Team Training Camp roster.
“When I was younger, I didn’t think I’d actually be playing for Team USA one day,” Dempsey said. “But now, I think it’s really cool. I’m really excited because I get to wear USA across my chest and wear those colors.”
Teammates say it’s a well-deserved honor for both men.
“Just really excited to see [Coach Tollett] live out one of his dreams,” said outfielder Jake McKee. “Because we get to live out our dreams all the time. So this being one of his, it's really cool to see."
“It just confirms our suspicions that he’s a great coach,” added pitcher Justin Henschel. “Other people are starting to recognize it as well.”
Team USA’s Stars vs. Stripes series runs June 29 through July 3 in Cary, North Carolina. The team will then travel to Japan for a five-game Collegiate All-Star Championship Series.
“This kind of puts the cherry on top of a great career,” Tollett said.