Kennesaw State University Athletics

KENNESAW, Ga. - Kennesaw State head baseball coach Mike Sansing is pleased to announce the addition of Derrick Tucker to his coaching staff.  Tucker, a standout with the Owls in the early part of the decade, takes over for Ryan Coe, who departed to take a position as a scout with the Texas Rangers.

"I feel grateful to have the opportunity once again be a part of Kennesaw State University," Tucker said.  "Kennesaw has always been home to me and I am excited to be reunited with the baseball family at KSU.  I am very thankful to Athletic Director Dr. Dave Waples and to Coach Sansing for giving me the opportunity to come back to the Owls and I look forward to helping build on our great baseball tradition."

"We're very excited to have Derrick back in our program," Coach Sansing said.  "He is an excellent recruiter, a relentless worker, and a great motivator.  His efforts will allow us to continue to get the best baseball players in the Southeast to come play at Kennesaw State.  He is an excellent fit for our program and a tremendous representative of our university."

Tucker served for four years assistant baseball coach under Tom Cantrell at North Georgia College & State University.  In 2009, Tucker oversaw an offense that set the school record for the most home runs in a season, blasting 72 homers while scoring 417 runs and posting a batting average of .298 as a team. He coached PBC All-Conference performers Andre Airich and Brad Hall who combined to hit 24 home runs and drive in 120 runs.

In 2008, North Georgia hit .303 as a team, the fourth highest team batting average in school history while recorded 65 home runs, the second highest number in program history. Tucker oversaw junior transfer Rob Flanigan who set school records of home runs with 20, slugging percentage at .735, and finished with a batting average of .403 while receiving First-Team All-American honors and being drafted in the 29th round by the San Francisco Giants.

During 2007, the Saints hit .300 as a team, and then-freshman catcher Daniel Petitti led the Peach Belt Conference in runners thrown out attempting to steal. The Saints also won three Player of the Week Awards under the guidance of Tucker.

Tucker, a native of Marietta, Ga., graduated from Woodstock High School in 2001 and during that time played on the 1999 AAU Junior Olympic National Team. Tucker continued his playing career at KSU as a standout catcher. While playing for Coach Sansing, he started all four years and batted a personal-best .282 his senior year. As a junior, he caught 18 baserunners attempting to steal and picked off three additional runners for a combined 21 put-outs and a .429 caught stealing percentage.

The Owls performed well with Tucker behind the plate, as KSU won the Peach Belt Conference Championship in 2002, competed in the regional playoffs three out of four years and won the South-Atlantic Regional in 2003.  That season, the Owls went on to finish third in the College World Series.

Tucker resides in Woodstock.  He holds a degree in History with a minor in Business.