ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) – UCF baseball head coach Greg Lovelady announced the hiring of Nick Otte (Ought-ee) as the Knights' new assistant coach. Otte will be responsible for overseeing the progress and development of the pitchers on the UCF staff.
"I'm excited to welcome Nick and his family to our program," Lovelady said. "Nick and I have known each other for a long time. We've played each other a lot and recruited against each other. We stress so much development here. That's a big part of our program's foundation. We know we have someone who has a lot of experience in developing pro prospects in Nick. It continues with the mindset that we have and the things that are important to this program."
Otte arrives in Orlando after spending nine seasons at Xavier, where he served as the pitching coach and recruiting coordinator. He was promoted to associate head coach prior to the 2018 campaign. The Musketeers were three-time Big East champions and reached the NCAA Tournament in 2014, 2016 and 2017.
During his tenure with the Musketeers, Otte shepherded some of the best pitching staffs in program history. Xavier posted six of its 10 best staff ERAs during his time in Cincinnati, Ohio. The 2012 season featured the third-lowest ERA in school history at 3.87.
Prior to joining Xavier, Otte spent three seasons on staff at Miami in charge of the outfielders, as well as implementing a strength and power program for the pitching staff. He spent a pair of seasons at Georgetown College (2005-2006), after getting his coaching start at IPFW from 2003 to 2004.
Otte has guided 14 draft picks over his 15-year coaching career. In 2017, pitcher Zac Lowther became the highest draft pick in Xavier history as the 74th selection in Compensatory Round B. Otte has five top-10 round draft picks to his credit.
"Nick's done a lot of great things, and I'm excited to watch him work with the talent that we have here," Lovelady added. "I'm excited to see what our guys will be able to do under his tutelage."
Otte was a four-year letterman at Indiana. When he wrapped up his illustrious career with the Hoosiers, he was ranked in the top-10 with 17 career wins, and single-season victories with eight in 1999 and 2001.
Otte replaces pitching coach Justin Parker, who took the same position at Indiana last week.
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