Norberto Lopez joined UCF baseball in June 2023 as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator.
In 2025, Lopez played a key role in guiding the Black and Gold to a 29-26 overall record and going 9-4 against in-state opponents. He also helped the Knights secure a strong home record of 19-13, contributing to back-to-back winning seasons for the program.
Lopez’s work with the Knights hitters was showcased in the 2025 season. The Knights posted impressive offensive stats leading the Big 12 Conference in batting average, on-base percentage, sacrifice bunts, double plays per game, ERA, and WHIP. The Black and Gold’s impressive .319 batting average not only led the Big 12 but also ranked sixth in the nation. UCF’s notable offensive stats did not stop there, they posted an on-base percentage of .409 leading the conference once again and ranking number 46 nationally.
As UCF’s recruiting coordinator, Lopez helped the Knights check in at No. 12 on Perfect Game’s 2025 Recruiting Class Ranking. Of the 13 freshmen the Black and Gold welcome to the squad, three of them are top 250 recruits. UCF’s No. 12 spot is second in the Big 12 Conference and second in the state of Florida.
In his first season of coaching at UCF, Lopez helped lead the Knights to a 37-21 overall record and the program's first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2017 with a trip to the 2024 NCAA Tallahassee Regional. Lopez also helped UCF win six Big 12 Conference series in the program's first year in the league to finish eighth with a 14-15 conference mark, as well as to a deep run at the 2024 Big 12 Championship by going 2-1 and reaching the semifinal round.
The UCF recruiting coordinator has helped see a total of seven Knights drafted in the MLB Draft over his first two seasons with a pair getting drafted in 2024 (RHP Najer Victor, Angels, 14th Rd.; RHP Chase Centala, Marlins, 20th Rd.) and five drafted in 2025 (SS Antonio Jimenez, Mets, 3rd Rd.; C Edian Espinal, Tigers, 10th Rd.; RHP Alex Galvan, Diamondbacks, 13th Rd.; C Dylan King, Reds, 17th Rd.; RHP Angelo Smith, Angels, 18th Rd.). He has also helped in a pair of free-agent signings in INF Kendrey Maduro in 2025 (Angels) and RHP Ben Vespi in 2024 (Orioles).
Lopez also has helped 11 Knights earn All-Big 12 Conference postseason honors over the 2024 and 2025 seasons, as well as Dominic Castellano receive ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Div. I Southeast All-Region Second Team accolades in 2024. He helped nine more Knights earn CSC Academic All-District accolades.
Lopez works primarily with UCF's hitters and catchers and has been one of the key contributors in the team's recruiting.
Prior to UCF, Lopez began working with the Miami baseball program prior to the 2016 season, working with the Canes' hitters and catchers, and adding responsibilities as recruiting coordinator after the 2018 campaign. Miami made NCAA Championship appearances in five of his seasons in Coral Gables, including each of the last three years after an ACC regular-season crown and CWS appearance in 2016. The Canes played host to NCAA regionals in both 2022 and 2023.
The 2019 season marked the first with Lopez as Miami's hitting coach and the Canes responded with an ACC-best 85 home runs. First baseman Alex Toral smashed a conference-leading 24 home runs that ranked third in the nation.
Among his star pupils is catcher Adrian Del Castillo, selected in the second round of the 2021 MLB Draft by the Arizona Diamondbacks. In 2016, junior catcher Zack Collins became the first Hurricane in program history to win the Johnny Bench Award as the nation's top collegiate catcher and was selected No. 10 overall by the Chicago White Sox in the 2016 MLB draft.
From Hialeah, Florida, Lopez played collegiately at Broward College (Davie Florida) and Nova Southeastern (Fort Lauderdale, Florida). Drafted by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in 1999, he spent three years in the organization. He served on the Texas-Pan American coaching staff from 2009-15 and was promoted to associate head coach prior to the 2015 season. Lopez was an assistant coach for Florida Atlantic where he helped the Owls compile a .341 batting average with 93 home runs in 2007 - and a .321 batting average with 99 home runs in 2008.
Lopez spent two years at Broward Community College from 2004-06 when he led the team to a third-place finish at the 2006 National Junior College Athletic Association World Series. Serving as the hitting and catching coach, Lopez saw his team hit .301 and set the home run record at the state tournament.
Lopez graduated from Nova Southeastern University with a bachelor's degree in business administration in 1999. In 2006, he earned a master's in exceptional student education from Nova Southeastern.