JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - North Florida baseball is excited to formally announce eight-year Major League Baseball veteran, Brad Wilkerson, as the program's associate head coach. Wilkerson will be charged with leading the UNF hitters. Wilkerson most recently worked as assistant hitting coach with the New York Yankees during the 2023 season.

The native of Owensboro, Ky., Wilkerson went on to be a dominant two-way player at the University of Florida. With the Gators Wilkerson earned three first-team all-american honors while leading UF to College World Series appearances in both 1996 and 1998. In 1998 Wilkerson became the first player to post 20 home runs, 20 stolen bases and 10 wins on the mound in the same season. He was inducted into the UF Hall of Fame in 2010 as well as the National College Baseball Hall of Fame in 2012.

"I am extremely excited to welcome Brad to the Osprey coaching staff," head coach Joe Mercadante said. "He brings a wealth of experience and knowledge, having played and coached at the highest levels. Additionally, Brad has also shown himself to be an exceptional recruiter and evaluator of talent. He will be a huge asset to our program and no doubt will help our staff and our student-athletes as we continue to pursue our conference and postseason goals."

Wilkerson was taken 33rd in the 1998 MLB Draft by the Montreal Expos. He would set the Expos' rookie home run record with 20 in 2002 and was named Rookie of the Year by The Sporting News. In 2000 he helped the United States to a gold medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. After an eight-year tenure in the MLB, Wilkerson finished with 122 home runs and 399 RBI at the big league level. 

On the coaching side, Wilkerson also spent time as an assistant with Jacksonville University and with USA Baseball.