Louisiana Tech head baseball coach Lane Burroughs announced on July 6, 2016 the addition of Jerry Zulli to his staff as the Bulldogs' assistant coach and recruiting coordinator.
Zulli (pronounced ZOO-lee) comes to Ruston after spending the 2016 season at Missouri following a successful four-year stint as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at South Alabama. The 15-year coaching veteran has spent time as an assistant in the SEC, Conference USA and Sun Belt while running the offense and recruiting for his respective teams since 2004.
"We couldn't be more thrilled and fortunate to have Jerry joining our staff at Louisiana Tech," Burroughs said. "I've known Jerry for a long time and have watched him grow into one of the top recruiters in the country. He will be absolutely relentless in his pursuits to bring the best players to Ruston. He will work tirelessly to seek out young men with skill, character and tremendous makeup.
"Jerry is also well versed in breaking down the stroke and teaching aggressive offensive baseball. I'm excited about what the future holds with Jerry and Christian (Ostrander) in the same dugout. I want all Bulldog fans to join me in welcoming Jerry, his wife Kristen and daughter Zoe to Ruston."
In one season at Mizzou, Zulli ran the offense as well as serving as recruiting coordinator, infield coach and third base coach for the Tigers. Following the 2016 season, two Missouri hitters were drafted in the fifth and 31st rounds under Zulli's guidance, while Zach Lavy was named an Olson Award Semifinalist and ranked 13th in the SEC with a .332 average.
Zulli was also responsible for adding seven recruits to Missouri's 2016 signing class, five of which were selected in last month's MLB Draft. Before joining the Mizzou coaching staff, Zulli was credited with assembling the 2015 signing class at South Alabama, a squad that helped lead the Jaguars to the 2016 Sun Belt regular season co-championship and an NCAA Regional appearance in Tallahassee.
In three of his four seasons at South Alabama, he put together top 50 recruiting classes, including a 2013 class that ranked 29th overall by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper. That class was a key contributor to the 2015 South Alabama team that won 37 games and the Sun Belt Conference Championship in Zulli's final season on staff.
In four seasons in Mobile, the Zulli-led South Alabama offense ranked first in the Sun Belt in batting average twice (2012, 2015) and ranked second in the league in 2013.
In his first season at South Alabama, Zulli's offense led the Sun Belt Conference in batting average (.306), slugging (.452), on-base percentage (.389), runs scored (205), RBI (184), total bases (474) and hits (321) in league games.
He coached the 2013 Sun Belt Player of the Year and saw five of his hitters earn all-conference that season, as well. That season, the Jaguars finished as Co-Champions of the Sun Belt Conference at 43-20 overall (20-10 in league play) while advancing to NCAA Regional play for the first time since 2006.
During his four years at South Alabama, Zulli saw nine of his hitters earn All-Sun Belt Conference honors and he coached one conference player of the year, one All-American and one Freshman All-American.
Prior to his stint at South Alabama, Zulli spent seven seasons at Memphis in the same position, coaching the program's hitters while serving as the recruiting coordinator. At Memphis, Zulli helped the Tigers lead Conference USA in hitting and on-base percentage on three different occasions, while ranking in the league's top five in virtually every hitting category over the course of seven seasons.
He coached eight student-athletes to a combined 10 all-conference honors, including Chad Zurcher, who was the 2011 Conference USA Player of the Year and a Third Team All-American after leading the nation in average and on-base percentage. Zulli helped lead the Tigers to 36 wins and an NCAA Regional appearance in 2007, the program's first postseason appearance in 13 years. In 2011, five Memphis student-athletes were taken in the MLB draft, while in his seven seasons at Memphis, Zulli coached 12 student-athletes who were drafted. In Zulli's first season at Memphis, he led the Tigers to a 19-game turnaround from the previous year, the second best turnaround in NCAA history, while the offense ranked 30th nationally.
He began his collegiate coaching career as the recruiting coordinator at Middle Georgia College from 2002-04, where he helped the Warriors to a 130-51 record in three seasons, including two JUCO World Series appearances in 2002 and 2004. His 2002 squad finished sixth nationally, while the 2004 team closed out the season ranked fourth in the national polls.
Zulli is a graduate of the University of New Orleans where he lettered for two seasons. He earned his bachelor's degree in sports management from UNO in 2002. Before continuing his playing career at UNO, he lettered two years at Middle Georgia College, winning the Terry Daniels Award while leading the Warriors to a Region XVII Championship in 1999.
Zulli is married to the former Kristen Bell (former Georgia softball player) and the couple has a daughter, Zoe Madelyn.
His hiring is pending the approval of the Board of Supervisors for the University of Louisiana System.
