Gators Coppola Shines In Long-Awaited Opening Weekend Start

Gainesville, Fla. – One pitch after another, Air Force batters swung and missed. None of them could find any rhythm against the Florida Gators on Saturday. Up until the sixth inning in the second game of the doubleheader, they were held scoreless and mustered just one hit.

The biggest thorn in the side for Air Force was Gators southpaw Pierce Coppola, who made his first opening weekend start since 2022. He pitched five scoreless innings, allowing that lone Falcons hit, and he walked a single batter.

He showed great command and control against opposing batters and it led to a career-high 12 strikeouts.

“I'm not quite sure I saw Pierce pitch as confidently as he did in the game tonight,” Gators head coach Kevin O’Sullivan said afterward.

For Coppola, the path to this point was not an easy one, though. It wasn’t like this had been a yearly thing for the lefty. Before a run of eight games to the end of the season last year, he had missed over two years of action due to multiple injuries that required season-ending surgeries.

And even those eight games weren’t all nearly perfect like this one. He began his 2024 season by losing his first six games. It wasn’t until the postseason when he picked up his first win in a Gators uniform.

“Yeah, I mean last year was a little rough,” he said.

It’s understandable that this happened, though. Missing a year can take a toll on anyone, both physically and mentally. He had to knock off the rust and tried doing so against some of the best players in the entire country.

“I mean it's hard, you know, not throwing for two years and learning how to compete again,” Coppola said.

But when he has outings like this one, it can have a snowball effect as things move forward, which he knows.

“But I mean, just getting my confidence back and having a day like that today, just making sure I can build on it, it's really important,” Coppola said after the game.

And while there are many fans out there who will have loved his start to this campaign, no one will be happier than his head coach.

“No one is a bigger fan for him than I am,” Gators head coach Kevin O’Sullivan said. “He's worked so hard to get back to this point. I know exactly what he’s had to go through. two major surgeries.”

O’Sullivan was very impressed with what he saw from his pitcher. He highlighted how he looked very comfortable on the mound and that he had never seen him ooze so much of it. O’Sullivan also brought up his aggressiveness and his command of both sides of the plate that resulted in a career day.

Although this is how expects to pitch all the time. All gas, no brakes. Relentless effort and constantly attacking the batter in the box.

“I guess I just, for me, my expectations to throw like that as much as I can,” Coppola said. “I came to campus, and my goal was to be that guy and make sure we get to win as many times as I'd pitch as possible.”

If this is what the Gators are going to get out of him week-to-week, along with how the other two starters performed, then the pitching staff will be a real threat for one of the best in the SEC.

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