EAST GREENSBORO – North Carolina A&T Director of Athletics Earl M. Hilton III announced on Tuesday afternoon the hiring of Jose Gonzalez Jr. as the new Aggies softball coach. Gonzalez becomes the eighth head coach in the history of A&T fastpitch softball, which started in 1994.
A&T plans to introduce Gonzalez to fans and alums at a later date. A native of Jacksonville, Fla., Gonzalez brings more than 15 years of coaching experience to Aggieland on the Division I and Division II collegiate levels. He spent two seasons at Division II Claflin University after 14 successful seasons at Savannah State.
"He knows what it takes to win and the importance of building a family atmosphere within a program. Those things are apparent from the first conversation you have with coach Gonzalez," said Hilton. "He has a proven track record of recruiting great talent, developing players, and having a good rapport with those players. He seems to have success wherever he coaches. We expect to be highly competitive and to compete for CAA championships."
Gonzalez's first season coaching the Claflin Panthers program in 2022 was historic. Gonzalez led the Panthers to their first-ever Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) championship. They used the momentum from that milestone to reach the NCAA Division II Atlantic Region Championship Tournament, where they earned wins over Shippensburg and Bloomsburg before losing in the regional final to Seton Hill.
They posted a 23-15 record overall and a 15-1 mark in the CIAA. The following season, the Panthers posted a school-record 32 wins, going 32-12 overall and 14-2 in league play, losing in the championship game of the CIAA tournament to Bowie State.
"I want to thank the Lord for this wonderful opportunity to coach softball at North Carolina A&T State University," said Gonzalez. "I want to thank Chancellor Harold Martin and Director of Athletics Earl M. Hilton III for trusting me with the softball program. We will be a highly-competitive, high-energy team who will have a family feel and take care of each other like sisters. I look forward to implementing our culture of letting our players know that my staff and I will be there for them, and I plan to make this a championship program."
Gonzalez spent most of his career as Savannah State University's (SSU) head softball coach. He coached 14 seasons at SSU starting in 2008 and became the program's all-time winningest coach with 190 victories. He led the Tigers to the MEAC Southern Division title in 2012, 2014 and 2015, earning MEAC coach of the year in 2012 and '15. Before the Tigers became members of the MEAC in 2012, Gonzalez was nominated for NCAA Division I Independent Coach of the Year.
While at SSU, Gonzalez recruited and coached three-time MEAC player of the year and 2013 rookie of the year Torrian Wright. While building the SSU program, Gonzalez also served as the defensive backs coach and special teams coordinator for the Tigers football program (2007-10). Gonzalez started coaching as the junior varsity head and assistant varsity baseball coach at Englewood High School in Jacksonville (1999-01).
He helped Englewood win the state championship while coaching future Major League Baseball players Brett Meyers and Daniel Murphy. Before beginning his coaching career, Gonzalez spent three years on Jacksonville's Post 88 club baseball team.
He played high school baseball, football, and boys' basketball and participated in track and field at Englewood. He received three offers to collegiate baseball from three different schools before deciding to play college football. Gonzalez spent two seasons at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College before transferring to the University of Southern Mississippi, where he was a two-year letterman at free safety.
Gonzalez earned a bachelor of arts degree in exercise science with a minor in coaching and sports administration from Southern Miss in 2000. He has an associate of arts degree from Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College.
