Matthew Boggs - Assistant Coach/Recruiting Coordinator - Baseball Coaches

Matthew Boggs

Title:
Assistant Coach/Recruiting Coordinator
Email:
mboggs@duaa.duke.edu
Phone:
(919) 668-5735

Matthew Boggs enters his fifth season as an assistant coach and his third year as Duke's recruiting coordinator. Boggs' primary responsibilities include coaching Duke's catchers, as well as organizing Duke's recruiting efforts and assisting with the hitters.

Since Boggs' arrival in 2005-06, the Blue Devils have taken huge strides and last season took another leap forward with a 15-15 ACC record - second-best in school history - and a trip to the 2009 ACC Tournament. Now in his fifth year at Duke, Boggs' efforts on the field and on the recruiting trail have the Blue Devils primed to build off last season's success and continue their climb to the top of the ACC.

Boggs' impact is evident not only in the improved level of play from the Blue Devils, but also in the quality of the athletes that Duke now puts on the field. Since being promoted to recruiting coordinator following the 2007 season, Boggs has helped bring in three of Duke's top recruiting classes in recent history.

As the recruiting coordinator, Boggs has helped pull in three freshman classes that have put Duke's talent level on par with the rest of the ACC. Duke's 2009 freshman class included two high school draft picks and was ranked as the 25th-best in the country by Baseball America, while the 2008 class yielded two-year starting shortstop Jake Lemmerman and key reliever Dennis O'Grady.

A school-record seven Duke players - and three signed recruits - were drafted in the 2009 MLB Draft under Boggs and the Duke staff. Duke had never had more than four players drafted in a single year until 2009, when four seniors and three juniors heard their names called. Last year's draft signaled not only the improving talent in the Duke baseball program, but also the emergence of the program on a national and professional level.

The strong recruiting trend continued into this year when Boggs and the Duke staff brought in nine newcomers. Included in that group are 18th-round draft pick Marcus Stroman, who is expected to start at second base and pitch on the weekends, infielder Eric Brady and right-handed pitcher Devin Burke, all of which could make an impact as freshmen this year.

Boggs has made an impact on Duke's player development since he first joined the team prior to the 2006 season. In his first year at Duke, he was instrumental in bringing along seniors Jeremy Gould, Ryan McCurdy and Gabriel Saade, all of which solidified starting jobs by their sophomore seasons. That group also included Alex Hassan, who was a three-year starter as an outfielder and closer and now plays in the Boston Red Sox organization. In 2008, he helped bring in Lemmerman who started at shortstop as a freshman and was key in Duke's run to the 2009 ACC Tournament.

As the catchers coach, Boggs tutored one of the best defensive catchers in the ACC in senior Matt Williams, who was a semifinalist for the 2009 Johnny Bench Award. Boggs also brought along several newcomers to the position and this year is charged with converting McCurdy to Duke's catcher.

While Boggs has made a significant impact on the program through recruiting, Duke has also benefited from his work as an assistant hitting coach. With Boggs' help, the Blue Devils have hit .300, .302 and .299 in the last three seasons while striking out the fewest times in the ACC in 2008 and 2009.

Prior to his start at Duke, Boggs spent two seasons as an assistant coach at Tulane where he coached outfielders and hitters. He helped lead the Green Wave to the Conference USA season and co-tournament titles in 2005 along with a College World Series berth. Under his direction at Tulane, three players earned first team Conference USA honors, including the C-USA Player and Freshman of the Year.

Boggs also spent 2003 as an assistant coach at Georgia Southern where he helped the Eagles finish 39-21 and 19-10 in the Southern Conference.

A standout infielder during his four-year playing career at Georgia Tech from 1998-2002, Boggs ranks among the school's top 10 in runs scored and games played and 15th in total hits. Boggs turned in batting averages over .300 in each of his four seasons, including a .363 clip as a senior when he helped lead the Yellow Jackets to the College World Series. A two-year captain, Boggs finished his career with a .337 batting average, a .463 on base percentage and 41 stolen bases. He also holds the Georgia Tech records for times hit by a pitch in a career and a single season.

A four-time member of the ACC Academic Honor Roll, Boggs also earned Verizon District III Academic All-America honors in 1999, 2001 and 2002 and a second team Academic All-America selection as a senior.

A 2002 graduate of Georgia Tech, Boggs holds a B.S. degree in Textile and Fiber Engineering.

Boggs is married to the former Jamie Pootrakul, who is an Assistant Director of Athletics for Compliance at Duke. He has a brother, Mitchell, who is a pitcher in the St. Louis Cardinals organization and made his major league debut in 2008.