Ross Kivett returns to Tennessee baseball as assistant coach
Tennessee baseball is making a change to its coaching staff ahead of the 2025 season, bringing back former volunteer assistant coach Ross Kivett who was with the Volunteers program for four seasons from 2018-2021.
D1 Baseball’s Kendall Rogers was first to report the news and Volquest can confirm as this has been in the works for several weeks.
Kivett returns to Knoxville as the third assistant coach on Tony Vitello’s staff, replacing Richard Jackson who served in the new role for the 2024 national championship season. Jackson, a former Tennessee pitcher, began his caching stint with the Vols as a student assistant in the fall of 2019 before being eventually promoted to full-time status last fall in 2023.
Kivett brings a wealth of knowledge back to Rocky Top as he will hold several responsibilities. Kivett’s primary responsibilities with Houston was to work with the hitters, infielders and act as third base coach. He played an integral role in Houston’s historic turnaround during 2022 when the Cougars finished second in The American in batting average (.285) one season after ranking seventh — and 262nd nationally — at a .239 clip.
Houston set an American Athletic Conference Championship record with 61 hits and established a program record with home runs. In 2023, that home run total increased by nearly a dozen.
During Kivett’s previous stint in Knoxville, the assistant helped the Volunteers reach the College World Series in 2021 and the NCAA Regionals in 2019. He was an initial member of Tony Vitello’s staff in the summer of 2017.
As a player, Kivett was an All-American and Big 12 Conference Player of the Year for Kansas State in 2013. He was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the sixth-round of the 2014 Major League Baseball Draft.
Vitello’s full-time, on-the-field staff for the 2025 season is now complete with Kivett, who rejoins fellow assistants Josh Elander and Frank Anderson. Former pitcher Kirby Connell will also serve on the support staff, but his role is undefined as of now.
Tennessee held off Texas A&M for the 6-5 on June 24 to win the 2024 College World Series. It was the first national championship in program history and the 24th team (all sports) national championship in Tennessee history. It was the first since women’s track & field did so back in 2009.
Tennessee’s 60 wins were the most of any team since Florida State in 2002 and the most of any national champion since Wichita State in 1989. Vitello has rewritten the Tennessee Baseball record books, leading the country the last four seasons in wins (211), win percentage (.773), NCAA Tournament wins (25) and home runs (566).
The Vols won everything they could this past season, winning the SEC’s regular-season championship, the SEC Tournament championship, Knoxville Regional and Knoxville Super Regional. Tennessee became just the fourth SEC program ever to win the regular season title, conference tournament title and College World Series title in the same season, joining Vanderbilt (2019) and LSU (2009, 1993). The last team who won at least 60 games and the national championship was Wichita State back in 1989.
Vitello was also named National Coach of the year by three different publications.
