CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) Chris Pollard has not had a lot of free time since taking over as the Virginia baseball head coach position last month.

“When I accepted the position, I was sort of arrogant enough to think that I knew how busy it would be, and I was quickly proven wrong,” he told WINA.

Despite the hectic schedule, Pollard, who served as Duke baseball’s head coach for the last 13 years, has been awestruck by the program’s available resources from facilities to scholarship commitments to the support from fans and former players.

“That group, who undoubtedly has a strong feeling of loyalty to Coach Oak [Brian O’Connor] and everything he’s done here to be so welcoming to me, to our staff, to our family, just speaks about the quality of people around this program and again their level of investment, I’ve been blown away. I really have.” 

Pollard knows the legacy left by his predecessor and former conference rival. In 22 seasons as the head coach, O’Connor built up a program that had become mostly an afterthought at UVA, turning it into a consistent winner in the ACC and on the national stage.

The Cavaliers made seven trips to the College World Series and won the program’s first and only national championship in 2015. O’Connor accepted the head coaching position at Mississippi State University this offseason, citing, “the challenge of conquering a new opportunity,” in a farewell letter addressed to the Virginia baseball community.

Pollard is no stranger to an uphill climb, however. Prior to his arrival at Duke in 2013, the Blue Devils’ baseball program had not made a postseason appearance since 1961. In his 13 years, he led them to seven NCAA tournaments, four Super Regional appearances including 2025, and two ACC tournament championships.

The combination of Virignia’s resources and Pollard’s reputation as a coach has led to some early wins in attracting talented players to Charlottesville. Pollard made a point to first meet with his Duke players after accepting the Virginia job and several followed him to Grounds. Among the talented group is sophomore center fielder A.J. Gracia: a two-time All-ACC performer who hit .293 and was second on the team with 15 home runs in 2025. On the mound, Pollard secured a commitment from one of his most promising young arms at Duke in Freshman left-hander Henry Zatkowski who threw 59.2 innings with a 4.83 ERA this past season.

He’s also been able to attract some former O’Connor players to stay at UVA including veteran third baseman Luke Hanson and promising rising sophomore and Richmond native Aiden Harris. The biggest win may have come at shortstop, though, where Pollard convinced Virginia’s 2025 leader in batting average, runs scored, and RBIs Eric Becker to withdraw from the transfer portal and return to Charlottesville. A recipe that includes former Duke players, former Virginia players, and an incoming freshman class that ranks sixth in the country according to Perfect Game has some in college baseball believing the ‘Hoos could have their sights set on Omaha again in 2026.

The new UVA skipper has not shouldered the load alone, though, as Pollard brought his entire Duke staff from Durham to Charlottesville. “This group collectively just has a such a high level of emotional intelligence,” the head coach said. In his introductory press conference, Pollard mentioned he could not imagine trying to hire staff in addition to putting together a roster. Even recent additions, such as Recruiting Coordinator and infielders coach Derek Simmons who only joined the Duke staff in 2024, were targeted to make up Virginia’s new staff. “In the last year, us in different areas of the country and allow for us to recruit some players that we wouldn’t have been on previously.”

The new digs of Davenport Field at Disharoon Park have seemingly helped ease the transition as well. ast night at about 9:30 PM, just kind of looking around and soaking it all in.”

A facility that continuously expanded over O’Connor’s tenure can now pack in nearly 6,000 fans when at max capacity. Those fans were fully behind the 2023 ‘Hoos team that defeated Pollard’s Blue Devils two games to one in the Charlottesville Super Regional to advance to the College World Series.

So, after accepting a new job, bringing over an entire staff, moving into a new office, and beginning work on constructing a roster he hopes will challenge the top of the conference, what’s the highest remaining priority for Pollard at UVA?

“One or two more left-handed pitchers.”