One of the Tigers’ most experienced players ... should be the team’s regular first baseman ... was designated hitter for most of 2008 and earned third team All-Colonial Athletic Association honors ... career has been hampered by shoulder injury which required surgery ... freshman "red shirt" in 2004 ... has tremendous potential and excellent speed ... coming off finest season of career ... has excellent power in the gaps ... very good student who was named to the Colonial Athletic Association’s Commissioner’s List ... Academic All-America candidate who has a major in Finance ... younger brother, Kevin, is a junior outfielder on the 2009 Tigers.
2008 Season: Played in 53 games ... started 50 times, including 31 starts at designated hitter and 19 starts at first base ... named third team All-Colonial Athletic Association ... Tigers’ 6th-leading hitter with a .319 batting average ... tied for 2nd on team with 50 runs scored ... led Tigers with 20 doubles, ranked fifth in the CAA ... hit 7 home runs with 50 runs batted in ... batted .325 with runners on base ... helped Tigers to second place finish at CAA Tournament by hitting .250 with 1 homer and 5 RBI’s ... had 18 multi-hit games ... had a 14-game hitting streak from April 12 to May 7 ... led Tigers to win at Delaware State with 5 hits and 4 RBI’s, including a 3-run homer ... had two hits, including a two-run homer, in 13-12 loss at Georgia Southern ... led Tigers to a 5-2 win over Hofstra with a 3-run double ... hit .400 with 5 RBI’s in 3-game sweep over Hofstra ... led Tigers to 3-game sweep over Albany by batting .444 with 2 homers and 4 RBI’s ... belted a 3-run homer at Virginia to give Tigers a 6-4 lead in a 9-8 win by Virginia ... led Tigers to 7-6 win over George Mason with a clutch 2-run triple in the eighth inning to put Tigers ahead ... hit a solo homer in 12-9 win over Old Dominion ... had 4 hits and 2 RBI’s in win at George Washington ... led Tigers to 6-4 win at Northeastern with 2 hits and 3 RBI’s ... had 2 doubles and scored 3 runs in 12-3 win over Maryland ... hit .500 with 7 runs scored in 3-game series against William & Mary ... had 2 hits and 2 RBI’s in 10-7 win at Virginia Commonwealth ... singled and scored run in 4-3 win over Georgia State ... had 2 hits, including a 3-run homer, in 16-7 win over William & Mary in CAA Tournament.
2007 Season: Appeared in 28 games ... started 12 times at designated hitter ... hit .211 with 13 runs scored ... drew 10 walks and had a .333 on-base percentage ... hit one home run with 7 runs batted in ... clutch hitter who batted .381 with runners in scoring position ... batted .375 with three RBI’s in 3-game series at North Florida ... helped Tigers to an 11-10 come-from-behind win over North Florida in series finale by hitting a two-run homer ... had RBI single in 5-3 victory over Albany ... helped Tigers win CAA series at Delaware by hitting .308 with 3 runs scored and 2 RBI’s ... walked 4 times and scored a run in Tigers’ 4-3 loss at William & Mary in 12 innings ... helped Tigers to a 19-2 victory over George Washington with 3 walks, a stolen base and 2 runs scored ... helped Tigers to a 10-4 victory at UMBC by going 1-for-4 with one run scored.
2006 Season: Appeared in 33 games ... started 19 times at designated hitter ... hit .239 with 14 runs scored ... had 13 extra base hits and 8 singles ... had 9 doubles, 3 triples and 1 home run ... had 16 runs batted in ... had two hits and one RBI in 13-12 10-inning win over Coppin State ... tripled in 10th inning and scored game-winning run ... led Tigers to a 9-2 win over Maryland with a double, a triple and two runs scored ... helped Tigers to a 12-9 win at George Washington with 2 hits, including a 2-run double ... had an RBI double in 9-8 victory at Temple ... had 2 hits, including an RBI double, in 8-4 loss to James Madison ... helped Tigers to an 11-8 win at Hofstra with a 2-run single ... had RBI single in 13-9 victory at Hofstra ... led Tigers to 5-3 win over Old Dominion with a 2-run double in sixth inning that tied the game at 3-3.
Background: Named first team All-Montgomery County twice ... three-year starter for Cougars ... batted .420 in career for Coach John Luberetski ... helped the Cougars win the 2003 regional championship ... also played basketball and ran track ... high school teammate of former Tiger Brian Conley and current Tiger outfielder Kevin Collins ... named to Team Maryland in 2004 ... member of American Legion team that won back-to-back state championships.
Personal: Plans to become an accountant ... lists parents as people he admires most ... favorite athletes are Ken Griffey, Jr. and Michael Jordan ... favorite movie is "Dumb and Dumber" ... enjoys eating steak and ribs ... favorite actors are Will Ferrell and Rachel McAdams ... has one sister and one brother ... older sister, Kristen, played field hockey at American University ... parents are graduates of the University of Maryland ... father works as financial consultant ... mother works as a veterinary assistant ... son of Tom and Kitty Collins ... born on May 7, 1986 in Olney, Md. ... major is Finance.
