CONWAY — Central Arkansas women's soccer head coach Jeremy Bishop has announced the hiring of Derek Nichols, a former UCA soccer letterman and graduate assistant coach, to serve as assistant coach for the Bears.
Nichols comes back to UCA following an eight-year stint as the head coach at Newman University, an NCAA Division II school in Wichita, Kan. At Newman, he guided the Jets to their first 10-win season as a full-fledged Division II program in 2010, and in 2006 – the school's provisional year of D-II membership – led them to a 12-4-1 record, which equaled the lowest loss total in school history.
"We're very excited and extremely blessed to be able to add Coach Nichols to the staff here at UCA," said Bishop, who was hired last month as head coach. "He has had some great accomplishments throughout his career from starting a collegiate program to building and sustaining a strong program. I believe his experience with recruiting, training and match-planning, along with his ability to motivate players will help this program move forward in a big way. And in addition to all of his coaching attributes, he's an individual of high character which will add a positive influence for our student-athletes and for our staff."
Nichols, who played in 36 games for the Bears in 1996 and '97, served as a graduate assistant for the men's program from 2001-02. That 2002 team finished the year 17-2-2 and ranked No. 3 nationally, losing in the national semifinal to eventual national champion Sonoma State. In his two years on staff, the Bears were 30-8-2 – a .775 winning percentage.
"It's a really exciting opportunity for myself and my family," Nichols said. "It's a chance to come home and get back to UCA, a place where I played and started my coaching career. And my wife's parents and family live in the area. It's always been a goal of mine to coach at the Division I level, and to get that opportunity to step up in the coaching world and to do it at home doesn't happen often. It was kind of a no-brainer for us."
After leaving UCA, Nichols started the women's soccer program at Lyon College in Batesville and served as head coach for two seasons. Bishop oversaw the startup of the men's program at Lyon during the same period.
"I've seen the changes the program at UCA has gone through and with Coach Bishop coming back to lead, I think we can do some good things," Nichols said. "He and I have the same philosophy and came up together learning from some of the same coaches, so we're going to be on the same page and I think we're going to be able to really elevate the program."
Nichols will be returning to the school from which he holds two degrees, having earned both his BSE and MS in Kinesiology from UCA.
"I've been following what's gone on since I left," he said. "I watched the transition from Division II to Division I and have seen the incredible changes the school has made not just with soccer but across all the sports programs and with the facilities. It's as good a place as there is in the Southland Conference, and I'm looking forward to helping make it one of the best soccer programs in the conference as well.
"Several of the kids there I've seen play out on the recruiting trail, and I know they've got good talent," he said. "The potential there to do well in the conference is tremendous. I'm excited about where the program is headed, and I appreciate Coach Bishop giving me the opportunity to come back here and work with him at UCA."
