JJ Van Niel Extended Through 2029 After Historic Two-Year Start

(Photo: Sammy Nute/WCSN)

With just two days left in the year 2022, then-athletic director Ray Anderson tapped JJ Van Niel to be the ninth head coach of Arizona State volleyball. Inheriting a team that hadn’t seen a tournament appearance since 2015, Van Niel came to The Valley with his work cut out for him.

On paper, the hiring always made sense. Van Niel had a track record of success spanning across the seven seasons prior—ASU couldn’t say the same. Between 2016 and 2022, the Sun Devils posted a combined record of 86-124. Over the same timeframe, Van Niel helped coach a combined five tournament-clinching rosters between Utah and USC, serving under various titles at both schools.

Despite Van Niel’s track record of success at every stop, the rebuild seemed likely to span multiple years as the initial roster was thin. Prior to the recruiting and transfer portal phase of the offseason, ASU had only nine players rostered by spring of 2023. Over the summer, Van Niel brought six players—three recruits and three transfers—to Tempe. The marquee addition was libero Mary Shroll, the first Sun Devil ever drafted to play professional volleyball.

Along with his eye for talent, Van Niel’s analytical approach paired with a knack for uniting staff and players have elevated ASU volleyball to new heights. Under his coaching, the Sun Devils have amassed a 58-10 record, with three NCAA tournament wins across back-to-back appearances. Recognizing his impressive two-year resume, ASU Athletic Director Graham Rossini awarded Van Niel a contract extension on Wednesday, securing his role through 2029.

“This is a platform where we can build what my vision is for building the volleyball program here,” Van Niel said. “Graham is behind it and has been really supportive so that’s a huge deal.”

Rossini showed his confidence in the Sun Devils to not just sustain their success, but to gain more. While the program’s gone the furthest under Van Niel, he still hasn’t coached past the second round of the NCAA tournament. It’s safe to say that he’s not satisfied due to a mindset he’s had since he began coaching—you can always be better.

Van Niel picked up this mindset from Karch Kiraly, the second person ever to win an Olympic gold medal as player and coach. Before entering the college volleyball landscape, Van Niel coached under Kiraly for the U.S. Women’s National Team from 2013–16.

A decade later, he applies this same mindset as the head of Sun Devil volleyball. So much so that he’s begun attending the practices of other ASU athletic programs. When he’s in attendance, he observes the coaching styles of other head coaches to see what he can do better.

“I like going to other teams’ practices just because it helps me think about how I teach or coach,” Van Niel said. “I’m always self-evaluating and thinking of ways to be better”

The most recent example of this was last Thursday when he attended an ASU spring football practice. Hired about a month apart from each other, Sun Devil football head coach Kenny Dillingham and Van Niel have interacted with each other before. However, before last Thursday, ASU football was the one practice Van Niel hadn’t gone to.

Self-admittedly, Van Niel isn’t the most knowledgeable when it comes to football. That didn’t keep him from watching film with Dillingham and picking his brain. Through this process, Van Niel realized how they’re similar in some ways. Oddly enough, Dillingham also oversaw a program turnaround and received an extension from Rossini this year.

“I don’t know football very well and I got to watch film and just ask him questions,” Van Niel said. “There’s so many things that I’m like, ‘oh man this is so similar to how I would approach something.’”

As with football, the Sun Devils have gained recognition as a premier volleyball program in the nation. Predictably, the newfound success has led to a wider net casted in the offseason. An increasing number of recruits and players in the transfer portal are viewing ASU as an attractive landing spot.

This becomes evident in Van Niel’s recruiting. While he’s uncovered diamonds in the rough like Shroll, he’s also managed to bring in higher-profile players that were out of reach his first year.

“I think we’re obviously much more on the map than when I walked in the door,” Van Niel said. “It was really difficult getting any interest just given how the program had been.”

Many of Van Niel’s former mentors, including Kiraly, publicly expressed their confidence in him after news broke of his hiring. Ray Anderson was the first to demonstrate this confidence by bringing him on board. Now, Rossini has shown similar faith with a contract extension.

“I’m really grateful for our fans, our students, and all the support we’ve had so far,” Van Niel said. “We’ve had a couple nice years, I’m very fortunate for that.”