JJ Van Niel

Last updated

JJ Van Niel
Current position
Title Head coach
Team Arizona State
Conference Big 12
Record86–14 (.860)
Biographical details
Born (1975-04-07) April 7, 1975 (age 50)
Rolling Hills, California, U.S.
Alma mater University of Southern California
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
2011–2014 UC San Diego (assistant, men's)
2014 La Costa Canyon HS
2015–2016 Utah (assistant)
2017Utah (associate HC)
2018–2022 USC (associate HC)
2023–present Arizona State
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
  • 2x Big 12 Champions (2024–2025)
Awards
  • 2025 Big 12 Coach of the Year
  • 2024 AVCA Pacific Region Coach of the Year
  • 2024 Big 12 Coach of the Year
  • 2023 AVCA Pacific South Region Coach of the Year
  • 2023 Pac-12 Coach of the Year

Jamison Jvan "JJ" Van Niel (born April 7, 1975) is an American volleyball head coach. Since 2023, he has been the coach of the Arizona State women's volleyball team. Since taking over for the program, he has led the team to two straight Big 12 Conference titles in 2024 and 2025.

Contents

Prior to Arizona State, he served as the associate head coach at USC and was an assistant coach at Utah and the UC San Diego men's team.

Personal life

Van Niel is a native of Rolling Hills, California. He attended University of Southern California and played on the men's ice hockey club team. He graduated in 1998. Prior to coaching volleyball, he spent 12 years in various financial roles in California. [1]

Coaching career

In a 2023 interview, Van Niel stated that during the time that he held his various roles in the financial industry, he played in a casual adult volleyball league, which opened the door to his coaching career. He recalled: "One of the nights I was supposed to play in an adult (volleyball) league (but) Coast had a tryout and I didn’t know that our game had been canceled,” Van Niel said. “So, I just randomly was like, ‘Do you guys ever need help?’ I still don't know why I asked." He was quickly named as the head coach of Coast Volleyball Club in San Diego despite having no prior coaching experience. [2]

In addition to his collegiate coaching career, Van Niel has also spent time in various roles for the United States women's national volleyball team. In the 2016 Summer Olympics, he was the scouting coach for the team. [2]

Head coaching record

Statistics overview
SeasonTeamOverallConferenceStandingPostseason
Arizona State Sun Devils (Pac-12 Conference)(2023)
2023Arizona State 28–714–6T–3rd NCAA Regional Semifinal
Arizona State Sun Devils (Big 12 Conference)(2024–present)
2024Arizona State 30–317–11st NCAA Second Round
2025Arizona State 28–417–11st NCAA Regional Semifinal
Arizona State:86–14 (.860)48–8 (.857)
Total:86–14 (.860)

      National champion        Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion        Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion      Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

References

  1. "JJ Van Niel-ASU Coaching Bio".
  2. 1 2 "JJ Van Niel: From Hedge funds to head coach".