Author: Lily Rowen
If you have scanned the sidelines of games and meets recently, you may have noticed the large number of familiar Oxy alumni amongst the coaches and assistant coaches. This phenomenon leads one to wonder if Oxy has any formal, or informal, recruitment policies in the Athletic Department and if Occidental grads are given preferential treatment during the hiring process.
However, according to Athletic Department Director Jaime Hoffman, there are no such policies in regards to hiring Occidental alum for coaching positions. “You might see . . . alum[ni] represented in our part- time coaches’ pool,” Hoffman said, “[But] there are neither official or unofficial recruitment policies to this regard.” She went on to explain that recent graduates of Oxy who enjoyed playing on teams while studying here often return to coach part-time or work as assistant coaches before entering the next phase of their work or educational lives.
“I believe that our combo of alum and non-Oxy alum is perfect,” Hoffman said. “We have coaches that can offer the perspective of our student athletes because they have experienced it here . . . Then, we have coaches that can offer their experiences from other institutions.”
One part-time assistant coach who worked his way up the ladder is the current head coach of the men’s tennis team Michael Guice ’07. After the former head coach Alberto Martin vacated the position, there was an absence in the 2008-2009 season coaching staff. Guice was notified about Martin’s decision to leave and was asked if he would have any interest in coaching. He did.
“I immediately thought of all the ways the program could benefit from what I have to offer,” Guice said. “I’m young, I’m local and I love the game.” So, Guice returned to his alma mater as a volunteer assistant coach. For the 2009-2010 academic year, he advanced to the position of head coach of the men’s tennis team.
“What attracted me back to Oxy was primarily the opportunity to once again be part of this amazing institution,” said Guice. “I spent most of my childhood years growing up in Highland Park, which is very close to Occidental.”
Even though he is a recent graduate, Guice has amassed a lot of experience and shown that he is well-qualified for the job. “I am a USPTA [United States Professional Tennis Association] certified professional,” Guice said. “I have coached high school tennis. I work for a local tennis club with close to 400 members. But most of all, I was a four-year varsity veteran for Occidental, and I know the institution well.” In addition to this, Guice also spent a year working for Nissan North America in Nashville, Tennessee, where he claims to have gained a “tremendous level of corporate experience.”
There are many Oxy alumni represented in the Football Department’s coaching lineup as well. Bill Dobson ’82 is the team’s Offensive Line Coach, while Matt Andersen ’08 is in charge of the Running Backs and Rocky Ciasulli ’07 is the Offensive Assistant. Jim Kerman ’79, who is currently in charge of the kickers and the punters, has served as Oxy’s Athletics Director, Sports Information Director and assistant coach for men’s basketball and women’s softball.
Two other Oxy alumni who are now working in the Athletic Department are Andrew Valdes ’09 and Scott Shannon ’06. Both Shannon and Valdes were water polo powerhouses during their time here at Oxy. Not only was Assistant Coach Shannon a four-year starter, but he also gained an NCAA First Team All-American and First Team All-SCIAC as a senior in 2006.
While at Occidental, Valdes, the team’s current part-time assistant coach, earned NCAA All-American Honors in 2007 and 2008, an All-SCIAC award and finished second in the country in 2008 for the 92 goals he scored during the season.
According to Head Coach Larry Zubrin, the assistant coaches’ vast experience with water polo is just one of their many assets. From a professional standpoint, Zubrin also sees that his assistant coaches’ familiarity with the team, and the program make them excellent candidates. “One of the main roles they play is to actually get in the water and play with and against our players during practice,” Zubrin said. “They can demonstrate the skills we teach extremely well, and provide our athletes with a challenge comparable to that they’d face in an actual game.”
However, Zubrin and Hoffman both made it clear that Oxy alumsni do not get special preference during the hiring process at all. “We’ve had great success with our alums as coaches, but we’ve also had some great assistant coaches who didn’t come from Oxy. . . Ultimately, I’d want to hire the most qualified assistant coach I could find, but we always enjoy when our former players are able to give back to the program,” Zubrin said.
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