University of Rhode Island Athletic Director Thorr Bjorn had a decision to make regarding former URI Volleyball Coach Steve Santonastaso following the 2019 campaign.
Ultimately, Rhode Island Athletics decided to not sign the former head coach for the upcoming 2020 season, leading to a brand new search to fill the position.
Formally, the search ended on Jan. 14, with URI bringing in Nikki Holmes as the new head coach of the program. Holmes has yet to fill out the rest of his coaching staff, but is hoping to have the process locked up sooner rather than later.
“We are hoping to have it pretty much locked in at the beginning of next month,” said Holmes.
A former assistant coach for Atlantic 10 rival George Washington University, Holmes wanted to move to a job within the A-10. Originally not looking for a head coaching job and satisfied in his role as an assistant of the Colonials, Holmes changed his mind when notified of the Rhode Island job opening.
“It’s just like I would tell a recruit when you step on the campus,” said Holmes. “It is hard not to be sold about this place”
Holmes was also drawn to the strides the athletic department has been making towards creating a great student-athlete environment as well as creating success.
“I started coaching after college,” said Holmes. “It’s fun to give back to the sport.”
Holmes’ first coaching job was at a small high school in North Dakota, where he got his original “itch.”
“Ever since then I just always had the urge and the itch to continue coaching and teaching the sport,” said Holmes.
Being familiar with Rhode Island’s program due to helping George Washington’s scout team for the past three years, Holmes says he will be doing a deep dive evaluation over the course of the next few months to really determine the team’s strengths and the best way to use them.
“At the end of the day, we have to do the best we can to create an environment where players can learn and really have the chance to be successful,” said Homes. “I think we create and give them those tools and give them a great environment they can thrive in and feel secure and safe to experiment their skills and then we go from there and see what happens.”