After whirlwind week, Sam Nicholson takes over as DWU men's basketball head coach

Apr. 30—MITCHELL — After a whirlwind week, Sam Nicholson is ready for the next chapter of his coaching career.

For the first time, he'll get the chance to lead a program on his own.

Nicholson, 28, was formally introduced as the 22nd Dakota Wesleyan University men's basketball head coach in the history of the program on Wednesday at the Sherman Center, being promoted to the role following two seasons of serving as an assistant coach on the Tigers bench.

After originally being announced as part of new NCAA Division II Upper Iowa coach and good friend Casey Kasperbauer's staff on April 18, Nicholson admitted it was hard leaving a great opportunity. However, he knew and felt that Dakota Wesleyan and the city of Mitchell was home.

"When this came about, my heart, my gut and every sense told me it was time to go after this," Nicholson said. "Thankfully, it happened quickly and there was a lot of respect to both programs that I was kind of working for and eventually, it just felt right."

Prior to joining DWU, Nicholson, who hails from Blair, Nebraska, was an assistant coach for Dakota State University and made previous stops at D-II Concordia University St. Paul and the University of South Dakota, both in student assistant roles.

The Tigers made the NAIA national tournament this past season and have produced seven all-Great Plains Athletic Conference selections as well as one GPAC freshman of the year while Nicholson has been on the staff, serving under previous head coaches Matt Wilber and Kevin Williamson.

While serving as DWU's assistant, Nicholson has built strong relationships with several of the Tigers players and recruits while understanding the history and tradition of the program, qualities Tigers athletic director Ross Cimpl and the rest of the athletic department were looking for in the next leader for the men's basketball program.

"(Sam) is a tireless worker that is extremely genuine in his intentions," Cimpl said. "He's a young coach who has earned this opportunity in our program and has a vision and a plan that aligns with the values of DWU. We are all very excited about the future of DWU men's basketball."

Williamson, who was 20-10 in his lone campaign leading DWU, resigned from the position on April 22 to take the vacant Dakota State men's basketball coaching job.

Nicholson said he is ready to put forth a culture built of respect and commitment towards one another, from the players to everyone else who'll take to the sidelines at the Corn Palace.

"We're going to work diligently and efficiently to make these next four years the best four years of your life," Nicholson said towards the players who were in attendance. "We're going to be prepared, we're going to play hard and we're going to approach every single day with great passion and joy."