Jeff Nichols
Jeff and his wife, Rachel, are happily married and together they have their son, Matthew. He is from Bluffdale, UT and moved to Sheridan in 2019 when he became the Farmers Insurance agent in town.
Volleyball Experience
• Volleyball entered Jeff’s life at the same moment he met Rachel. “From then on, it's been volleyball 100% for me and my family.”
• He was the manager of the girl's volleyball team at his High School his senior year, and during that time, he was able to learn about the intricacies of the sport while under the direction of head coach, Scott Keister, who is the current head coach at Northwest College in Powell, WY.
• His High School offered a boys club volleyball team his Senior year and he was the starting libero.
• Jeff was a big time baseball player growing up. He played from age 3 to age 18. He played on multiple Super-League and All-Star teams, competing all across the country.
• He served many of his teams as team Captain and was being recruited by Minor League teams his Senior year. Instead of pursuing that route, he chose to serve a mission for his Church at age 18, and lived in Hungary for two years while he served.
• Jeff consistently puts in hours watching volleyball to learn as much as he can. He has completed coach training through live and interactive workshops with Digital Volleyball Academy, and considers himself a full time student of the game.
• The idea of a high school aged boys volleyball team in Sheridan came to Jeff in 2022 and he ran with it. He has taken our boys team to tournaments near and far, hosted boys tournaments and opened doors, and eyes, to the opportunities boys have in the sport of volleyball in our town and surrounding areas.
• He runs the Adult Volleyball open gym in town and enjoys the local play that Sheridan offers. He also likes to travel and play in volleyball tournaments with his wife and friends.
Why do I coach?
"I find joy in coaching because sports can bring out all the best qualities of people. There is so much to learn from this game, and I enjoy being able to share that with those willing to let me coach them.”
What do I look forward to teaching my team?
“To me, it's not about the outcome on the court. It's about the outcome in life. I stand by our team's core values: Confidence, Teamwork, and Respect. If we can achieve this with our young people, then we have already won.”
Why the philosophy of coaching "person first, athlete second" is important to me:
"Growing up, my best mentors were my coaches. I played baseball for 15 years on many competitive teams. I've had coaches who instilled confidence in me and my team. The best coaches I had were the ones who listened and cared. They set high standards, and HELPED me get there. I still have a relationship with many of my past coaches and this is exactly what I want for my team. For them to understand that I love and care for them, and want the best for them in life. And the way we are doing this is on the volleyball court."
Other Tidbits
Coach Jeff spends his time day to day taking care of his Farmers Insurance clients, fulfilling his church calling and serving people in the community. Whenever he can, he’ll be up on the mountain hunting, fishing and camping. He also enjoys golfing and spending quality time with his family.