Nebraska assistant Tyler Hildebrand has several plans for the holiday break a week after helping the Huskers to their fifth NCAA championship.
But exploring head coaching opportunities won’t be one of them.
Reached Thursday morning, Hildebrand said he is committed to remaining on head coach John Cook’s staff for next year and will not be exploring head coaching opportunities, including at USC, which announced last weekend the school was parting ways with longtime coach Mick Haley.
“I’ve got to learn more from Coach (Cook), and learn more from Nebraska and learn how to coach under pressure,” Hildebrand said.
Hildebrand said he had received some inquiries from third parties about his potential interest in other coaching opportunities, but nothing from an official representative of any school. There are more than 20 Division I head coaching jobs open, including at Power Five programs like Tennessee, South Carolina, and Texas A&M.
“I’ve talked to Coach about it. I’d let him know if something was up, and nothing is up,” he said.
Both Hildebrand and assistant Kayla Banwarth completed their first seasons with Nebraska. For both, it was their first season as assistant coaches with a college women’s program. Prior to coming to Nebraska, Hildebrand was an assistant for the Long Beach State men’s program, where he was an All-American as a player.
His wife, Kristin (Richards) Hildebrand, is NU’s volunteer director of volleyball operations and a former player on the U.S. national team. The couple just had their first child, a son, Rhett, in November.
It’s not new for Husker assistants to receive attention for head coaching positions. After last season, both of Cook’s assistants were hired as Division I head coaches and led their teams to the NCAA tournament in 2017.
Dani Busboom Kelly was named the ACC’s coach of the year in her first season with Louisville, and in his debut season leading Illinois, Chris Tamas helped the Fighting Illini to a berth in the regional semifinals.
Cook typically asks for assistants to commit to staying in Lincoln for at least three seasons.
“We have lots more work to do!” Cook said in a text message. “Our goal as a staff is to stay together and coach the dream team!”
