HUNTINGDON, PA- After a national search, men’s basketball assistant coach Nick Hager has been selected as the new head men’s basketball and men’s tennis coach at Bethany College in Bethany, WV.
Hager has been an assistant coach with the Eagles for the last five seasons. During that time, Juniata posted an overall record of 82-55 while earning back-to-back Eastern College Athletic Conference South Regional Championships in 2012-13 and 2013-14.
“I would like to thank the staff at Juniata, and especially Greg (Curley) for opening the door for me to gain some valuable experience over the last five seasons,” commented Hager, who will be the 26th head coach in Bethany Basketball history. “Having had the chance to play for Greg and then getting to see him as a peer and mentor during the start of my coaching career, I couldn’t be more grateful for what both he and the institution as a whole afforded me.”
“This is a tremendous opportunity for Nick,” stated Curley. “We are all very proud of him and appreciative of all the effort and time he has put into our program. His contribution to our success and to our future success is immeasurable and we wish him all the best.”
A 2007 Juniata graduate, Hager was a four-year letterwinner, three-year starter and two-year captain of the JC basketball team. A defensive-minded presence, Hager still ranks third on the Eagle’s all-time list in career-steals (144).
Hager is the third in his family to become a head coach. Brother Nate, who was also a four-year letterwinner for Juniata (Class of 2001) and an assistant coach at Bethany, is the head coach at Regis College in Weston, MA. Father Bill had a legendary career in Northwestern, PA. Most notably, he spent 14 years as the head boys coach at Franklin High School, where he led the Knights to five District 10 titles and a PIAA Class AAA State Championship in 2001. The Hager basketball bloodlines also extend to sister Natalie who enters her senior season on the Juniata women’s basketball team.
