A Different View

A different view

The Ithacan, Sept. 20, 2007

Eric Sambolec ’99 is in a familiar place. In the front lobby of the Hill Center on Sept. 10, Sambolec stands among members of the men’s cross country team as they prepare for their daily run. A few years ago, Sambolec was one of these runners. Now he is back in a different role — a coach.

“It feels weird to come back as somewhat of an authority figure and to realize that I’m not on the team anymore,” Sambolec said. “But it feels great to be able to bring it full circle.”

Sambolec is one of about 20 head and assistant coaches at Ithaca College who are graduates and former members of their respective programs, a number that stands as a testament to the college’s strong athletic programs.

Ryan Ciotoli ’02 is entering his sixth year as an assistant coach for the wrestling team and is proud to continue his legacy.

“Ithaca is a great college with a winning tradition,” Ciotoli said. “You want to be a part of that for as long as you can.”

These former athletes have different reasons for returning to South Hill. Some are pursuing a master’s degree and can’t resist sticking around for another season with their former team. Others are drawn back because of the positive experiences they’ve had with the Bombers and their desire to give back to their programs.

Head wrestling coach Marty Nichols ’90 is one of those people. Nichols, a three-time All-American, wrestled on two National Championship teams for the Bombers.

“Those were some of the best times of my college career, and to be able to stay involved in that was a great opportunity,” he said.

Nichols credits Ithaca’s strong tradition as another reason why coaches return.

“They’ve gone through great programs and had great coaches while they were here,” he said. “And now they want to continue that and give that kind of experience to an athlete today.”

Another benefit of coaching at Ithaca is the easy adjustment to authority among familiar faces. Ciotoli, who wrestled under Nichols, was one of the most successful wrestlers in the program’s history with a career record of 90-22. He joined the coaching staff in 2002.

“Marty [has] built up the program, and I wanted to help out and continue to make it better,” Ciotoli said. “Bringing a coach into a system that he was a part of makes for an easy transition.”

Nichols agreed with Ciotoli, citing easy communication as another asset.

“You’re on the same page and understand what’s going on,” Nichols said. “You don’t even have to talk to each other, you can just look at a guy and know what they’re thinking.”

It also means that they are no longer able to compete in the sport they love.

Assistant men’s swimming coach Mark Tedeschi ’07 is entering his first year of coaching, after four years of competing for the Bombers.

“It’s a relieving feeling to not have to put the time and energy into performing, but once the meets start, I’ll probably be jealous of the guys,” Tedeschi said.

Tedeschi said that it is a tradition for a swim team alumnus to become an assistant coach.

“Some of my teammates said they’d like me to coach, and the fact that they said they wanted me was a big factor,” Tedeschi said. “I figured I’d put the skills I’d learned here to use.”

Sambolec has a similar story. After graduating from the college, he served as the head women’s cross country coach and assistant track and field coach at Lansing Community College in Michigan, where he was named NJCAA Region XII and MCCAA Coach of the Year four times. But Sambolec said his former coach influenced his decision to return to South Hill.

“Coach [Jim] Nichols was a big part of it,” he said. “He’s helped me even after I graduated, and it’s nice to have that.”

Sambolec, like most Ithaca coaches, is pleased with his decision to return. With around two dozen former athletes currently coaching, he certainly isn’t the only one.

“Ithaca has good institutional support for athletics and a good balance and understanding that it’s an education,” Sambolec said. “It’s a beautiful, vibrant, intellectual place. When you combine all these things with all the good people here, it’s hard to stay away.”