We recently had the opportunity to speak with FIU Head Coach Danijela Tomic to reflect upon her past, present and future. We found a vibrant and energetic leader that exudes an extreme passion for her sport. Below will be a three part series covering her start in Volleyball and her start with FIU (Tuesday the 20th). Next we will cover the 2008 season (Wednesday the 21st) then look to the future with next years team and helpful tips for prospective players at the university level (Thursday the 22nd). We hope you enjoy getting to know Coach Tomic as much as we have.
SFVR: When did you first play Volleyball?
TOMIC: I started playing volleyball when I was 10 years old in my home town in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
SFVR: When did you realize that you wanted to be involved with Volleyball as an elite player and later as a coach?
TOMIC: I fell in love with volleyball the first time I saw it played. I have always been goal oriented and driven, so I started at an early age. I started playing club at 14, and my goal then was to make the fist team. When I did that, my next goal was to make the junior national team, and then the senior national team. (At that time the country was called Yugoslavia). I accomplished both goals, so when I was 18 I started playing for one of the best clubs at that time in Europe, “Mladost.” I stayed there until my arrival to the US in 1995, when I came to play for the University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UALR). I played two years there, and earned our first NCAA bid my senior year. I believe I realized there that I wanted to go into coaching because I had a great role model in my college coach, Van Compton, who still coaches at UALR.
SFVR: What was the greatest thing you learned when you were an assistant with Arkansas- Little Rock and LSU?
TOMIC: There were so many things that I learned as an assistant at UALR and LSU. Both coaches (Compton and Flory) were great mentors in different areas. At UALR I was involved in all aspects of coaching, which prepared me well for being a head coach. At LSU I learned how recruiting is done on a national level because we had unlimited financial resources. Both places were instrumental for my coaching development.
Not many people know that FIU is your first Head Coaching Job. In your second year you were named Sun Belt Conference (SBC) Coach of the Year. This year you are the fastest coach to 50 wins in FIU history, the team wins the Sun Belt Conference, you win your second SBC coach of the year and FIU makes it to it’s second NCAA Tournament.
SFVR: Looking back can you reflect on what you must have felt like when you were announced as FIU’s Head Coach and you addressed your first group of players?
TOMIC: FIU was the school where I wanted to coach, so when I was announced the Head Coach, it was one of the happiest days of my life. I was thankful that Rick Mello, FIU’s Athletic Director at that time, was confident in me and gave me a chance to prove myself. The first team meeting that I had with my players was in our locker room, and I remember it as if it was yesterday. They were all anxious, but I think after I explained my coaching philosophy and the goals for the program, most of their questions were answered.
SFVR: Was there any doubt that you would be successful at FIU?
TOMIC: I have never had any doubts that we would be successful at FIU. I knew that we had great recruiting tools because we live in one of the best cities in the world, have a great university, and one of the prettiest campuses in the country.
On Wednesday the 21st we will post Part 2 of Coach Tomics Interview.
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