Terrance Brooks
Head Coach - Strength and Conditioning Coordinator

Kalamazoo College named Terrance A. Brooks head football coach on Jan. 18, 2005. Brooks is the 24th head football coach in school history. He also serves as the College's strength and conditioning coordinator.

In 2005, his first season as head coach, Brooks led the Hornets to a three-game improvement and undefeated home record.

Brooks came to Kalamazoo from Shenandoah University (Va.) where he had been assistant head football coach since 2002, coordinating the defense, defensive line, and the strength and conditioning program.

In 2004, Shenandoah’s fifth year with a football program, Brooks helped lead the Hornets to a USA South co-conference championship (5-1, 7-4 overall), an NCAA Division III national ranking, and an NCAA Division III playoff appearance. Shenandoah also shared the USA South conference championship in 2003 (5-1, 8-2 overall). The Hornets compiled a 20-11 record (14-4 USA South) from 2002 to 2004, and produced five first-team and ten second-team All-USA South defensive players.

Brooks coached at Bridgewater College (Va.) from 1996 to 1998, where he served as offensive coordinator, offensive line coach, and strength and conditioning coordinator. Bridgewater improved to 5-5 (following two winless years) in his first season on the staff (1996).

Brooks played football on two national playoff teams at Towson State University (Md.) and was inducted into their Athletic Hall of Fame in 2001. He was a first-team All-American offensive lineman in 1984 and earned honorable mention All-American honors in 1983. In 1983, Towson was 10-2 and ranked in the top 10 in the country. They were ranked number one in the East and advanced to the NCAA II Quarterfinals. In 1984, Towson was 9-4 and ranked as high as second in the nation. They were again ranked number one in the East and advanced to the NCAA II Semifinals.

In addition to football, Brooks competed in track and field at Towson and was the East Coast Conference discus champion in 1985. He also competed in the Penn Relays in 1985. Brooks was selected as Towson’s Male Athlete of the Year in 1985, and graduated in 1991 with a degree in physical education and a minor in psychology.

Brooks signed with the Cleveland Browns in 1985-86, but an injury during training camp forced his early retirement.

Brooks played football and threw the shot put and discus at Linganore High School in Maryland. He was a consensus all-star on the 1980 Monocacy Valley Athletic football championship team that was undefeated in the league and advanced to the state semifinals. Brooks was elected to Linganore's Distinguished Graduate Program in 2003.

Brooks coached high school football from 1986-87, 1993-96, and 1998. In 1987 as an assistant coach, he helped lead Linganore High School (Md.) to a second-place finish in the state tournament. In 1993 Brooks was selected as a coach for the Baltimore All-Star High School Football game. In 1995 he was selected as a coach for the Chesapeake Classic Maryland vs. Virginia High School Football All-Star game.

Brooks is a strength and conditioning specialist certified by the National Strength and Conditioning Association. He is a four-time World and five-time National Drug Free Powerlifting Champion. He is a member of the Black Coaches Association, the American Football Coaches Association, the NFL Alumni Association, the National Strength and Conditioning Association, the United States Weightlifting Association, and is a Certified Club Coach (by USA Weightlifting).

In 2006, Brooks was one of 20 coaches selected to attend the NCAA Football Coaching Academy in Indianapolis. The Football Coaching Academy is one of the NCAA initiatives that addresses the critical shortage of ethnic minorities in head coaching positions in the sport of college football, primarily at the Division I level.

Terrance and his wife, Dana, reside in Kalamazoo.

Van Nickert
Assistant Coach - Equipment Manager - Director of Intramurals

Van Nickert returned as an assistant coach on the Hornet football staff in 2005 after serving as head coach in 2004.

Nickert served the Hornets as an assistant coach for 21 seasons prior to taking over the helm in 2004. He has served in numerous roles, including defensive line coach, recruiting coordinator, offensive coordinator and defensive coordinator. Nickert was defensive coordinator from 2000-2003.

As defensive coordinator in 2003, Nickert led the league's top-ranked defense. The Hornets led the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) in scoring defense (18.5 points/game), rushing defense (120.5 yards/game), total defense (291.4 yards/game), fewest opponent first downs (16.1 per game), opponent’s fourth-down conversion success (26.9 percent), and opponent’s third-down conversion success (34.1 percent). The Hornets were second in pass defense (170.9 yards/game), pass defense efficiency (103.1), and sacks (2.3 per game). The Hornets were third in red zone defense. Out of 225 NCAA Division III schools, Kalamazoo ranked 43rd in total defense, 48th in rushing defense, 59th in pass efficiency defense, and 58th in scoring defense.

Nickert graduated from Western Michigan University in 1981 with a degree in education.

In addition to serving as an assistant football coach, Nickert is the College’s equipment manager and director of the intramural program.

Van and his wife, Lana, reside in Kalamazoo with their daughters, Allison (14) and Haley (12).

Eric Soulier
Assistant Coach

Eric Soulier joined the staff in 2004 as a graduate assistant. Soulier coached the defensive line in 2004 and 2005, and was promoted to full-time status in 2006.

Soulier graduated from Kalamazoo College in 2000 with a degree in computer science. He earned a master's degree in educational leadership from Western Michigan University in 2006.

Following graduation from Kalamazoo, Soulier taught math and served as defensive coordinator at Paw Paw High School. He then moved to Arizona where he served as defensive coordinator on the jayvee football team at Palo Verde High School in Tucson for two seasons. He was head coach of the freshman team in 2003.

Soulier was a four-year letter winner for the Hornet football team and a two-year starter at cornerback. He was selected as MIAA Defensive Player of the Week in 1998 after intercepting three passes against Oberlin College in the season opener. He had 84 career tackles (58 solo), 12 pass break-ups, and four interceptions. Soulier tied for the team-lead in pass break-ups (10) and earned coaches' honorable mention honors in 1999.

Eric and his wife, Kate, reside in Kalamazoo.

Jacob Johnson
Assistant Coach

Jacob Johnson began his first season as an assistant coach in 2006.

Johnson is a 2001 graduate of The College of Wooster where he majored in political science. As a basketball player, Johnson was a member of two North Coast Athletic Conference championship teams and made two NCAA Division III tournament appearances. He also excelled in track, setting school records in three events while earning all-conference honors in seven events.

Johnson has been an assistant basketball coach at Hiram College and Case Western Reserve University. Most recently, Johnson was the head boys basketball coach at Portage Central High School in 2005-06.

Johnson currently serves as the associate minister at Galilee Baptist Church in Kalamazoo.

Rob Atwood
Assistant Coach

Rob Atwood joins the football coaching staff for the 2007 season.

Atwood is a 2007 graduate of Kalamazoo College and a four-year letter winner for the Hornets as a defensive back. He recorded 122 career tackles with four tackles for loss, one interception and one sack. He had a career-best 78 tackles in 2005 as a junior. He recorded 14 tackles against Tri-State on Nov. 12, 2005. In 2006, Atwood received the Marigene Arnold Unsung Hero Award.

Atwood earned a double-major in psychology and economics. He studied abroad in Strasbourg, France the spring of his sophomore year. His senior individualized project was an analysis of the economic consequences of the Kalamazoo Promise.

Atwood plans to pursue a graduate degree in psychology.

Dustin Neill
Student Coach

Dustin Neill begins his first season as a student coach in 2007. He will work primarily with the defensive line.

Neill is a sophomore at Kalamazoo College double majoring in math and physics.

Neill worked with the football team as a manger in 2006. He worked in the sports information office during the winter and spring quarters of 2007, and served as the official scorer at Kalamazoo College baseball and softball games.

Neill is a 2006 graduate of Berkley High School.

Scott Michel enters his fifth year at Kalamazoo College in 2007-08.

A native of Cleveland, Ohio, he received his Bachelor of Science degree from Mercyhurst College in Erie, Pa.. From there he went on to receive his Master of Arts degree from Western Michigan University, while doing his graduate assistant rotation at Kalamazoo College. Prior to re-joining the 'K' community, Scott worked at Mercyhurst as an athletic trainer for men’s and women’s soccer, women’s basketball, and men’s lacrosse.

Scott oversees the daily operations of two athletic training facilities and the medical coverage of all athletic events. He currently teaches a Care and Treatment of Injuries course at Kalamazoo College.

Scott and his wife, Heather, reside in Kalamazoo.

Greg Brown serves as Kalamazoo College's assistant equipment manager, a position he has held since 1974.

Also known as "Hammer," Greg works with most of the athletic teams, taking care of laundry and locker room facilities. A Kalamazoo resident, Brown graduated from Loy Norrix High School and earned an associates degree in general building maintenance from State Tech in 1973.