Jim Giacomazzi named director of athletics

Wayland Baptist University has named Jim Giacomazzi, the longtime Pioneer volleyball coach, as its director of athletics, effective immediately. Giacomazzi will continue in his role as head volleyball coach, a position he's held since 2007.
 
"We are excited to have Coach Giacomazzi assuming the role of being both the volleyball head coach and director of athletics here at Wayland Baptist University. Coach Giacomazzi brings a great deal of experience and loyalty to this position," said Dr. Claude Lusk, WBU's senior vice president of operations and student life. "He has been a part of the Wayland athletic family for 15 years and has been very successful. He has coached the volleyball team in each of those years and has also taken on the coaching duties for the women's golf team on two separate occasions. His willingness to serve in whatever area is needed is a hallmark of who he is as a person.

"Coach Giacomazzi has always been a visible supporter of all our athletic teams. He believes in our mission and our people. It is clear by his teams' academic performances, his classroom teaching experience, and his service on university committees that he firmly supports the academic mission of the university.

"I believe he has the ability to lead this department forward in a positive and productive direction. His extensive background in competitive athletics as both a player and a coach is an added benefit. He, no doubt, understands the role and challenges of both the coach and the student-athlete."

Giacomazzi said he is looking forward to taking on the added role of athletics director and feels his extensive history on the sidelines will benefit the department as a whole.

"I am a coach, and I have seen what we can do," he said, adding, "Relationships are the key to our success, whether it's with our teams or with professors or with co-workers. Success takes trust, respect, integrity, dependability and competence, and I hope to help foster all of those qualities within the athletic department."
 
Giacomazzi replaces Bill Weidner, who resigned after serving as AD for the 2021-22 academic year.
 
Said Weidner: "I have reached a decision to pursue other potential professional opportunities. I appreciate the opportunity to have served as the director of intercollegiate athletics at Wayland and I am proud of the many accomplishments and achievements of our student-athletes and coaches this past year in both the academic and athletic arenas. It is in that spirit that I extend my best wishes to the Wayland family for continued blessings and success."

Lusk thanked Weidner for "his service to our Department of Athletics and the university during this past academic year. His contribution to the institution and the community is appreciated. We wish him well in his future endeavors."

Giacomazzi said he feels strongly about where the WBU athletics department is but knows it can always be better.

"We have great folks in every position, and I want to support them in every way I can to help us continue to be successful. I want us to compete and win in the classroom, on the scoreboards and in the hearts of those we work with every day." 

A graduate of Azusa Pacific University in California, Giacomazzi holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Christian Education and Biblical Education and a Master's in Education. He played professional baseball in the Chicago Cubs and San Diego Padres organizations from 1981-83 before turning to coaching. He served as head volleyball coach at Oral Roberts University and at the University of Nevada-Reno prior to moving to the Texas Panhandle in 1991 to coach at West Texas A&M.
 
In his first season, he led the Lady Buffs to a 36-2 record and an NCAA Division II national championship. He followed that up with a 30-11 record and a third-place finish in the NCAA Elite 8 Tournament in 1992. 
 
Upon returning to coaching in 2007 after 15 years in the private sector, Giacomazzi turned around a Wayland program that had suffered through eight straight sub-.500 seasons. His WBU teams enjoyed 11 consecutive winning campaigns with no fewer than 17 victories, including a school-record 36-7 mark and an appearance in the NAIA Final Four in 2013. That season, WBU was named the NAIA National Tournament Champions of Character Team.

Giacomazzi, who has amassed a 302-203 record at WBU and ranks in the top 15 in the NAIA among active coaches for all-time victories with 416, has consistently guided his teams and players to earn NAIA and Sooner Athletic Conference academic honors, including earning the American Volleyball Coaches Association Team Academic Award six of the last seven years.
 
Giacomazzi is a member of the American Volleyball Coaches Association, having served on the board of directors the past five years including as chair of the Head Coaches Committee. He is a board member and the Junior Rep for the Sun Country Region of USA Volleyball. In addition, he is a Master IMPACT Clinician and holds a CAP III Certification with USA Volleyball.

Giacomazzi is married to Trisha, an assistant professor of education at WBU. They have three children, Kris, Nick and Natasha, all former WBU students, and four grandchildren. Natasha was an all-conference volleyball player at Wayland from 2011-13.
 
"I have concluded that for me to be happy, I have to walk daily with the Lord, I have to compete and I have to be surrounded by like-minded people," Giacomazzi said. "I want us to be respected and known as overachievers at Wayland."