Texas Tech appoints Blair Quinn as new assistant football coach

Lubbock, Texas. – Texas Tech and football head coach Tom Stone announced on Tuesday the hiring of former Iowa associate head coach Blair Quinn as the team’s new assistant coach. Quinn travels to Lubbock from Iowa, where he has spent the past four seasons as associate head coach of the Hawkeyes. During his time in Iowa City, he served as goaltending coach and led the program to two NCAA Tournament appearances and its first Big Ten title in school history. “Blair Quinn is a fantastic addition to the Red Raider Soccer program,” said coach Tom Stone. “His experience at the youth, collegiate and professional levels will serve our players and staff very well in this capacity. Our search was extensive and Blair’s experience and professionalism stood out as a perfect fit for the culture of the our team and the commitment to win. An outstanding coach and mentor to goalkeeping, Blair will also be heavily involved at all levels of team preparation, recruitment and player development. Thanks to Kirby Hocutt, Brandi Stewart and Johnothan Botros for supporting our search for such a highly qualified and experienced candidate.” In his first season with Iowa, Quinn led the team to one of the best seasons in program history, as the Hawkeyes had their highest ranking in program history finishing No. 17. The team had a nine-game hitting streak and a total of 15 in the year. That same year, Iowa made its second NCAA Tournament appearance in school history. In 2020, the Hawkeyes saw their second consecutive tournament berth in a year with an expanded Big Ten postseason schedule due to league-only scheduling due to COVID. The Hawkeyes had victories over second seed Illinois and third seed Minnesota on the weekend of the Big Ten Regionals. The team followed up with a win on the road over top-seeded Penn State in the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament before knocking down third-seeded Wisconsin to claim the program’s first Big Ten title. During their 2020 campaign, goaltender Macy Enneking was named the Big Ten Tournament’s Most Outstanding Defensive Player after posting a pair of shutouts and making 14 saves. Enneking was also a unanimous Big Ten All-Freshman team selection after taking over in goal midseason. The freshman led the Big Ten with 0.47 goals against average in 11 games, his . 912 save percentage was best in the league, and his six shutouts tied for third place. “I’m very excited about the opportunity to work with Tom Stone,” said Quinn. “He has been very successful at all levels of the game, including at the club level and as head coach at Texas Tech. He has built one of the best youth clubs, I look forward to learning from him. I am also excited for the opportunity to work alongside Nick Hallam there. I’m thrilled to help him get Texas Tech back into the NCAA Tournament.” Prior to his four seasons with the Hawkeyes, Quinn made stops at Houston, Arizona State, New Mexico State, Loyola Marymount and Saint Mary, Kansas. While acting as an assistant coach in Houston, Quinn also assisted with the NWSL’s Houston Dash. In his two seasons in Houston, the Cougars tallied 14 wins after winning just 12 games in the previous four seasons. During his two stints at Arizona State, the Sun Devils made three NCAA Tournament appearances, including his last stint in 2014-15. Prior to rejoining the Sun Devils, Quinn was the head coach at New Mexico State from 2011 to 2013 and led the Aggies to a single-season record 10 wins and the program’s first postseason win in the WAC Tournament. During his playing days, Quinn played professionally from 1997 to 2003. He began his professional career with the Tallahassee Scorpions of the Eastern Indoor Soccer League before playing with the Sacramento Knights of the Western Indoor Soccer League. Quinn was with the Kansas City Brass of the United Systems of Independent Soccer Leagues and Arizona Thunder (WISL), before finishing his playing career with the Kansas City Comets of the Major Indoor Soccer League. During his college tenure, he was a three-year starter at Rockhurst University (NAIA) as a goaltender. Quinn earned NAIA first-team All-America and National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) second-team All-America honors. During his last senior campaign, he led the Hawks to the NAIA Final Four and still holds the Rockhurst records for shutouts in a season (15) and career shutouts (37). Quinn received a BA in Communications in 2005 from Rockhurst University. He also holds several coaching licenses, including the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) National “A” License, United States Soccer Federation (USSF) National Goalkeeping License, and NSCAA Youth National Diploma. A native of Overland Park, Kansas, Quinn and his wife, Lacey, have two sons, Aidan and Riley.

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