Hokie Club
BLACKSBURG – Virginia Tech head men's basketball coach Mike Young announced Monday the additions of six support staff personnel, including chief of staff Stephanie Ballein, special assistant to the head coach Kevin Giltner, special assistant for recruiting Matt Olinger, senior director of strength and conditioning David Land and director of sports medicine Hisham Ziyout, while retaining director of player personnel Ryan Nadeau.
"This staff will allow us to operate at an extremely high level," Young said. "Their range of experience and knowledge will greatly impact every aspect of our program. They are bright, intelligent and have an outstanding work ethic. More importantly, they will assist our student-athletes in every phase of their lives.
"Having Stephanie join our program was a great first step in building this staff. Her administrative background will be invaluable as we move forward. Kevin has been in my system for years as a player and coach and has a great understanding of the game and the ever-changing dynamics of college basketball. Matt is a bright young mind in the business and, with his technology experience, will allow us to work efficiently in the recruiting process."
Ballein returns to her alma mater after most recently serving as Senior Associate AD for Operations at Radford University, overseeing four sports, including men's basketball. The former three-year letterwinner on Tech's women's basketball team had supervision over student-athlete enhancement and welfare, hiring and managing coaches, university relations, compliance and risk management, gender equity, business operations, facilities development and strategic planning for the Highlanders.
Giltner follows Young from Wofford, where he was an assistant coach for five years and served as director of basketball operations his first year on staff in 2013-14. Primarily working with the guards, Giltner was key in the development of Fletcher Magee, who made the most career 3-pointers in NCAA Division I history. He was a four-year letterwinner under Young, averaging 14.8 points per game his senior year, and went on to play professionally in Iceland.
Olinger served two seasons under head coach Bryce Drew at Vanderbilt, working as the director of operations. Before his stint in Nashville, Olinger enjoyed an 11-year stay at Liberty University performing a variety of duties, including work as an assistant coach, director of operations and graduate manager. Olinger, a two-time graduate of Liberty, was instrumental in guiding Jesse Sanders to Big South Player of the Year honors and coached 13 all-conference players.
Land also comes to Tech after a stint at Wofford, working as the athletic performance coach for men's basketball this past season. Designing the Terriers' strength and conditioning plans, Land also oversaw nutrition year-round, including in-season travel meals. Before his time in Spartanburg, Land was the director of strength and condition for all Olympic sports at Utah State and had a similar role at Murray State. Land graduated from Appalachian State and is certified through the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) as a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS).
Nadeau enters his second year with the Hokies, following his work as the program's video and technology guru. The Michigan State grad was a part of one of the best runs in school history, as Tech made it to the Sweet 16 and finished fifth in the ACC standings in 2018-19.
Ziyout will begin working with men's basketball this summer after working with Tech's football team the last two years. A graduate of Salisbury, Ziyout worked at Johns Hopkins before his stint with the Hokies, working for two years with men's lacrosse, volleyball, women's basketball and water polo programs.
Last week, the Virginia Tech Athletics Department announced that season ticket renewals will be available to purchase, with prices remaining the same as last year. Season tickets can be renewed by logging in to your ticket account here.