Upcoming Event: Volleyball versus Weber State (Exhibition) on August 15, 2026 at 3:00 P.M.
3:00 P.M.
Volleyball
vs Weber State (Exhibition)
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The University of Utah Athletics
Q&A With Dan Corotan
5/6/2020 3:32 PM | Volleyball
Assistant coach Dan Corotan is heading into his third season with the program and opens up about how he got into volleyball and what he loves about coaching.
How did you get in volleyball?
We had a volleyball around all the time as I was growing up. We ended up as a family just playing all the time. Mainly just my brother and I would go out in the back yard and pepper. We would be young and try to pepper and he would get mad at me because I could never hit the ball straight. We actually wouldn't really be peppering, it would be fetch. He would pass the ball and then he would bump it and I would hit it nowhere close to where he was. It was through that that we started to have touch on the ball and enjoy it. I didn't play on my first organized team until high school. After my freshman year, I started to play club and shortly after that decided to just focus on volleyball.
How did you decide to play in college?
I originally didn't think I would be good enough to play because I started playing late. I was playing for a club team and saw some coaches come and watch us play. I thought 'Maybe I can do this'. In men's volleyball, I knew I probably wouldn't get a scholarship, but when BYU started recruiting me and I went to their camps it allowed me to show them what I could do. It was the summer before my senior year, I got a letter from them saying they wanted me to walk on at BYU and that was it. I figured BYU was the place for me. I was on the team for a semester, then served my mission and then when I came back I ended up getting cut prior to the season. At that point, I thought it was time to move on to the next phase of my life and keep volleyball as a hobby.
When did you know you wanted to be a coach?
As an athlete or anything you're doing you get better with putting time into something and studying it. I felt like I was a good student of the game even back to high school. I knew what other teammates should be doing and what footwork they should have even though it didn't really pertain to my position. When I was applying to physical therapy school, I was thinking in my head I have spent so much time with volleyball, I thought to myself why not see what volleyball has to offer. I knew to get into the coaching world, I would need to volunteer and got that opportunity at Utah Valley learning Data Volley. The time and effort I put in at an early age that I think helped fuel me to be in the gym. I loved the competition of it, and I just thought I've put so much time into this game that maybe I can do something with it.
What did you learn from coaching at Utah Valley?
Prior to being at Utah Valley, I had club coaching experience, but overall was a blank canvas. I was learning on the fly and there were things I was able to take from coaches I had liked in the past. Every day was something new starting with data volley when I volunteered. When it came to on-court coaching, I think that took time to gain confidence. With coaching, I learned quickly that it is so much more than what you say on the court. It's relationships, helping these athletes be better on and off the court. It's about what we teach on the court about hard work and being disciplined all translates to off the court as well. I quickly learned that I missed the volleyball aspect and being in the gym, coaching is much more than that. I love volleyball, but having an impact on these lives is even more rewarding.
How has it been learning from Beth Launiere at Utah?
Beth has been doing this for so long and has so much experience, she's able to guide me down the right path. She already knows what she wants to do, but still gives me a chance to voice my opinion and will help direct me to what's best. She teaches like that on the court too. Beth has a wealth of knowledge that she's able to help me as a coach, the players and the program be successful. It shows because she's had success at every level she's been at from the WAC, to the Mountain West to the Pac-12. This past year was an amazing experience and to see her shine through during my first taste of Sweet 16 action and see how cool and level headed she was something I won't forget. She knew what was happening and had a swagger about her.
What is your favorite part about coaching?
I'm relationship oriented so that's my favorite part is the people, and that extends beyond the coaching staff to the support staff and people around the department as well as the student-athletes and their parents. I've met a lot of amazing people and great athletes, but even better people off the court. Those are the relationships that I cherish on and off the court. You get close with these players because you're going to battle with them, but that's only a short period of time. They're here for four years, but that relationship is going to last a lot longer. That's my favorite part about coaching is you build these lasting relationships to where you can celebrate victories on the court as well as off the court.
How did you get in volleyball?
We had a volleyball around all the time as I was growing up. We ended up as a family just playing all the time. Mainly just my brother and I would go out in the back yard and pepper. We would be young and try to pepper and he would get mad at me because I could never hit the ball straight. We actually wouldn't really be peppering, it would be fetch. He would pass the ball and then he would bump it and I would hit it nowhere close to where he was. It was through that that we started to have touch on the ball and enjoy it. I didn't play on my first organized team until high school. After my freshman year, I started to play club and shortly after that decided to just focus on volleyball.
How did you decide to play in college?
I originally didn't think I would be good enough to play because I started playing late. I was playing for a club team and saw some coaches come and watch us play. I thought 'Maybe I can do this'. In men's volleyball, I knew I probably wouldn't get a scholarship, but when BYU started recruiting me and I went to their camps it allowed me to show them what I could do. It was the summer before my senior year, I got a letter from them saying they wanted me to walk on at BYU and that was it. I figured BYU was the place for me. I was on the team for a semester, then served my mission and then when I came back I ended up getting cut prior to the season. At that point, I thought it was time to move on to the next phase of my life and keep volleyball as a hobby.
When did you know you wanted to be a coach?
As an athlete or anything you're doing you get better with putting time into something and studying it. I felt like I was a good student of the game even back to high school. I knew what other teammates should be doing and what footwork they should have even though it didn't really pertain to my position. When I was applying to physical therapy school, I was thinking in my head I have spent so much time with volleyball, I thought to myself why not see what volleyball has to offer. I knew to get into the coaching world, I would need to volunteer and got that opportunity at Utah Valley learning Data Volley. The time and effort I put in at an early age that I think helped fuel me to be in the gym. I loved the competition of it, and I just thought I've put so much time into this game that maybe I can do something with it.
What did you learn from coaching at Utah Valley?
Prior to being at Utah Valley, I had club coaching experience, but overall was a blank canvas. I was learning on the fly and there were things I was able to take from coaches I had liked in the past. Every day was something new starting with data volley when I volunteered. When it came to on-court coaching, I think that took time to gain confidence. With coaching, I learned quickly that it is so much more than what you say on the court. It's relationships, helping these athletes be better on and off the court. It's about what we teach on the court about hard work and being disciplined all translates to off the court as well. I quickly learned that I missed the volleyball aspect and being in the gym, coaching is much more than that. I love volleyball, but having an impact on these lives is even more rewarding.
How has it been learning from Beth Launiere at Utah?
Beth has been doing this for so long and has so much experience, she's able to guide me down the right path. She already knows what she wants to do, but still gives me a chance to voice my opinion and will help direct me to what's best. She teaches like that on the court too. Beth has a wealth of knowledge that she's able to help me as a coach, the players and the program be successful. It shows because she's had success at every level she's been at from the WAC, to the Mountain West to the Pac-12. This past year was an amazing experience and to see her shine through during my first taste of Sweet 16 action and see how cool and level headed she was something I won't forget. She knew what was happening and had a swagger about her.
What is your favorite part about coaching?
I'm relationship oriented so that's my favorite part is the people, and that extends beyond the coaching staff to the support staff and people around the department as well as the student-athletes and their parents. I've met a lot of amazing people and great athletes, but even better people off the court. Those are the relationships that I cherish on and off the court. You get close with these players because you're going to battle with them, but that's only a short period of time. They're here for four years, but that relationship is going to last a lot longer. That's my favorite part about coaching is you build these lasting relationships to where you can celebrate victories on the court as well as off the court.
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