NAU hires Ken Murphy as head volleyball coach

Published Jul. 1, 2013 4:39 p.m. ET

foxsports

Ken Murphy, head volleyball coach at Texas-El Paso for the past seven years, is the new volleyball coach at Northern Arizona.

Murphy is the 11th head coach in the NAU program's history and brings 16 years of coaching experience. He capped his seven years at UTEP by being named Conference USA Coach of the Year in 2012.

Murphy's overall record at UTEP was 82-135, but over the past two seasons, the Miners were 35-26. He previously coached at Idaho (2000-05) and Colorado State (1997-99).

He replaces Craig Choate, who announced his retirement in May. NAU is coming off a 24-7 season in 2012 and finished third in the Big Sky Conference.

"NAU and Flagstaff offer so many positives for me both personally and professionally," Murphy said. "It's the sort of place that I wish I would have attended college and I'm excited about the opportunity to coach in that environment. I can't wait to get there and get to work."

Murphy previously coached at the University of Idaho (2000-05) and Colorado State University (1997-99).

He received his bachelor's degree from Arizona State in 1992 and master's degree in 1995. Ken and his wife Corie, have two children, Makenna Deborah and Kellan.