Thu - 06 Jun
Written by Jim Ecker
Bryan Petersen did not go hunting for a new job after leading the Kirkwood Eagles to their second NJCAA Division II national title in four years this past season.
As it turned out, an attractive new job found him.
Petersen, 32, has left the Kirkwood men's basketball program to become an assistant coach at South Dakota State, an NCAA Division I program that competes in the Summit Conference. Tim Sandquist, who led Rock Valley College to the championship game of the NJCAA DIII tournament this year, was hired last week as Kirkwood's new coach.
Petersen compiled a 157-38 record in six years at Kirkwood with national titles in 2016 and 2019. And although he was not looking for a new job, he was receptive when new South Dakota State Coach Eric Henderson offered him a spot with the Jackrabbits.
Henderson and Petersen have known each other for 10 years. Henderson worked with the Iowa State men's basketball program when Petersen played for the Cyclones as a junior and senior, and they communicated quite a bit the last two years when Henderson helped recruit Kirkwood All-American Doug Wilson to South Dakota State.
When Henderson became the head coach at South Dakota State this spring, he called Petersen and popped the question. "If I was going to leave Kirkwood, there were only a few places where I felt comfortable," he said. "This was one of them."
Petersen did not accept right away, but quickly became intrigued by the possibility of coaching at the NCAA Division I level.
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