Bio

BJ McNicol will see his role expand at Saddleback College in 2023 with the addition of men's soccer.  McNicol has been named the head coach of the program, which will start in the fall of 2023.  

McNicol took over as head coach of the Saddleback women’s soccer program in 2012, replacing Brandee Craig who had been the head coach from the program’s inception in 2001 through the 2011 season (11 years).  McNicol has a wealth of experience as a player and coach and is well-known and well-respected for his coaching in Southern California.

He was a product of Viewmont High School in Bountiful, Utah, before continuing his soccer career at UNLV where he played for four years and served as the Runnin’ Rebels’ captain during his senior season.  He went on to play professionally for five seasons in the United Soccer League (USL) with the Utah Blitzz and the New Hampshire Phantoms.

He has served as the Director of Coaching for a competitive youth club in Mission Viejo since 2005 and has been coaching at Rosary High School in Fullerton since 2008.   

McNicol is nationally licensed through the USYSA and NSCAA with specialty diplomas in Futsal and Maximizing Player Performance Using Technology and Science.   

McNicol has an overall record of 129-50-40 in his 10 seasons at Saddleback with the women's program, qualifying for the playoffs in eight out of the past nine seasons.  His career reached a pinnacle in 2022 when the Saddleback women's team won a CCCAA state title and was named the No. 1 team in the country by the United Soccer Coaches.  Saddleback's staff was also named the National Staff-of-the-Year for 2022.   

McNicol was voted the Orange Empire Conference Coach-of-the-Year in 2015 when Saddleback finished in second place in the Orange Empire Conference and then again in 2021 when the program captured its first-ever Orange Empire Conference championship. 

McNicol has served on the CCCSCA Executive Board since 2018 and is the current President-Elect.

McNicol earned a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology from UNLV and added a master’s degree in coaching and athletic administration from Concordia University.  He currently makes his home in Riverside with his wife, Kelly, and daughter Delanie.