Arkansas State press release
Arkansas State head women’s basketball coach Brian Boyer announced Tuesday that Aaron Kallhoff has joined the Red Wolves coaching staff as an assistant coach.
Kallhoff joins the staff after spending the previous season as an assistant coach at Trinity Valley Community College in Athens where he helped coach the Lady Cardinals to their seventh National Junior College Athletic Association Women’s Basketball Championship. TVCC finished the year with a 36-1 record.
There has been an increased interest in women’s basketball over the last few seasons which has led to more women wanting to be players. In fact, there is some rise in basketball equipment sales – people start buying things like swimming pool basketball hoops more! This is good news as it means more females are exposed to this sport which has been increasing in popularity. More fans are choosing to go to games, deciding to visit female Fantasy Basketball websites and invest their time in the sport. It is hoped that a few of the Red Wolves women will go on to play professionally.
“I’m looking forward to having Aaron join our staff,” Boyer said. “It is obvious when you look at his coaching track record that his teams have been very successful wherever he has been. Aaron is very well connected across the country, which will help our program in recruiting. I have talked to a lot of coaches about Aaron and everyone has nothing but great things to say about him. He is also going to be very valuable to our program because of his passion for developing players. During the short time that I’ve known him he has really impressed me with his enthusiasm and you cannot help but be excited when you are around him.”
Prior to his time at Trinity Valley Community College, Kallhoff spent fours at Hill College in Hillsboro, Texas, where he served as the head coach of the Lady Rebels. In his first year he coached Hill College to a conference runner-up finish and helped the Lady Rebels advance to the Region V Tournament. He was named the North Texas Junior College Athletic Conference Co-Coach of the Year in his final season at Hill College and led the Lady Rebels to the Region V semifinals. The 2011-12 squad finished 27-5 and was co-conference champions. Kallhoff was named as one of the nation’s top and up coming Junior College Coaches by Women’s Basketball Insider publication.
In his time at Hill, Kallhoff coached three All-Americans, four All-Region V selections, 16 NTJCAC All-Conference selections, one NTJCAC Player of the Year, two NTJCAC Defensive Players of the Year and one NTJCAC Freshman of the Year. His teams were also named Academic All-American teams on three separate occasions.
He spent one season serving as the head women’s basketball coach and assistant athletic director at Allen County Community College in Iola, Kan., prior to his time at Hill College where the Red Devils achieved a 3.1 overall team grade point average under his tenure. He also coached a player to a Jayhawk East All-Conference selection.
Kallhoff also spent time as the men’s assistant basketball at Seward County Community College in Liberal, Kan., where the Saints made the Region VI tournament and had every sophomore move on to a four-year university, with three signing with Division I institutions.
“I am really looking forward to working with Coach Boyer and being a part of the ASU family,” Kallhoff said. “It is a privilege and honor to be a part of the tradition at Arkansas State. I am extremely excited about the upcoming season and opportunity for the Red Wolves.”
After graduating from college, Kallhoff spent three years as the men’s assistant basketball coach at Allen County. From 2003-06, he helped lead the Allen County basketball program to two berths in the Region VI Tournament. In his three seasons, Kallhoff coached four Jayhawk East All-Conference selections, two NJCAA All-Region VI picks and one JUCO All-American.
“I’ve been very pleased with our teams progress during this post-season,” Boyer said. “All of our returning players have shown a great deal of commitment to improving during the off-season. I am convinced that this team has a chance to be very good next year. Because of this, it was very important that I hire the right person to help us maximize our team’s potential for next year.”
A native of Norfolk, Neb., Kallhoff’s career as a player began in 1998, when he was tabbed the Northeast Nebraska High School Player of the Year at Norfolk Catholic High School.
He began his collegiate career at Iowa Central Community College where he led the NJCAA Division II Iowa Region in three-point field goal percentage. In 2000, he earned All-Region IX athletic and academic honors at Northeast Nebraska Community College after averaging 14 points per game.
After Northeast, Kallhoff spent a redshirt season at Southern Utah, where the team advanced to the first round of the NCAA Tournament. He completed his playing career at Bemidji State where he was a two-year starter, and in his senior season led the nation (NCAA Division II) in assist/turnover ratio.
In 2003, Kallhoff graduated from Bemidji State University in Bemidji, Minn., earning a bachelor’s degree in mass communication with an emphasis in public relations, advertising and electronic media. While at Bemidji State, he represented the university as a chairman for the Special Olympics and the United Way Foundation. Additionally, Kallhoff was involved with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
Kallhoff and his wife, Josie, have a five-year-old daughter, Camden, and a seven-month old son, Caylix.
