Sully
The Skipper Returns: Sullivan Takes the Helm in Austin
A hero has touched down back in Austin, but unlike the subject of Clint Eastwood’s 2016 drama starring Tom Hanks, this “Sully” didn’t have to make an emergency water landing in Lady Bird Lake. Instead, the longtime Longhorn associate head coach will be piloting a LOVB Austin team that is flying high despite a very turbulent season.
I wrote about the Austin pro club’s year and miraculous Finals run in an earlier piece, and how a bunch of former Horns helped that team snatch victory from the jaws of defeat in multiple high octane postseason tournament matches. If Austin’s roster remains unchanged this offseason, Sullivan will have nine former Longhorns under his wing, all of whom he had coached during his 14-year tenure in Gregory Gym.
Before joining Texas, Sullivan carved out a world-class playing career as a two-time Olympian and standout libero for the U.S. Men’s National Team, even serving as team captain in the 2000 Sydney Games. A two-time national champion at UCLA and 2023 inductee into their Athletics Hall of Fame, he also spent years playing professionally across Europe. Known for his defensive expertise and leadership acumen, Sullivan later became a trusted figure within USA Volleyball, working in various roles with the men’s and women’s national teams across multiple Olympic cycles. His résumé reads like a master class in high-performance volleyball, making his return to Austin all the more meaningful for a city already steeped in the sport.
Sullivan’s track record and ties to the Horns should have fans of both the collegiate and pro levels of the sport excited. He is a three-time national champion with Texas, and had just left the Longhorns to succeed Karch Kiraly as the head coach of Team USA. His hiring to the team in purple, just up the road from the Forty Acres, comes after an extensive coaching search that started back in February with the departure of Marco Bonitta. Bonitta left suddenly after the conclusion of LOVB’s in-season tournament, citing personal reasons.
Despite a wild and successful postseason run by temporary head coach Chris McGown that resulted in winning LOVB’s first ever Finals championship, Austin continued their search. Foregoing promoting interim head coach McGown to the full position after winning a championship may seem harsh at first glance, but his time in Austin could be considered shaky at best. Austin ended the regular season tied for the worst record in the league and only was in the playoffs by virtue of the league only having six teams for its inaugural season.
In my earlier piece, I wrote about how a lot of Austin’s postseason success seemed to take flight through the grit and determination of many of the former Longhorn greats on the squad including Madi Skinner, Logan Eggleston, and Molly McCage. Many players credited Asjia O’Neal with the fiery inter-set speech that sparked Austin’s reverse sweep comeback against number one seeded Atlanta in the semifinals. I won’t speculate too much on how much leadership McGown had actually brought to the locker room during his months with the squad, but continuing the coaching search and hiring externally made a lot of sense here.
And the hiring of Erik Sullivan back to Austin makes even more sense. LOVB Austin has already established a relationship with the Longhorns. In the home opener at the H-E-B Center in Cedar Park the ladies in burnt orange were available for autographs before the opening set, and coach Jerritt Elliott was rubbing elbows court-side all evening.
Sullivan’s departure from Texas for the head coaching position with USA Volleyball seemed to have been on good terms, with Chris Del Conte expressing his enthusiasm via a tweet and two-time Olympian (and current LOVB Austin player) Chiaka Ogbogu expressing that she was “thrilled” to play under her old coach again. Sullivan taking over the pro squad allows his own ties with the Horns to be utilized to further enhance the relationship between the cross-town clubs.
Texas as a state is a hotbed of volleyball talent and development. Madi Skinner honed her skills with Houston Skyline Juniors before heading to the NCAA, and she’s just one example of the elite talent coming out of Texas. Austin itself is home to several renowned junior clubs, and LOVB is actively working to build a pipeline from these programs to the pros by fostering strong relationships across the state. With the growth in Name, Image, Likeness (NIL) opportunities in the college ranks, the opportunity to keep talent in-state from the amateur level all the way through the pros grows.
It’s easy to envision the opportunity emerging here for both the Longhorns and LOVB Austin. Texas recruits out of the clubs and high schools in the state. Learn under Elliot and perhaps win a natty or two playing on the Forty Acres. Sign NIL deals and build a community here in Austin. Play your heart out, be coachable, and perhaps there will be the opportunity for you to go pro. Sign with LOVB Austin and continue to be a hometown hero. If you’re truly a generational talent, your head coach will call you up to the national team.
Beyond volleyball, Austin itself is becoming an increasingly attractive place for athletes and young professionals alike. Gone are the days when Austin was merely a stopover for young people earning their undergrad at Texas before heading to Houston, DFW, or beyond. The continued growth of tech in the city - several large companies have established large footprints here in recent memory - and the introduction of venture capital and private equity firms means that Austin’s offerings to young professionals with cash to burn have grown substantially. This creates an environment where pro athletes may want to stay long-term as well.
Combining this enticing aspect for keeping Texas talent not only in the state but in Austin with Sullivan’s coaching history and known defensive prowess creates a win-win scenario for LOVB Austin and the Horns. If Sullivan can coach Austin to continued (and perhaps more consistent) success, it creates a great recruiting tool for Elliot while simultaneously spurring the continued growth of the sport at the junior levels in the state.
Only time will tell how Sullivan’s time with the Austin squad will be, but there is a lot of room for optimism here. Sullivan knows the players, and not just the nine former Longhorn greats. He’s coached against most of the players in the league. He continues to coach many of the truly exceptional players in the league via Team USA. He’s been coaching the sport for decades now and has a great feel for the trends in strategy and other aspects of volleyball.
Sullivan’s new role with LOVB Austin won’t take him away from the national stage. He’s set to continue leading the U.S. Women’s National Team while coaching in Austin, a dual role that reflects USA Volleyball’s growing alignment with the pro ranks. The idea is to create more year-round continuity between the junior club, collegiate, pro, and Olympic levels. For players, it’s a chance to grow under one unified system. For Sullivan, it’s an opportunity to shape the future of American volleyball from both courts.
It’ll be exciting to see how far Sullivan can take the Austin squad. The team has shown just how high it can fly, and now it may just have the right skipper to avoid the turbulence it saw in the 2025 regular season and ensure a first class experience for the fans and the players.