Darrell McLean Season 2024
Darrell McLean enters his first season as an assistant coach under Fran Flory for the Tiger volleyball program.
He joins the staff after five seasons as the top assistant coach at Cincinnati, where he had proven himself as a recruiter and a valuable part of the Bearcat staff.
McLean joined the UC staff in 1998 and was primarily responsible for recruiting, practice planning and scouting.
His innovative and creative coaching techniques helped the Bearcats to four NCAA Tournament appearances and three Conference USA championships.
McLean was instrumental in signing three C-USA Freshmen of the Year and members of UC’s recruiting classes during his time garnered eight first team all-conference nods.
Along with Cincinnati head coach Reed Sunahara, McLean spent two weeks in the spring of 2001 coaching a group of collegiate seniors on a trip through Spain and Portugal as part of a showcase for American players looking to continue their volleyball careers overseas.
Prior to joining the Bearcat staff, McLean spent two seasons as an assistant at Xavier and six years as head coach at Thomas More College.
At Xavier, McLean’s primary duties included practice planning, on-court training, scouting, scheduling and recruiting. He helped the Musketeers to a 34-31 record, including a 21-14 mark in 1996.
McLean’s years at Thomas More produced an impressive resume, building a perennial national power from scratch.
McLean took over a team that won 13 matches in three years and turned it into a 35-match winner in one season. The team qualified for five-consecutive NCAA tournaments and recorded a 205-75 mark (.732) in his six seasons. For his efforts he was named the 1991 and 1992 American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) South Region’s Coach of the Year.
McLean coached four Division III All-Americans, 16 AVCA all-region, 19 all-conference selections and four conference player of the year honorees at Thomas More.
McLean, 59, had equal success at the high school level, coaching the Elder High School boy’s team to a 56-29 record in three seasons, including consecutive regional semifinals.
A retired Cincinnati firefighter of 24 years, McLean and his wife, Veda, have a son, Dennis, and three grandchildren, Katelyn, Mitchell and Madison Rose.
THE McLEAN FILE
NAME: G. Darrell McLean
WIFE: Veda
CHILD: Dennis (36)
BIRTH DATE: Aug. 20, 1943
HOMETOWN: Cincinnati, Ohio
ALMA MATER: Thomas More College
COACHING EXPERIENCE
Cincinnati Assistant Coach (1998-2003)
Xavier Assistant Coach (1996-97)
Thomas More Women’s Head Coach (1990-95)
Thomas More Men’s Assistant Coach (1994-95)
Elder HS Head Coach (1994-96)
Blue Chip Volleyball Club (1986-94)