"This program has been able to maintain a certain level of consistency, but there are some clear limitations that are holding it back from reaching a higher level. At a high level, there’s a sense of complacency. The standard feels like it’s centered around maintaining what’s already been built rather than pushing to exceed it. That shows up in different ways, especially in scheduling. Non-conference games tend to be on the softer side, which limits opportunities to really test the team and prepare for higher-level competition. Very reliant on name reputation without a lot of substance to back up play. Within the conference, the team has success, but the gap in resources between this program and others in the league plays a role. The program benefits from advantages that naturally raise its floor, but it rarely pushes beyond that into what it could actually become. It feels more like sustaining than building. There isn’t always a clear, strong vision that players and staff can rally around. Communication tends to be indirect—there’s often a lot said without much clarity or direction behind it. That can make it difficult for players to fully understand expectations or feel confident in where things are headed. The coach is very hands-on and likes to control most aspects of the program. There isn’t much delegation, and it can feel like everything runs through one voice. That can create a lack of ownership across the program. There are also questions on the basketball side. In-game adjustments and strategic decisions don’t consistently give the team an edge, and there can be hesitation when things need to change. Very few changes have been made over time no matter how big the roster overhaul is. Along with that, confrontation and accountability don’t always seem to be handled strongly. When players push back or situations get uncomfortable, there can be a tendency to give ground rather than address things directly. The biggest concern, though, is the player experience and overall culture. There appears to be a lack of trust between players and the coaching staff. A lot of players seem checked out and are more focused on just getting through each day than actually improving or competing. It becomes more about surviving than developing. It’s easy for players to fall in line with others who are taking the same approach, and over time, that lowers the overall standard. Instead of being pushed, players can get by doing the minimum. The environment doesn’t consistently demand more from them, and as a result, growth is limited. There isn’t much noticeable progression in terms of strength, athleticism, or skill over time. Retention is also something to pay attention to. There are a lot of players who end up leaving the program, and that usually says something. Overall, this is a program that has a relatively high floor because of its situation, but it doesn’t come close to reaching its ceiling. It’s easy for players to blend in and get through their time there without being pushed to grow. The main challenge isn’t physical—it’s mental and cultural. Until there’s a shift in expectations, accountability, and direction, it’s hard to see the program taking the next step."

"Coach Birkey’s career, when you look past the surface, can be summed up in three words: complacency, stubbornness, and delusion. He refuses to change anything. He runs an outdated offense from the 1980s and treats it like it still works today. Whenever players or even GAs suggest trying something new, his answer is always the same: “This has worked before, why change?” What he doesn’t realize is that his past “success” had more to do with what he inherited than anything he created. The program had strong recruits, great facilities, and the respect built by the previous coach. From the outside, it looks like a solid program. On the inside, it is a completely different story. That false image started early. When he first took over (due to his head coach passing away from an illness), the team won a lot of games and he even got Coach of the Year. On paper, that looks impressive. In reality, that team was loaded with talent, including two players who would go into the hall of fame. The second they played teams with similar talent, the difference showed. They didn’t just lose, they got outplayed and out coached. The players on that team knew it then, and many still say the same thing now. Nothing has changed since then. The same pattern keeps happening: rely on talent, make no adjustments, and blame the players effort when things go wrong. He acts tough in practice and on the sidelines, like he is in control of everything. But when you actually confront him, that act disappears. He avoids eye contact and just tells you what you want to hear without meaning it. If you ask him how to improve or how to earn more playing time, you get the same generic answers like “keep working hard” or “your opportunity is coming.” There is no real plan to help players get better. He also clearly doesn’t understand what it takes to be a high-level athlete in terms of training, nutrition, and development, so there is no real guidance there either. Even practices reflect this. The drills are outdated and don’t match how modern basketball is played. If anyone brings up trying something new, he shuts it down and calls it gimmicky. And if you want the full picture, look beyond the team. As someone who has been on Olivet’s campus, the criticism of him isn’t just from players. Coaches, professors, and staff talk about him the same way, mainly because he acts like everything revolves around him. When people all across campus feel that way, it says a lot. I even had someone in admissions tell me they were sorry I have to deal with him for four years, which is not something you want to hear as a freshman. That kind of reputation doesn’t come from nowhere.Even when you looking at donors and alumni night, there is a clear difference when looking at the pre-Birkey era vs. now. None of his former players want to support this man. This isn’t just about wins and losses. It’s about a program that looks good from the outside but falls apart once you actually see how it’s run. Outside of my experience teaching me how to deal with a bad boss, I didn't learn anything from him as a coach. I cannot stress this enough, do not play for this joke of a coach. "

"My experience at Olivet was good in all areas besides the Coach. Which as an athlete a Coach can make or break and experience for you. Nick Birkey has the great ability to ruin a players love for the game and also make his athletes dread being around him and ultimately “hate” him. Before the season starts he has his mind made up on who his starting 5 will be and he will play them no matter how poor they perform. It does not matter how well you play in practice or how hard you work, his mind is made up and he will not change. If you try and talk to him about anything regarding performance he will immediately shut you down and hold it against you the rest of your career. If you are given a chance to play and you excel with your opportunity he will still only play you for a short amount of time until he wants to put the players back in the game that he has chosen to be his “guys” at the start of the season. He has no concept of how to run practices that will help translate to the game. You will do drills that are pointless and will not help you develop into a better player. The weight program is a joke and players will lose weight and muscle throughout the season from being overworked. On team trips he will make you and a teammate split $20 for a meal which in today’s society is not possible. I had to spend my own money on countless occasions just to pay for my full meal. Also if you bring up that $10 is not enough to pay for a meal he will become defensive and turn the situation around on you that you are being ungrateful. But he will proceed to order a full meal for himself because he is more important than the players. In my 4 years almost 30 athletes quit and almost all of them with the same reason being Nick Birkey. In his eyes he is never the problem, but ultimately he is the only problem. Athletes will begin to count down the days to graduation as sophomores or even freshmen because they want to get away from him. Many players will not want to speak out about this but if you were to know them and ask them behind closed doors every single last one would say the same thing about Nick as a person and a coach. To have this man in a leadership role and have the ability to impact young athletes is unfortunate because he will never have someone leave his program stating they became better in anyway. As a faith based institution Olivet should take these aspects into consideration but when it was brought to their attention they did nothing because winning a few conference championships with teams that were handed to him is enough for them. If you are an athlete about to pick where you want to go to school and Nick Birkey contacts you I’d go to any other program in the country. "

"This is from a parent of a player who spent four years in the program. We expected a higher level of care for student athletes at a faith based university. Absolutely disappointed in our son’s and our experience. First of all, 28 kids quit the program in four years, he did not care or follow up with any of them. He would lose many more players if not for their love for each other. They find solace and comfort in dealing with his coaching style together. Most locker room and roommate talk on campus is complaining about the coach. He does not know how to run a program. He has no relationships with the parents, never communicates in any way on how the players are doing. He is not receptive to players feedback. He belittles players regularly and completely ignores the players that are not in the top varsity rotation. His players and team do not show improvement. Players don’t develop their skill set during their four years and teams peak early in the season. His teams are competitive and have at times dominated the conference, one that has now become very weak. But his teams routinely lose in first round of national tournament, usually get blown out. Players are fatigued at end of season because of such heavy minutes by small rotation and they are burnt out from his overhearing coaching style. Players routinely comment on how they “hate” him as a coach and are looking forward to season and ultimately career ending. He never changes his game plans and cannot (does not) make in game adjustments. He wins game they are more talented than the opponents and rarely ever beats a comparable team or upsets a better team. Players do not come back to follow up with him after graduation, and he never reaches out or tries to maintain a relationship with the players. He also makes no effort to help them find jobs or connect them with post graduate opportunities. That is a tragedy. A coach has the unique opportunity to develop young student athletes as they tackle college on their first journey away from the comfort of home. A coach should mentor student athletes and help them grow as young men, and exhibit what being a Christian man in an athletic competitive environment looks like. fails miserably at all of this. He does not connect with players, they end up having no respect for him and lose their love for the game. They grow up chasing the dream of getting the opportunity to play at the college level and he squashes their passion for playing usually within the first year. He doesn’t hire assistant coaches with coaching experience, he just uses grad assistants because he is so controlling and doesn’t want input or any comparable experience or better knowledge. He doesn’t have a weight training program. He does nothing to monitor nutrition for his athletes in any way. In fact, on road trips they usually are held to a $10 meal stipend and he controls all the money. How can a college athlete eat out on $10 these days??? I could share so many specific examples of the things I am describing but I don’t have enough time or characters left. The administration also knows all this and chooses to do nothing, even with feedback from players and parents. Winning enough conference games must be the only metric he is measured by because he fails at every other meaningful aspect of being a college coach. We were utterly disappointed in the ONU men’s basketball experience, for our family and our son, especially after all the years of effort to get him to the point of being able to compete as a college student athlete. I also have empathy for all the other families and student athletes that feel the same way, which was the vast majority during our four years. I feel bad for any young man, and his family that end up choosing to play for him. ONU is a good institution, but the basketball part of the experience will be a major disappointment."

"Had an awesome experience at the school, but with the basketball program, not at all. The whole program is in shambles. "

"I had a profoundly negative experience with this coach. Despite an impressive resume, their actual knowledge of volleyball seemed surprisingly limited. A concerning pattern emerged as their tenure at the school was brief, and it's regrettable that the athletic director didn't address the athletes' expressed concerns sooner. The coach failed to honor promises, which significantly damaged my confidence. There was a lack of concern for injuries, and academic priorities were disregarded. The coach often came across as arrogant, frequently comparing athletes to himself and insisting they emulate his own playing style. Normally this would be okay because I think that is what coaches are supposed to do. But he would do it say he wished he had a jersey and could play over us. Insisting he would do a better job I'm not one to leave negative feedback lightly, and I believe that at heart, this person has good intentions. However, their approach to volleyball coaching is clearly ineffective. I hope this review serves as a warning to other athletes. This experience was the worst I've ever had, but I'm grateful to have rediscovered my love for the sport. If you're considering playing in college and this coach is an option, please take this as a serious caution."

"I am not trying to insult Danny. I believe he is oblivious of the fact that coaching is not for him, sadly. My only intention is to ensure that no one else’s experience with volleyball is affected by a poor coach. Under Danny’s coaching, we did the same exact practice plan every single day. Which was not successful considering our losing record, even though he was handed a team that a knowledgeable coach recruited. We had the talent to be a decent team, but we had zero game plan. Never once did we discuss blocking schemes, accurate serving zones, nor an accurate defensive scheme. Our scouting sessions were SILENT. The only time he spoke would be to read their height, hometown, number, and name out loud, maybe their hitting percentage too, which is completely irrelevant to an affective game plan. In timeouts, he was silent. Our graduate assistant would have to step in. He does not push you to be your best, he does not know how to motivate, he does not know how to be a leader or enforcer. I don’t know how to give an example of the lack of these qualities because they are simply nonexistent. I cannot express this enough. From what I am aware, he has never corrected anyones form above an elementary level. The one time I can recall a correction was to toss the ball higher when I serve. His advice when our offense was struggling was to “aim at their faces” or “just don’t hit into the block.” Disregarding the idea that it would be a lot easier to not hit into the block if we had any form of an offensive scheme. The lineup practically rotated every set if he didn’t know what he needed to change/fix. Whether you were being pulled or being put in, there were often times that both parties were confused. He would swap the defensive specialist when we lost offensively, or swap the middles when we struggled with serve receive. His reasoning simply made zero sense even when he had the right people in. It’s just blindly changing the lineup to say he is trying something different. I could go on and on. This whole season was a JOKE. Additionally, his credentials of working with Kevin Hambly from Stanford is a joke. Danny joined a nonprofit organization for women in sports where Kevin Hambly joined afterwards. Danny’s volleyball IQ is in no way a reflection of his coincidental involvement with Hambly. I feel like this credential gets him these jobs that he is not truly built for. He also will claim to love volleyball. But when you love something, you naturally want to dedicate time and energy to better you understanding of that thing or person. Danny did not do this. As I have mentioned, he has zero advice to offer. He has zero understanding of the philosophies and schemes of volleyball above the elementary level. I have spent plenty of time around coaches and teammates that love volleyball, and PRODUCTIVE conversation naturally flows. Our film sessions did not reflect an ounce of passion or love. Film sessions are specifically dedicated time to remove the physical stress of the sport, to grow your mental understanding of the game/opposing team. It is incredibly frustrating when the “leader” of these film sessions has nothing of substance to offer. If you can only offer 30 minutes of SILENCE when surrounded by something you claim to love, I would argue you do not love that thing. Not to mention we would sometimes watch film as late as the day of or the day before a match. When I love something I do not want to shut up about it. It felt like Danny found any reason to avoid talking about volleyball because he has no answers. The only reason he was hired is that our head coach moved to a better job right before season so we had no time to find a coach, and he was our assistant coach the previous year. Which we were all fine with him as an assistant because of how knowledgeable our head coach was. He did not have many obligations that year besides being a practice player. This may be naive, but I do not believe Danny is trying to be a bad person. It would be giving him too much credit to say he is capable of comprehending the myriad of ways he has wasted so much time and potential. I truly think he is ignorant and oblivious to his lack of knowledge and leadership skills. This does not change the fact that he is not capable of running a program. He has negatively affected my ENTIRE team from ULM last year. All of this to say, he is an unfit coach at a level higher than a junior varsity team. "

" This is honestly pathetic what is happening right now. It is gross and sick he is not a good person nor a good coach. He will mentally make u quit on yourslef and does not care about your well being. He does not want to get to know you as a person, he doesn’t care about academics, he doesn’t care about injures. He should never and I mean ever be a coach over both males and women. He didn’t care about his staff as well other than one person he tore down many people along the way. It is disheartening to many athletes that he has affected. I hope these reviews all us athletes and parents have put out there are actually put into consideration so no one else goes through what we had to. "

"He should never be a coach and in a leadership role when it comes to both male and females ever. "

"Not experienced, ranking athletes on who is the favorite one, no equal opportunity, not knowledgeable about sport "

"Danny is simply not suited to be a head coach, particularly for a Division I program that demands not only tactical expertise but also a genuine commitment to the welfare of its players, both on and off the court. Unfortunately, his approach to coaching reveals a troubling lack of concern for his players’ overall well-being; his primary focus seems to revolve around what benefits he can derive from them. This self-serving mentality makes it clear that he prioritizes his own interests over those of the athletes he is meant to support and develop. Moreover, Danny's leadership style raises significant red flags. He has a tendency to lie and play favorites, creating a divisive environment that undermines team cohesion. While he held the title of head coach, it was evident that he was merely a figurehead. Most of the crucial decisions regarding team strategy and player development were made by his Grad assistant who, alarmingly, had no prior coaching experience. This power dynamic not only highlighted Danny's lack of initiative but also demonstrated his inability to take charge of the program effectively. In addition to these issues, Danny often resorts to making excuses when faced with challenges, and he tends to take criticism far too personally. This defensive attitude hampers his growth as a coach and prevents him from learning from his mistakes. Furthermore, it’s apparent that his understanding of the game is not as profound as he believes it to be. He fails to adequately scout opponents or prepare his team to compete at a high level, which is essential for success in a competitive environment. Especially at the division I level. On a slightly more positive note, I will acknowledge that Danny is generally a positive person and can be easy to talk to on most days. However, this single redeeming quality does not compensate for the myriad of shortcomings that he exhibits as a coach. Given all of these factors, I cannot in good conscience recommend him for any coaching position. Unless you are looking to see your program flounder and lose its competitive edge, it would be wise to consider other candidates who possess the necessary skills and dedication to truly lead and inspire a team."

"I hope this man is never hired at any other school whether it be D1 he coached at NAIA anything he’s been the same at every school and continues to get worser. If I could rate him a negative rating I would. He doesn’t know how to coach, scout, make practice plans, anything. It is the most repetitive thing you will ever go through and takes a toll on every player mentally. He will show up late to majority of everything and you will sit in silence ,when a real head coach should talk to his players. He relys strictly off having a good team and girls that know the basic fundamentals of volleyball because he won’t help you get better. He only likes girls that are loyal to him. He will gaslight you and contradict everything you say. When you state an opinion or something that you think could help the team he responds with very passive aggressive language. He not once has cared to know any of the girls on a personal level. He does not CARE at all about academics and it would become such a bad thing that finally after numerous girls asking to make classes he would finally change the times we left to do so. I have never met someone that every time something comes out of their mouth it just a lie and you never know if anything he said the whole season was truth. I strongly advise if he is hired anywhere else he will destroy people mentally whether it be the players and coaches on his staff. There hasn’t been one memorable aspect of the season with him. He wants to build a culture yet would rely on the team to plan and do everything. He is pure lazy, a gaslighter, and never has cared once about what people have going on in there life. Last thing if you are hurt or mentally going through stuff he won’t ask why or what’s happening he will try and be “funny” and say things that simply means he does not care. Please this man should never be in charge of coaching athletes. "

"The polar opposite of a “players coach”. Even his best players that never leave the floor and have been NAIA all-Americans say he sucks as a coach if you talk to them privately and confidentially. It’s clear that he was a “low skill, high effort” type of player because you see it in his coaching…. He uses drills in practice that do not translate into success during game situations and he loves to play kids who have HS (or even middle-school) level ball-handling skills, shooting skills, and just a very low-level understanding of game situations like spacing or how to read a ball screen…. but “try really hard”. He NEVER makes adjustments in games and anytime they’re down, his half-time and huddle speeches always boil down to 1 thing - “we need to try harder”. Not the school you want to come to unless you’re minimally skilled and want to play in the same system that Olivet used 30 years ago. The one thing Birkey IS really good and consistent at is sapping a player’s love for the game. Again, this is something you will consistently hear from both his bench warmers and starters alike. "

"Hannah Gardner mentally abuses athletes. She has destroyed many softball careers. Makes athlete play through diagnosed injuries. "

"Coach Danny was an absolutely horrible coach. He is a pathological liar. He wasn't honest about anything. When you first meet him and talk to him he seems charming, friendly, knowledgeable and interested in your daughter's volleyball career. That was all a façade. He plays mind games with the girls, wanted them divided and fighting. He did not promote the mission our university was known for. He promoted trash talking and staring down of the other team, coaches and refs. He is very immature, childish and really does not know how to coach the game. He did not play to win even though he had the athletes to do so. He also told them basically that those that "were loyal to him" would be those that played. He had a handful of girls run his team because that is what he wanted. He was supposed to be the coach, but put it on a young group of girls, and didn't care that it caused division. He mentally and emotionally abused these players. His assistant body shamed the girls often and he did not care. He just was overall a horrible experience as a coach and I cannot believe it took our university so long to take action, especially after so many girls and guys quit their teams along with assistant and GA coaches. I'm relieved that they finally took action, but the damage was still done so this year is a year of healing and rebuilding for our program. I would like him to know that even though he tried to "break" my daughter mentally, he did not succeed, and she is stronger than ever!"

"This coach didn’t know names or numbers of his players because he is that unaware of how to run a program. He stepped into a successful program and ran it into the ground."

"A lazy coach that does not come in until about an hour before practice. Doesn’t understand how create a practice or understand what drill you use for specific training. Does not scout teams to be prepared with a game plan for practices or to win games. He relies only on the talent of players. Cannot comprehend the game in real time. If a problem arises during the game he becomes frantic subbing players. Cannot motivate during a game if the team is in a rut. Rude to players, coaches, and refs. Gaslights coaches and players. Dishonest. "