Ottawa University (Surprise)

"I am writing this as the mother of a player who played in this program and ultimately decided to leave. Since leaving, my son’s mental health has improved tremendously. As a parent, it is heartbreaking to watch your child lose confidence and become unhappy because of a coach. I feel terrible for the players who are still there and continue to deal with this environment. This program has gone downhill since this coach became head coach. He does not seem to genuinely care about his players, and he has repeatedly torn players down rather than developing or supporting them. He can be incredibly rude and disrespectful, and his ego seems to take priority over the well being of his players. For years, players have been blamed for their own injuries, which is completely unacceptable. Injured athletes need support, not to be made to feel like their injuries are somehow their fault. From a soccer standpoint, I have been extremely disappointed as well. He acts like he knows everything, while his decisions often suggest otherwise. He lacks the soccer knowledge and leadership skills necessary to coach at the college level. He should focus on coaching his kids teams if that is the level at which he wants to operate. Players should also be able to respectfully ask questions about their playing time without being made to feel like they are doing something wrong. Instead, players have been discouraged from coming to him about game time, creating an environment where they are afraid to communicate. As a parent, I would not recommend this program based on our experience and many others experiences as well. Leaving was one of the best decisions my son made for himself, and seeing how much happier and healthier he is now says everything. I only hope the players who remain eventually receive the respect, support, and coaching they deserve."

"Horrible coach and father "

"I talked to this coach during my recruiting process. He talks a lot and is very passionate about running and God. I appreciated his honesty and willingness to help. "

"She made me fall in love with playing volleyball again. She cares about her players, on and off the court. She’s really cool but is very strict and direct when she needs to be. She was very understanding when I had a personal family issue. "

"The coach lied to players about their roll on the team in order for them to return and play the following season. He catfishes players, bait and switch. Says one thing, then does another. If you are just an average player, you will be relegated to the B team which they treat like garbage. Foreign players will have priority over American players even when they are not as skilled. The reason being, Stockton wants the flow of foreign players to continue and show that they get play time. He is a very poor judge of talent and who should be playing. The team went from top 10 in the country to last in their league for 2 seasons after he took the helm from Coach Gow. Coach Stockton also does not support student athletes, academic process. If you are struggling as a freshman, there is no assistance and encourages you to miss practices over mandatory classes to graduate. "