Larry Nees
Soccer (1974-75, 77-78)

Larry Nees was a member of the Chico State soccer teams that won two Far West Conference championships and participated in two NCAA regional championships in 1974 and 1977. An all-conference choice all four years in a Wildcat uniform, Larry was named to the all-Far West Region squad in 1978. His most prestigious honor as a collegiate player was to be selected along with teammate Danny Payne, to play in the Senior Bowl with all Division I players. After his senior season, Larry was drafted in the second round of the North American Soccer League by the Tulsa Roughnecks.

Larry has also enjoyed a very successful coaching career. He began as an assistant coach to Don Batie and the Wildcats in 1980. At the same time, he served as the head coach for the Chico State women’s club soccer team that soon evolved into the existing varsity squad. Larry left Chico to coach at Eastern Illinois University in 1982 before returning to assist the Chico State men’s soccer program during the 1984 and 1985 seasons. From 1987 to 1996, Larry served as the assistant men’s coach at Southern Methodist University as well as being the assistant coach for the women’s program from 1994 through 1996. In 1998, Larry returned to the Wildcat staff as an assistant coach under Mike O’Malley and was instrumental in the team’s trip to the national championship game in 2003.

Larry’s record of service to the soccer community is outstanding. He has been involved in the development of almost every phase of organized soccer for youth and adults. He has served as a club coach in both California and Texas and was a National Soccer Coaches Association of America regional staff instructor form 1994-96. He is currently a staff coach for the Butte County Special Olympics.