The University of Virginia's College at Wise Athletics

Nick Lopez is in his second season as the special teams coordinator and cornerbacks coach at UVA Wise.

A year ago, UVA Wise allowed just 162.1 passing yards per game to rank 19th nationally among NCAA Division II schools while kicker Kellan Dalton booted a program-record 50-yard field goal as part of a season that saw him connect on 10 field goal attempts.

A former NCAA football student-athlete, Lopez came to the program after coaching defensive backs at Geneva College (Pa.).

At Geneva, Lopez was responsible for safeties and cornerbacks while also being given the privilege of calling secondary coverage in his lone season the team.

Prior to Geneva, Lopez spent nearly two full years at Glenville State College as the assistant defensive back coach. In that role, he assisted with all defensive backs while also working on game preparation by overseeing offensive scout teamwork.

Earlier in his career, Lopez was as an assistant coach at Hedgesville High School (W.Va.) where he served as secondary coach, special teams coordinator and weightlifting instructor.

As an athlete, Lopez earned Martinsburg High School (W.Va.) Athlete of the Year honors as a senior in addition to first-team all-state honors. During his collegiate career, he earned conference and national defensive player of the week honors in 2016 while playing for Glenville State.

Lopez obtained a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from Frostburg State University in 2019.