'I poured my heart and soul into them': Nick Broz reflects on his time at Bridgeport
BRIDGEPORT - Nick Broz was newly married when he moved to Bridgeport from Fremont 10 years ago. He and his wife had five kids together while in the Morrill County town of 1,532 people. For the first time as a full family, they will move to a new town for a fresh opportunity.
Cozad announced the hiring of Broz as their new boys basketball coach Monday night. Broz built the Bulldogs program to a 166-78 record in the last decade, with two state tournament appearances in 2015 and 2019. They lost in the first round both seasons.
He met with his former team on Monday.
"Yesterday, talking to the team was one of the toughest things I've had to do in my life," Broz said. "Saying 'goodbye' to a group that had meant so much to me, and poured my heart and soul into them. I'm extremely devastated. It's kind of one of those 'choke-in-your-throat' moments."
The Bulldogs ended the 2019-2020 season with a 21-5 record and lost to Doniphan-Trumbull in the Class C2-7 District Final, 48-36. They won the Western Trails Conference Tournament over Mitchell, 65-56. It was the eighth conference championship under Broz (six WTC titles and two SPVA titles).
Broz was named the all-region coach of the year in 2019.
He was the physical education teacher and strength/conditioning teacher at Bridgeport. He will teach middle school P.E. at Cozad.
Broz promoted prioritizing faith and family to his players. Being closer to family was an overriding factor in what led to his decision to take the coaching job in central Nebraska.
"This was a move for my wife, kids and myself," Broz said. "We can have our kids grow up around their cousins and have a lot more time together. Their grandparents can witness so many more of their events and not miss out on stuff. That was too much for us to bypass this opportunity in Cozad."
Broz replaces Drew Danielson, who took the head coaching job at Hastings High School. Cozad finished 5-17 last season. The Haymakers have had two state appearances since 1979. The last was in 2014.
Prior to his years at Bridgeport, Broz was an assistant coach at Hastings College and McCook Community College.
He was the team captain while playing college hoops at Hastings and McCook.
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Nick Broz joined KSID on "Community Connection" during Swap Shop on Tuesday morning to discuss his time at Bridgeport, relive great memories and talk about the future in Cozad. Listen to the full interview HERE.
