Bio

Corey Symons enters his 22nd season with the North Idaho College men’s basketball program and his 12th as head coach. Over 11 seasons at the helm, he has compiled an impressive 258–58 record — an 82% winning percentage — averaging 25.8 wins per year. Under his leadership, NIC has had only one season with fewer than 20 wins. The Cardinals have recorded seven seasons with 25+ wins, two with 30+ wins, and four conference championships.

In the 2015–2016 season, Symons guided NIC to the first undefeated regular season in both school and Scenic West Athletic Conference (SWAC) history, earning a berth to the NJCAA National Tournament. Last season, the Cardinals finished 18–13, just one game out of second place in the SWAC. Over his tenure, Symons’ teams have captured four league titles and appeared in the Top 25 of the national preseason rankings eight times.

All sophomores from last year’s roster earned scholarships to continue playing at the next level, including Vaughn Weems, who signed with the University of Nevada. Under Symons’ direction, five former players have participated in the NBA Summer League, with two earning NBA contracts. More than 50 of his student-athletes have advanced to four-year programs, including Oregon, Florida State, Washington, Utah State, Nevada, Montana, Idaho, and others.

Before taking over as head coach, Symons spent 10 seasons as an NIC assistant coach, helping recruit more than 50 student-athletes who continued on to four-year institutions. During that time, NIC achieved an NJCAA No. 1 national ranking and maintained a consistent presence in the national polls. The Cardinals averaged 22 wins per season under his assistance and captured three SWAC championships.

Symons also played an active role in academic advising. The NIC men’s basketball team has consistently maintained a cumulative GPA higher than the overall student body, achieving Team Academic All-American status twice in the past four years — the only times in program history.

Before joining NIC, Symons spent five seasons as a high school assistant coach — one at Bellevue (WA) Christian High School and four at Post Falls (ID) High School.

A native of North Idaho, Symons began his playing career at NIC in 1993 under legendary coach Rolly Williams. He later competed at Blue Mountain Community College (OR) and Northwest University (WA), where he averaged 16 points per game as team captain. He earned his bachelor’s degree in business management and administration from Northwest University and went on to play professionally in Europe. He also holds a master’s degree in Coaching and Athletic Administration from Concordia University Irvine.

Symons and his wife, Nicole (Nipp) Symons, are deeply involved in the North Idaho community. Nicole, entering her 25th year in education at Lakes Middle School, has won five state basketball titles as both player and coach. The couple has two children: Madison (21), a junior on basketball scholarship at the University of Wyoming, and Caden (19), a senior at Coeur d’Alene High School who recently signed to play basketball at Evansville University.