A four-year Stanford letterwinner and team captain, Nate Rooks recently wrapped up his fifth season as an assistant coach with Stanford Women's Rowing.
Over five years on The Farm, Rooks helped lead the Cardinal to the NCAA Championships all five years. Stanford tied Brown for first in 2011, but lost a tiebreaker for the National Championship. The Cardinal followed with ninth place in 2012, 10th in 2013, fourth in 2014 and sixth in 2015. Rooks helped guide Stanford’s second varsity eight to its first ever NCAA Title in 2011. There have been 13 All-America selections during his five seasons as well as 10 All-Pac-12 members. On the academic side, the Cardinal has placed 53 on the All-PAC-12 Academic team, including three Pac-12 Scholar Athletes of the Year, Marielle Higgins in 2012, Ali Fauci in 2014 and Naomi Cornman in 2015. There have also been 38 student-athletes named College Rowing Coaches Association Scholar Athletes.
The 2015 season came to a close with a victory as Rooks coached the second varsity eight to a win in the petite final at the NCAA Championships. The boat finished seventh overall after missed the Grand Final by a fraction of a second. The 2V8 ended up fourth at the Pac-12 Championships.
In the 2014 season, Rooks and fellow assistant Becca Carleton received the CRCA West Region Staff of the Year award. The duo helped lead Stanford to a fourth place finish at the NCAA Championships, the first Pac-12 Championship in school history and a sweep of the top three boats at the Big Row. Rooks coached the second varsity eight to eight race victories, a gold medal at the Pac-12 Championships and a fourth place finish at the NCAA Championships.
Rooks’ Stanford career highlights include stroking back-to-back Copley Cup champion boats at the San Diego Crew Classic in 2006 and 2007, a victory in the Collegiate Open 4+ at the Head of the Charles in 2006, and a silver medal at the 2007 IRA National Championships. Lessons learned at Stanford helped Nate earn the opportunity to row internationally in the United States Under-23 eight at the 2006 and 2007 World Championships in Belgium and Scotland, respectively.
"Nate is one of Stanford's most successful oarsmen," said women's head coach Yasmin Farooq. "His commitment to excellence and his inside knowledge of the Stanford scholar-athlete experience make him invaluable to this team. We are so very fortunate he has chosen to pursue coaching professionally."
Nate began rowing in 2002 at his home on Bainbridge Island, WA and returned there to coach the summer after his freshman year at Stanford. This inspired a strong desire to coach long-term.
Nate graduated from Stanford University in 2007 with a B.A. in film and media studies, and a minor in human biology.
A product of Stanford Rowing's unique culture, Nate is extremely excited about sharing his enthusiasm for the sport, and for Stanford, as he helps his crews in their relentless pursuit of boatspeed.