The Importance of a Coach

The Importance of a Coach

"Years down the line, your players won't remember the score on the scoreboard, but they will remember their experiences." - Bryce Casto 

All my life I had a feeling in my bones that I wanted to be an educator to young people. It seemed that the good lord upstairs had given me that calling ever since I was little. I have always been compassionate to others and cared about others more than I cared about myself. Throughout my life I surrounded myself with others that felt the same way. My best friends all feel the same way. That old adage of you are who your friends are, remains true. But I have also been lucky to be around great coaches as well. Coaches like Cal Bailey, Sean Loyd, Steve Pritchard, Kyle Jones, Marc Atkins, and Billy Joe Hicks. Along the way I have also been able to make connections with other great coaches such as Tim Christy of Myrtle Beach High School, and one of my favorite people, Robin Green. All of these people have shaped me into the person that I am today. To say I am fortunate, is an understatement. They have made this 22 year old wise beyond his years. 

All of these memories and lessons about baseball really made me realize that, that little ball with 216 stitches made more of an impact on me, than I have on it. I, like so many other coaches have wanted to use the game of baseball as a way to prepare them for life. The game of baseball, and the coaches of the game, have taught me so many lessons on how to handle life. So it is time for me to give back to the game and them.

 I have come to realize the importance of a second chance. The importance of failure and loss, and the importance of being an excellent teammate. All of which I plan on discussing further, in other blog posts. But in today’s world I believe that it is important for people to know the importance of a coach.

The coaching profession has been under attack recently. Mostly by parents or by fans. All of which have been taking the fun out of it for the young men and women playing them. The issue that I see, is that without allowing the coach to teach those valuable lessons to his or her players, it is slowing down the development of the student-athlete. Many parents or fans live through the student-athlete. So when the student-athlete makes it out on his or her own, he or she cannot do things on their own, instead they expect others to take care of things. Or they believe that things are not their fault. Or they are not a team player, and that only isolates and hinders improvement in their profession.

I will be honest, I was not a great athlete. I was a much better teammate than I ever was a ballplayer. And I was okay with that. My reason being was that I respected all of my coaches. All the way from Little League to College. Growing up a coach’s kid, I knew how much a coach meant to his or her players. In fact, it made my dad proudest to see his former players be great dads or be successful in their lives, than any wins along the way. Although I must admit, wins are great. But I now know that the best feeling is seeing the student-athlete being successful, and know that he or she can do anything in this world, as long as they use the lessons they learned from their time playing the game.

In summation, the quote that I put up before this essay, really is what coaching is all about. I see it all of the time on Facebook of coaches that I follow. All of those memories from the past, that bring players together to this day, and how grateful they were for their respective coach. That is a remarkable thing. To think that one person made that much of a difference for so many. Just think of how powerful that is.  

The coaching profession is a thankless job, and a thank you is few and far between. But when a coach hears a player tell them thank you for how much they cared about them, that is what it is all about. Coaching is a profession of love, and baseball has a way of breaking your heart. But I wouldn't trade the highs and lows of coaching for the world. I am proud to say that I am a coach.