July 31, 2003
By Kele Eveland –
Humans need to belong. Whether it is to a team, club, school or family, each person wants to feel connected in some way. For an optimal connection, it is imperative that all the components of an individual’s personality find a balance. To be successful in life, it is important to balance one’s mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual sides. The balance of these is essential to maintain sanity and happiness at college, and especially vital for a college athlete.
One job of a college coach is to recruit the type of person who will be a successful athlete and student at the collegiate level. When recruiting athletes, coaches first appraise players based on their ability. After physical ability is determined, a coach must observe a player’s character and personality and gauge whether there will be a fit within the framework of team chemistry.
When in high school and deciding on a college, a student tries to logically match his needs with a university’s strengths. However, this still is a guessing game. A person will not know until he or she attends the school whether the match fits. When a potential collegiate athlete adds athletics to the list of variables in the decision-making process, more factors must be considered. An athlete tries to find a university to match his or her academic and athletic needs.
Sitting down with some of Georgia Tech’s most acclaimed head coaches, I was able to ascertain their respective philosophies on coaching and recruiting. Football coach Chan Gailey, men’s basketball coach Paul Hewitt, women’s basketball coach MaChelle Joseph, and women’s volleyball coach Bond Shymansky shared their ideas of coaching, recruiting, and key components on success.
For a prospective student athlete, it is important to know what a coach’s leadership style, performance standards and physical demands entail before committing to a program controlled by that coach.
Shymansky coach, values the change he can inspire in those volleyball players he coaches, “I think the thing I love most about coaching is the opportunity to lead people, to help develop people, whether it’s physically, mentally, emotionally, spirituality. I have a very distinct role in being able to do that and shape that, and also I can chose not to do that. That’s what I love the most: To see people change or to see people really striving for success or doing the best they can.”
The job of a collegiate coach is difficult. When recruiting, a coach must be persuasive, yet honest about the university, athletic program, and academics. It is important to determine if an athlete will be successful at the college, both athletically and academically. A coach has to sell a student athlete on a top school and a major athletic program, but sometimes a coach has to sell a school that, at least on the surface, does not appeal to a young high school student.
A degree from Georgia Tech is a great achievement in and of itself. The road to a degree is tough, and it does take a special individual with self-motivation and strong determination to succeed at this school. A degree from Georgia Tech can open many doors for jobs after graduation.
However, Georgia Tech is not a place for all student-athletes. Being smart alone will not get a student athlete through Georgia Tech. In addition, a student-athlete must be a hard worker and use the resources provided to help achieve success. Being a tough school academically, it takes a person with a great work ethic and determination to succeed at Georgia Tech. One cannot come to this school and think it will be an easy ride to graduation. There is no way to “slide by” and rely on others to do the work. Even if a student-athlete is not the smartest person, the academic resources are helpful and guide one to a successful education.
Coach Gailey agrees that, “Those guys that are marginal guys have to have a plan in place to help them through the tough spots in this institution. We have to understand they are not all geniuses. They are going to need some help in some areas. And I don’t mean giving them a grade or writing them a paper. I mean tutoring and making sure they are in the right tutoring class for their success.”
Hard work and success go hand in hand. If a student-athlete puts forth the effort and makes an honest attempt to work at a class, then professors, tutors, and advisors will put forth that same effort to see the student succeed. Effort and hard work will always be rewarded over laziness and excuses.
Tutoring and academic help are extremely well organized and planned in the Georgia Tech academic services department. Tutoring is coordinated based on recommendations and individual needs. These resources are available for use by any one who has needs and asks. However, the key is that it is the responsibility of the athlete to take advantage and use these resources. An athlete must first show that he or she has attempted to use the group tutoring before an individual tutor can be assigned for a class. Again, it is up to the athlete to first make the initial attempt to work hard in school. Then the support staff will be more than willing to further aid the student.
The most successful student-athletes at Georgia Tech are great time managers. To maintain sanity, a student-athlete must understand how to balance the time-consuming activities required: class, practice, weights, tutoring, studying, and eating, sleep and social activities as well. It is important to lay out responsibilities prior to any deadline on which they are due. Allot time to take care of schoolwork, and then the student-athlete can enjoy and appreciate the time remaining for a social life.
So it is important to find that connection between an athlete, school, and coach. A coach is the leader of the team and attempts to make the best decisions for a team’s success.
In the area of academics, students must critique a school based on the major programs they offer. It is important to first identify their personal study habits in order to properly connect.
Emotionally, a student-athlete must have the capacity to deal with pressure, demands, all parts of the life of a student-athlete. One of the biggest challenges facing college athletes is arriving at college and not playing all of the time, as they did in high school, or realizing they are not “the best” like they have been all of their lives. This is a huge reality check for many college athletes. It is never fun to “sit the bench.” But an athlete must be emotionally strong enough not to give up and keep working for playing time.
Often college is the first time a person is out on his or her own, away from parents. It has its benefits, because there is no adult to check in with in order to go somewhere. However, there is no one at the dorm who takes care of troubles, like parents do. The changes from high school to college will make the strong grow or the weak crumble.
On recruiting, Coach Gailey says, “If a guy in high school that I was recruiting told me, ‘I don’t want to play in the NFL,’ I wouldn’t recruit him because he doesn’t have as his goal to be the best.”
So where do you find the athlete that has the goal to succeed, yet is smart enough to ask the “what if” question? What if I get injured and can’t play professionally? Athletes have to be smart enough to know that they are at college to first get an education. Taking pride in education shows perseverance in character.
A high school experience or a club league experience can help prepare the body for the physical demands of college-level athletics. But strenuous daily practices at that level do not compare to what the student-athlete will experience in a collegiate environment. Athlees are expected to give complete effort for every second in practice. Coaches are demanding. Lack of effort is simply not tolerated. Hewitt says in practice, “The one thing I absolutely insist upon is that the guys give their best effort all of the time. They’ve got to be physical. They’ve got to play hard.”
The microscope is on a player at all times. If a player is not giving his best, there are other guys on the bench that would love the opportunity to prove themselves.
Coaches understand that mistakes are going to be made, no question. Coach Hewitt agrees, “I want the mistakes to be made out of hard work and effort.”
Coach Joseph adds, “The first thing I look for is a competitive spirit; someone who will dive on the floor for a loose ball in a pickup game.”
Practice and drills are very structured at the college level. Each drill has a goal, task, or skill to improve upon. Coach Gailey looks to recruit players who are “tough, aggressive, and a bit on the edge. But they have to be smart enough not to make dumb mistakes, both on and off the field.”
Coach Shymansky claims, “It’s a lot easier to get an athlete to come and play on your team that already has strong character. In fact, I would probably error on the side of less ability physically but strong character and motivation emotionally and mentally.”
The ultimate goal for everyone is to set up a win/win situation between a player and an athletic and academic program at a university. Sometimes no matter how well the fit seems to be, people are just not happy in their environment.
Coach Shymansky again adds, “You’re not always going to make everyone happy. You’re not always going to motivate everybody. Everybody is a little bit different. Sometimes the approach is not going to work and that’s tough. I am not willing to fail at something like that. But I’m starting to realize that it’s not so much failure as it is reality that eventually someone along the road is not going to buy into what you are trying to do or is not going to be motivated to do the best that they can do.”
Kele Eveland, a senior from Grand Rapids, Mich., is the starting setter on Georgia Tech’s defending Atlantic Coast Conference champion volleyball team. She earned all-ACC honors in 2002 and 2003.
