Now that the Mesa Community College chapter of my life has closed, I want to put some things out there that are straight from the source. Even though there was no season in 2020-21, I was still employed full time at MCC, thus making 17 the total number of years that I coached in junior college. Two of those were as an assistant- one with Dave Brown at Yavapai College in 1982-83, and one with Rob Babcock at Phoenix College in 1986-87. I coached for 23 years in high school, which included three as an assistant- one with Bill Farrell at Paradise Valley High School in 1985-86, and two with Royce Youree at East High School in 1981-82, and Camelback High School in 1989-90. I spent one year as an assistant at GCU in 2007-08, when the Antelopes were NCAA Division II. That’s 41 years in the business, 35 as a head coach at Judson High School, Camelback High School, Mountain Pointe High School, Yavapai College, and Mesa Community College. I don’t know if my resignation at MCC puts an end to the career or not, but I am definitely a lifer, an outlier.
How did I get to MCC in the first place? After stepping down as head boys coach at Mountain Pointe High School in 2007, I was pretty much feeling the same then as I feel now. It was time to move on and try something else. I wasn’t sure what the next thing was going to be, but I wanted it to be in college. In 2007, that didn’t leave a lot of options in the Phoenix metro area. There was Arizona State University, Grand Canyon University, and the Valley juco’s- that was pretty much it. ASU was coached by Herb Sendek, with whom I had absolutely no relationship. I had limited experience with the Maricopa juco’s, having been Rob Babcock’s assistant in 1986-87 at Phoenix College. It was apparent back then that the administrations of these colleges had a high school mentality when it came to paying coaches- meaning there was little money in it. So, I was teaching at Paradise Valley High School, coaching at Phoenix College, working in their fitness center at night, and working on my Masters degree at ASU. Another bit of experience I had with the Maricopa juco’s happened in 1995. By then, I had my Masters degree, and the head coaching position had opened up at South Mountain CC. Doug Ferguson, the Athletic Director at SMCC, wanted to talk to me about the job and meet the college president. So, I got dressed up and went over to South one day to meet with both men. Doug took me to the president’s office, we shook hands, and basically the first thing he said was that it was not a full time position and there was no guarantee it would ever be. I appreciated the fact that he did not beat around the bush, so I didn’t beat around the bush either. I said that head coaches should be on the campus full time, stood up and said it was nice meeting with him and walked out. Total meeting time- about three minutes. Doug chased me down the hallway and said that I just needed to be patient- that it would be a full time job soon. As of this writing in 2022, it is still not a full time position. Dan Nichols coaches there, but works at Grand Canyon University. Coaching juco, then, did not seem possible in 2007.
That left GCU. I knew the head coach, Scott Mossman, through the recruitment of some of our Mountain Pointe players. I made a shot-in-the-dark phone call to Scott and asked him if he needed another assistant. As luck would have it, they did have an assistant who was leaving. One thing led to another and I went to GCU, albeit as a volunteer, which meant that I would have to keep my teaching job at Mountain Pointe. Picture that drive everyday, if you will. The two institutions are basically on opposite sides of the Metro area- a good 20+ miles from each other. You have to be a lifer. Scott Mossman was married, but his family lived in Riverside, California, so he lived in Phoenix alone and preferred to practice at night, which worked out for me- although it meant that I would hardly ever be home. A lot of coaches know what I am talking about.
Next time: GCU
How did I get to MCC in the first place? After stepping down as head boys coach at Mountain Pointe High School in 2007, I was pretty much feeling the same then as I feel now. It was time to move on and try something else. I wasn’t sure what the next thing was going to be, but I wanted it to be in college. In 2007, that didn’t leave a lot of options in the Phoenix metro area. There was Arizona State University, Grand Canyon University, and the Valley juco’s- that was pretty much it. ASU was coached by Herb Sendek, with whom I had absolutely no relationship. I had limited experience with the Maricopa juco’s, having been Rob Babcock’s assistant in 1986-87 at Phoenix College. It was apparent back then that the administrations of these colleges had a high school mentality when it came to paying coaches- meaning there was little money in it. So, I was teaching at Paradise Valley High School, coaching at Phoenix College, working in their fitness center at night, and working on my Masters degree at ASU. Another bit of experience I had with the Maricopa juco’s happened in 1995. By then, I had my Masters degree, and the head coaching position had opened up at South Mountain CC. Doug Ferguson, the Athletic Director at SMCC, wanted to talk to me about the job and meet the college president. So, I got dressed up and went over to South one day to meet with both men. Doug took me to the president’s office, we shook hands, and basically the first thing he said was that it was not a full time position and there was no guarantee it would ever be. I appreciated the fact that he did not beat around the bush, so I didn’t beat around the bush either. I said that head coaches should be on the campus full time, stood up and said it was nice meeting with him and walked out. Total meeting time- about three minutes. Doug chased me down the hallway and said that I just needed to be patient- that it would be a full time job soon. As of this writing in 2022, it is still not a full time position. Dan Nichols coaches there, but works at Grand Canyon University. Coaching juco, then, did not seem possible in 2007.
That left GCU. I knew the head coach, Scott Mossman, through the recruitment of some of our Mountain Pointe players. I made a shot-in-the-dark phone call to Scott and asked him if he needed another assistant. As luck would have it, they did have an assistant who was leaving. One thing led to another and I went to GCU, albeit as a volunteer, which meant that I would have to keep my teaching job at Mountain Pointe. Picture that drive everyday, if you will. The two institutions are basically on opposite sides of the Metro area- a good 20+ miles from each other. You have to be a lifer. Scott Mossman was married, but his family lived in Riverside, California, so he lived in Phoenix alone and preferred to practice at night, which worked out for me- although it meant that I would hardly ever be home. A lot of coaches know what I am talking about.
Next time: GCU
