St. Edward’s University’s Athletic Department hires coaches from a wide variety of backgrounds. The Coach’s Corner offers an in-depth look at the background of the coaching staff.

Q: You lead the St. Edward’s University women’s softball team to set a 45-22 record  and took them to the Heartland Conference Championship for the first time. With all these accomplishments, what do you believe is your greatest accomplishment as the head softball coach?

A: One of my greatest accomplishments in the eight years that I have been at St. Edward’s University is the positive relationships I have been able to develop with my student athletes. We work as a team, as a family, and I really enjoy being around them.  Second to that is when I took a group of young ladies (2008 season) to the College World Series. It was a great feeling knowing that the majority of the players had spent four years working hard to accomplish something that, at times, seemed impossible. So that year we not only went to the World Series, but we finished third. As a team, we have done something no other team in the South Central Region has done; we have made it to the post season four years in a row, posted four 40-plus win[ning] seasons in a row and won the South Central Region in 2008.  This is a huge accomplishment for the softball program.  We also, for the first time in school history, won the regular season conference and the conference tournament.

Q: Before coaching at St. Edward’s, you coached at Westlake High School and Duncanville High School. What do you find different about coaching university women?

A: The biggest difference is the amount of time you get to spend with your athletes.  In high school, many of them played another sport and I only got to coach them part of the school year.  Another big difference is the ability to recruit in college and the inability to recruit at the high school level. 

Q: Do you believe your coaching methods teach your students not only how to be successful on the field, but off the field as well?

A: My coaching style has changed tremendously over the past four years. In that time I have adopted two little boys who have changed my outlook on life and coaching. I believe in developing the whole person, not just the athlete. Our student athletes have to deal with a variety of life’s challenges, just in their role as a player on the softball team.  They put in many hours on the field and in the weight room and that leaves little time for studying and a social life.  We teach them time management, how to overcome adversity and how to handle failure.  I take the “treat them as I would want my own children [to be] treated approach.” This mindset has helped me build positive relationships with my players and in return, we together, have won many championships.

Q: You have received a Bachelor’s in Science in Kinesiology from Texas A&M University and a master’s degree in Human Services from St. Edward’s, all while being involved in softball. What advice do you give the women softball players in order for them to successfully manage both academics and sports?

A: When I first got to St. Edward’s University I was the assistant coach, and we were coming off a 12 – 36 record so there was a lot of work to do within the recruiting and developing of our athletes. This work took a lot of my time. I really wanted to get my masters and I also wanted to win some games. I tell my players something that my new assistant once told me, “Winners get up earlier than everybody else, that’s why they are winners.”  I use this advice with my players. I tell them to manage their time and to get up a little earlier to start their day off with some studying or a good workout to put them in the right frame of mind for any challenge that might come their way throughout the day or week.