The Unsung Heroes of College Basketball
By GENE PROUSNITZER
We all know that great players and coaching go into making great basketball teams, but most people don’t realize the people that help put these people into the position to succeed, the student managers. Without them, players wouldn’t be able to solely focus on academics and becoming great players and coaches wouldn’t be able to focus on putting their players in the best position to succeed.
Managers don’t have the most glamourest job in the world, but you’re able to get involved in all the ins and outs of college athletics. Jobs can include, making sure water bottles are filled before practice, setting up the gym for practice, washing the players practice gear and putting it back in the player’s lockers and more, depending on the program.
But there are plenty of perks. Managers receive team gear, pregame and postgame meals, per diem on road games, great networking, but most importantly invaluable experience.
For instance, I have learned so much that I could not have learned in a classroom or doing anything else. I’ve learned how programs recruit, how they fundraise, film exchange, film editing, among many other things.
But the most important thing I’ve learned is how what managers do helps coaches.
“After ten years of coaching I can truly appreciate the value of having a good manager,” said Women’s Basketball Head Coach Niki Washington. “A good manager can make the life of a coach so much easier by taking care of all of the nuances of the profession that people don’t really see. There are many things that go on behind the scenes of an athletics program involving daily maintenance that are crucial areas to be considered. A manager can be the sole reason a practice operates smoothly by managing the practice schedule in conjunction with the clock in an efficient manner. For me a successful manager ultimately serves as an apprentice, and in this role can learn the ins and outs of a functional sports program.”
Two former college basketball managers are now well-known coaches. First is Bruce Pearl. Pearl was a manager for Boston College and is currently the Head Men’s Basketball Coach at the University of Tennessee. Second is former Indiana University manager Lawrence Frank, who is now the Head Coach for the New Jersey Nets.
A couple of years ago, arguably one of Men’s Basketball Head Coach Scott McMillin’s greatest managers graduated, Peter Gash. Gash was interested in coaching and McMillin gave him all the tools to succeed, and succeed Gash has done. After graduation, Gash was hired as the Video Coordinator at LaSalle University in Philadelphia, PA. The summer after his first year he was offered the Graduate Assistant job at Indiana University. Currently, Gash is the Special Assistant to the Head Coach across the street at Florida Atlantic.
Students interested in becoming managers should contact Coach Sean Alarcon at salarcon@lynn.edu for the men’s team, or Coach Peggy Keiper at mkeiper@lynn.edu for the women’s team.
