Personal Narrative: My Relationship With Coach Anderson

From my second year of tackle football to now, almost 8 years later, I have developed a close relationship with my coach, Will Anderson. While many coaches only want to win, Coach Anderson saw football as a way to teach life lessons in a way that made lasting impressions on our team. Not only did Coach Anderson teach us how to be the best people that we could, he also developed personal relationships with each and every player. The main themes of his coaching style-brotherhood, integrity, perseverance-resonate within me today. On the first day of practice I knew something was different about Coach Anderson. He rarely raised his voice and when he did it was not in anger but in excitement and passion. At such a young age, I did not realize the impact of his calm demeanor and a surprisingly low emphasis on
winning. Even though I was only in fourth grade and nine years old, this year was an important primer for the more in-depth lessons I learned from sixth to eighth grade. Unfortunately, I was not placed on Coach Anderson’s team in fifth grade, but I was welcomed back in sixth grade. I was on Coach Anderson’s team from sixth to eighth grade and these were some of the most important years of my life. Coach Anderson gave us homework that emphasized the traits of humility, respect, and loyalty. My best memory was building a brick wall before our sixth grade championship game. Each player painted a brick with one of the tenets of our team. The togetherness, both symbolic and literal, of this brick wall was something that I had never experienced before or after. By teaching us these topics then living them out Coach Anderson demonstrated a positive way to live your life. However, Coach Anderson’s impact extended beyond coaching.
He developed close ties with all the players on and off the field, encouraging players to use him as sounding board. Even in middle school, I felt comfortable to talk to him about spiritual matters. The positive effect of having a strong male Christian role model in my life, besides my father, was immeasurable. Middle and high school are some of the most turbulent times of any person’s life and knowing that I could talk to Coach Anderson about what I was going through helped me to remain true to myself. I recently helped to put on a major spiritual event at my school, and I reached out to Coach Anderson for assistance. Although he had always been there for me, his amount of help surprised me. Not only did he offer advice, but he also helped to spread the word. He still serves as an example; I see him at a fast food restaurant attending a Bible study even though he has a full-time job and three children. He has taught me the importance of time management and prioritizing. Coach Anderson’s assistance in all areas of life throughout the time I have known him has been
invaluable. Coach Anderson and I have developed a close relationship that has transcended football into life. I still address him as “Coach,” but this word has expanded to new meanings, such as spiritual adviser and mentor. I have continued to play football into high school, and while I have found some good coaches, none have matched Coach Anderson in his level of commitment to building a true team. Whenever I look for help in the future, be it for college or even a job, I know that Coach Anderson will be there for me.