I’D LIKE TO THANK TANNER HUCK WHO IS THE HEAD COACH FOR BARCLAY COLLEGE BEARS IN HAVILAND, KANSAS IN THE MCCC IN NCCAA FOR SHARING ADVICE FOR YOUNG COACHES WITH THE CANNON NETWORK. HE SHARED, “TANNER HUCK, HEAD MEN’S BASKETBALL COACH AT BARCLAY COLLEGE. THIS IS MY 5TH YEAR IN COLLEGE COACHING, 4TH YEAR AS A HEAD COACH, AND 1ST YEAR AS THE HEAD COACH AT BARCLAY COLLEGE. I PLAYED COLLEGIATELY BEFORE STEPPING RIGHT INTO COACHING. STARTED MY COACHING CAREER AS A COACH FOR UNCHARTED WATERS SPORTS MINISTRY PERFORMING CAMPS ALL OVER THE COUNTRY. BEGAN MY COLLEGE COACHING CAREER AS AN ASSISTANT AT BARCLAY COLLEGE BEFORE TAKING THE HEAD POSITION AT ECCLESIA COLLEGE. AFTER THREE SEASONS AT ECCLESIA COLLEGE I ACCEPTED THE POSITION OF HEAD COACH AT BARCLAY COLLEGE. DURING THE SUMMER OF 2021 I HAD THE PRIVILEGE OF COACHING A U19 TEAM FOR SAW-USA IN THE PORTUGAL BASKETBALL FESTIVAL. BEING A YOUNG COACH MYSELF I THINK THE BIGGEST AREAS TO FOCUS ON TO BUILD YOUR BEST SELF AS A COACH ARE 1) LEARNING THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ADJUSTMENTS AND CHANGES, AND 2) CONNECTIONS. EVERY PLAN YOU MAKE OR DECISION YOU MAKE WILL REQUIRE ADJUSTMENT. GUARANTEED. THERE’S NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT. BE QUICK WITH MAKING ADJUSTMENTS. IN TEAM MEETINGS, PRACTICES, GAMES, SCHEDULES, AND EVERYTHING ELSE YOUR ABILITY TO FORESEE ADJUSTMENTS AND MAKE THE ADJUSTMENTS IS A GREAT SKILL. HOWEVER, BE SLOW TO MAKE CHANGES. CONSTANTLY MAKING WHOLESALE CHANGES SHOWS A LACK OF CONFIDENCE. YOU STUDIED AND MADE THE RIGHT CHOICE, GRIND IT OUT, IT WILL IMPROVE. AS A YOUNG COACH YOU ARE STUDYING HOW THE GREATS DO IT, HOW YOUR CONFERENCE DOES IT, HOW YOU DID IT LAST YEAR, ETC. IT IS EASY TO SEE SOMETHING “BETTER,” OR SOMEONE APPROACHING THEIR TEAM DIFFERENTLY AND DECIDE YOU WANT TO DO THAT. DON’T BE QUICK TO CHANGE YOURSELF. MAKE ADJUSTMENTS AS NEEDED BUT DO NOT CHANGE THE COACH YOU FEEL COMFORTABLE BEING. YOU ARE NOT YOUR FORMER COACH OR FAVORITE COACH, AND YOU DON’T NEED TO BE. BE YOUR TRUE SELF AND THAT WILL GET YOU FURTHER THAN BEING AN IMITATION. LASTLY, BUILD CONNECTIONS. GO TO PRACTICES OF ALL LEVELS AND ALL SPORTS. NOT ONLY WILL YOU MARKET YOURSELF AND BUILD RELATIONSHIPS YOU MIGHT PICK UP SOME ADJUSTMENTS YOU CAN ADD TO YOUR PROGRAM (I’VE STOLEN A LOT FROM BASEBALL). SUPPORT YOUR FELLOW COACHES. COACHING IS A COMMUNITY AND A SPECIAL ONE AT THAT. DON’T BE SCARED BECAUSE YOU’RE THE NEW COACH; THEY WERE THE NEW COACH AT ONE POINT TOO.”