Summer Yields New Coaching Opportunities
As a former head basketball coach it was always exciting for me to see other men and women who’d proven themselves as quality assistant coaches, get the opportunity to become “leaders” of their own programs and put their stamp on a school, community and most importantly, have a viable impact on young people.
I sat down with newly appointed girls head coaches, Whitko High School’s Justin Jordan, Northrop High School’s Kevin Clopton and Churubusco High School’s David Goodwell for a Q&A to hear their thoughts about securing these positions and sharing some of the challenges that they face in their new roles as head coaches.
Q: So Coach Clopton how did it feel when you received the call that you’d secured the head girls coaching position at Northrop High School?
A: I was excited and extremely honored and blessed to be given this opportunity. I’m really beyond words to describe how I feel besides being very proud of myself and the people that have helped motivate me to get in this position.
Q: Your thoughts on the same question, Coach Jordan?
A: I was excited as well! The process didn’t take very long as Whitko hired a new athletic director in early July and he immediately contacted me and asked if I wanted the position of head girls coach that was open in their school. Of course I said yes!
Q: Coach Goodwell who was the first person you shared the exciting news with?
A: I told my wife right away and she said Congratulations! It’s interesting, I was contacted by people in the Churubusco community saying that they were excited about me getting the position before I even got the official call, which was different but exciting!
Q: You’re all coming into uniquely different situations in trying to put your stamp on a program and change a culture at that particular school. How will you go about it?
A: Coach Goodwell, I’ve had good preparation for this position. The kids that are returning for me are fundamentally sound and willing to work hard which are the things that we’ve tried to incorporate at Southside while I’ve been there. I want the kids to work hard, play fast, and understand that we are trying to develop a winning mentality here at Churubusco High School and that will only happen through hard work and preparation daily. We will play 9-10 girls each game and we plan on bringing a style of play that may not have been seen at Churubusco before.
Q: Coach Clopton your response to this question?
A: I’m looking to build onto a culture that has been accustomed to winning. These young ladies have expectations to win and that is my mentality as well. With what we have returning, along with some very talented players coming in, I feel that us having high expectations to win are not out of the realm of possibility at all!
Q: Coach Jordan your thoughts on this question?
A: My situation is interesting in that I’m trying to get young ladies interested in actually playing basketball again. It was frustrating for the prior team in that they only won very few games and that’s discouraging for young people. This is a rebuilding year for us. We are primarily a team of freshman and sophomores and confidence is going to be a key for us to be successful this season. With that being said, in my initial meetings with the girls they we nervous but excited to hear what I wanted to do and how we will go about it.
Q: Each of you coaches has your own “style” of play that you enjoy teaching. What can we expect to see on the floor for your teams this season?
A: Coach Goodwell: We are going to play fast and pressure the basketball “84” feet. We are going to see if teams can handle the ball and then push it I transition on offense. I have some talented girls that can shoot it so we’ll put some things in for them but playing fast is my style.
A: Coach Jordan: I have to see what we have before I answer that question because I haven’t seen all of the girls as of yet. I enjoy playing at an up tempo pace and pressuring on defense but I have to see what we have first before I commit to what we’ll do.
A: Coach Clopton: I have the SAC leading scorer back and possibly 2 D1 players so we expect to be exciting and challenging teams on both ends of the floor. We’ll play hard and run along with pressing teams the entire game. I have multiple kids that can score so I want them to have the freedom to do what they do along with having some continuity on offense.
Q: Let’s talk about the pink elephant in the room. Two of you have the pressure of coaching programs in predominantly white communities, while one has the pressure to win right away — possibly the state title. So there is pressure on each of you. How are you handling these issues?
A: Coach Jordan: I understand that coming into Whitley county and Whitko HS. I have to watch how I interact how with the girls, and parents and I’ll just be myself. I’ve been around long enough to know what to say, and how to say it. I don’t anticipate there being an issue as long as I carry myself in a professional manner and put the message out there that I’m here to coach basketball and develop confidence in these young ladies.
A: Coach Goodwell: I worked at Homestead HS for 11 years so I have seen (and experienced) a lot. I know that there will be people that won’t be crazy about me coming in initially, but I will still greet them with a smile and move on about my day. I’ll be there in the building as a paraprofessional daily, so they’ll see me as more than a coach and maybe that will change some misconceptions about a black coach coming in. But make no mistake, I will still be me!
A: Coach Clopton: What makes me excited about this position are the EXPECTATIONS to win. We have (2) ALL SAC players returning, and 4 out of 5 starters. Yes, there will be pressure, but no more pressure than I expect from myself to bring a state title to Northrop HS. So if you ask me the question “Is it State or Bust for 2020-2021 I would say yes!
Q: You all have had your own personal journeys towards becoming a head basketball coach that you’ve had to go through. How rewarding is it to get the call that you’ve accomplished your goal?
A: Coach Clopton: I’ve been through so much in trying to gain the trust and respect of those making the decisions to allow me to become a head coach. I felt very uneasy going in to my interview because of previous disappointments but I knew that when the call came I was prepared to accept it and the challenges that come with the position because of all that I’ve been through.
A: Coach Goodwell: I’ve trained and been taught by some of the best in the country in this business so I felt that I was ready. Yes, I’ve encountered some disappointments but they’ve made me stronger and allowed me to grow. When we came into Southside we had pressure to develop and change a mentality not unlike what we have at Churubusco. We have some talented pieces in place to win at Busco and I feel that I’m the person to do just that!
A: Coach Jordan: I’ve also had the opportunity to be taught and mentored by great people and coaches like my father (girls coach at Marion HS) so I understand that there will be some challenges coming my way to build a winning culture at Whitko and I will use all of the resources available to me to keep our program on a course towards achieving something special that the community respects and will want to support.
These coaches all have the right tools to develop and direct their respective programs towards success. It was my pleasure to share some time with each of them and hear their thoughts on becoming head coaches. I’m excited to see what each of them will do, and what path they’ll choose to reach their goals for this season and beyond. They all are talented in their own right and will face scrutiny from a variety of forums.
My feelings are, if they stay the course, and stay true to who they are and the goals that they’ve set for themselves, and their program then I would expect them to be successful moving forward into the 2020-21 basketball season. I appreciate their time and thoughts and want to congratulate them for this tremendous accomplishment in their coaching careers.
Left to Right: Coach David Goodwell, Coach Justin Jordan, Coach Kevin Clopton