Name a pro athlete that collected NFL paychecks for nine years — providing his family a comfortable life — but upon retirement from his playing days returned to his high school alma mater located in an impoverished urban neighborhood.
In other words, identify a star athlete that was coddled in college and overpaid as a pro yet after all the pampering rejoined the real world. He took up the grind, toiling alongside underpaid and unappreciated teachers and coaches.
It’s a short list, and that’s what makes Courtney Hawkins special.
Hawkins, a two-time All-Big Ten wide receiver at Michigan State and a second-round NFL draft pick, has been a beloved football coach and athletic director the past 14 years at Flint (Mich.) Beecher. He’s led his teams to state titles, won awards coaching and as an athletic director and earned the praise of his superiors and respect of his community for not being afraid to get his hands dirty.
Ironically, Hawkins, 50, garnered more headlines in one day – well, outside the Flint Beecher community, that is, – for accepting a job coaching wide receivers under Michigan State’s new head coach, Mel Tucker, than his admirable work for a decade and a half guiding young men and women that can be sidetracked by the socie-economic conditions surrounding them.
That’s our star-struck American society: We overemphasize big-time sports and celebrities and undervalue funding primary and secondary education.
Outside of Spartan Nation, who has wider name recognition among these two Michigan State legendary receivers from the same Flint area and era: Courtney Hawkins or Andre “Bad Moon” Rison? Who deserves it more?
You get my point?
Hawkins’ devoted character is undisputed, but don’t think for a second his lack of college coaching experience diminishes him as a choice to join Tucker’s staff. Tucker was asked a qualifications question at a Monday media session.
“Football is football whether it’s high school or college or pro,” said Tucker, who has coached 13 college seasons and 10 in the NFL. “I’ll tell you what, having been in this 23 years and seen what high school coaches deal with on a day to day basis, I actually think coaching high school is more difficult than coaching pro. That’s my opinion. They have to do everything. He’s done a phenomenal job. He knows the game and he knows what Michigan State is all about. He’s played the game at the highest level. That’s why I wanted him here. He’s an asset for Michigan State.”
The key for a high school coach is communicating and teaching. You don’t survive 14 years coaching high school athletes without the ability to communicate. A coach, at his or her core, must be a teacher.
No less of an authority than Vince Lombardi, for whom the NFL’s Super Bowl trophy is named, often stated his success was based on first and foremost being a teacher. Lombardi was a teacher and coach for seven years at St. Cecilia High in Englewood, N.J., until he joined the college ranks as an assistant at his alma mater, Fordham University.
The rest, as they say, is history.
Oddly enough, in 2005, ESPN put together high school football reality series with Pro Football Hall of Famer Dick Butkus taking over as coach at Montour High near Pittsburgh. The title was “Bound for Glory.”
ESPN should have chosen Hawkins at Flint Beecher for an inspiring ending.
Butkus had no experience coaching and teaching, so the title should have been, “Bound for a Thud.” Montour finished its season with a 1-8 record, and Butkus didn’t stick around for the end of the season. In one episode, Butkus whined that no matter what he told kids they kept making the same mistakes. The reason, of course, is he wasn’t a teacher first, a coach second.
I learned that lesson from one of California’s all-time winningest football coaches, Herb Meyer at two Oceanside high schools, after one of his teams played poorly. He told me coaches are teachers first and if his team played poorly he and his staff did a poor job of teaching. That’s how as 20-something sportswriter that doesn’t know as much as he thought knew cuts his teeth covering high school sports.
A coach that that knows X’s and O’s but lacks people skills is weeded out of the high school ranks quicker than a coach with limited strategy knowledge but the ability to communicate. Tucker never coached high school ball in his 23-year career, but he sees the value in Hawkins from his 13 years recruiting high school athletes and visiting campuses.
There was a theme song from a popular 1970s TV show, “Welcome back, Kotter,” that fit Courtney Hawkins returning to Flint Beecher. And now again at Michigan State.
How about this song:
WELCOME BACK, COURTNEY
“Welcome back, your dreams were your ticket out
Welcome back, to that same old place that you laughed about
Well the names have all changed since you hung around
But those dreams have remained and they’ve turned around
Who’d have thought they’d lead ya
(Who’d have thought they’d lead ya)
Back here where we need ya
(Back here where we need ya)
Yeah we tease him a lot ’cause we got him on the spot
Welcome back, welcome back, welcome back, welcome back
Welcome back, welcome back, welcome back.”
* * *
I invite you to follow me on Twitter @shanny4055
Tom Shanahan, Author: Raye of Light http://tinyurl.com/knsqtqu
— Book on Michigan State’s leading role in the integration of college football. It explains Duffy Daugherty’s untold pioneering role and debunks myths that steered recognition away from him to Bear Bryant.
http://shanahan.report/a/the-case-for-duffy-and-medal-of-freedom
Don’t believe the myths at Duffy Daugherty’s expense about Bear Bryant’s motivation to play the 1970 USC-Alabama game or myths about the Charlie Thornhill-for-Joe Namath trade. Bear Bryant knew nothing about black talent in the South while he dragged his feet on segregation.
http://shanahan.report/a/myths-that-grew-out-of-1970-alabama-game-with-usc
http://shanahan.report/a/mystery-solved-in-thornhill-and-namath-myth
David Maraniss, Pulitzer Prize winner and biographer; “History writes people out of the story. It’s our job to write them back in.”
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51V97QucL5L.jpg
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51V97QucL5L.jpg
Click here for the link to order from August Publications
Make sure you follow the All Sports Discussion Twitter account at @AllSportsDACC and please like our Facebook Page
Leave a Reply