‘What do you do?’ That question is typically asked of you when you meet someone new. As if what you do will somehow define you as a person, which it never should, but we ask anyway. It is a common question but a little strange when it came from my 8-year-old son walking to the beach one day in July. I was a little taken aback by the question since he has been alive all seven years I have been athletic director at Erskine. After I had answered him by simply saying I was an athletic director, he shot back “but Dad what do you do? I know you are the athletic director, but what do you do?” I didn’t see the need to endlessly bore him with all the paperwork that is required by NCAA or Conference Carolinas so I just responded by telling him that I make sure the games get played and people have fun. He seemed okay with that answer, but as I sat on the beach that afternoon I thought, “What do I do…. or more importantly what do we do as an athletic department at Erskine?” By days end I came up with a list of four major components on which I basically want our athletic department to focus. I shared these with our student-athletes at our annual pre-season meetings just so there is no question about what we aim to do. I am not going to say that we always accomplish these four components well, but it is our goal to do so.
Compete at a high level at Division II- The hope for all of our teams is that they play at a very high level. We have alumni and former coaches who regularly bark about how teams aren’t as good as they were back in the day or don’t win enough games. I am sure those are valid points but the reality for those who play and coach at Erskine is a desire to be able to compete on a daily basis with Division II programs today. My first two years at Erskine almost every one of our teams finished last in conference play in their respective sports, but what was worse was that in most competitions we were losing by huge margins. Games were not competitive. We have made major strides in this area, primarily because of leadership at Erskine the past few years who committed to supporting athletics and allowed our teams to have improved resources than we did tens years ago.
Compete with Class/Sportsmanship- Obviously every athletic director will push for teams to win and lose with class. Nobody wants to be a “bad winner or loser” but at Erskine because of our Christian mission we should be seeking to end a competition with a high level of sportsmanship. This is easier said than done because competitive, passionate people struggle to take the “classy” road when they are over zealous with a win and when they are frustrated with a loss, including the person writing this. The overpowering desire to win is what has led most coaches into the profession, and it has led most of our student-athletes to be able to play at the college level. There is a fine line between being a competitor and being a good sportsman. We are going to work on this on a daily basis. Most of the emails and phone calls I get in the course of the year are in reference to sportsmanship. We aren’t going to be perfect but we are going to seek to improve it every day.
Academic Excellence- Academics have been a lifelong pursuit of mine. All of our coaching staff wants our student-athletes to excel in the classroom and earn degrees. At every institution there will be a friction between some faculty and athletics. We have faced that friction at Erskine but we have also worked hard to fight against the stereotype of the “dumb jock.” Last spring half of our student-athletes achieved a grade point average of 3.0, half of 250, fairly impressive. Our graduation rates have been some of the highest in South Carolina over the past decade. We will continue to attempt to recruit quality student-athletes who desire a strong balance between athletics and academics. As the NCAA commercial goes, “Most of our student-athletes are going pro in something other than sports.”
Achieve the first three in a Christian environment- The greatest benefit of coaching at Erskine is being in a committed Christian environment. We are going to seek to honor God in all we do and we are not going to apologize for that. Jesus may not care who wins or loses a game, but He does care that our student-athletes and coaches are maximizing the gifts He has given them. We are not perfect by any stretch of the imagination but fortunately the grace of God has allowed us to coach and play using the gifts we have been given. We are fortunate to be able to interact with young people at a critical time in their lives and watch them grow and prepare for their future lives. If along the way they come to realize how important it is to have Jesus along for the ride, it makes coaching even more worthwhile. We have seen that happen here many times and it is wonderful to witness and experience.
So that’s what we aim for in Erskine athletics; it’s what we “DO”, our philosophy. Those four goals will always guide us even when we don’t do them so well. Bear with us if we seem negligent in any of the four, but we are trying. As for that inquisitive 8-year-old, he turns 9 on Thursday. Happy Birthday Jenkins Peeler! Being a good husband to your mom, and being a dad to you, your sister and brother bring joy to my life everyday and if truth be told, you four are what I really “DO.”
Compete at a high level at Division II- The hope for all of our teams is that they play at a very high level. We have alumni and former coaches who regularly bark about how teams aren’t as good as they were back in the day or don’t win enough games. I am sure those are valid points but the reality for those who play and coach at Erskine is a desire to be able to compete on a daily basis with Division II programs today. My first two years at Erskine almost every one of our teams finished last in conference play in their respective sports, but what was worse was that in most competitions we were losing by huge margins. Games were not competitive. We have made major strides in this area, primarily because of leadership at Erskine the past few years who committed to supporting athletics and allowed our teams to have improved resources than we did tens years ago.
Compete with Class/Sportsmanship- Obviously every athletic director will push for teams to win and lose with class. Nobody wants to be a “bad winner or loser” but at Erskine because of our Christian mission we should be seeking to end a competition with a high level of sportsmanship. This is easier said than done because competitive, passionate people struggle to take the “classy” road when they are over zealous with a win and when they are frustrated with a loss, including the person writing this. The overpowering desire to win is what has led most coaches into the profession, and it has led most of our student-athletes to be able to play at the college level. There is a fine line between being a competitor and being a good sportsman. We are going to work on this on a daily basis. Most of the emails and phone calls I get in the course of the year are in reference to sportsmanship. We aren’t going to be perfect but we are going to seek to improve it every day.
Academic Excellence- Academics have been a lifelong pursuit of mine. All of our coaching staff wants our student-athletes to excel in the classroom and earn degrees. At every institution there will be a friction between some faculty and athletics. We have faced that friction at Erskine but we have also worked hard to fight against the stereotype of the “dumb jock.” Last spring half of our student-athletes achieved a grade point average of 3.0, half of 250, fairly impressive. Our graduation rates have been some of the highest in South Carolina over the past decade. We will continue to attempt to recruit quality student-athletes who desire a strong balance between athletics and academics. As the NCAA commercial goes, “Most of our student-athletes are going pro in something other than sports.”
Achieve the first three in a Christian environment- The greatest benefit of coaching at Erskine is being in a committed Christian environment. We are going to seek to honor God in all we do and we are not going to apologize for that. Jesus may not care who wins or loses a game, but He does care that our student-athletes and coaches are maximizing the gifts He has given them. We are not perfect by any stretch of the imagination but fortunately the grace of God has allowed us to coach and play using the gifts we have been given. We are fortunate to be able to interact with young people at a critical time in their lives and watch them grow and prepare for their future lives. If along the way they come to realize how important it is to have Jesus along for the ride, it makes coaching even more worthwhile. We have seen that happen here many times and it is wonderful to witness and experience.
So that’s what we aim for in Erskine athletics; it’s what we “DO”, our philosophy. Those four goals will always guide us even when we don’t do them so well. Bear with us if we seem negligent in any of the four, but we are trying. As for that inquisitive 8-year-old, he turns 9 on Thursday. Happy Birthday Jenkins Peeler! Being a good husband to your mom, and being a dad to you, your sister and brother bring joy to my life everyday and if truth be told, you four are what I really “DO.”
