迪伦错话b '24: Growing and inspiring others through coaching

迪伦·雅各布24岁, a Business Administration major and member of the EC men’s basketball team, saw the basketball court from a different angle while volunteering as a coach for the City of Lights Hoop Group in Elmira. Jacob volunteered on weekdays and weekends to help the group of 15-year-old students looking to level up their hoops game.

The experience gave Jacob insight into himself and his future career path.

“It was a lot of learning about myself,” explained Jacob. “I learned about the ups and downs of a role with much less control than you think it would have. I got to teach the kids how I wanted to and told them what I was looking for, 但一旦我让他们上场, 我无法控制自己.”

Beyond learning to be comfortable with that lack of control, 雅各布说他必须要有耐心, often stepping back and realizing he needed to communicate basic information that he takes for granted as a seasoned player. He also practiced skills he is learning in his business courses, such as creating a practice plan and using data and statistics to assess strategies and make adjustments.

His efforts were noticed and he quickly gained the trust of the other coaches, 学生们, 还有学生的家长. That trust helped strengthen Jacob's coaching as he collaborated with the parents to help his students excel.

“I had one kid who was arguably one of the better players,” he elaborated. “他认为他所做的一切都是对的. 我们最终解决了问题. His parents helped him understand that I was helping him and he came to see that I am good at basketball and that I was trying to help him improve.”

“Dylan nurtured the kids’ skills and their love of the game,泰德·皮特分享道, Director of Basketball Operations for City of Lights Hoop Group. “They were able to win some games and their experience was tremendous.”

雅各分享了一个例子, 他帮助了另一个学生, 更先进的团队, 放松，享受游戏.

“I brought him to play with us for a tournament and I told him to just go have fun. 他回答说:“我有自由?’ I explained to him that his role on the team is to play and have fun. His mom said it was the first time she saw him smile. 后来他开始出现在我的诊所.”

皮特还分享了雅各布团队的成员, who previously struggled to get placements on the high school teams, 现在都在名单上了吗, 有几个人占据了起始位置. He also shared how Jacob went above and beyond as a volunteer.

“We hosted a tournament about 3 1/2 hours away in Pennsylvania. Dylan had a test or a paper he was working on and didn’t get done until late at night. He still drove down and was up to coach the team early the next morning. The team felt a bit down that day and they were competing against a really good team. 迪伦指导他们. He brought their spirits up, he got the group humming, and it was amazing to watch.”

“This experience helped me understand what I want to do after college,” shared Jacob. He has chosen to pursue coaching after he graduates as it is “better to start young and move up the chains now, 而不是等到我长大.”