Kent Early COACH OF THE YEAR
BENTONVILLE HIGH SCHOOL
With to become a passion the for All-Arkansas coaching softball, Preps Coach one coach of the rose Year as above well the as Outstanding rest Softball Coach of the Year.
Kent Early, head softball coach at Bentonville High School, led his team to its third consecutive Class 7A state title in May. The team may be the school’s most celebrated in the program’s history. The Lady Tigers were ranked No. 7 in the nation by www.MaxPreps.com and No. 21 in the Xcellent 25 MaxPreps Writers’ Poll. Early, 42, said that whatever awards, rankings and polls the team earns, it’s all due to the hard work of his athletes. “It makes me think of my players,” he said. “If they’re not in the dugout, this award doesn’t happen.” Early praised the dedication and talent of his players on and off the field. While the team had a successful season, that doesn’t happen without preparation, he said. He said he stresses the importance of the offseason to his players and that the more success they are able to achieve on the field, the more they will buy into his coaching. “As long as we can prepare on the front end in practice, every situation that you get into, you’ll know how to get out of it,” he said. One thing Early stresses to his players is that every other team has the same 365 days a year to prepare for the season. He said his players have come to embrace these lessons. One example is that the team won the state title on a Saturday, and by Monday, players were calling to find out when the weight room would be open. Early said he treats his players like they are an extension of his family. He is proud of them when they are successful in everything, not just softball. “But when they do something [special] in a game, it makes you proud,” he said. “It’s a proud-dad-[type] moment.” Early has been coaching for 15 years, but his experience with coaching goes back even further. His father, Alvy Early, lost his battle with cance earlier this month and had been coaching basketball at the University of Arkansas at Monticello for more than 21 years, as well as coaching softball and serving as athletic director at the school. From 1997 to 2000, Kent Early attended UAM, where he studied physical education/wellness and served as an assistant coach. After graduating, he coached softball at McGehee, then returned to UAM from 2002-2004 to earn a master’s degree in physical education/wellness. He stayed on as a volunteer
[THIS AWARD] MAKES ME THINK OF MY PLAYERS. If they’re not in the dugout, this award doesn’t happen.” — Kent Early, ALL-ARKANSAS PREPS COACH OF THE YEAR
during the 2005 season. He had been offered a junior high basketball coaching job, but after watching the fast-paced college softball games, he fell in love with the sport. Early said he learned a lot from his father, especially how important the fundamentals of the game are. His father’s philosophy is that if you are going to do something, do it the right way, be prepared, and never be beat by not hustling. Early said that not only does he follow the lessons taught to him by his father, but his brothers are coaches, too. Preston Early coaches girls basketball at Rogers High School, and Brian Early is an assistant football coach at Arkansas State University. Scott Passmore, athletic director for the Bentonville School District, praised Kent Early for his work ethic and his dedication to putting his players first. “His team is the hardest-working group of athletes in the program,” Passmore said. “That’s an attribute of his expectations.” Passmore said the awards and achievements Early has acquired are well-deserved. Early’s players also praise his leadership and the lessons he teaches through his program. “He’s had the most impact on my life of anyone,” said Megan Crownover, junior, first base. “He pushes us to our breaking point, but then he pushes us past that, and at the end of the day, we know he loves us. He’s like a second father to us. He honestly wants the best for us.” Crownover said one of the biggest concepts that Early has taught the team is mudita, which is the joy of seeing someone else succeed. She said the team’s mudita shows in photographs of the team after a win or after a home run. “In sports, you always look for ‘How am I doing? What can I do better?’ But he’s really taught us that if you’re willing to work hard for yourself, then you should be willing to push the limits for the girls who are standing next to you,” she said. “That’s really what gets us all working, because we work for each other, and we love each other.”