Thanks go out to local coaches
Local administrators praise efforts during COVID-19 pandemic
SANTA CRUZ >> A Key to the City might be a bit much, so might a proclamation from Santa Cruz, especially given the number of potential recipients. But a pat on the back — they’ll wait until after the pandemic — and messages of gratitude are definitely warranted, if you ask Harbor High athletics director Hollis O’Brien.
O’Brien and Harbor Principal Tracey Runeareare are making sure to thank every Pirates coach for their work during the pandemic, which allowed student-athletes to escape the confines
of their homes for some fresh air and conditioning outdoors in cohorts during the pandemic.
Runeareare emailed every coach and thanked them for their sacrifices.
“When we started conditioning, there was no stipend, and we made that clear and they all did it,” said O’Brien, who also coaches the girls tennis team. “When the (Central Coast Section) granted us these time frames, we had 230 kids participating in conditioning. And that’s pretty good. And we had no instances of outbreaks.”
Surely, administrators at every school throughout Santa Cruz County shares the same sentiments for coaches.
At Harbor, a total of 39 coaches and assistants showed up four to five days a week, working two hours a day. They made sure athletes completed COVID-19 screenings, were masked and socially distanced — and wearing a smile on their face.
And not once did a coach asked if they were going to be paid, O’Brien said.
All through the summer and even at the start of the 2020-21 academic school year, football appeared the least likely sport to be played this year. Still, players and coaches showed up on campus for conditioning, in addition to meeting on video communication apps.
Pirates football coach James Gaynor Jr. commuted from Marina to lead his athletes. He never second-guessed his decision, either. His donated time not only offered athletes an escape from their monotonous days at home, but a chance to catch up on the basics.
“The biggest thing for us, we have to learn football first, the football IQ thing of it,” Gaynor said of merging his junior-varsity and varsity programs this year, “so we took advantage of October, November and December. Whether we were going to play or not, these guys need to know where the hashes are, middle of the field, first level, second level, all those things, defensive line techniques, what do we mean by outside zone, what do we mean by inside zone. All those things, they have to know what they mean, so we’re all speaking the same language.”
There was too much work to do to sit idle, Gaynor said. Harbor has played two games and lost both of them, but the Pirates are thrilled at the opportunity to show up, compete and learn.
“We’re beyond grateful,” Pirates quarterback Cash Rosburg said of the coaches. “I really didn’t think we were going to have a season, but here we are, playing games and it’s just super exciting.”
As of last week, only four sports had started their seasons: cross country, girls tennis, football and club beach volleyball.
Several more sports begin in mid-April. With no schedule set in place, Kanani Thomas was on the outdoor basketball courts leading three players through dribbling drills last week. Meanwhile, baseball coach Joseph Allegri and several assistants were leading their players though drills.
Allegri said his team initially met two days a week. They’re currently playing four days a week and will return to a normal, fiveday schedule when they return from Spring Break.
“It’s been awesome, I haven’t swung a fungo in over a year,” Allegri said, noting he showed up for the love of the game, to get the kids outside and develop their skills.
Most spring sports teams in ’20 were robbed of their seasons, which has left returning players trying to make up for lost time. Harbor graduated 11 seniors from its baseball program, so this year’s team needed extra training to be prepared for when games roll around.
Most Season No. 2 and No. 3 schedules haven’t yet been released by the Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League.
Senior Jackson Gifford said one of Harbor’s baseball assistants, Patrick McNulty, gets up at 3 a.m. to start work so that he can help coach in the afternoon. And that’s not lost on the players.
“It’s a big commitment for them and they’re making sacrifices to be out here to help coach us,” Gifford said, “and it’s really awesome they making those sacrifices to be out here, and not being a lot of money. …Everyone out here appreciates the coaches’ time. It’s definitely a family our here and everyone respects everybody. All the kids are out here hustling for the coaches and making it worth their time.”
O’Brien summed up his coaches as “dedicated, caring and wanting to provide opportunity.”
“They were a shining, little light when everyone was hunkering down in their houses,” he said.
O’Brien said he makes sure to heap praise on the coaches at booster club and parent meetings.
“They deserve to be recognized,” O’Brien said. “They did a wonderful thing during a terrible time to benefit the students and it was altruistic.”