Having watched Alabama win yet another college football national championship, I enjoyed the conversation about whether Nick Saban is the greatest coach in the history of college football. This was followed up by the question of whether he is a better coach that Bill Belichick, who is widely recognized as maybe the greatest coach in the history of the National Football League.
No matter which side of this discussion you might fall on there is no doubt that these types of discussions are always fun to engage in.
Now I will tell you that I have my own list of Greatest Coaches of All Time for every sport that I have an interest in. My list is:
Women’s Basketball – Geno Auriemma
Men’s Basketball – John Wooden
National Football League – Vince Lombardi
Major League Baseball – Joe Torre
Women’s Volleyball – Ron Rose
Fastpitch Softball – Mike Candrea
So this is my list of the Greatest Coaches of All Time.
Wait, I almost forgot the true GOAT!
No one in the history of coaching has done a greater coaching job than turning a whiny Daniel LaRusso from a bullied victim into a hero of epic proportions, you know it, Mr. Myagi.
Do karate, yes, or do karate no, do karate, guess so, get squished, just like grape.
Fit the power of whole body into one inch!
Me accomplish anything, you beginner’s luck!
Too much advantage your dojo.
There is no doubt that Mr. Myagi did an amazing job of coaching Daniel. If we could all help our players learn the great lessons that Daniel learns during this heartwarming story we would all be Hall of Famers! Next chance you get to watch the REAL Karate Kid, take notes. You will come away with more pearls of wisdom you can share with your team than any coaching book you will ever read!
About the Author: Tory Acheson brings a wealth of knowledge to the Fastpitch Prep staff. He has coached at all levels of the game, including the last 25 years at the college level at the University of Wisconsin – Parkside, Tennessee Tech and Kennesaw State. He began his coaching career at the high school level spending 9 years Whitnall High School in Greenfield, Wis. and is now working as a professional softball instructor.
