Coaching isn’t just about the game; it’s about shaping lives and creating leaders. For Tim Walz, the democratic vice presidential candidate, his experience as a coach laid the groundwork for his political career.
Tim Walz, also endearingly known as “Coach Walz”, taught and served as an assistant coach at Mankato West High School in Minnesota. Before his arrival, Mankato West’s football team had lost their previous 27 games. However, through Walz’s philosophy of community building and teamwork, Mankato West became a dominant force in the Minnesota high school football scene, going on to win multiple state championships. Drawing from the collaboration and leadership skills he developed as a coach, Walz transitioned into politics. He was elected to the United States House of Representatives, later became the governor of Minnesota, and is now the democratic vice presidential candidate for the U.S.
Walz sees a connection between politics and coaching, explaining the shared values learned from his coaching experience. “Politics isn’t that much different than this,” Walz said, “It’s about setting a future goal and trying to reach it. It’s about doing it with dignity and hard work.” Walz said in a speech delivered to a high school football team in Pennsylvania in August of 2024. (Bowman, E. (2023, October 15). Watch: Tim Walz’s rousing pep talk on football and politics goes viral. The New Republic.)
Coach David Perry, head coach of the varsity football program at BHS, sees coaching as a way for one to learn leadership skills. “I always tell anybody that is in any leadership position, you should coach a sport at least once. It's a great foundation for you to start with, to learn how to work with adults, learn how to fix those relationships, learn how to convey the message you're trying to convey to your people that are working with you,” Perry said. This hands-on experience of coaching teaches resilience and adaptability, qualities which are crucial in any leadership position.
Similarly, BHS water polo coach Olivia Lewis, emphasizes the skills she learned from coaching that provided assistance to other fields of life. “Coaching requires strong communication, the ability to inspire, and adapting to challenges—traits essential in leadership. Whether on the pool deck or in leadership, guiding a team, making quick decisions under pressure, and fostering accountability are universal qualities that help drive success,” said Lewis.
Perry expanded on this idea, adding that the experience of coaching provides one with more confidence in their leadership abilities. "You can notice those folks…they carry themselves differently, they’re confident in their approach,” Perry said.
Coach Lewis reflected on the personal skills that she’s gained through coaching, saying, “Coaching as an alumni of my high school has given me a deeper perspective on leadership. It’s taught me the value of patience, adaptability, and understanding the unique strengths of each individual.” Lewis said. By coaching the next generation of athletes, Lewis recognizes the importance of inspiring young people, who will ultimately become the leaders of the future. It reminded her of her own coaches who believed in her leadership when she was a student at BHS.
For BHS mountain biking team coach Kris Fallon, coaching is about working on students' growth at the individual level, while also pushing and supporting one another as a team. Fallon spoke about the role he plays in guiding the athletes he rides with, “I continually try to meet the kids where they are at. Everyone on the ride can get a little bit faster than they were last time. Or they can clear some hill. Or can get a little further than they did last time…Even though biking is totally an individual sport, doing it as a group raises everybody.”
Fallon builds on the idea of learning together as a team, while all working to achieve an end goal: to get better. “You don’t feel like you're in the role of showing the kids things or teaching the kids something new, but really, the kids teach you new stuff. Whether it's new techniques or new tricks or it's just pushing you on a ride, or anything like that,” Fallon said.
Perry, Lewis, and Fallon all spoke about the importance of leadership and collaboration in their coaching, following the structure and philosophies that Walz also followed as a coach. Walz viewed coaching as a way to support the players who he was leading and working with. He cared deeply about the students he coached and rooted for their success both on and off the football field.
Dan Clement, a student at Mankato West High School who considered dropping out, reflected on a pivotal conversation in 1998 with his football coach, Walz. That conversation completely changed Clement's mindset and motivation towards football and school, “He really pulled me along,” Clement said. “He really just showed a lot of care for me to the point where I’m like, ‘OK, I’m going to continue going to school, and I’m going to work hard for you.’ I played football for him. I didn’t really play football for much of anything else.” (Kaplan, A. (2023, October 10). Tim Walz, former teacher and coach, remembered for his work outside politics. NBC News.)
Fallon, Lewis, and Perry view coaching as not just about winning on game day or on race day, but also value the idea of motivating and instilling growth in their players, “We (coaches) are performance and outcome driven…But the biggest part is being able to use a sport to help kids get an idea of other aspects of their life. So, we can talk about a whole lot of other things besides just football.” Perry said.