A Wealth of Experience

They noted his manner and body language. They saw how he interacted and communicated with his teammates. They watched as he encouraged the struggling underdog to hang in there and reminded the talented achiever to remain steadfast in his quest for excellence and never, ever rest on his laurels.

 

In his guide-on-the-side role, Coffey wasn’t loud or particularly forceful. He wasn’t an in-your-face kind of guy. He didn’t need to be. He was accomplished and respected enough, you see, to have instant credibility and intuitive enough to let his actions speak for him, all of which elevated the competitive level of those around him.

 

“At some point, you hear it enough,” said Coffey of the recurring suggestion that he consider coaching as a career, “and it begins to stick.”

 

So it has.

 

Coffey is Collegiate’s new head girls varsity basketball coach and program leader.

 

It’s hardly his first hoops head coaching experience, however. During his 12 years at Thomas Dale High School in Chester, he coached the freshman girls, then the JV girls, and, from 2006-2013, the varsity girls.

 

During that final seven-year stretch, the Knights reached the VHSL state quarterfinals and Central Region finals twice and won three Central District championships. He was honored as coach of the year in the district in 2009, 2010, and 2011 and region in 2011.

 

At Dale, he also served as a varsity football assistant and will continue as Collegiate’s wide receivers coach and special teams coordinator in the fall.

 

“Kevin brings passion, commitment, and a wealth of experience,” said Andrew Stanley, Collegiate’s director of athletics in announcing Coffey’s appointment “The work he’s done here as well as his understanding of our program make him an absolute home run to be our next coach.”

 

Coffey succeeds Rives Fleming, who stepped down recently after 27 years and with whom he shared coaching responsibilities since he arrived at Collegiate in 2013.

 

“Kevin will be a great head coach,” Fleming said. “He has a great feel for the school, the kids here, and certainly basketball in general. I always considered us associate head coaches. We certainly worked together well. I’m looking forward to watching the great things he’ll do with the program.”

 

Coffey was a high school All-American football and basketball player, a 6-10 high jumper who placed fourth in the state meet his senior year, and a promising baseball player (pitcher, centerfielder, first baseman) before the time demands of his other athletic opportunities took precedence.

 

A 2019 Benedictine Athletic Hall of Fame inductee, he was heavily recruited in both football and basketball, played the former at the University of Virginia, and earned a tryout as a wide receiver with the Carolina Panthers before beginning his 23-year-and-counting career in education.

 

“I’ve been around [athletics] all my life,” he said. “I feel like I have just as much basketball knowledge as I do football knowledge. I’ve always enjoyed being able to share that knowledge and teaching kids to use that knowledge base and be competitive.”

 

After building the program at Dale and enjoying a successful run as one of the top teams in Central Virginia, Coffey joined his wife Erica at Collegiate in 2013. Fleming, he said, welcomed him to his staff and facilitated the transition to his new position.

 

“The role Rives gave me was one where I could make an impact without stirring the pot,” Coffey said. “I wanted to come in and go with the flow and do whatever he needed done the way he wanted it done and make sure what I offered matched with what he already had.

 

“It wasn’t hard. It wasn’t much different than being the new guy coming into an NFL locker room. You have to put in your time. You have to earn your stripes. That’s what I did.”

 

That said…

 

“Being a head coach, you have a vision of where the program can go,” he added. “Collegiate produces some phenomenal athletes. It’s always done things the right way. As a coach coming in, understanding that is half the battle, really.”

 

What will opponents see from future Collegiate girls varsity basketball teams?

 

“Something different, for sure,” Coffey said. “It’s definitely going to be an unorthodox style that people aren’t accustomed to unless you’ve coached against me before.”

 

Such as?

 

“Tempo changes,” Coffey said. “Defenses you’re not used to seeing. You always have to keep your tendencies different and fresh and force [your opponents] to prepare more. The more they have to prepare, the less time they have to rep it.

 

“We had success when I was at Dale because we did things that people never saw before, and we got on the map really quickly when we did that. I hope to do the same thing here.

 

“My philosophy has always been ‘Good defense creates offense.’ We’ll definitely take pride in our defense. That’ll be our heart, soul, and mind on the basketball floor.”

 

To say that Coffey is excited and ready to roll is an understatement of the highest order.

 

“You have to have an understanding of how the game works,” he said. “Then, you instill that vision into your players. To see them execute that vision…that’s the joy in it. That’s the beauty of coaching.”

~Weldon Bradshaw