A Dream Come True

How intense? Pedal-to-the-metal intense. Now-in-the-spotlight intense. The-buck-stops-here intense.

 

It’s all good, though. That’s what the 2009 Collegiate graduate wanted. That’s what he’s prepared for. That’s what he’s dreamed about.

 

After spending the better part of the past decade laboring in the trenches as an assistant college basketball coach, Corrigan has been named head men’s hoops coach at Ferrum College, an Old Dominion Athletic Conference signatory located 35 miles south of Roanoke.

 

John Sutyak, the Panthers’ director of athletics, made the announcement June 20.

 

“I’ve been dying for an opportunity to run a program,” Corrigan said. “I feel like everyone I’ve met throughout my life and throughout the coaching profession in the last 10 years reached out. I’ve had a lot of great conversations with people that helped me along the way. I was already excited about the job, but just knowing that so many people were supporting me added fuel to the fire.”

 

A three-sport (football, basketball, lacrosse) athlete at Collegiate and a four-year starter at point guard at Hampden-Sydney, Corrigan has served on coaching staffs at UNC Charlotte, Ferrum, and, most recently, Cal Poly Pomona.

 

Corrigan’s first official day on the job is June 27, which means he’s had all of one week to transition from Southern California to Franklin County, Virginia.

        

He shipped his possessions and car Tuesday, flew to Richmond Thursday evening, and headed to Ferrum around mid-day Friday to find a place to live, renew acquaintances, and get about the business of rebuilding the program that finished 6-19 (1-15 in the ODAC) this past year.

 

“Hitting the ground running,” he said during his 16-hour layover in his hometown. “It’s moving pretty quickly. The biggest thing is hiring a full-time assistant. I’ve contacted all the players and had really good conversations. Started recruiting already. Have three visits lined up this week. There’s a lot of ground to make up, but it’s been really fun and exciting.”

 

When he meets with recruits, Corrigan will pitch Ferrum’s sequestered location as an advantage.

 

“It’s a rural environment,” he said. “There aren’t many distractions. You’re there to get an education and compete in a sport you love. It’s a unique opportunity to have great relationships with everybody on campus. That makes this place special. That’s what brought me back.”

What gave you this crazy idea you wanted to coach in the first place? I asked Corrigan.

 

“It’s definitely crazy,” he said with a laugh. “A lot of sacrifice goes into it. As a player my whole life, I always felt like I wanted to coach. I had a passion for every sport I played.”

 

Why basketball?

 

“I always approached the game from a tactical standpoint and also from a team standpoint by trying to get the best out of the other four guys on the court,” he said, referencing his time as a point guard. “It’s just so dynamic in terms of what goes into it mentally, physically, spiritually, and emotionally. That’s something I’ve always loved about basketball.”

 

Corrigan comes from a family of coaches. His father David, a Richmond attorney, coached varsity lacrosse and JV basketball at Collegiate in the ‘80’s as well as many of the youth teams on which he and his brothers Connor and Jack played. His grandfather Gene Corrigan coached college lacrosse and soccer and served as an athletic administrator, commissioner of the Atlantic Coast Conference, and president of the NCAA. His uncle Boo Corrigan is the AD at N.C. State. Another uncle, Kevin Corrigan, is men’s lacrosse coach at Notre Dame.

 

“I’ve always been around a lot of high-level coaches and leaders,” he said. “I’ve always had a passion for being a leader and trying to get the best out of people. Once I started doing it, it just felt right.”

 

And, obviously, continues to.

 

“The relationships are what puts coaching over the top for me,” he continued. “Seeing guys get better and helping them become better versions of themselves and having that relationship throughout their lives…that’s a separator for me. The other part is being between the lines every day…that feeling you get when you’re on the court and you just feel like you’re alive.”

What lessons have you learned during your years as an assistant? I asked.

 

“The biggest thing,” he said, “is being consistent: setting clear expectations and sticking to them. It’s being able to ride the highs and lows throughout the season. It’s staying the course. The hard part is probably the time commitment. We sacrifice a lot, especially in season, to be good. We live an unbalanced life. That can be hard. You have to be organized and plan ahead the best you can and then have a way to turn it off and recharge.”

 

“His biggest influence on me was on the defensive side of the ball,” Corrigan said. “We did shell drills every single day for 45 minutes. It was as competitive as you’re going to find anywhere in the country. We thought we were playing hard. We thought we were competing, but he taught us how to push and play harder and compete harder.

“He drew the line in the sand. He said, ‘If you’re not going to defend and you’re not going to box out, you’re not going to play.’ That gave us an opportunity to compete against teams that were more talented than us. He made me a good defender. He made us all a lot better than we should have been defensively. He really pushed us and created the belief that, hey, if we defend and rebound, we have a chance to beat anybody.”

Which explains, in part, Corrigan’s coaching philosophy.

 

“Defense first,” he said. “You build from there. That’s the way I’ve seen games won on a consistent level. So, man-to-man, half-court defense. Offensively, we’ll try to play some form of motion. I do believe in building your defense first, but you coach to your personnel and maximize each player’s ability.”

 

The ODAC is one of the strongest Division III conferences in the country. It’s an anyone-can-win-on-a-given night league with many long-standing rivalries. Randolph-Macon is the defending national champion.

 

“It’ll be a challenge.,” Corrigan said. “There’re no easy games. The way you beat these teams is taking guys on the same talent level and creating an environment of competitiveness. That takes time. The coaches in the league are veterans. They’re experienced. They run great programs. You’re not going to trick them. You won’t out-X-and-O them. I have a ton of respect for those guys…but I’m definitely looking forward to competing with them.”

  ~Weldon Bradshaw