Remembering Coach
He was always Coach. His athletes called him Coach. Many of his friends called him Coach. Even his grandchildren called him Coach. Yep, he was Coach. To the very end.
Sanford Boisseau, Collegiate Class of ’68 and a charter inductee into his alma mater’s Athletic Hall of Fame, was a baseball and basketball coach from the recreational league to the varsity level. Working with young people – showing them the way of sports and the way of life – was a passion and calling he somehow found time to manage around his long career as a real estate appraiser.
He was good at it, too. Really, really good. In fact, “coach” might be too mild a word. Mentor seems so much more fitting.
For years, Sanford oversaw the pitchers at Douglas Freeman and at Collegiate, sometimes in the same season. He headed Collegiate’s baseball program from 2001-2005. His teams, always fundamentally sound and well schooled in the nuances of the game, compiled a 71-32 record and shared the ‘05 Prep League title.
He also assisted with girls varsity basketball at Collegiate from 1995-1997. During those two years, he provided technical expertise – he was the defensive and press-break coach – as well as a gentle, nurturing, and sometimes lighthearted touch for the players and head coach (me, by the way) that belied his competitive nature.
Good as he was at guiding and directing athletes, he did his absolute best coaching over the past 13 months as he battled a rare type of brain cancer called glioblastoma multiforme.
From the day of diagnosis, he attacked his disease as if it were a competitor: respecting it, never fearing it, and doing all within his power to overcome it. He never backed down. He never complained. He never spiraled into self-pity. His wife Robin, his children, his grandchildren, and his wide circle of friends drew strength from his example.
He kept his faith, and when he slipped away at 8:40 p.m. Sunday evening, he was very much at peace. He was 67 years old.
As friends rallied to his side, they recalled how he had helped and encouraged so many during their tribulations. They recalled the funny stories and athletic experiences both at Collegiate and at William & Mary where in 1970 he was named honorable mention All-American for his 7-3 record and 1.25 earned run average as a right handed pitcher. They recalled his humility and his many random acts of kindness that were often known only to the recipient.
Pretty much everybody has a Sanford story. Here are a few.
Charlie McFall preceded him as Collegiate’s baseball coach and served as director of athletics from 1987 until his retirement in 2013.
Sanford had a great knowledge of baseball and a lot of passion around Collegiate. There was something special about coming back to Collegiate where he had a phenomenal career. He loved Petey (Jacobs, his coach in both sports at Collegiate). He loved Collegiate baseball. I was around Sanford enough to know he’d forgotten more baseball than I ever knew. I knew he’d be a great fit when I hired him, and he was. I think all the guys who played for him would say that too.
Andrew Slater, Collegiate Class of ’97 and his alma mater’s head baseball coach since 2009, was a player when Sanford served on McFall’s staff.
Sanford was a baseball guy. He loved Collegiate. When he took over the program, he did some wonderful things. His passion and energy were very apparent. He knew his skill sets, but when you have a coach who cares as much as he did about the individual player development and overall success, that bleeds through to the team. That was certainly the case with Sanford. He was always very positive. He always wanted to know how the program was doing. He was a huge supporter and just a great guy.
Ken Moore was Sanford’s childhood friend, teammate (little league, American Legion Post 361, and William & Mary), and the baseball coach at Douglas Freeman High School from 1983-2008.
I first got to know Sanford when I was 11 years old and he was 12. He was the best pitcher in Tuckahoe Little League. Fortunately, I was on the Phillies, I was a catcher, and I caught him. It was the best thing that ever happened to me. It challenged me to catch the guy who threw so hard and had the best breaking pitch.
Sanford always had the baseball bug in his mind, heart, and soul. When he became my assistant coach, he handled the pitchers, and you couldn’t have found a better guy. We got along wonderfully. Even though he was a superstar growing up, he could relate to the non-superstars, no question about it. He wanted to help everybody, even the lowest guy on the team, to develop to be the best that he could be.
Evan Ocheltree is a 2005 Collegiate alumnus, an All-Prep League and All-VISAA outfielder, and Sanford’s stepson.
The most special thing about Sanford as a coach and as a stepfather was that it was always you first. It was always about the players. It was never about him. He knew how to keep you on the right level. He knew when to pick you up. Even when he was diagnosed with cancer, it was never about him. The real coaching he did was off the field, in life, teaching life lessons. That’s the best part about him.”
(Sanford will be honored at a memorial service at 2 p.m., Thursday, May 25, at First Baptist Church in Richmond.)
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