Mavric Posted December 15, 2016 Share Posted December 15, 2016 Nearly 40 years ago, as Cook was starting his career, he was an assistant football coach at Coronado High School in San Diego. The whole volleyball thing — he's led Nebraska to three national championship and seven NCAA Final Four appearances — actually occurred "totally by chance," he said. He set out in life to be a teacher and coach, but not a volleyball coach. ... Francis Parker, a private school, offered him an apartment. It was a decent deal. But there was a catch: He would have to coach three girls sports — basketball, softball and volleyball. "In volleyball, we did really well my first year — went to the state championship," he said. Ah, yes, of course they did. He was a natural for the sport. OK, maybe not. "I had no idea what I was doing," Cook said. "I coached them like football. I didn't even know how to rotate. I had to get a book and go to some clinics." In 1986, Cook led Francis Parker High to a state championship. LJS 4 Quote Link to comment
NUance Posted December 15, 2016 Share Posted December 15, 2016 However, Cook did play basketball at Linfield College in Oregon — yes, the same place where Mike Riley once coached and Danny Langsdorf once played. Heh, small world. Quote Link to comment
Red Five Posted December 15, 2016 Share Posted December 15, 2016 I'm sure Cook would have been a great football coach too. Some guys just have it. Quote Link to comment
Red Five Posted December 15, 2016 Share Posted December 15, 2016 However, Cook did play basketball at Linfield College in Oregon — yes, the same place where Mike Riley once coached and Danny Langsdorf once played. Heh, small world. I used to play pick-up b-ball at the Rec with Cook all the time back around 99-00. He was a pretty good player for an "old man". Didn't know he played in college. I always thought he was good because we mostly played on the Coliseum court and he had home court advantage. 1 Quote Link to comment
BigRedBuster Posted December 15, 2016 Share Posted December 15, 2016 I always find it interesting hearing the stories of the humble beginnings some of these top coaches started with. Quote Link to comment
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