BUZZZZZZZZZZ
The crowd filled with Lancer gear erupts in a roar as the buzzer rings, signaling the end of the game and announcing the SM East varsity boys basketball team as the winners. Among those celebrating is Coach Shawn Hair, who has more to cheer for than just a win.
On Dec. 19, Coach Hair celebrated his 500th career win, unbeknownst to many at the time.
“He was like, ‘Hey, I don't want to tell anyone, but this will be my 500th win,’” business teacher and Coach Hair’s wife, Jennifer Hair said. “And I was like, ‘Oh my god, why are you telling me now?’”
Shawn Hair only told his wife about the milestone right before the game and refused to tell the team until after the game was over.
“Coach Hair’s a pretty humble guy, and so he's not one that's gonna say, ‘I need recognition’, but when we found out, we put together a social media graphic and congratulated him there,” Athletic Director Ryan Johnson said.
Shawn Hair has been coaching for many years after growing up with his father and uncle to look up to, both of whom coached basketball for most of their lives.
“[Coaching] is just in my blood, to be honest with you,” Shawn Hair said. “I've pretty much been a coach all my life. I feel like it's been a calling. My dad was a coach. My uncle was a coach. My younger brother is a coach. We have a lot of coaching blood in our family.”
There is no doubt Shawn Hair has truly found his calling as a coach. He has continuously inspired players to be both better athletes and people on and off the court, according to Jennifer Hair.
“[A former player] came by the other night, he was watching us play, and he just said, ‘Coach, I just want to thank you, your program, helped me become a college basketball player, the stuff that you do, the scouting, and the way we practice, help me transition to be a very good college basketball player’,” Shawn Hair said. “That was great to hear.”
Shawn Hair takes more pride in the athletes he gets to work with and their own successes than he does in his own accomplishments, according to Jennifer Hair.
“It's a really big pride point that tons of alumni come back, they bring their kids, they come back to the game, they stay in contact, they follow the lancers,” Jennifer Hair said. “So giving them that experience is really important to [Coach Hair].”
Achieving 500 wins is an accomplishment not many coaches can boast, but Coach Hair can claim this success while simultaneously lifting up his team and doing what he does best, inspiring young athletes.
“We're all in this together. We’re all brothers. We're all lancers,” Shawn Hair said.
Leave a Reply