I guess you can just credit dumb luck, but we’re on a roll when it comes to the state of Georgia and successful high school programs. After great interviews with Tony Wolfe and Chan Brown, we’ve found another coach who’s been drinking at the Mysterious Well of Success in the greater Atlanta area. Like our previous guests, Stuart Chester has some rings to his credit. Six to be exact. He’s been at the coaching game for 26 years, 21 at Cartersville, and has over 550 victories. Coach Chester has molded Cartersville High School into one of the elite programs in the state of Georgia and the U.S. In fact, Cartersville High School was named the program of the decade for the first ten years of the 2000’s.Â
In this episode, Coach Chester talks about the biggest changes he’s seen in high school baseball, how his program’s focus changed after their third championship, how he motivates with metrics, Cartersville’s player-led devotions, how teams take on the head coach’s personality, the part that extra-curriculars play in a young person’s development, dealing with parents, his philosophy on staffing, handling operations duties in the organization, reading, parent/player orientation, traditions, fundraising, underclass teams philosophy, and barbecue(!).
We always include a coach’s Twitter handle (if they have one), but let’s make an extra effort here to add some Twitter followers for Coach Chester!
Notable quotes:
- “I was a ring chaser.”
- “This is all good, but something is missing.”
- “We practice at an uncomfortable pace.”
- “You’ve got to put something out there that people want to be part of.”
- “Baseball is not a game of life, but it can teach you about life.”
Follow Stuart Chester on Twitter.
Follow Cartersville High School Baseball on Twitter.
photo credit:Â Cartersville High School Athletics
Intro Music: Matt’s Blues, Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
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