By Zachary Flynn
When you watch Mike Connolly coach, yelling from the sidelines, he can come across as an intimidating fellow.
“They don’t realize that when people yell, they’re very caring and very understanding and they‘re just trying to communicate,” said Connolly.
The loud nature of a basketball game forces the coaches and players to be loud just so they can be heard.
“When you play in front of people it’s always louder so you always have to yell,” said Connolly. “Energy spreads, so it comes from the bench and it comes from our guys on the bench and it spreads to the floor.”
Connolly’s volume is meant to coach his players as the game goes on so they can fix their mistakes without needing to come off the floor.
“If you really want to be coached, you’ll take any coaching you can at the time to let you keep playing,” he said. “There’s two options, you either get subbed or we can talk about it while you’re playing.”
Connolly picks and chooses the times he’s loud – not because his vocals chords need a rest, but because there’s a time and a place to be vocal.
“I don’t try to rant and rave in the timeout or in the halftimes, because the guys already know so it’s time to talk and work it through,” said Connolly.
Over Connolly’s 25 years of coaching, he says he’s never lost his voice once.
“It’s like anything, you can condition to it,” he said. “Obviously as you get older, you make sure you drink a little bit more water and keep hydrated.”
Mike Connolly’s voice should remain strong and loud for the rest of the season and for seasons to come. It’s one of those things that just comes naturally to some people.
