Teaching a team game

Sophie Owens, Profile Editor

A glimpse into Charlie Fields’ 28-year coaching career

History teacher Mr. Charlie Fields has coached the football team since he was nineteen.

“I am the offensive line coach, I come into practices and focus on my players footwork, hand placement, drills, and repetition,” Coach Fields said.

Coach Fields says he has been a fan of football since he was young. Being involved in football, whether playing or watching has always been something Fields has been fond of.

“When I got out of high school I volunteered to help the team and I have grown into this job ever since,” Fields said. “I enjoy the sport of football, people think it is just a game of butting heads a ball being thrown in the air. It’s so much more.”

Coach Fields said football teaches kids about hard work and dedication, something that is acquired or learned over time.

“Life is hard and requires the help of others, a team game essentially,and football is the ultimate team game,” he said. “You learn how people function in a tough situation, football is not daisies and crafting baskets. Teaching it becomes more than the sport itself because, you get all kinds of people, you are training them to work together as one unit. You are teaching them to fight for one goal and that is how life works.”

Life gets better with experience, according to Coach Fields.

“Twenty-eight years and during that time I gained relationships and skills,” he said. “I go to different parts of the state and see how other people tackle their issues I am provided with a variety of  methods to bring back home and practice.”

When it comes to focusing on growth and work ethic Mr.Landon Howard, a former player and now student teacher of Mr.Fields said, “When I started on the team I was a senior and an inexperienced player. So I had to sacrifice my time and effort to cultivate my work ethic and abilities on the field. ”

“Mr. Fields had a big impact on me though, he helped me improve the skills I had and helped me implement the basics of football and eventually muscle memory,” Mr. Howard said. “This gave me some confidence to help the team, which was my own personal goal.”

“One of his biggest strengths as a leader is his ability to care,” Howard said. “He was able to treat me like any seasoned player and still maintain a relationship that required my constant attention in the terms of learning the sport.”