LEWISBURG (WVDN) – This pre-season, we are going to try a new feature and focus on getting to know the football coaches at Greenbrier East.
Every year, readers become familiar with certain players, and that will continue as well, but it is time the coaches get their time in the limelight with all the hard work they put in as well.
We will start with coach Arthur Erskine.
Erskine is a long-time, well-known citizen of Greenbrier County and is not a stranger to hardly anyone. The veteran has been coaching football for 49 years, an amazing feat in itself.
Even Erskine is impressed by the number of seasons he has logged on his resume.
“I am now 69 years old. A lot of people lost bets on God giving me this many years,” Erskine said with a smile.
Through all those ageless years, Erskine has coached and mentored young athletes at almost every level. He has coached youth leagues, Lewisburg Jr. High, Eastern Greenbrier Jr. High, Eastern Greenbrier Middle School and worked with Homer Criddle’s staff at Greenbrier East as support personnel. He has been with current head coach Ray Lee’s staff for three seasons now.
Erskine attributes his coaching prowess to all his former bosses and jokingly gives absolutely no credit to his own talents.
“My coaching style and knowledge comes from many hours spent with Coach Zopp, Coach Dyke, Coach McClintic, Coach Criddle, Coach Moran, Coach Bradley, Coach Ambler, Coach Keadle, Coach Baker and now, Coach Lee and his coaching staff, and attending many coaches’ clinics. I was never smart enough to figure it out for myself,” Erskine stated.
Being in coaching for nearly five decades, obviously Erskine must enjoy the profession. In fact, he enjoys it so much he admittedly could not narrow down the thing he enjoyed the most when on the field with his players.
“There are many things I enjoy. Narrowing it down to one or two is not easy,” he said.
“The tremendous pleasure of being a part of something bigger than ‘self’ and watching a boy mature to a young man and paying back in a small way what my coaches and mentors gave me when I had no clue what life was about. The bond developed with other people and my old teammates is priceless,” Erskine said.
Although he technically coaches the defensive line, Erskine coaches everyone when needed and is thankful that Lee allows his staff to help out at every position in some way.
“Coach Lee allows each coach to coach every player when something needs shared. Coach (Lee) doesn’t limit his coaches to strict boundaries confined to one area,” Erskine said.
When asked what motivates him to continue coaching, Erskine explained that it’s not his motivation that is important.
“I have learned over the years that motivation is basically internal. Most of the time an athlete’s motivation is directly proportional to his desire to excel, and basically all a coach can do is teach technique and push for the best outcome. Eventually the athlete realizes his success is a product of hard work and respect for the game. The first hurdle to his success is to be self-motivated,” Erskine stated.
“I can’t take credit for a player’s attitude nor his internal motivation,” he added.
Erskine’s message to the fans for this upcoming season is a positive vibe everyone can get behind.
“Trust the process. Support these young athletes no matter the number of wins and losses. There is more to supporting a program than being able to brag about wins and complaining about losses. There is much more learned about life’s challenges than the numbers on the scoreboard and whose name is on the stat sheet,” Erskine concluded.
Coach Erskine’s Favorites:
Meal- Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Movie- The Last of the Mohicans
