Coach Daniel Leeworthy is currently the Head Men’s Basketball Coach at Umpqua Community College. He’s coached college basketball for the past 15 seasons and had success at multiple levels. You can follow him on twitter @CoachLeeworthy.
1. Tell me about your coaching journey, how did you get to where you’re currently at?
I’ve Coached College Basketball for 15 Seasons which seems crazy to think about as I still feel young and I am still in my 30s. But it has been quite a ride! I’ve Coached in Hawaii, Ohio, Colorado, and now Oregon. Being from Australia originally, I never thought I would be Coaching Basketball as a career, but it was something I suppose I was destined to do. I am proud to say I was the 1st Australian to be a College Basketball Head Coach.
I met Coach Hoppe of SWOCC in Las Vegas on the recruiting trail quite a few years ago, when I was still Coaching in Colorado and got talking with him about the league out here, lifestyle, Colleges etc. My wife and I always said Oregon would be a great place to live as she is from Hawaii and obviously me from Australia, it would be closer for us to get home and the West Coast certainly suits our personalities better than out East.
I always wanted to be a Head Coach and oversee my own program. I had learnt a great deal from Coaches I had worked with and I felt ready to take the next step. I saw a job posting for Umpqua CC and applied and thought it would be a great place to live, and work. Luckily, I was right! I flew out for an interview and felt a really good feeling while on campus and felt it was the place for my family to be. Shortly after, I got a call back saying I got the job. I accepted the job, and right after that I got a phone call from a D1 coach offering me a job on their staff. After talking to them for a few minutes I did not feel right about it and declined their offer. UCC has been terrific to me, and the community has been awesome for my family. It is a great place to raise a family. Nice beaches, waterfalls, hiking, fishing, Mountains are all close enough to get too. I knew I could win here and be happy and successful and that really mattered to me. I am full time faculty at the College and get to mentor some of the greatest student athletes imaginable – what could be better?
2. You coached at the D1 and D2 level before taking over at Umpqua. How did those levels and experiences prepare you for success?
I have Coached at some really good schools, but each situation has its own set of unique challenges. But I always say, “Challenges are stepping-stones to greater achievement” (Richard G. Scott). I have taken the good and bad from each Coach I have worked with, and the good and bad from each school I have Coached at. I have had pretty much every responsibility imaginable on a Basketball staff – things like budget, game prep, scouting, video, travel, XOs etc. I have done it! So, coming to a 2-year College was a lot easier than it could have been. I certainly had to adjust to many things and some things have been difficult but there’s been some things that have there benefits Coaching here like travel isn’t as bad, there’s not much snow, and there’s not as many rules/regulations in Jr. College.
Some things I could have never prepared for such as the UCC Shooting where one of my former players was shot and killed. That was a trying season and year. I was depressed and my players were in shock and depressed. My life experiences dealing with tragedy helped me a lot but in terms of being a Coach and dealing with this kind of adversity was a different thing entirely. That season was the greatest achievement of my career. I had to hold the whole program together, and to the players credit they had a winning record and overcome many, many challenges.
3. Who has had the biggest impact on your coaching career?
Ken Wagner (now retired), the great Coach for many years at BYU Hawaii. He started my journey as a Coach. I tried to learn as much as I could from him. He would win a ton of games year in and year out and had such a great program and culture, but more than that, he is a man of character and would always use great judgment in his decisions on and off the court and was fair with his players.
John Groce (current Head Coach at Akron), was another one that has been a mentor for me. He has a brilliant Basketball mind. He is one of the best recruiters in the nation, a competitor, always prepared, treats everyone the same, and has the most energy and enthusiasm of anyone I know. I would say the person I am as a Coach is largely what Coach Groce taught me. XOs, recruiting, skill development, competitive spirit, toughness, discipline, character, most is from him.
Chris Holtmann (current Head Coach at Ohio State), was someone that was like a “big brother” mentor to me. He was always calm, never got angry, patient, and was temperate. I could tell he was going to be a big time Coach.
4. Your team averaged 90.6 ppg on route to a 25-4 record during the 2019-20 season. What were your main points of emphasis offensively?
First and foremost, we talk about “buy in”, especially to the team. We do not usually have guys average over 20 points per game because we preach putting the “team first”. We talk about sacrifice, and unselfishness on offense, and discipline on defense. A big emphasis is also on getting high percentage shots. If you look at our stats we are always at or near the top of field goal % from 2s and 3s. A quote we love in our program is, “A rising tide lifts all boats” by President Kennedy. To us it means that the better the team is and its success the more individual recognition and success each guy will have. And that has been true, all our guys transfer to 4-year Schools. Offensively we play to our strengths and work on our weaknesses in the off season and Spring.
5. You own the highest winning percentage of Head Coaches in UCC basketball history. What are your keys to success?
The Program Goals are: –
These are all important aspects to our program. Other things that come to my mind that are more specific are –
And for me personally be a disciple of Christ in word, and action.
6. How would you describe the culture of your program and how have you developed that?
As mentioned, we strive for discipline in all that we do. It wasn’t easy getting the job late and not being able to recruit anyone my first season here. It was a losing program for many years before I arrived. The returners had a losing attitude, and I didn’t care about winning games my first season. It was all about teaching the right way to play, and to change the culture from the ground up. We went on to go 6-20 that year but it was successful from the standpoint of changing the attitude towards the program. Although there have been some great teams here in the past with Coach Snook, Morgan, and the great Cy Perkins, it had been years of any type of success the Men’s program had achieved. I recruited guys that were going to “buy in” to what we expected and wanted. The next year we won 19 games and 20+ wins have been the standard ever since. Our GPA as well has been exceptional too and that is awesome to think about. We now know exactly who we want in the program and who qualifies as a “RiverHawk type player”. I feel we would have been right there at the end last year if the season didn’t get cancelled and I know we will be competing for a championship this coming season too.
The words that would best describe the Culture would be –
7. What advice do you have for aspiring collegiate basketball coaches?
It is a really tough business, find where you are happy and find joy in the journey. Marry someone that will be understanding of the travel demands and being away from the family but also find balance in all that you do. For me, family is always first. The number of wins you have will never be placed on your tombstone when it is all said and done, but be someone that will impact and mentor young people as they strive to achieve their hopes, goals, and dreams. Build relationships with everyone you meet no matter who they are. Some of the best advice I ever received was “anytime you can get an education and Coach at the same time, it is a win-win situation.” Try and play at the College level, and then go get your master’s degree and be a grad assistant somewhere. It will help you with developing relationships, you will be mentored by some established coaches, and you will learn so much. You may think you know the game, but there’s so much to learn. Another good piece of advice is from Brad Stevens I read right when he got the Celtics job. He basically said he never dreamed of being an NBA coach, he thought he would be a D3 coach and he was happy with that. “Do the best you can and let everything else take care of itself.” Do a good job, work hard, and great things will happen.