As Laddie Lawrence, the boys track coach, anxiously cheers on his players from the sidelines, he is not alone. As Ed Huydic, the girls varsity basketball coach, shouts important plays across the court, he is not alone either. Both Lawrence and Huydic share the pleasure of having their sons as assistant coaches.
For Lawrence and Huydic, coaching with their sons is not a new occurrence. Lawrence has been coaching with his son, Andrew, for six seasons, while Huydic has been coaching with his son, Eddie, for four seasons.
Huydic describes the athletic director, Marty Lisevick’s, decision to employ Eddie as a “great hire.” “Eddie coaching both girls basketball and boys freshman lacrosse is definitely a premium,” Huydic said. “It did not take long for Lisevick to hire Eddie.”
Andrew, now 26-years-old, is the third member of Laddie’s family to be one of his assistant coaches. Andrew had no coaching experience before working with his father. Previously to working with Andrew, Laddie had worked with his wife and other son Jon. Each son has competed for and has been a track captain at Staples.
From his experience on the Staples track team and as a Staples student, Andrew certainly knows what Laddie expects of his players. His main track responsibility is supervising pole vaulting. “He is probably one of the best pole-vaulters in the state,” Laddie said. “Other schools in Connecticut have even asked him to come and train their players. “
Because Andrew lives at home, he and Laddie are able to “talk track” whenever they would like.
Matt Mula ’13 finds it helpful that Laddie and Andrew do not have the exact same coaching style. “They are both different, yet they definitely compliment each other” Mula said.
At each practice, they are able to work with separate players in order to accomplish what they need to.
Andrew tends to be more verbal than Laddie. “I am older and not as crazy as Andrew. But I can always count on him to make a lot of noise,” Laddie said.
One of Andrew’s many favorite parts about coaching with his father is the fact that it reminds him of when he was a player at Staples. “It is great being able to coach in the program that I grew up in, and participated in.”
Ed Huydic, on the other hand, tends to be a little edgier on the court than his 26-year-old son and assistant coach, Eddie. Both have their own distinct coaching styles, but their approach to coaching is also very similar in some respects.
“Eddie has his own way of reaching his players, his own way of approaching them and his own way of expressing his concerns to them,” Huydic said. “His coaching style is distinctly his own.”
Remy Nolan ’12, one of the captains of the girls varsity basketball team, likes the fact that Eddie and Ed give the team a family-like feeling. Nolan likes how Ed and Eddie have similar thoughts on the court. “This makes it easy to get advice from both of them and not get two different answers,” Nolan said.
Although Huydic and Eddie expect similar things from their players, they both see the court differently. Eddie’s strengths lie in his ability to see the total court, while Huydic tends to only see a smaller portion of the court.
Four years ago, Eddie joined the Westport school system as a paraprofessional at Kings Highway Elementary School. His plan was to enter graduate school for teaching, but with the job market as uncertain as it is, his plans for getting a teaching certificate were put on hold. In addition to being the assistant varsity girls basketball coach, Eddie is the head coach of the junior varsity girls basketball and the freshman boys lacrosse coach.
Two years ago, under Eddie’s coaching, the boys freshman lacrosse team won more games than any of the past freshman boys lacrosse teams. Eddie loves coaching around his father and recommends anyone given the chance to do so. “My dad makes my job more fun. I am learning everything he has stored from his days of coaching,” Eddie said.
Huydic describes the moments that he and his son have experienced on the court as “indescribable.” “It’s hard to express, but there are highs and lows, with coaching,” Huydic said. “Within one game there are highs and lows and having the ability to decompress with your son is impossible to describe.”
Laddie also cherishes the time that he and his son spend together coaching. “It is a pleasure working with Andrew. He is a great kid and I really enjoy having him around.”
Eddie will continue coaching with Huydic as he assesses what he would like to do with his future. Andrew will continue coaching with Laddie until he completes his training to become a police officer. But for now, both Lawrence and Huydic will share the unique coaching experiencing with their sons.
