Coach Tarring
The ol' line painter
If you don’t know the significance of the picture above, then you don’t know Doug Tarring very well. Anyone who has ever played for the man knows that Coach T and the line painter are like peanut butter and jelly. They just belong together.
Yesterday, Coach Tarring announced to his current STAB lacrosse team that he would be retiring and that the 2009 season was his last as head boys’ varsity lacrosse coach at St. Anne’s-Belfield. I knew the day was coming but now that it is actually here, the feeling is strange. Honestly, it is hard for me to picture all the things that surround STAB Lacrosse without Coach T.
Coach T built STAB lacrosse, from nothing. Today, STAB has won seven state titles, two back-to-back state championships (08 and 09), produced numerous all-Americans and many collegiate players. Several players have also gone on to coach high school and collegiate programs. This is only the beginning of Coach T’s legacy.
My first memory of STAB lacrosse dates back to when I was four or five years old and my dad used to take me to the STAB lower campus and let me ball boy games while he coached. I vividly remember the first one I ever did because I used a baseball glove. But as soon as I saw the Saints play for the first time, I wanted a stick. My first stick was a maroon Excalibur, STAB colors, of course. I got it from Jim Ulman when he was at a Seminole Lacrosse League Clinic at STAB, another thing Coach T helped bring to Charlottesville.
When I came to STAB as a ninth grader, STAB’s lacrosse team was stacked. Two all-Americans on attack, a couple more at midfield and one in the goal. How I made that team is no secret, Coach T gave me the chance to learn from these better players. He worked me into the lineup throughout preseason and I cracked the second line for the opening game of the year at the Dogwood Tournament. I’ll never forget that game. In the first quarter, I bounced a left-handed shot past Wilberger for my first career goal. All I needed was a chance and Coach T gave it to me.
Throughout my years playing at STAB, lacrosse was the highlight of my day. It didn’t matter if it was practice or a game, if the weather sucked or was perfect. I loved playing lacrosse for that school. Coach T made that happen. He wanted to win more than we, the players, did. My class wanted nothing more than to be the one that gave Coach T the TILT championship that had eluded him for more than a decade.
We ran the table my senior year like a team on a mission. When we slammed St. Stephen’s in the semifinals at Charlottesville High School, I and the rest of the team thought for sure we were going to bring STAB and Coach T the ’ship. The next day, St. Christopher’s took away our dream defeating us 8-7 in 2OTs. I can honestly say that was one of the biggest let downs of my entire life. It would have been nice to leave the STAB program on a high note.
At least Coach T can. It is fitting that he is able to.
Coach T definitely leaves at the top. Over 400 wins, back-to-back state championships and surely another round of numerous Coach of the Year awards. My feeling is that he is more proud of something else he accomplished.
Every time Coach T sees a young guy playing lacrosse in Charlottesville, he knows that he is one of a few that made that chance possible for that youngster. Coach T is not just STAB lacrosse, he is Charlottesville lacrosse.
His passion for the game has been passed down to many people and for that, I am most appreciative.
RSS - Posts
