While watching my oldest play on the Jr High School Basketball team this year, I noticed the young man who was coaching the team. At first, I thought he was one of the High School students who was coaching as a learning experience. I caught up with Rhett Simonton, who is not in high school, but says he is often asked if he is. The 21-year old young man has been coaching in Big Sandy for two years.
Rhett explained how he arrived in our community: "I graduated from Malta in 2018. And pretty much, as soon as I graduated, I came here." He started working on his stepdad's ranch (the Jurenka ranch, about 6 miles north of town) when he came to the area. Rhett isn't certain what his long term plan for life is just yet, though he is really enjoying coaching for the time being.
"I was a starter for two years, and we won state championship when I was a sophomore. So I have a pretty good background in basketball and really enjoy the game." Rhett started coaching last year with the High School boys team as the assistant coach. Under Thomas Dillworth, who is the head coach for the boys team, Rhett has learned a great deal about coaching. "He's been a real good person to help me learn more as a coach. (Particularly) dealing with the kids and that kind of stuff. That's important, too. Not just knowing basketball, but knowing how to deal with the kids. He's done a real good job with that."
When I asked about our Jr High Boys Team, Rhett explained: They look really good. I think we've got some eighth graders that have a lot of talent. We're a big team, and they do work hard, too. That's really why we've gotten to the point where we're 6 and 0 at this point. It's not just that they have a lot of talent. They also work very hard, and they don't take days off. It's good to see."
One aspect of Rhett's coaching that has stood out to me as a parent, is that he puts younger players in often, to give them court time and help them develop as players. "We will have all these kids come out, and we want them to enjoy playing. If we've got a game where we're winning pretty good, we can put those younger guys in to get some experience as well."
Rhett says that he is enjoying his time in Big Sandy. Coming from a small town himself, he explained that he loves the small town culture. "Where the whole community comes out and supports the team."
For fun, Rhett enjoys sports in general. He explained that he tries to make it a point to come out and support the school teams in general. "I'm pretty busy with work as well, but I'm usually just supporting the local teams here... volleyball, football, all that good stuff."
