He 'chose the path of most resistance'

By: Rhiannon Potkey of the Ventura County Star
This story was originally featured in the Ventura County Star, February 21, 2004, and is featured here with their permission.

The phones in the California Lutheran University basketball office were ringing off the hook. Another successful week of the Lu Dog Basketball Camp had just wrapped up, and parents of smiling young players were already making next year's requests.

Call after call, one counselor's name kept emerging –– Brendan Garrett.

"We were flooded with parents saying my young man or young lady wants to be with Coach B.," Cal Lutheran head coach Rich Rider said. "His teams at camp were the most organized, most well–behaved and kept having the most fun. And Brendan was loving it, too."

Garrett's passion and dedication didn't go unnoticed by those outside of the tiny Thousand Oaks campus. Camp Business magazine selected him to its 2003 Staff of the Year.

"I have so much fun working with those kids. I love basketball and children, so it just makes sense," the 22–year–old Garrett said. "The camps give the kids a solid foundation. It's like building a house. You start with the dribbling, footwork and shooting and work your way up. These are such important years for kids to develop."

Garrett's life story serves as inspiration for his young players after all the adversity he overcame. A ward of the court while playing at Hueneme High, Garrett was taken under the guardianship of Hueneme assistant coach Doug Collins.

"It was just a better situation to be with Coach Collins," Garrett said. "I have contact with my family now, and we have improved relations, but I really believe at that time it was the right thing to do."

Garrett played three years at Hueneme under coach Tom McCollum before finishing his prep career at Silverado High in Victorville when the Collins family relocated.

But the beauty of Ventura County lured Garrett back, and he scraped together enough financial aid to enroll at CLU and play for Rider. He graduated in 2003 with a degree in social science.

Garrett is now serving as a graduate assistant on Rider's coaching staff while working on his teaching credential and pursuing a master's degree in education.

"He is a very determined young man. It was a challenge for him when he came to CLU, and he met it head–on," Rider said. "Brendan chose the path of most resistance, whereas most kids choose the path of least resistance. The path he chose usually has the greatest rewards and he is reaping those right now."

McCollum remembers Garrett's evolution from an exuberant freshman eager to prove his worth to a sturdy, composed junior willing to assume all responsibilities thrown his way.

"He came in as a hard charger. But you could just look in his eyes and see a real solid guy in there," McCollum said. "He had more reason than anybody to back off and have a massive pity party because of his life circumstances, but he never let it affect him. He was always happy and upbeat, the unsinkable Molly Brown in male form."

Far from a star during his four–year career at CLU, Garrett thrived in his role as the leader of the scout team. The scrappy point guard won the respect of teammates with his tenacious play and meticulous preparation and gave Rider his first inclination that a coaching career was in Garrett's future.

"He just has tremendous knowledge of the game and a thirst to learn more," Rider said. "Right from day one I saw it. He has strong people skills and a high work ethic. Some local school is really going to benefit from his experience, and he will be an excellent role model for the players."

Garrett is absorbing as much coaching acumen as he can from Rider and his staff. He watches how they run practices, devise game strategies and deal with off–the–court issues.

Like all coaching neophytes, Garrett is paying his dues performing less–glorified yet vitally important tasks like cleaning the gym, breaking down game films and doing the team's laundry.

He hopes all the hard work will pay off when reaches his ultimate goal of presiding over a Division I program.

"I love the whole atmosphere that comes along with college basketball, and I feel like I can do an effective job relating to players and getting the most out of them," Garrett said. "I want to help them not only be successful on the court, but I want to teach them stuff for life off of it. I think coaches have that power over players to show them the bigger picture, the bigger message. That is the reason I want to be a coach."