When people think of a “coach” they usually picture an obese balding man standing on the sidelines screaming at his players as he his collared t-shirt pools sweat in the armpit and chest region. But Liberty North’s head tennis and Soccer, Coach Art Smith, seeks to change that stereotype.

“I think most coaches try to teach the players the right things, we all just may go about it differently.  For the most part, I think I just try to treat our players with a sense of equality and trust.  I value their input and ask for it often.  I try to never coach by force, no human being likes to be forced to do things they aren’t motivated naturally to do.  I find it’s better to discuss options, respect people, and hopefully in the end everyone finds value in what we’re trying to do together.” Smith said.

With a give and take relationship with his players, Smith expects more from his players than most coaches.

“When I was hired… I decided that the idea of making sure we all treated each other and supported each other like a “Family” was extremely important from the head coach down to the bottom players.  I also thought that “Integrity” was really important.  Boys will make mistakes, things will happen that are unfortunate, but it’s how we all choose to deal with those things that matters most.  Lastly, I thought that building a “Tradition” was really important.   I don’t think of Tradition as being about winning and losing but really what everyone from parents to players to coaches can expect from a program year in and year out. ” Smith said.

For the last 2 years the men’s tennis team has been district champs and conference champs, showing that Smith’s coaching style is clearly successful.

“His coaching is different, but really helpful and effective,” Sophomore Elliot Wiskirchen said.

With this great leadership and coaching, the expectations for the tennis team are very high.