From the battlefield to the sidelines: Christiansburg’s Andrew Smith
CHRISTIANSBURG, Va. — The newest servant of the boys’ basketball program at Christiansburg High School is Andrew Smith. The 41-year-old served his country on the front lines in Iraq. He has served as a local youth pastor and currently serves by doing missions work in India. Now, he is an assistant coach on the Blue Demons’ varsity squad.
How he landed the gig is quite ironic. “Coach Cox and I guarded each other in a pickup basketball game at the rec,” Smith said. Following the game, varsity head coach Kevin Cox and Smith discussed the possibility of the latter joining the coaching staff; the two are now blue and gold compatriots with the start of a new season right around the corner.
Before and after his time overseas, basketball was a big part of Smith’s life. The Purple Heart recipient is no stranger to the hardwood. A former player and former coach, he returns to the coaching ranks for the first time in over a decade. It’s a desire and yearning to impact young lives that drew him back to the coaching scene. “The position of coach gives me an excuse to invest more time in the kids and their parents.”
While Cox will spend a lot of time drawing up plays, Smith knows he’s filling a much-needed role. “Coach Cox will handle the X’s and O’s. Being an assistant allows me to focus more on what each individual player’s needs are.”
Someone who will show up and be there for the young men is what the second-year head man is looking for. “I have the time to put my arm around a kid and talk him through his day, what’s going on in his life,” he added. Those conversations are what Smith believes not only can optimize relationships, but results on the floor.
The start of a coaching career at Christiansburg will be his first stint at a public school. Although he enters unfamiliar territory, he approaches it as nothing that he has never done before. There was a first time he was deployed. There was a first time he traveled halfway across the world. While some may view those as challenges, he has always enjoyed entering into and overcoming that sense of uncertainty. He now has the opportunity to do that while being around the sport that he enjoys so much. “I love a challenge, especially when competition is involved.”
Although Smith has taken on a new challenge, he has one of his own to share with the local community.
“Look for ways to serve because there is no shortage of opportunities to help other people.”
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