[J. R. VanHoose]

I do not believe he is the best coach in the region. I believe he is a good coach whom has been blessed with some of the most talented players that ever came out out of the mountains. You can be the best coach in the world, but without the players to get the job done you dont win the Sweet Sixteen. IMO the best coach is a coach whom may not have the best of players year in year out but always gets the most out of them. JMO

I agree with you on that, you must have talented players to win big games. But a great coach must be able to devlop, mold, and blend talented players with each other to create a successful team. Talented players are not what win state championships, talented "teams" win. From my experiences you can have all the talent in the world, but without someone to guide you, make you work hard everyday, and motivate you to be the best that you can, you are just a talented player - not a successful talented player. For me, Coach Runyon made me the player that I was in high school. I attended pratices ever since my father started helping him when I was in the 4th grade and I watched and learned and knew what was expected of me. I had to work hard every day, was I good, yes, did Coach let me take days off because I was good - HELL NO!!! I probably got yelled at and had my mistakes pointed out more than anyone, did I say "wait coach, if it wasn't for me you wouldn't be so successful?" No, I took the criticisim as motivation, pushed my self into not making the same mistakes, and became a better player. All of us on the teams that I was on did that. I will never forget the day Coach Rick Pitino and Manager Bill Keightly from Kentucky came to watch Todd Tackett and I practice at Paintsville one day in December 1997. Sitting there after practice within ear shot of Coach Pitino I heard him to say to Mr. Keightly, "That was the most organized and productive practice I have seen a high school coach put his team through in a long time."

Coach made us practice our fundamentals every day, he made us work harder than other teams every day, he made us into the teams that allowed us to be successful. Practices are where games are won and lost and Coach is the best at what he does. Not only does he prepare his teams for games and basketball, he prepared us for life after high school. Because of his teachings I was as prepared as anyone to play college basketball. I was taught to believe in myself, and not let anyone think that they were better than me (not just in basketball, but in life in general). That helped me through many rough games at Marshall and in my professional career. What many people don;t realize is that coach is not just a coach, he is one of the best psycologists around. He can motivate like no one I have ever seen.

Just because a coach has a team full of talent doesn't make him any less of a coach, it is what he does with it that makes him a great coach. I know in my heart of hearts that if it was not for the guidance, knowledge, and motivation I recieved from Coach Runyon, I would have not been the player that I was!!