Chris Buggs of Gary West and Adam Dennis of Switzerland County are winners of the Point Guard College Transformational Coach Awards as presented by the IBCA.
This is the second year for these awards, which are presented annually to coaches who have impacted the lives of their players and fellow coaches at their school and within their community. The recipients are coaches who are respected by their players and fellow coaches for their dedication, their positive approach, and their integrity on and off the court.
Chris Buggs, Gary West
Chris Buggs, a member of Gary West’s 2002 Class 4A state championship team, recently completed his third season as boys basketball head coach at his alma mater, where he has guided the Cougars to a 23-47 record, including a 13-10 mark in 2017-18. He is a social studies teacher at the school and was nominated for the Transformational Coach award by Gary West athletic director Terrance Little.
“I have been able to watch Mr. Buggs have an amazing impact on the young men in his basketball program,” Little wrote in his nomination. “When we hired him three years ago, I heard he could have a positive impact on our student-athletes, but his influence on them surpassed my expectations.
“Before he became our coach, our basketball players frequently wer getting into altercations at the school and our college placement rate of our seniors was low. In his first year, he kept eight seniors who were all accepted to a college. One of the seniors went on to play college basketball at a prestigious private school.
“To reach that goal, Mr. Buggs took many steps. One of his steps was to create a mandatory daily study hall for his players. He reached out to other teachers to give his athletes assistance with the college entrance exams. He also created a program that encouraged all of his student-athletes to attend summer school. Under Mr. Buggs’ leadership, the players did multiple college visits which were of great distances from their homes. Many of students have never been as far away from home, and surely not had a chance to take a tour of a college campus.”
Little further noted that Buggs not only took the time to create mentoring sessions with his team, but he required his players to participate in community service projects. Those projects ranged from giving food out to the community on Thanksgiving, giving clothes and shoes to those in need, and serving breakfast to the hungry.
“Every year he completes at least three community service projects with his team,” Little wrote. “Those projects directly help the community, and they also help build character within our student-athletes. The basketball team also helps saves the school money by volunteering to work games from the other sports.”
Little noted that Buggs approach has helped the Gary West program grow leaps and bounds. He and his staff has worked tirelessly to develop the character and skills of their players. Buggs’ positive approach with his players has encouraged many of them to improve scholastically, serve as positive role models to other students in the school, and give them the confidence that they can go to college.
Buggs and his efforts were featured on Feb. 27 in The Times of Northwest Indiana.
“When will inner-city coaches understand this most-important concept?” writer Steve Hanlon asked rhetorically in the article. “Only the very few will make it to the NBA. But everyone can go to college. It's great that Buggs understands the game of life.”
Adam Dennis, Switzerland County
Adam Dennis has compiled 40-56 record in four seasons as boys’ basketball head coach at Switzerland County, including an 8-17 ledger in the recently completed campaign. He was nominated for the Transformational Coach award by Mark Boggs, a former assistant coach for the Pacers.
“I can say without hesitation that Adam Dennis has had a major impact on his players,” Boggs wrote. “He stresses day in and day out the importance of being ‘servant leaders’ in our school and community. I truly admire the impact and passion he puts forth to make the individuals he teaches and coaches better people first and better players second.”
Academically, Dennis requires his players to have a passing grade in all courses in order to participate in basketball. He routinely checks his players’ report cards to make sure they are eligible by his standard.
“Early on, Coach Dennis had some students did not take their academics seriously, “Boggs added. “The athletes found out quickly that this was an expectation and not an option. Since then, students have learned to value their work in the classroom while understanding its importance.”
Dennis – now in his 12th year as a teacher and coach at Switzerland County – has classroom activities called "Champions Academy" and "Iron Sharpens Iron." These lessons stress the importance of being a servant leader and how to embrace and perform like a champion. He continually stresses the importance of being humble with success and resilient when you fail.
“Mr. Dennis has made a huge impact on the lives of the people with whom he has worked,” Boggs continued. “Past and current athletes look at him as a role model due to the way he conducts himself both on and off the court. He has truly impacted me as a former assistant coach of his. He embraces all his athletes and treats them all as first-class citizens.”
In addition to teaching and coaching, Dennis is a member of Olive Branch Baptist Church, where he is active with various service projects. The church just completed a worship building and he, along with his players, spent several hours working on this building to get it ready.
Dennis also conducts basketball camps for young children throughout the year. In these camps, he strongly teaches the fundamentals of basketball as well as the importance of maintaining high character and being a “student-athlete.” His message to these campers demonstrates his knowledge, passion and commitment to Switzerland County athletics and the Vevay community.
“Mr. Dennis always is willing to lend a helping hand whenever it is needed,” Boggs wrote. “He is loyal to friends, family and strangers. He is a caring and trustworthy individual who always puts other people first.”
Dennis is a 2001 graduate of Switzerland County. He then attended Manchester University, graduating in May 2005 with a bachelor’s degree in math education. As a teacher, he was recognized with the 9th District American Legion Educator of the Year in 2017. He was an assistant coach for eight seasons before being named the Pacers’ head coach.
Dennis and his wife, Meganmarie, have two children – Maevry, 3, and Larkin, 1.
