Manchester coach Thomas Allen: 鈥楾hrough my Cerebral Palsy, I could inspire the team鈥�
MIDLOTHIAN, Va. — Thomas Allen is the Assistant Coach for the Varsity Boys鈥� Basketball team at Manchester High School, a school that holds a special place in his education. Thomas shared that attended Manchester High School for eight years; the added years allowed him to work at a pace appropriate for him as his diagnosis of Cerebral Palsy came with some learning obstacles.
During his freshman years, the basketball coach at the time, Chip McCoull approached Thomas about being a Morale Manager for the team. 鈥淗e believed that through my Cerebral Palsy, I could make an impact on and inspire the team,鈥� shared Thomas. Coach McCoull called Thomas鈥� father, Herbie about the possibility of him being a manager and Herbie agreed to bring Thomas along to the games. 鈥淒ad and I went to the practices and games all the time and very quickly I fell in love with the game.鈥� Later in that season, the football coach Tom Hall saw Thomas at the basketball games and was impressed with what he saw. The very next school year, Thomas was a Morale Manager for both football and basketball. He continued in his roles for the next seven years.
After graduating from Manchester in 2009, Thomas attended Liberty University. 鈥淒uring my freshman year of college, right before my dad passed away unexpectedly, I was on the phone with him talking about what major should I go with and what he would see me doing in the future and I remember he told me, 鈥楽on, I can see you coaching somewhere and working with sports one day.鈥櫬� After that talk, I knew he was right and I knew how much I love working with sports, so I immediately decided to major in sport management and minor in coaching.鈥� Thomas worked hard during his time at Liberty and graduated in 2013. After graduation, he worked in an internship for Recreation Ministry at Crestwood Presbyterian Church. Here, Thomas coached the Upward Boy鈥檚 Basketball for the 4th and 5th grade students.
The following year, in 2014, Thomas attended a game at Manchester High School. It was here, he ran into the Head Coach, Chad Long. Chad and Thomas discussed Thomas鈥� goal of one day wanting to be a coach and Chad offered Thomas an opportunity to be a volunteer coach. Thomas took this opportunity and coached during the 2014-2015 season. At the end of the season, Chad resigned. His long-time assistant coach, Josh Karlson, became the new head coach and the position of the assistant coach was Thomas鈥�.
Thomas shared that Josh helped Thomas get deep into coaching right away. He was given more coaching responsibilities such as film breakdowns. He worked hard to find areas that the team needed to improve on and worked to come up with the best game plan for the team. Thomas saw the need for the team to improve their defense and they focused on this plan. They were the regional runner up last year and currently hold an 8-0 record; something Thomas shares is special to him. 鈥淚t鈥檚 crazy how everything happened, but it all happened for a good reason and it all feels like I never left my home and my school which I came from,鈥� said Thomas.
Josh appreciates all that Thomas does for the team. 鈥淸Thomas] is, without a doubt, our “morale leader” and inspirational coach,鈥� shared Josh. Whenever he is at practice, Thomas always has a positive attitude and does a great job encouraging the players to give it their all and never give up. Josh explained that every year at the beginning of the season, he has a talk with the entire team about his “never give up” mentality. He talks about the importance of using the blessings they’ve all been given and never taking for granted their opportunities. According to Josh, Thomas literally loves what he does and brings that passion every single day. 鈥淚 jokingly say about Thomas that he bleeds orange and blue. The guys feed off of his enthusiasm,鈥� said Josh.
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