Remembering how grateful she was to be given the chance to become a head coach at a very young age, East Ridge athletic director Catherine Neely paid it forward by naming Blaine Brewer the school's new girls' basketball coach.
In giving the 24-year-old Brewer, who was a Lady Pioneers assistant last year, his first varsity head coaching job, Neely said one characteristic stood out.
"His energy," Neely said. "The program needs some excitement pumped into it, and Blaine brings a lot of high energy and enthusiasm. I watched how he worked with the kids last year and I remember people gave me a chance at an early age, so I felt like this was the right call."
Brewer was an assistant with the Arts & Sciences boys' team for three years and also guided the Patriots middle school and junior varsity programs.
The Lady Pioneers program hasn't won more than six games in a season since 2004, winning a combined 13 games the past six seasons.
"Being a young coach is kind of a double-edged sword," said Brewer, a Memphis native who played at Arlington High School. "I don't have a lot of experience but I do have the energy to help reboot this program. It's going to take a lot of work, but I want to change the mindset of girls' basketball players here. They can't just be glad to be on the team. We need them to be mentally tough and ready to compete.
"I may lack some things, but I will bring a lot of enthusiasm to turn things around."
Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6293. Follow him on Twitter at @StephenHargis.