BOYS BASKETBALL COACH OF YEAR: Calhoun County’s Marcus Shaw driven to succeed

He helped his team erase the memories of last year’s shortcomings and was able to lead the Calhoun County boys basketball team to their ultimate goal — a state championship.

For his efforts, Calhoun County coach Marcus Shaw has been named the Albany Herald boys basketball coach of the year.

Shaw finished his sixth season as the head coach of the Cougars. Before he came to Calhoun County, he served as an assistant coach at Randolph-Clay from 2006-09 under the late Joe Williams and Tyrone Kellogg. Shaw, a Calhoun County alum and a former player, came back to Edison to take over the program in the fall of 2009 after the Cougars former coach — Jerome Carter — passed away.

“This team that just won state, they’ve been a good class since middle school,” Shaw said. “This is a team that went undefeated in basketball and football during their eighth-grade year.”

To have a group of players stay together for many seasons was a factor in the Cougars state championship.

“We knew we had a good group of guys coming in,” Shaw said. “We wanted to keep everybody together, along with our underclassmen, and our hard work through out the year has paid off.”

Shaw said the team went through a lot of adversity but stuck together. One way that he was able to help the Cougars stick together as a team was through faith.

“We started going to church together as a family,” Shaw said. “Once we started going to church together as a family, it seemed everything started to gel. Everything started to go really smooth and beautiful. We started to play better and we came closer as a unit.”

The hard work that Shaw put in to get the Cougars to the top, as well as his positive influence, has not gone unnoticed.

“I have really enjoyed my years playing for coach Shaw,” Herald Super 6er Quenten Taylor said. “He is a great coach who has taught us a lot about the game of basketball and life.”

Senior DaJohn Williams who hit the game-winning basket to help Calhoun County beat Greenville in the championship game, echoed Taylor’s feelings.

“It’s been great playing for Coach Shaw,” Williams said. “He has a great relationship with all of his players. He pushes us every day to be the best that we can be. He really cares about his players and he will do anything for us. He’s a great role model for us and he teaches us how to be men.”

Not only has the 31 year-old Shaw made an impact on his players, his assistants have also been inspired by his hard-work and attention to detail.

“I’ve had the pleasure of working with one of the hardest working coaches in the sport of basketball,” assistant coach Stacy Carter said. “When it comes to being prepared, executing a game plan and carrying it out, this guy wrote the book. I’ve worked with Coach Shaw for several years now and I have learned quite a few things from him. If you are not dedicated to him or the sport, well, then Calhoun County basketball is not a place for you.”

Carter, who is 10 years older than Shaw, believes that Shaw has proven that age doesn’t matter when it comes to being a great coach and a leader of young men.

“He often gets criticized for his age, being that he is younger than most coaches in Southwest Georgia,” Carter said. “The guy just has a knowledge of the game, and it has been an honor to be affiliated with a person who cares about his players and staff as well. With all that is said and done, he is a proven champion now.”

While Shaw may get most of the credit, he realizes he could not accomplish a state championship coaching by himself. He thanked assistants Carter and Roderick Melton.

Shaw also credited his wife for supporting him in his coaching career.

“The job of a basketball coach is not the easiest job in the world,” Shaw said. “Regardless of how well you have done, you will always be criticized by people who have never coached the sport at any level. That’s when my wife Chakea and my family are there to encourage me and stay focused. Although I’m away from home a lot, my family has patience and understanding because they know that I am dedicated to my job.”