BOYS BASKETBALL COACH OF THE YEAR: Marcus Shaw’s high-energy fueled Calhoun County

ALBANY — It’s very rare that a Calhoun County home basketball is anything but standing-room only. The gym is typically so packed even the players have a hard time finding a place to sit while not in the game.

This problem hardly affects head coach Marcus Shaw. The high-energy coach can be seen roaming the sidelines most of the game, rarely ever needing a chair. His energy and enthusiasm led the Cougars to the Georgia High School Association Class A public school state championship game this year for the second time in three seasons.

His efforts landed him The Albany Herald’s Boys Coach of the Year honors for the second time in three years.

Having played for Calhoun County during his high school career, Shaw understands the tradition and legacy that comes with Cougar basketball. He also understands the importance of keeping a team focused and together as times get tough. He said part of achieving that goal starts on the sideline on game day.

“Energy comes from the sideline,” he said. “The kids feed off their coach, and I try to provide as much energy from the sideline as I can. I know if I’m up and energetic, my kids are going to play with energy. And that’s the thing I try to focus on. I know if I’m down on the sidelines, they can get down on the court, so we definitely don’t want that.”

While energy is necessary on game day, Shaw said he feels having a level of peace and stability off the court is equally essential to a successful team. The Cougars have attended church services as a team during his time as head coach, and he said it’s definitely had an impact on their success.

“Definitely. It has (affected us) tremendously and the kids they all recognize that as well,” he said. “We try to go to church at least two times a month. We had a bad game primarily after that region championship game, got to the locker room and the kids said ‘Coach Shaw, we got to go to church.’ ”

Wingman and The Albany Herald Player of the Year Rashun Williams said Shaw had an innate ability to relate to the team and coach to their specific needs, which helped them overcome their inexperience.

“We had a different group this year and he just adapted to us and the way that we are,” he said. “A lot of teams, they run every day at practice. He gives us certain days where we just go over things and rest up and then the next day we come back and go hard. So he just adapted to how we played and helped us play the best basketball we could play.”

Shaw said his team inspired him by showing age is only an impediment if you allow it.

“I was just very impressed with how young we were,” he said. “For us to play two, three juniors and everyone else freshman and sophomores, and for them to make it to that point, they showed me it’s not about age or youth of a team, it’s about how much heart they have,” he said. “Our kids weren’t the biggest team, our post players stood at about six feet tall, but they played with a lot of heart and they made believers out of everyone here in the area.”

As much he has been able to accomplish since being named head coach, Shaw said his team’s work ethic and his assistant coach Stacy Carter have made the journey that much easier. Carter played at Calhoun years before Shaw and has been his right-hand man throughout his tenure.

“It’s a great thing,” Shaw said. “We played in different era…he was successful during his time and so it definitely helps out. We bring things to the table from different eras, and I think it’s been great working together.”