Killeen High School football coach Maurice Lane hopes to be a positive role model for his students and athletes.
KILLEEN, Texas — On the football field and on the battlefield, Coach Maurice Lane inspires Killeen High School students every day.
“Most people call me Coach Lane,” Lane said as he waited for students to emerge from the hallways before the fourth period began.
“When they see him pass kids in the hallway, they're like, 'Hey! Coach Lane. What's up, Coach Lane?'” said fellow teacher Jessica Birch.
“Coach Lane is the kind of guy you can talk to,” KHS senior Angel Velesquez said. “He really cares about the students, not just in the eyes of other people in the hallway, but in giving you a smile or patting you on the shoulder to let you know there is someone who can help you. He will do it for you.”
You could say Lane is the center of every family he's a part of, from his siblings and parents to his football family.
“My life as an athlete helped me get through all the transitions of moving,” Lane said. “As military kids, we moved every three to four years.”
Lane's father's final assignment brought Lane to Killeen, where he graduated from high school and began his college football career not far from home.
“I received a full scholarship to Baylor University,” Lane said. “I played it safe and started all four years.”
Lane earned Baylor Legend honors in 2015 and joined the Army Reserve after a pro football career.
“As soon as I finished my training, I was sent to Iraq,” Lane said. “I came back just before Christmas and decided I wanted to go back to Texas from there.”
Lane's coaching career eventually brought him back to his alma mater, Killeen High School.
“When students have teachers who care, they become more interested in what is being taught, how it is being taught, and who is teaching it,” KHS senior Julian Rivera he said.
“He has a very good understanding of what kids are struggling with and pushes them to be successful,” Burch said.
Lane is an inclusion and special education teacher and high school strength and conditioning coach, but much of his accomplishments will be the inner strength he encourages in his students and athletes.
“It's not what's given, it's earned. I'm a big believer in that,” Lane said. “They have to earn that grade. Just because we're underdogs doesn't mean we can't be at the top.”
Lane said the same village that helped her family grow is a part of who she is today, and that students are there to give her a high-five or listen when she needs it. Masu.
“Push. Pray until something happens,” Lane said. “Pray until something happens, good or bad.”
