Written by Corban University
salem,
“I've always been a simple architect,” says Terry Williams, his craftsman's hands folded in front of him.
Throughout his nearly 50-year career coaching basketball at almost every age group and level imaginable, Williams has built his program practice after practice, shot after shot. In doing so, he has built more than a winning culture and a championship team. He has built his own community and personal life within it.
This year's Corban University Distinguished Service Award recipients have received numerous accolades, including being featured in newspaper headlines, presented at banquets, and displayed in the gymnasium rafters. They all end up in the same place. The walls and shelves of his home office are empty. “They're in a box in the garage, and I don't even know where exactly that box is,” he says. “But those are not me. You can't win anything on your own. Players win games, so I told my team, 'I'm 0-0 all my life.' If you win or lose these games, you deserve an award. ”
For Williams, the accolades he cherishes aren't collected in a dusty cardboard box in his garage. They are scattered across communities, states and countries, making an impact through the game he loves. “When you have a coach that inspires you and teaches you the game, you get hooked on it. I've had some great coaches,” he says. “It's always rewarding to see a former player coach. That's the biggest compliment I've ever received.”
Basketball is the medium Williams chose to build on. His journey at Corban began as a standout on the men's basketball team, and his time on campus left its mark. “I fell in love with this school,” he says. “God changed my life here. I bleed warrior blue.”
A few years after Williams graduated, the Warriors approached him. “Be careful what you say during a game of Pinochle,” Williams laughs. He remembers taking out his frustrations over the struggles of Corban's women's basketball team to Harold Hawes, a Corban alumnus, over a regularly scheduled pinochle game. Hawes was a close friend of Tim Hills, who was Corban's head men's basketball coach at the time. Shortly after Williams' conversation with Hawes, Williams received a phone call out of the blue. “The next thing I knew, Tim called me and said, 'If you think you can do something here, come and try it,'” Williams recalled.
When she first returned to Corban to coach the women's basketball team, she took over a team that had won just two games the previous year. In his first year, his team won the NCCAA National Championship. The following year, they won a then-school record 24 games in one of the nation's toughest conferences.
In the 14 years that Williams coached the Warriors, the Warriors made 13 postseason appearances, appeared in the NAIA National Championship Tournament seven times and won two NCCAA National Championship titles. When he passed the baton, it was as the winningest coach in program history.
Despite all the accolades on and off the court, Williams never built a program solely around the idea of winning basketball games. Instead, he prioritized people within the company. At Corban, he did a didition before every practice. These had to be optional when coaching in public schools, but his teams still experienced his heart for service. “When he was in public school, he made no apologies for professing his faith,” he says. “I prayed for the kids and the team. We held student-led Bible studies and gave them an opportunity to hear the gospel and perform for something more than themselves.” is a philosophy that extends to nearly every level of play in the community.
“People always say, 'You have to learn to say no,' but they weren't where I was,” Williams says. “I always think, 'How many years am I done?' But somehow something happens that feels like God is calling me and I can help. Now that I'm 71 years old, it's getting more and more difficult, but I have to continue to seek God's will.”
In recent years, Williams has gone where he is needed, providing exceptional support to overlooked teams in the community, from South Salem's 8th grade boys team to Blanchett's middle school girls team to his current 7th grade team. He has brought a wealth of experience. Crosshill Christian School.
In his spare time, he continued to mentor numerous coaches throughout the region and always did not hesitate to meet with them. “Be a builder,” he says. “Build each other up. Build on what you did the day before, the previous practice, the previous game. That's what I'm trying to do, because the first thing you need to do is build character, knowledge and skills within you. For it is God who built them, and you must use them.”