Satterfield Maintaining Player/Coach Dynamic Amidst Shifting Balance of Power
Over the last few weeks, many student-athletes across the collegiate athletics landscape have started to become aware of the voice they possess and the influence it has.
Chuba Hubbard at Oklahoma State and Marvin Wilson at Florida State are just two examples of the balance of power slowly starting to tip in favor of the players. It has allowed them to no longer remain silent on issues relating to racial & social injustice, not to mention that the COVID-19 pandemic has shed light on how much they truly mean to a university's bottom line.
Student-athletes might only just now be realizing the pull their voices truly have, but Louisville head coach Scott Satterfield believes they have wielded such authority for longer than they think. He also believes you have to respect it.
"I think that the players have always had the power," he said to reporters during a teleconference Wednesday. "I think the way that you have to approach it and how you do things is the way we do things. I always tell out players 'it's your team'."
While Satterfield admits that collegiate athletes do have more power than they realize, a proper coach-player dynamic is still required in every program.
"In any kind of organization, you have always have to have leadership. You have to have somebody or a group that's leading them," he said alluding to both himself and his coaching staff. "You have to have good soldiers that'll follow. That's the case in any organization. You've gotta have those dynamics."
As part of the coach/player relationship he likes to maintain in his program, Satterfield keeps an open dialogue with his guys that is both upfront and honest. It might lead to "testy conversations" from time to time, but when they leave the room they're all on the same page.
"I want what's best for the players, I mean we all do" he said. "Everything we're doing is for the student-athletes."
From a broader perspective, Satterfield believes that past, present & future rule changes & advancements have made for a better student-athlete experience, and it will only cater to them more as time goes on.
"It's a great package that these guys on scholarship are able to get. They get free food, free housing, and all the (other) things. It's great. And it's only getting better, and I think it's only gonna get better."
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