Brian Fish's father Jerry set him on a path to success
Bobcat Basketball Coaches Owe Success to Their Fathers
6/10/2014 3:50:00 PM | Men's Basketball
On Father's Day weekend, MSU's men's coaches pay tribute to their dads
None of Montana State's four basketball coaches are pursuing the family business, yet each credit their fathers for their professional callings. On this Father's Day weekend, we take a look at how Jerry Fish, Floyd Crandell, John Haslam and Eddie Lincoln have indirectly influenced Bobcat Basketball.
* * * * *
Brian Fish
Jerry Fish never participated in athletics, didn't coach youth teams, and wasn't necessarily a passionate fan. But he is unquestionably the reason that Montana State head men's basketball coach Brian Fish is doing the work he does.
"He was not a sports guy," Fish said about the influence his father had on his athletic career. "He worked in a factory for the Cummins Engine Company for 35 years and never was a sports guy at all. But he made every game, he provided us basketball shoes, baseball gloves, encouraged us to play sports and taught us to never quit."
While Fish says the lessons he and his brothers learned from sports were invaluable, one particular life lesson taught by his father was even more indelible.
"He made us go to work with him once a year to see what the factory life was like," Fish said. "He made sure we didn't want to do that. He went to work every day, never missed a day, sick or not, he went to work. He just set a really good example."
And for anyone wondering if the lessons took, Jerry Fish's sons are proof. "Two of my brothers are doctors and I'm a basketball coach, so he set a very good example."
Kenya Crandell
Baseball was truly America's National Pastime in the years after World War II, and nowhere was that more true than in the African American community. Jackie Robinson broke major league baseball's color barrier in 1947, and black people flocked to the game.
The late Floyd Crandell was one of those young men. A native of Louisiana, he moved all the way to the baseball-crazed Midwest to play ball. "He came from Louisiana all the way to Omaha for the chance to play semi-pro baseball," said first-year Bobcat basketball assistant coach Kenya Crandell. "He played for the Omaha Eagles, and that's how we ended up there."
Crandell grew up playing baseball in Omaha, attended University of Nebraska football games with his father, and eventually developed into a very good basketball player, earning a scholarship at the University of Nebraska-Kearney. Even while becoming one of the best point guards in UNK history, Crandell played three years of baseball for the 'Lopers. But among his treasured sports memories are the days of his youth when his dad coached him in youth baseball.
"My dad was very influential in baseball growing up, he coached me in Little League all the way up to eighth grade," Crandell said. "Because of the impact he made on my life, I wanted to give back in that regard. Being a coach is not something he ever talked about, but I'm sure he would have been a very good college coach if he had the opportunity. He took a different career path and chose to deal with insurance and coach Little League baseball. But I think that was very influential in my direction and where I headed."
Chris Haslam
That Chris Haslam is even in the United States is a testimony to lessons his father John, a native of Great Britain, learned while trying something completely foreign to him in a foreign land nearly 50 years ago.
"He was in training camp with the (NFL Kansas City) Chiefs in 1968," Chris Haslam said of his father. "Hank Stram came over (to England) and wanted (to find) two kickers to put pressure on (former Bobcat and then-Chiefs kicker) Jan Stenerud, and he was one of the two that got selected. He played rugby and kicked the conversions, even though he was 6-10. He was a good kicker and came over and had a summer there (in Kansas City)."
Neither of the American football novices in that training camp were able to unseat Stenerud, who would eventually land in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. His background in rugby and his training camp performance led to an invitation from the Denver Broncos to try out, but the elder Haslam passed.
"He was newly married and had spent the whole summer (in the U.S.)," Chris Haslam says. "I know he regrets (passing on that opportunity) to this day."
John Haslam's regret fueled his son's desire when the opportunity came. "He always says, 'I could do it, I could do it,'" Chris Haslam says, emphasizing the word 'do.' "So when my opportunity came to go to the States (to play basketball at the University of Wyoming), it was, 'I have to go, I have to do it.' My dad regretted truly not seeing it through, and he told me, 'You've got to go, if it doesn't work out it doesn't work out, but you've got to go try it.'"
That, the younger Haslam said, gave him the impetus to move across the Atlantic Ocean and, also like his father, to try a sport that was new to him. "That was a huge influence because I'd only been playing basketball seriously for nine months when the opportunity arose," Haslam said. "I started playing at about 16-and-a-half, and nine months later I was playing in the States."
Brandon Lincoln
Eddie Lincoln helps people for a living, so it's no surprise that his greatest area of influence on his son Brandon's life is relentless support.
Brandon Lincoln rose through the prep ranks in Portland, starred at the University of Oregon, and eventually enjoyed a taste of professional basketball before returning to the college ranks as a coach. And he said his father has been there every step of the way. "He just kept giving me positive reinforcement along the way, through middle school, through high school, even through college he just maintained support in pursuing my education and playing basketball," MSU's first-year assistant coach said.
Eddie Lincoln works as a business counselor for Portland Community College, aiding students in preparing for professional life and building relationships in the Rose City's business community that benefits the college's students. It should come as no surprise, then, that Eddie Lincoln's son would continue his education when given the chance.
"That (support) led me to have the opportunity to play professionally for a short stint and also having the opportunity to get my master's degree through my connection to basketball. Ultimately it led me to pursue a career in coaching."
Eddie Lincoln, his son says, is always willing to help. "He helps a lot of young students develop professional skills," he said, "and he's been doing it for a number of years."
Luke Fennelly
The message from Pete Fennelly to his sons was always clear.
"Go to school, work hard, do a good job," said Bobcat graduate assistant basketball coach Luke Fennelly, who is in his second year on the Montana State coaching staff. "If you want something, only you can go out and achieve it."
The message was delivered emphatically, too. "My dad has a concrete business, so I grew up working concrete," Luke said Fennelly, one of five brothers. "When my brothers and I turned 11 or 12, when we had the strength to lift concrete panels, we started working on footings and foundations."
Fennelly was a standout athlete growing up in Whitefish, taking after his father. "He was a Division I athlete himself," Luke Fennelly said. And Pete was always there for Luke, as well. "He was always our baseball coach, or if he wasn't coaching he was on the sideline encouraging us. He was always there after games to talk about skills and things you need to succeed, in high school he was my biggest supporter and biggest fan."
And through it all, the message was clear. "Work hard, because no one will do the work for you."
* * * * *
Brian Fish
Jerry Fish never participated in athletics, didn't coach youth teams, and wasn't necessarily a passionate fan. But he is unquestionably the reason that Montana State head men's basketball coach Brian Fish is doing the work he does.
"He was not a sports guy," Fish said about the influence his father had on his athletic career. "He worked in a factory for the Cummins Engine Company for 35 years and never was a sports guy at all. But he made every game, he provided us basketball shoes, baseball gloves, encouraged us to play sports and taught us to never quit."
While Fish says the lessons he and his brothers learned from sports were invaluable, one particular life lesson taught by his father was even more indelible.
"He made us go to work with him once a year to see what the factory life was like," Fish said. "He made sure we didn't want to do that. He went to work every day, never missed a day, sick or not, he went to work. He just set a really good example."
And for anyone wondering if the lessons took, Jerry Fish's sons are proof. "Two of my brothers are doctors and I'm a basketball coach, so he set a very good example."
Kenya Crandell
Baseball was truly America's National Pastime in the years after World War II, and nowhere was that more true than in the African American community. Jackie Robinson broke major league baseball's color barrier in 1947, and black people flocked to the game.
The late Floyd Crandell was one of those young men. A native of Louisiana, he moved all the way to the baseball-crazed Midwest to play ball. "He came from Louisiana all the way to Omaha for the chance to play semi-pro baseball," said first-year Bobcat basketball assistant coach Kenya Crandell. "He played for the Omaha Eagles, and that's how we ended up there."
Crandell grew up playing baseball in Omaha, attended University of Nebraska football games with his father, and eventually developed into a very good basketball player, earning a scholarship at the University of Nebraska-Kearney. Even while becoming one of the best point guards in UNK history, Crandell played three years of baseball for the 'Lopers. But among his treasured sports memories are the days of his youth when his dad coached him in youth baseball.
"My dad was very influential in baseball growing up, he coached me in Little League all the way up to eighth grade," Crandell said. "Because of the impact he made on my life, I wanted to give back in that regard. Being a coach is not something he ever talked about, but I'm sure he would have been a very good college coach if he had the opportunity. He took a different career path and chose to deal with insurance and coach Little League baseball. But I think that was very influential in my direction and where I headed."
Chris Haslam
That Chris Haslam is even in the United States is a testimony to lessons his father John, a native of Great Britain, learned while trying something completely foreign to him in a foreign land nearly 50 years ago.
"He was in training camp with the (NFL Kansas City) Chiefs in 1968," Chris Haslam said of his father. "Hank Stram came over (to England) and wanted (to find) two kickers to put pressure on (former Bobcat and then-Chiefs kicker) Jan Stenerud, and he was one of the two that got selected. He played rugby and kicked the conversions, even though he was 6-10. He was a good kicker and came over and had a summer there (in Kansas City)."
Neither of the American football novices in that training camp were able to unseat Stenerud, who would eventually land in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. His background in rugby and his training camp performance led to an invitation from the Denver Broncos to try out, but the elder Haslam passed.
"He was newly married and had spent the whole summer (in the U.S.)," Chris Haslam says. "I know he regrets (passing on that opportunity) to this day."
John Haslam's regret fueled his son's desire when the opportunity came. "He always says, 'I could do it, I could do it,'" Chris Haslam says, emphasizing the word 'do.' "So when my opportunity came to go to the States (to play basketball at the University of Wyoming), it was, 'I have to go, I have to do it.' My dad regretted truly not seeing it through, and he told me, 'You've got to go, if it doesn't work out it doesn't work out, but you've got to go try it.'"
That, the younger Haslam said, gave him the impetus to move across the Atlantic Ocean and, also like his father, to try a sport that was new to him. "That was a huge influence because I'd only been playing basketball seriously for nine months when the opportunity arose," Haslam said. "I started playing at about 16-and-a-half, and nine months later I was playing in the States."
Brandon Lincoln
Eddie Lincoln helps people for a living, so it's no surprise that his greatest area of influence on his son Brandon's life is relentless support.
Brandon Lincoln rose through the prep ranks in Portland, starred at the University of Oregon, and eventually enjoyed a taste of professional basketball before returning to the college ranks as a coach. And he said his father has been there every step of the way. "He just kept giving me positive reinforcement along the way, through middle school, through high school, even through college he just maintained support in pursuing my education and playing basketball," MSU's first-year assistant coach said.
Eddie Lincoln works as a business counselor for Portland Community College, aiding students in preparing for professional life and building relationships in the Rose City's business community that benefits the college's students. It should come as no surprise, then, that Eddie Lincoln's son would continue his education when given the chance.
"That (support) led me to have the opportunity to play professionally for a short stint and also having the opportunity to get my master's degree through my connection to basketball. Ultimately it led me to pursue a career in coaching."
Eddie Lincoln, his son says, is always willing to help. "He helps a lot of young students develop professional skills," he said, "and he's been doing it for a number of years."
Luke Fennelly
The message from Pete Fennelly to his sons was always clear.
"Go to school, work hard, do a good job," said Bobcat graduate assistant basketball coach Luke Fennelly, who is in his second year on the Montana State coaching staff. "If you want something, only you can go out and achieve it."
The message was delivered emphatically, too. "My dad has a concrete business, so I grew up working concrete," Luke said Fennelly, one of five brothers. "When my brothers and I turned 11 or 12, when we had the strength to lift concrete panels, we started working on footings and foundations."
Fennelly was a standout athlete growing up in Whitefish, taking after his father. "He was a Division I athlete himself," Luke Fennelly said. And Pete was always there for Luke, as well. "He was always our baseball coach, or if he wasn't coaching he was on the sideline encouraging us. He was always there after games to talk about skills and things you need to succeed, in high school he was my biggest supporter and biggest fan."
And through it all, the message was clear. "Work hard, because no one will do the work for you."
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