Coaches Highlight: Matt Brazill

Matt Brazill, Former Liverpool Girls Basketball Varsity. Currently ESM Youth Sports Instructional Basketball Director.  

I have been coaching for over 14 years, starting out as a volunteer assistant for ESM Boys Varsity where I played during high school. I worked my way up coaching modified girls’ and boys’ basketball in New York and Arizona, and after a year of JV girls, I became the varsity girls’ coach at Liverpool from 2014-2018.

I am not only driven to coach by my love of the game, but, as an educator, I have the desire to teach, build relationships and positively impact the youth in my community. It’s rewarding to witness a group of individuals come together as a team and sacrifice for each other, love each other, and compete every day to get better. Some of my fondest memories include seeing the team bond on trips to Disney or Washington D.C, and hearing them sing on the bus rides home. 

The FCA coaches’ huddle is instrumental in helping me feel valued and supported as a coach. While our world promotes “winning at all costs,” FCA allows players and coaches to work through their “hills and valleys,” both athletically and personally.  I value having a group of believers who are willing to listen, pray and reflect with me, and Bible studies to share the word of God. As coaches we have to put on our own “oxygen masks,” as they say. The huddles help us be fulfilled physically, mentally and spiritually, and help us promote the values and principles we want our players to have. Shanay Bradley, our FCA area director, helps bring cohesion to our team through team building exercises where players develop life lessons that we reflect upon throughout the season.

FCA is a program I wish I knew about while I was a student-athlete in high school. I struggled with my identity and was overly consumed with fear and peer approval. FCA provides a safe-haven for students who are struggling with their own walk at Liverpool High School. At the end of my career, I hope to be remembered as a coach who didn’t care who received the credit, who promoted the team over the individual, who fostered a culture of personal accountability, and valued relationships over the result of the scoreboard.

Liverpool High School Huddle is a part of Syracuse Metro which is led by Syracuse Metro Area Director Shanay Bradley. For more info on FCA in Syracuse, click here.

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