Thank you to Dickey Nutt

With March Madness upon us it is easy in the excitement of the brackets to forget the young people wearing the uniforms. What happens to them after it's all over? Our local team, the SEMO Redhawks, is coached by Dickey Nutt whose philosophy is to "win games, recruit young men with outstanding character and graduate young people."

That is apparent when you get to know the young men who play for him. We have met many of them and have not been disappointed. When asked if he considered himself a "daddy" to them he enthusiastically answered "yes!" He obviously loves his job and takes great pride in shaping the character of the young men under his influence. Caring for his players as students, it must be a fine line for a coach to walk, but it is equally important for those young people (and their parents) relying on him to guide them.

At his last coach's show this year, Nutt recalled that when Tyler Stone transferred to SEMO, his current coach warned that Stone would not be a good choice -- he won't perform. If you paid attention at all this season, you probably saw how that played out. And Tyler (as well as the others) has proved to be an amazing young man. We cheered him on all year and became very fond of him.

We're thankful to have Dickey Nutt and his staff at Southeast and we look forward to many more years of basketball with him at the helm.

ESTHER BOHNERT and PAT ABERNATHY, Jackson