Catching up with ... Russ Davis

Amara Aguilar

Russ Davis doesn’t play much basketball anymore.

After several back operations and some heart problems, his body just

isn’t ready to take the pounding of running back and forth, and the

physical contact that is an integral part of the game.

Talking to him now, one could never tell he’s been through so much

physically. When Davis discusses basketball, he is full of life and

overflows with enthusiasm.

It is no wonder that he can’t stay away from the game. Although he’s

not able to play, Davis still competes on the court as coach of the

women’s basketball team at Vanguard University. He is a fighter, in more

ways than one.

He has had ruptured disks in his back and during one basketball game,

was even rushed to the hospital because of heart problems. He has battled

high blood pressure and severe back pain, changed his diet and exercise

routine, started walking and recently lost 51 pounds.

“Two years ago and part of last year, basically I was living on

Vikadin and pain medicine (for back pain),” Davis said. “I wasn’t myself.

This is the first year in two years that I’m feeling like myself, feeling

really good.”Davis is living proof that dedication pays off. Having a

strong work ethic is a quality that he hopes to pass along to his

players.

“I’ve never known anyone who has worked hard and hasn’t got rewarded,”

Davis said. “You are not going to get paid before you go to work and it’s

the same thing in sports. That’s something that I hope my players will

take off the court and in life.”

Hard work has seemed to pay off for the Vanguard women’s basketball so

far. Since he took over as head coach five years ago, Davis’ leadership

has helped revive the program.

The season before Davis became head coach, Vanguard went 10-20. In his

first year with the Lions, the team rebounded with an 18-11 record. After that, Vanguard went 29-6 and went on to win three straight Golden State

Athletic Conference titles.

This season, the Lions are still going strong. The team has posted a

1-2 conference record tostart the year.

“Coach Davis is awesome,” Vanguard senior center Kelly Boeke said.

“I’ve never worked so hard in my life for someone. This guy is great. He

knows how to get you to work 110% and you can tell it pays off. Everyone

is willing to give it their all and that’s awesome.”

In the process of building a record of success at Vanguard, Davis has

piled up plenty of special memories. There are three in particular that

he is very proud of.

“One is winning our first GSAC championship and watching our seniors

cutting down the net and hearing our crowd chant, “Tennessee, Tennessee,”

Davis said.

He also fondly remembers his first year at Vanguard when the team

turned its record around and when Elaine Whittemore set a school career

scoring record.

Davis’ next memorable moment is still waiting to be put in the record

books. “My next memory will be when this season is over,” Davis said. “No

matter how we do on the court this will be a great year for us because

God is really working with this team. I wouldn’t trade my team for any

other team in the country, on and off the court.”

Davis is very close to his players and his connection with people is

one of the things that has drawn him to coaching.

“I like the relationships you can build with your players,” Davis

said. “I like to see them succeed. I look at these kids I coach as my

children in a family and I’m the head of the family.”

Davis was attracted to coaching while attending Irvine High and

playing basketball there. He started coaching at the Irvine Boys and

Girls Club and eventually became the head coach at Woodbridge High.

Later, Davis moved on to coach at Estancia.

During his first year coaching girls basketball at Woodbridge in 1991,

Davis led the team to the first CIF Division II championship in school

history.

In addition to coaching at Vanguard, Davis currently coaches the Nike

select Swish girls basketball team, one of 12 Nike traveling squads in

the country.

Between coaching the Swish team and Vanguard, Davis has about a month

off a year from basketball.

The game is an integral part of his life, now more than ever.

“I had some opportunities to move on and was asked to be an assistant

coach at some other schools, bigger programs,” Davis said, “Some friends

thought I was crazy not to go, but I really felt God wants me to be here.

If I didn’t have my players, I wouldn’t have been able to accomplish what

I have accomplished.”