Catching Up With: Chris Quinn

Bryce Alderton

Growing up in a single-parent family in Corona del Mar, Chris Quinn

said he looked to his coaches as father figures.

“I always looked to coaches like Paul Orris and Bill Workman, who

sacrificed a lot of time from their families to develop young men, and

it’s something I respect,” said Quinn, now the varsity boys basketball

coach St. Monica High in Santa Monica. “When I was in high school, I knew

I was a coach on the floor.”

Quinn played two seasons of football at Orange Coast College under

Workman (1993-94). OCC finished 8-3 in ‘93, winning the Simple Green

Orange County Bowl. 26-15, over Antelope Valley College. It was the

Pirates’ first bowl win in Workman’s first eight seasons at the helm.

Quinn, who played tight end, caught one pass for 3 yards in the bowl

win and looks back with fond memories on that season.

“Coach Workman did a great job preparing us,” Quinn said. “Freshman

year was a great learning experience.”

Quinn has similar praise for Orris, who coached Quinn and the rest of

the Sea Kings to the CIF Southern Section Division IV-AA basketball

championship in 1993, Quinn’s senior year. He scored a team-high 14

points in the Sea Kings’ 47-46 title-game win over St. Bernard.

“(Orris’) teams are so prepared,” Quinn said. “I try to prepare my

teams on what’s to be expected. Some of his defensive philosophies I will

always take with me as well. You kind of watch from a distance to see how

(coaches interact) with the kids, how good leaders lead their practices.”

After graduating from UCLA in 1998 with a bachelor’s degree in

communications, Quinn coached at Santa Monica High for four years, then

was an assistant for one year at St. Monica, before stepping into the

head coaching role for the first time last season.

The Mariners finished behind Verbum Dei in the Camino Real League and

defeated Carpinteria in the first round of the CIF Division IV-AA

Playoffs. But they lost in the second round to El Segundo.

With two returning all-league starters, Quinn looks forward to his

second season.

“It was a fun learning experience,” Quinn said of his first year as

head coach. “I’m looking forward to the second year. I enjoy teaching.

Coaches at the high school level are teachers.”

Coaching a basketball team offers Quinn both challenges and enjoyment.

“In basketball, you don’t have 30 seconds to think about a play (as in

football),” Quinn said. “A lot is reaction on the floor to certain

defenses and offenses. In the end, your friend or your teammates will

help you out, and that’s what I enjoy. I want to develop the kids I have

in our program to work hard for each other. Then they’ll reap the

benefits.”

One difference Quinn notes between players he has coached and ones he

played with in high school is athleticism.

“In the LA market, these kids think they’re the next Kobe Bryant,”

Quinn said. “But these kids are much better athletes than we were growing

up,” Quinn said.

The behind-the-scenes work that goes into running a basketball program

caught Quinn a bit off guard when he took over as head coach a year ago.

“You always think, as a player, that programs are self-sufficient,”

Quinn said. “I never knew what was in and around the background, things

like fund raising. I never knew the head coach took care of these things,

but these things you learn about rapidly.”

Quinn, 27, lives in Santa Monica and will bring his team to Newport

Beach for the George Yardley basketball tournament, July 5-7, at Newport

Harbor High.

He still plays basketball when he gets the chance.

“That’s one of the cool things about coaching,” Quinn said. “You can

go in with a couple of buddies and play pickup games at night in the

gym.”