Becerra completes coaching circle with return to San Benito’s
sidelines
Hollister – Basketball and Becerra are words that have been intertwined for so long in this town that it’s no wonder San Benito fans welcome the sight of a familiar presence on the sidelines this season. You see, the Haybalers’ new coach is also their old coach.
John Becerra, dean of Hollister hoops, is back in the fold, having reclaimed his previous post as boys varsity head coach after a six-year hiatus.
For the man who was at the helm of ‘Baler basketball for nearly two decades-Becerra took over the varsity program in 1979-returning has helped show him where he belongs.
“It’s great,” said Becerra, who assumed the head coaching position at Gavilan College a year after stepping down at San Benito. “It’s nice to be back.”
The Gavilan Experience
After coaching high school basketball since arriving in Hollister in the early 1970’s, Becerra decided to try his hand at junior college hoops. He quickly realized that it was an entirely different ballgame.
“There wasn’t the excitement at Gavilan that there is in high school,” said Becerra, who began his tenure at San Benito as a history teacher and freshmen basketball coach. “The stands are empty. We have players at the JC level that would rotate in and be gone a month later. It’s a very difficult situation.”
Instead of coaching local boys who grew up with the dream of playing under him as a ‘Baler, Becerra found it difficult to even field a complete squad at Gavilan.
“I think the first year we had six kids on the team,” recalled Becerra, who completed two seasons as Gavilan’s coach. “Total. Six or seven. You can’t run practice. We were at the playground, looking for kids to come and play for us, to have a team at Gavilan. That was our recruiting. We were just trying to find somebody who wanted to come play.”
The ‘Baler Glory Days
The struggles Becerra and longtime assistants Dan Quinn and Gilbert Soza experienced at Gavilan were a far cry from the fervor of ‘Baler hoops.
Becerra proudly remembered his team’s calling card as ‘The Best Show in Town.’
“It’s exciting to come to a gym where it’s packed and you have to close the doors and lock up because it’s full,” said Becerra. “That’s exciting. That’s great. It really is.
“I’ve had people in the past, when the gym was full [say], ‘Coach, I’ll give you five dollars if you let me in.’ ‘I’m sorry, I can’t do it.’ Or you have a playoff game and the lines are out there, you’ve got to wait. The game can’t start because there are so many people waiting to come in.”
The Underdogs
Over the years, Becerra’s teams came to be identified by their hard-nosed, scrappy style of play.
The coach believes that, at the heart of the matter, those qualities are what produce victories in high school basketball.
“Most teams have the same skill,” said Becerra, “but the difference is going to be the intensity you bring, the aggressiveness, the hustle.”
Though often undersized, the ‘Balers and their coach relished the opportunity to be giant killers.
“That’s what my wife [Georgene] says,” Becerra related. “‘You love when you think you’re not going to win.’ ‘Yeah, I do. I do.'”
Becerra’s willingness to schedule tough opponents, believing that his squad can often learn more from a loss than a win, has led to ‘Baler teams that are mentally tough and determined.
“We’re not afraid,” said Becerra. “We’re never timid. We’ll play anybody, anytime.
“Our standard philosophy is always, ‘I don’t mind getting beat, [but] I don’t want to lose the game.’ That means we’re better than they are, but we lose. There have been a few games over the history that I think we’ve lost, but usually we’ve gotten beat. And that’s okay.”
The Love of Coaching
After returning to his roots for a three-year stint as the coach of San Benito’s freshmen team, Becerra is back patrolling the varsity sidelines. But to him, the thrill is in the coaching, no matter the level.
“To me, whether I coach the varsity, the frosh or a JC, it’s all the same,” said Becerra, who still teaches U.S. History and World Studies at San Benito. “The execution might be different, but it’s the same. You’re trying to teach kids how to play basketball. That’s why I enjoy doing it.”
As rewarding as the victories are and as invigorating as the packed houses may be, Becerra’s ultimate passion lies in the instruction of basketball skills.
“Just coaching the players, I think is great,” said Becerra. “If I could do it, I would probably just go to practice and not worry about the games even though as coaches … we want to see what we’ve coached, the product on the floor. But I enjoy coaching and teaching athletes how to play basketball.”
So coach, how are you different than when you began coaching?
“I’ve mellowed,” said Becerra with a laugh. “Maybe I still yell too much, but not as much as I used to.”
The Return
It’s amazing for Becerra to think that he’s still coaching in Hollister more than three decades after arriving from Sonoma County.
“When I got here, I just thought it would be for one year,” recalled Becerra. “And then back to Santa Rosa.”
And after a brief interlude at Gavilan, Becerra knows his heart lies with the ‘Balers.
“Comparing the two, there’s no question,” said Becerra. “The atmosphere of high school athletics is fantastic. I’m happier at San Benito.”
