VYPE: How long have you been coaching? How long at Carl Albert?
Mitchell Gomez: I’ve been a coach for 4 years and 2 of them have been at CA.
VYPE: Do you coach any other sports?
MG: In addition to coaching football, I also coach the Carl Albert ESports team.
VYPE: Do you teach? If so, what?
MG: I teach U.S. History and Current Events
VYPE: Who or what inspired you to become a coach/teacher?
MG: Coach Gary Rose and Coach Shane Farley inspired me to be a coach. They both showed me why coaching is so important for young people. They showed me tough love when I needed it and grace when I deserved it. Two of the best coaches ever!
VYPE: How do you serve the team and staff? Why is your role important to you?
MG: I am the 9th grade offensive coordinator! It’s important to me because when these kids come to us for spring ball, they’re still in middle school, and to see them from that young age develop into outstanding young men when they graduate, is just the best. There is no better feeling!
VYPE: What have your players taught you?
MG: My players have taught me that they will rise to the expectations no matter what. If we tell them, ‘climb to the moon,’ they’ll at least reach the atmosphere. The kids show an immense amount of perseverance and determination when they have high expectations thrust upon them and they will always work towards those lofty goals. The ones that don’t will have wished they did.
VYPE: Why is coaching important?
MG: Coaching is important because kids need a role model in competition. Sports will end for everyone one day, but life is just one big competition. Coaching prepares the kids not just to be successful in sports, but in life. Here at Carl Albert, we say we don’t like to create great football players, we like to create great MEN, and great football players are a by-product of that. The wonderful thing about sports is the adversity. If the kids can learn how to respond to adversity now, they will be prepared when the game of life throws adversity at them.
VYPE: How do you spend your free time?
MG: I spend my free time officiating basketball. In addition to coaching and teaching here at Carl Albert, I am a Division I college basketball referee. In the summer I go to anywhere between three and six basketball officiating camps to get feedback and improve my skill-set.
VYPE: What are your future goals in coaching?
MG: My future goals in coaching are to continue defending the standard that we have set here at Carl Albert. Day in and day out, we make choices that impact our “culture” here at Carl Albert. I’m an alumni of Carl Albert and I have a great love for Carl Albert. I work with such a great staff, have tremendous support from my administration, and the kids come ready to learn. I can’t imagine myself anywhere else besides here. So to answer your question, my goals are to keep raising the expectations that we have here at Carl Albert!
