BEACHSIDE BEGINNINGS: Nease's Adrian Wilson comes home, this time with a new program

ST. JOHNS — After a successful first year at the collegiate level, former Brewton-Parker College head track and cross country coach Adrian Wilson decided it was time to go home.

The Daytona Beach native missed his family and mentors. So, he decided to resign at the end of the 2022 season, move back and take a break from coaching.

His mentors had different plans, though. Once they got word he was back, they recommended him for the head track and cross country coaching position at Beachside. He never actually applied or thought about it. But once the opportunity came, he gladly accepted.

“I’m beyond excited,” Wilson said. “I’m counting the days down to the first practice.”

Wilson returns to coaching in St. Johns County after seven years at Nease. The Record and Wilson connected about his return to the preps and his plans for Beachside running.

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ML: How does it feel to return home after being away for a year?

AW: Surprisingly, it’s different to be back because there’s a lot of civilization here. I was out in South Georgia where there’s not much out there. My first day back I was driving and I was like, ‘Man, I forgot what traffic is like.'

I run and bike a lot. Just being able to be back and do my normal routine again. You take certain things for granted. I still ran and biked when I was up in South Georgia but it just didn’t feel the same. And when I came back, I’ve seen the same people I used to see every morning when I ran or biked. The sense of community. That was just the biggest thing — just missing the community.

ML: Talk to me about Nease. What were you able to learn from your time there?

AW: What I learned while being there is that St. Johns County is very competitive. Northeast Florida in general is very competitive. For me, I ran in Central Florida so I was used to running against Miami teams and Central Florida teams. When I got up here and started coaching, I was like ‘Oh, okay. The other part of the state can be competitive as well.’

It really helped with developing my philosophy of coaching and understanding that not every athlete is the same. But as long as you believe in your athlete ... all it takes is somebody to believe in them.

I’m a very tough coach, but at the same time, I’m going to love you up when you need to be loved up.

ML: What’s the plan to get Beachside to that level where it can compete with schools like Nease and Bartram?

AW: The biggest thing is putting the right group of coaches around them. My goal is to build a coaching staff that’s in it for the right reasons. I want coaches who care about the athletes, who care about the sport. But who are also realistic with what we’re working with.

We’re going to have a very young team the first couple of years. We’ve got to be able to empower these younger kids. Especially since most of them are going to be coming from middle school and a handful of them will be sophomores and juniors.

The goal is to start small. Let’s make a splash in the district. Let’s ruffle some feathers and let people know like, ‘OK, Beachside has something going on.’ I’ll be happy just to see the kids make it to districts and be competitive. If we get some people that make it to regionals and to state, that was just a bonus in the situation.

That’s really the main objective: Build upon what we have and build the foundation the right way. Don’t try to rush it.

ML: From your past work and skills, I see that you’re a data guy. How have you used data to inform your coaching?

AW: The more information I get about my athletes from a data standpoint, the better. Because then I can understand which workouts are working correctly. Are you getting the right recovery? What groups do you need to be in? Certain people are clustered together so maybe those people need to run together. Who needs to be pushed a little harder? Who doesn’t need to be pushed a little harder?

This day and age, everything is numbers driven, as well as the personalities of each athlete. All of these kids are into tech. Why not use the data points that we have, streamline it and use it in an effective manner? We can track what we’re doing every week and game plan for the rest of the season.

I also use the eye test. I listen to what you’re saying and the feedback you give me. I have conversations with my athletes. I’m not going to tell you what to do. I want to know, as a person, how are you feeling and what were you thinking. Because when you can get into the psyche of the individual, it’s a lot better because you’re starting to understand your athletes.

That way you can build your team around each individual versus having that number one or number two or your top five people.

ML: What makes a successful program?

AW: A successful program is every single person involved doing their part. Whether it be big or little. We all have a common goal. Whether it's a team championship or certain PRs we’re trying to hit. As long as we all pull our part, the outcome is going to be exactly what we expect it to be.

This article originally appeared on St. Augustine Record: High school track: Meet Adrian Wilson, Beachside's new running coach