New football coach, new vision
Jul. 9—Coach Robert "Bob" Curtin has many titles to his name; husband, father, veteran, and now, college football head coach can be added to that list. Curtin will make his college football head coaching debut on Aug. 27, when the Knights face Lindsey Wilson College in Columbia, Kentucky.
On May 20, Curtin was named the new leader of the St. Andrews Knights football program. The team is looking for a drastic turnaround, going 14-32 since their inaugural season in 2017. Coming over from Pinecrest High School, Curtin served as the interim head football coach last season, leading the Patriots to an 8-3 record. But, what makes him the right choice for the Knights? Going back to his childhood roots would explain it best.
Curtin grew up in Long Island, New York, a place known for its beautiful sights and beaches. They weren't the attraction for him, however; sports was. Curtin played multiple sports growing up, including football, wrestling, and ice hockey.
"I wanted to play at the next level," he said. Instead, plans changed for Curtin.
He attended Hofstra University in New York for one year before enlisting into the army. Shortly after enlisting, he returned to Hofstra to earn his degree before heading back into the military, where he would become a commissioned officer. When he returned home though, he felt the need to help others, which is where his coaching journey began.
He's a self-described "go-for."
"Go for this, go for that, I wanted to be a part of something because I was missing that military comradery that I knew sports had," Curtin said. That led him to volunteer coaching basketball.
Curtin was called up to Fort Bragg not long after he returned home and he decided to move with his family to Moore County. He also made the decision to become the coach for his five-year old son's basketball team, quickly after moving.
"My son's basketball coach didn't show up. I was in the stands and they needed an adult," he said. "I wanted my kid to continue to play the game." This opened the door in the coaching world for Curtin.
He began searching for coaching jobs around the Moore County area and found a teaching position at New Century Middle School for an eighth-grade social studies teacher. Curtin made the decision to apply as he knew this would lead to coaching opportunities.
While Curtin was teaching at New Century Middle School, he would become the head wrestling coach, the JV boys basketball coach, the girls' head soccer coach, and an assistant football coach. He wore all of these hats for one reason: the kids.
"I'm not going to be the next Dean Smith or Coach K, but I can impact these kids," he said.
Curtin would move on to high school when he accepted a position at Pinecrest High School as the head wrestling coach. Curtin also joined the Patriots' football coaching staff.
For the next eight years, he would serve as an assistant special teams coordinator and linebackers coach. During this time, he would learn from Chris Metzger, the Patriots' head football coach. It would help him develop the coaching philosophy that he uses today.
"I'm a bottom-up, top-down driven guy. I will provide a vision and our assistant coaches will provide a bottom-up solution," he said.
Curtin believes that if all assistant coaches speak up about their solutions to certain issues, it will create success, and give them ownership of their piece of the pie. This philosophy that was instilled in him eventually earned him a huge opportunity.
When Metzger left Pinecrest to accept a new head coaching position, the head football coach position became available. Curtin was named the interim head coach.
"I was apprehensive, in the fact that I wanted to make sure we had the right coaches in there to put our kids in a safe position," he said.
His preparation paid off as his Patriots would finish 8-3 overall and 4-1 in South Atlantic Conference play. But at the end of the season, Nick Eddins was hired as the new head football coach. Curtin knew he would have an opportunity elsewhere and knew there were questions about why he didn't stay.
"The new head coach was a phenomenal guy, and he needed it to be just his show. I wanted to make sure he established his ship," Curtin said.
That decision paid off for him, as St. Andrews called him and officially made him their head football coach on May 20. He knew he instantly landed at a great school.
"I think St. Andrews is a gold mine because it's located around all the right counties. If we can get kids from our region to come here, I believe we can be something special as a football program and as a university," Curtin said.
Curtin isn't just a coach who's focused on what occurs on the gridiron, either. He's focused on his team's future and helping them grow as adults through the "knights creed," which is an algorithm for character, respect, education, enthusiasm, and discipline.
"I want to make sure we're all focused on the same creed. It's more to me than just saying nice things. You see a young person with their books scattered; if you're going to be late to practice because you helped someone pick up their books and made their day better, I can be happy with that," he said.
Curtin is ready for the challenge. He knows that a high school coach with eight years of experience isn't a lot for a college football head coach. Still, he believes with his viewpoint on life, with the "knights creed," and his philosophy about coaching, he can create a culture change at St. Andrews.
