STS Coach of the Month for January 2021

February 1st, 2021 | Josh Adelman

Transitioning Marine, Dustin Lawless, earns an FCS football coaching role through Soldiers to Sidelines 

Dustin Lawless has worked the Soldiers to Sidelines process perfectly and lands himself an intro football coaching job at an FCS college team to be announced this summer. For all of his effort, Soldiers to Sidelines honors Coach Lawless with the January 2021 Coach of the Month award. 

Dustin began his coaching practice the moment he started playing but began teaching football seven years ago when his son began to play ball.  Initially, Dustin was a parent volunteer, but in his mind, he always dreamed of coaching football professionally after military service because he loved the game as a high school player.  He thought he had to be a teacher in a school in order to coach high school football which was never appealing to him.  Dustin recalls exactly how his official coaching career began. 

“I began my very first year of HS football as a volunteer recording game film. I was initially asked to just do home games, but I traveled with the team and I feel like I showed my dependability and reliability there. After that season, I learned of Soldiers to Sidelines and attended the seminar at Georgetown University. This really opened my eyes to the coaching world and the possibilities. The biggest thing for me was it gave me the confidence to “talk football” and gave me the knowledge I needed to succeed. I was offered a coaching position by the same program I volunteered the year prior; Freedom HS by Coach Darryl Overton. Coach Overton has become a very good friend of mine over the years. He gave me my first real opportunity and showed me the game at a very high level. I was a better coach in one-season with him than my entire life up until that point. Between Coach Overton and STS, I feel I advanced more than most at my current tenure.” 

One of the unique aspects of coaching is that it is equally rewarding as it is noble.  Coach Lawless says, “Coaching has impacted my life significantly. It has made me a better person, a more positive person, more mature, and has just changed my whole outlook on life. Being a high-character individual is important to me; coaching holds me accountable to that. We expect to develop high-character young men; leading by example is a necessity to accomplish that goal.” 

Dustin had the courage to immerse himself in the sport he loves as a coach because he realized he had all of the tools to be a great coach from his experience in the Marine Corps.

“Leading young athletes is very similar to leading Marines. All the things we preach on the football field, apply off the field and therefore parallel the military culture as well. Football is a selfless sport requiring teamwork and sacrifice to be successful. Every athlete on the field is like a small gear meshed with a teammate and in order for the machine to work properly, all gears must mesh and work together for a common goal. As a Marine Infantry Unit Leader, I was charged with preparing 30 young warriors for combat. As a coach, I am preparing 30 young warriors for battle on the football field. The same characteristics which make military units elite are the same things that make football teams elite. Inspiring, leading and executing!” 

As coaches, If we are leading and inspiring all the time, we sometimes don’t know exactly which players are truly listening and how great our impact can be.  Coach Lawless tells a story about such a moment that has a special place in his heart to this day. 

“Last year, we took an unexpected early exit from the state tournament. Naturally, everyone was upset, and emotions were high. In these moments, you can’t help but wonder what you could’ve done differently, or how you could’ve prepared better, or any number of incidences you replay in your head about how you could have made a different decision. A few hours after the game, I received a text message from one of my seniors. This kid was not a starter and didn’t even play a whole lot for that matter. He was a hard worker and someone I could depend on for any task; extremely coachable. I still have a screenshot of the text to this day. It said,  

“I just want to thank you for everything. I’ll never forget anything you ever said or taught me. Thank you for being there not only as my coach, but as a guide for future experiences. I love you man best believe I’ll still be in touch…” 

At that moment, it helped me bring everything back in perspective and reaffirmed my love for this profession. The loss still hurt no doubt, but this lessened the sting a bit for sure. He went off to college and we still speak to this day.” 

Coach Lawless’s heart is just as big as his determination to prosper in football coaching.  We are proud to honor Dustin as the Soldiers To Sidelines Coach of the Month for January 2021.