Coach of the Year

By Therese Quigley, BA'75, BEd'77

Good coaches can change a game, great coaches can change a life.

It is said that coaches have a greater impact in one year than many have in a lifetime. This is very true of the 2020-21 recipients of the Jack Fairs Coaching Award and the Fran Eberhard Assistant Coaching Award. The awards are presented annually to a Western coach and assistant coach to recognize distinguished meritorious performance in coaching.

The 2020-21 recipient of the Jack Fairs Coaching award is Clarke Singer of the men’s hockey team and the recipient of the Fran Eberhard Assistant Coaching award is Chris Bogart, Assistant Coach of women’s basketball.

In his 22nd year as head coach of the Mustangs men's hockey program, Clarke received the award just a day following the passing of legendary coach Jack Fairs. "It's very bittersweet for me today, as for 15 or 16 years I had my office beside Jack’s in Thames Hall and got to talk to him every day' he said during his acceptance speech. What an unbelievable human being, great coach. This award means a lot to me given the recent news of his passing and the relationship we had.”

Former Mustang coach Ron Watson stated: “I had absolutely no doubt that Clarke was a winner. I was Clarke’s MA supervisor in the Coaching Stream at Western and I was so impressed …I am proud of Clarke and proud of the fact that I was the one who hired Clarke.”

Chris has been with the Mustangs women’s basketball team for six years. “I was incredibly moved to hear the words that Nate put forward in my nomination, and the comments from Maddy Horst (Mustang Alumna) were very special. To have been recognized when you are just coming in and wanting to do your part coaching, you don’t think about things like this" he said.

Head Coach Nate McKibbon spoke very highly of Chris and his contribution to the women’s basketball program, "coach Bogart is a perfect example of what it means to be an assistant coach at the USports level. His dedication to Western, our basketball program and most importantly our athletes is unmatched. This award goes a long way to saying thank you for all that he does to push our program forward” he said.

In 2010 President Amit Chakma recognized the outstanding contribution of coaches to Western and our community in hosting a Coaches Recognition dinner for all coaches at Western. This has developed into one of the highlights for coaches on their athletic calendar. The Jack Fairs and Fran Eberhard awards along with coaching service awards and a coaching legend series were presented at this appreciation night each year. President Chakma was gracious in his acknowledgment and in expressing his sincere appreciation on behalf of the university for the extraordinary contributions of all Mustang coaches. 

Mustang coaches inspire young student-athletes to maximize their performance by unlocking potential, believing in themselves and their team. The WMAA extends our congratulations to Clarke Singer and Chris Bogart and our gratitude to all Mustang coaches for making a difference in the lives of current and former athletes. Once a Mustang – always a Mustang.