Coach’s Corner: D’Anthony Austin (Coach Dee)

Have one conversation with D’Anthony Coach Dee and you will walk away with a smile on your face and a true understanding of how much he enjoys coaching. He remembers the aha moment in his life when he learned how much athletic performance can improve with training from a good coach.

Coach Dee has played sports as long as he can remember. He played football in 7^th grade but found his sport in his sophomore year of high school when he joined the track and field team. He began working with a personal trainer and went from jumping 19’5” to 21’2.25”.

“Who would’ve thought working out could do that?” Coach Dee said. It was the first time he experienced firsthand the benefits of strength and conditioning. “That experience is what made me want to have an impact on other athletes.”

Coach Dee continued his track and field career at the Division II level, at Concordia University and Madonna University, both in southeast Michigan, and says it was there that he fell in love with the grind of being an athlete, and training. He loved his trainers, his coaches, and the entire process of athletic competition.

By this time, he was fairly certain he wanted to have a career in coaching. He began coaching track and field at Michigan Collegiate High School, and then stayed to coach their football team.

“I already knew I wanted to be a coach, but this really drove it home,” Coach Dee said. “That year of coaching sprinters proved to me that I was capable of coaching, when I saw the results from everything I had learned.” He coached a state champ in the 100m dash, who broke the school record with a 10.72, and the facility record at the state meet.

“It was crazy!” Coach Dee said, “After that he got his first Division I offer. When he called me, it was the greatest feeling ever.” Every sprinter on the team ran their fastest times that year.

Coach Dee takes pride in the relationships he builds through coaching and enjoys following the athletic careers of students he has coached.

“There was one athlete who wasn’t the best at track and field but was very coachable. I began coaching him in his junior year of high school, by his senior year he qualified for the state meet in both the 100m and 200m and dropped 2.5 seconds off his time. He is in college now and we still keep in touch. You can’t make up those kinds of relationships and impact,” Coach Dee said. “I’m so grateful.”

Coach Dee continues his track and field coaching career, currently at St. Catherine High School where he coaches girls track. Again, his team broke records last year and qualified for the state meet. “The joy you get from seeing their hard work come to light is an amazing feeling,” he said.

It is no surprise to anyone that Coach Dee is a fit at D1 Training Lake Orion. With strong character and the same core values, he takes pride in the work he does at D1, whether its team training at a football camp, working with scholastic athletes, or training adults.

For Coach Dee, again, it comes down to the reward of seeing people reach their goals.

“I coach a lady who is down 20 pounds and feeling comfortable in the gym, and it’s the same feeling I get coaching track and field. Seeing her reaction, her accomplishment. It’s a great feeling helping people.”

When Coach Dee isn’t coaching, he enjoys spending time with his girlfriend, watching sports, going to games, and eating good food!