PN-G Coach Matt Burnett Busy These Days In Austin

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http://www.beaumontenterprise.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=16987616&BRD=2287&PAG=461&dept_id=512556&rfi=6

PN-G coach shapes all-star roster - and much more

AUSTIN - Matt Burnett surely hasn't gone to all this trouble because it beefs up his wallet. And he hasn't done it for the love of coaching, either.

In fact, for about six months now, the Port Neches-Groves coach hasn't really been a coach at all.

Why, then, was he here Sunday afternoon for yet another session at the University of Texas' practice bubble, decked out in nylon shorts and a T-shirt, traipsing back and forth between huddles like he's done for decades?

Good question, he said. The answer didn't come quickly or easily.

"It's been a lot of work, but I'm happy to do it," Burnett said. "It's fun."

If you say so, coach.

Some six months ago, even as Southeast Texas was stuck replacing blue roofs and mildewed carpets, Burnett got a call from D.W. Rutledge, executive director of the Texas High School Coaches Association.

Rutledge needed someone to serve on the selection committee for its annual all-star football game, which kicks off at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday in Memorial Stadium. He asked Burnett to play a part.

"They called me sometime in February and asked, 'Would you like to be on the committee?'" Burnett recalled. "I figured, why not? Coaching's a profession and you have to give back. The association has definitely done a lot for us coaches."

Burnett said he knew how much time it might take, evaluating players and making arrangements for them to play - even when most of them would report to a college campus just a few days after the all-star game.

That was the beginning.

Burnett was responsible for selecting Class 4A players for the South squad, which on the surface, seems like a simple task.

How hard can it be, right? Just find a list of players who made the all-state team, call them up and ask them to spend a week in Austin, right?

Wrong. So wrong.

First of all, every team played for a state championship - Divisions I and II, in all classes - automatically sends players to the game.

Then the host region - in this case, Region IV, which represents Central Texas and the Austin area - sends a few extra players to the game.

After that, rosters are evenly divided from each region.

"I had to contact all the coaches who nominated their kids and ... make sure their kids are going to be available," Burnett said. "Then (the coaches) send a video of their players to each committee member. I got all the 4A South."

From there, Burnett had to break down the videos and rank every nominee. In March, he headed to the THSCA headquarters in San Marcos, where the selection committee hammered out preliminary rosters.

Once again, because even distribution is almost as important as talent, Burnett's rankings didn't have final say over who makes the roster and who doesn't. In other words, some of the best players in Texas miss the cut, thanks to geography or their teams' lack of success.

"You can't overload the 4A South with 20 (players) from Houston," he said. "We have to draw from the regions down south and in the east, too. So you shuffle through the regions. They'll say, 'We can't have this linebacker because we've got too many from that region. Do you have somebody else?' Then, yeah, you say you've got Bill Smith. He's from the right place."

And what if Bill Smith blows out his knee between now and then?

"Then you immediately call your backup. You always have a backup plan."

Before Burnett left for Austin last Thursday, he said the toughest part of his job - hammering out the roster - was over.

Perhaps he ought to reconsider.

You see, thousands of duty-free colleagues have descended on Austin this week for THSCA's "coaching school," a weeklong series of seminars and exhibits. Sometime during mid-afternoon, they can all retreat to hotel rooms or restaurants.

But while many of them, including West Orange-Stark coach Dan Hooks, watched Sunday afternoon's practice from the comfort of the sidelines, Burnett was still busy.

And technically, he still wasn't coaching.

Although Burnett might have occasionally pitched in for the South staff - moving a player here, dishing out advice there - he mostly handled other details.

A problem with equipment? Burnett's problem.

A problem with transportation? Burnett's problem.

A problem with players breaking curfew? Burnett's problem.

Awards for the players? Organizing photo shoots? Dorm inspections, physicals, tickets?

You get the idea.

As Burnett explained it, his job this week has shifted from assistant general manager to senior administrative assistant. Or something like that.

The poor guy still hasn't blown a whistle all week - or, for that matter, the last six months.

But he has watched game tapes; selected personnel; debated pros and cons with other coaches; whittled out a group of Class 4A players for Tuesday's all-star game; found replacements for last-minute back-outs; driven to Austin two days before coaching school began; supervised the South team's players; and, when necessary, moonlighted on the practice field.

By the way, his responsibilities don't end until Wednesday morning.

Doesn't that sound like fun?

[kicker]

he's another Coach that could be deserving of a stadium name :wink: