TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — Junior college basketball players spend at most two years together playing on the same team. On paper you would think building a family atmosphere, let alone any sort of long-lasting bond between the players and the coaches would be impossible. But for the Tallahassee Community College Eagles, that’s far from the case.
While establishing one of the most dominant junior college basketball programs in the country, head coach Zach Settembre has also created a true family atmosphere within the walls of the Eagledome. On and off the court every player on this year’s roster spends almost their entire day with each other. Regardless of how the Eagles finish this postseason this team will be a family, no matter where the next chapter takes each and every one of them.
“Ultimately at our level when you have so many talented division one players on your team guys have to share. They have to make sacrifices. And this team has never looked at each other with any type of negativity or animosity," says Settembre. "This group has been so together, willing to share and that’s why we’re champions.”
“Really just spending time with each other off the court has really helped us a lot. And knowing that if we win, everybody’s going to eat. So that’s the main thing," adds sophomore guard El Ellis.
“Coach Zach (Settembre) has done a wonderful job of putting us in the right position and making us the best players that we can be. And I don’t want to play for another coach," sophomore point guard DeAngelo Ware added.
