The California Interscholastic Federation Central Coast Section oversees high school athletics in many counties across the state. Each season, the CIF-CCS Honor Coach Award program honors one coach in each sport for their passion and contribution towards their program.
Aragon’s head tennis coach Dave Owdom was among the recipients of the 2020 Spring Sport Honor coaches. Owdom has led the boys tennis team for the past 16 seasons, and the team has qualified for the CCS tournament nine times during that period.
Although Owdom has certainly earned his place being named as a CCS honor coach, he errs on the side of modesty.
“I was very surprised and shocked to tell you the truth,” Owdom said. “There’s so many really good people out there, very deserving coaches. Being singled out by my peers, I was very glad people view me that way.”
Aragon Athletic Director and CCS Vice President Steve Sell admires the dedication and care that Owdom puts into his craft.
“Dave represents the high ideals of educational based athletics that fit the culture of our school and our section,” Sell said. “He coaches the 28th player with as much effort and care as the number one player.”
As a coach, Owdom puts fun first. He firmly believes that players should have fun when they play, and he hopes that his players come away with that. Additionally, he believes that doing what’s best for the team is one of the biggest challenges of not just a high school student, but an athlete as well, as there are a limited number of courts and tournament slots.
“I’m just thrilled for their [accomplishments], but I’m just happy if somebody comes out of everything with a positive experience,” Owdom said. “If I have enough courts, I want everyone to be on the team.”
Owdom first started playing tennis when he was a sophomore at Alameda High School. In his junior and senior years, Owdom joined the starting line-up and became co-captain. After graduating from Alameda High School in 1970, Owdom continued to play into his college years.
“When I played, I had a lot of passion for the game,” Owdom said. “How my team did was so important to me; I wanted to win because I wanted to [make] my school proud. That’s where I get all these high standards. I just put in a lot of time in the game.”
He’s also proud of many of his players, never giving up and continuing to push forward despite any adversities they face.
“I’ve seen some tremendous comeback wins by some of my players last year, [senior] Daniel Duan, coming back to win his match that was trailing 0-5 in the third set, and his game determined whether we beat Carlmont or not,” Owdom said. “Just amazing adrenaline, and I’ve seen a lot of things like that.”
On the court, Owdom always wants his players to feel united in working together for a common goal: improvement.
“Coach Dave always pushes everybody to do as well as they can. As long as people try their best, stay relatively focused and work together as a team, Coach Dave is happy,” said junior tennis player Aaron Jeck. “The emphasis on hard work and teamwork allows us to do well in the league consistently, but the emphasis on fun allows us to enjoy our time on the court and the time we spend with our teammates.”
However, the coronavirus situation cut the boys tennis season short. Despite the unforeseen circumstance, in an email announcing the suspension of the season, Coach Owdom said: “My goals for the team every season are always the same. Trying to help you improve as a player. Learning to be a good team player and doing what is best for the team. Hopefully you will have passion for the game and continue playing even after your career ends at Aragon. But most important is I hope you had fun. That is the main reason you should be playing.”
The boys tennis team, however, didn’t always have only one coach. Ed Schuler, current coach of the San Mateo High School tennis team used to coach together with Owdom at Aragon.
“Dave is still a close friend and calls me often to give advice to his teams,” Schuler said. “I considered him to be a good motivator, very fair coach and a capable person.”
When he is not coaching, Owdom can be found volunteering. Around four times a month, he passes out food at the Second Harvest Food Bank in Redwood City amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“I think the main advice [and] philosophy I’ve learned over the years is: anybody can quit and anybody can give up, but the people that are successful never give up,” Owdom said. “They always try, and they have a lot of heart. But they always say: winners never quit, and quitters never win.”
