Q&A with Chris Woodside, St. Joseph's College (ME) head coach
We spoke with Woodside about creating culture and leadership, following a legend as SJC's head coach, and the future of one of the GNAC's most successful programs
Over the last two months, multiple accomplished D-III head coaches have stepped away from their programs, either in retirement or as the result of pursuing a career outside of basketball. And of that group, nobody had as much success for as long a stretch of time as Mike McDevitt, the legendary leader at St. Joseph’s College of Maine.
On a campus nestled in a town of 10,000 near the Maine coastline, McDevitt built a northeastern powerhouse, winning 645 games over 32 seasons, retiring in March as the program’s all-time winningest head coach. He never had a losing season in two stints guiding the Monks, a mark virtually unheard of when it’s considered he spent over three decades on the sidelines, starting in the fall of 1987. Virtually his entire career was spent on the campus in Standish, aside from five years working in business and one as the head coach at Southern Maine.
But there will be a new face and new voice taking SJC into the 2025-26 campaign, one in which the Monks return four starters with the goal to claim their third Great Northeast Athletic Conference crown in the last four years. In truth, that “new” leader isn’t so new at all. The administration hired from within for McDevitt’s successor, promoting Dr. Christopher Woodside from assistant to head coach in a move that was met with applause, especially from the current team and McDevitt himself.
"His tenure working at SJC as a coach, professor, and director of our student leadership program should help make this transition a smooth one,” SJC interim Director of Athletics Gary Stevens said, upon Woodside’s hiring. “As someone who has worked within the program for the past five years and has directly contributed to its performance on and off the court, he understands what has made it one of the most successful ones in New England."
Indeed he does. Through five years working with the program, he developed a reputation as an exceptional basketball mind and mental performance expert, notably spearheading the program’s emphasis on leadership. Perhaps the most telling indication of the respect Woodside has garnered from the current players came when not one returner entered the transfer portal this spring. They are committed to return and make Woodside’s first season as head coach a successful one for a program that has won 20+ games in each of the last four years.
As I continue with my summer series of highlighting new head coaches across D-III, I sat down with Coach Woodside recently for a conversation about taking the reins of SJC women’s hoops, how sports psychology and mental performance has contributed to the Monks’ achievements, and his personal journey through coaching that began as a student at UCONN. Enjoy!
You’ve been with this program for the last five years, working right alongside Coach McDevitt and contributing to all the winning you all have had. The results speak for themselves, but what did you learn about coaching from your time working with Coach McDevitt at such a successful program?
“You start there. You have a legend that’s been in charge and has never had a losing season. I don't even think that's possible, really, for someone to go their entire career, and never have a losing season. It’s amazing. Then, in addition to [basketball], he coached both volleyball here for some time and golf, and never had a losing season in those two sports either. So you just have someone who has kind of created a standard of excellence already within the program, which was awesome.
“But I'll tell you one of the things that was really nice about that is that he was already very secure in who he was, and with that, super supportive and giving me as much responsibility as I wanted. Even from day one, we sat down and talked about that. My job that I got here on campus was as a sport management professor, and I'd been coaching in high school girls basketball. I just said, ‘Hey, is there any way I can get involved in some way?’ He happened to have his assistant position open, so you know it kind of led to that conversation.
“From day one, he treated me like a second head coach. We quickly found out there were things that we agreed on, things that we were going to disagree on, but it was a really good working relationship.It made me feel really valued, and also now feel really prepared. Because each year, he continued to ask me to do more because he knew my goal and dream was to be in this role.
“Then with that is willingness to try new things. My background is in sport leadership and leadership development programming. That was one of the things that I was in complete charge of within our team, so we’d meet every 7 to 10 days as a group outside of the court in the classroom. We would do some leadership development, personal development, mental performance-type training. Really to help with our culture, our leadership, ability to communicate, and our understanding of what our roles are.
“It was really talking about that other side of the game that's not on the court. And, you know, imagine someone who’s been coaching for 35 years having the confidence to say, ‘Maybe I’m not doing everything the best it can be. Maybe there are other ways to do things.’ That was super special, for him to say, ‘Go ahead and do that.’ So that made life easy. And then we had a great group. We have had really talented players, and I think success and talented players breed more success and more talented players.”
This is a hard question because you haven’t actually gone through your first season as head coach. But when it comes to succeeding a legend, someone so well-respected like Coach McDevitt, how do you balance embracing what he built while being confident enough to insert your own tweaks and style?
“Some of this is still to be determined, right? I'm essentially six seven weeks in, and right now, it's just recruiting season. But I would say that's part of me setting my stamp on things. While I was involved with recruiting before, it obviously wasn’t to the level that I have to [recruit] now.
“I'm where the buck stops now. So just getting out more, getting involved, chatting with the coaches, chatting with players, reaching out to people. This next group is going to be a pretty big group. We have six rising seniors, and those six are going to graduate. You're talking about a pretty big recruiting class that's going to have to come in, and will be part of my vision of what I see now.
“With that said, because of the involvement I had before, I really like a lot of the stuff that we do. I think as a whole, we have had a lot of success by putting five skilled players on the floor, regardless of size. Size is certainly not an end-all be-all. We're often much smaller than other teams that we play. But the thought process is that if you can grit it out defensively, you’re to, in theory, score more. And more often than not, that’s been pretty successful for us.
“The ability to have five people that can attack the hoop, create off the dribble, kick out, and shoot has put us in good success. My hope would be to continue with that. Some of that has been out of just necessity. It's not like we never recruited any six-foot players. It’s just that those individuals, for whatever reason, didn't choose to come our way, and that's okay. I think the important part of any coaching is ‘don't coach the same season 30 times.’ You know, if you get to coach for 30 years, you coach 30 different seasons depending on the players that you have. And so, if this next recruiting group has two, 6’2 talented, skilled bigs, I'm going to adjust. If we're small again, we'll continue to do what we've done in some ways.”
What kind of process does that look like to really build that leadership from within? Because I would imagine the intent is to get to the point where you bring in freshmen and then by the time they get to be seniors, are players you can trust to not only embody the standards of the program, but connect so well with their teammates that they're words are impactful to those around them.
“I think it’s paramount to the success of any program. I really think you’ll see mental performance coaches become the norm over the next 10 years. As we already see with strength & conditioning coaches, I think that mental performance sports psychologists will be something that every team will have. When you think about leadership, it's a set of skills that anybody needs. Leadership is influence: your ability to get others to do things that you might want them to do. I say—and I stole this from PGC basketball, who I worked for—your influence is never neutral. It's either positive or negative.
“One of the things we start with on Day 1 is understanding that everybody has a voice here, and it's not a captain's job to lead, it's not a senior's job to lead; it’s everyone's job to lead. You need to start by leading yourself and doing what you're supposed to do, and then start by exerting your influence on others.
“Some of those small, intentional things in practice are simply, you know, we have five timeouts during a game. There's five timeouts available during practice, and at any point, anyone can call those. Then they run the time out. So there's a minute on the clock and that player, whoever called it, is the one that's pointing out whatever those things are. They feel confident in their ability to do that, because one of the first things we do in a sit-down session is we talk about, What are the things that we accept in our program? What are things that we don't?
“Now I can feel really good about saying, ‘You know what? I'm going to call timeout and bring everyone together. It was great this past year, we had a young lady—a junior—who was injured. So she's sitting on the sideline and watching. As the play is going on, she comes over, kind of quiet, and said, ‘Coach, can I call timeout? I think I see something.’ Love that. Perfect. Let's do it. We whistle timeout, and get together. Now, she's leading. She's not one of our captains. In fact, she ended up being not even someone who's in the regular rotation. But she understood that she had a really positive influence and saw things. I think that's when your program is really good, when anybody, from any position on the team, can start to speak up. Now, we really have something, We really have that buy-in. At any moment, things can come together.
“We're really intentional about talking about our roles. For one of our activities, we sat down and outlined three areas of what roles are. Whether that's the 1-5 who are going to probably start, and play 30 minutes. 6-10 who are going to see the floor off the bench. And then the ‘stay ready’ group.
“We talked about what we expect from that spot, and why that person is important. Then we regularly recognize it. I bought little bricks with our logo on it, and we talked about the building blocks of our team being these certain qualities. So if you ever notice somebody doing something, you can always recognize that and give them a brick. Now in your locker room, you've got this wall that you're building. It's like, ‘A lot of people are recognizing that I'm doing these things, and understand that value.’
“When we had our end of season meetings—we had won the last two GNAC championships, but lost this year—you'd think some people would be disappointed. But to a person, everyone thought this was the best year they had, even knowing that the end result wasn't exactly what we wanted. They really felt valued, their teammates made them feel valued and even those that wanted a bigger role didn't feel like this was a worthless experience. They felt it was worthwhile. That's really my goal, because everyone wants to play, but not everyone's going to play. But everyone can still feel like they're a valued member of the team and they're worthwhile. I think you need to do stuff off the court to really make people feel that way.”
That’s really well-said. And a very cool visual way of representing it with the building blocks. How important is it for you as a coach to have that intentionality to stick with the lengthy process of instilling that mentality and making the mindset switch to understand leadership isn’t exclusive to seniors and team captains?
“The important word there is intentionality. Don't leave it up to chance. As a coach, I buy into it, so that helps. I don't think you can fake it, either. As a coach, if that's not something you feel is valued, you might do your exercise, and you're like, ‘Okay, we're gonna do this, but then we're going to get over here. Or when we're [busy with] other things, we skip it.’
“We've had the support here to do it. I certainly have the background for a lot of this stuff, because I've been doing it for a while, but I still use some of the resources that we have available at the school. So we've partnered with the program Lead ‘Em Up. It’s Adam Bradley’s organization. He has some great leadership curriculum working with teams around the nation, and so there are some of the things that they have that we use as some of our lessons.
“Some of our other teams on campus used that and were really successful. Adam comes over January, and I think it's always a nice tune-up for everything and it’s another voice to share things. He has some electric curriculum. One of their concepts is this idea of lifeguarding, and how everyone can be a lifeguard. Lifeguards don't want to have rescues, so what do they do? They're always blowing their whistle when people are in danger. So what are the things for us being in danger of hurting our culture? Then we had that discussion around, what are those warning signs? And now, how can we make sure, as they're happening, we can call them out before somebody’s drowning?
“This year, we did a “lifeguard of the week”. Every week, I sent out a form for the players, asking, ‘Who was the best lifeguard this week and why?’ So, they would outline who earned it, and we'd recognize that person. They’d get their photo up on our Instagram and we had a life ring where they'd add something to the life ring.
“In addition, let’s say Player X got five votes, but some other people also got nice things said about them. I would write those down on a note card and give them to the person, just so they knew, ‘somebody else recognized you’. Again it’s intentionality.”
I want to touch on your coaching background a little bit. In the summer of 2015, you made a big switch going from coaching high school in Maine to joining the men’s basketball staff at D3 Schreiner in Kerrville, Texas. What do you remember about that first college (and D-III) coaching experience in your career?
“You know, it really started the summer prior to that. I was working for PGC basketball around the country. I had quit my job, and I was just living in my truck driving from place to place. Another Division III coach that I met during that process was Jake Deer, who at the time was at UT-Tyler with Jamon Copeland. Coach Deer had actually seen [Schreiner HC] Connor [Kuykendall] at an AAU event late in the summer, and Connor's assistant didn't work out for whatever reason. Coach Deer said, ‘Hey, I know a guy,’ which was really awesome of him. He had literally met me for a week doing PGC basketball and vouched for me.
“It was really important that I had an opportunity to try to try to coach college basketball because that was really why I started that journey. It was awesome. I think Connor, very similar to Coach McDevitt now, had the willingness to say, ‘Hey, you're gonna take these things over.’ Here's Day 1, and again, I haven't done anything in the college realm. But he allowed me to do the leadership stuff with the team and that worked really well because it was something that was different from what they had been doing.
“He gave me a group of recruits and said, ‘These are the people you're gonna be contacting, and you need to get them here. Once they get here, I'll talk with them, but this is your job to connect out there.’ He really dumped a lot on the plate right away, which again, shows a little bit to his trust and willingness to let go a little bit, which allowed me to continue to grow.
“I loved that experience, and would have 100 percent stayed and continued that experience if it weren't for my dad getting sick. My dad got sick, which led me to come back home, because I thought I only had six months. I was fortunate and got four years. I needed to be back for a family, but I really enjoyed my time. And I often say, that's really what put me on a path to having this opportunity I'm in now.”
You mentioned it, but both prior to and after your time at Schreiner, you were a head coach at the high school level. We’ve recently seen several D3 head coaches who gained experience in high school before moving up to college. How has that time on the sidelines at the high school level impacted you up to this point, now as a college head coach?
“I think probably the biggest difference between high school and college is learning the importance of relationships with parents. High school requires a lot more interaction with the parents than you have to have in college. It’s not that we avoid parents in college, it just seems like their children are adults now, so they give them more freedom and aren't as involved. I definitely learned some things to do, and some things not to do in that process. How to engage parents, and also just how to be the one that's in charge.
“When you're the assistant, I can make whatever decision I want. At the end of the day, even if we went with my decision and it didn't work, people are blaming the head coach. So you never really have any major skin game [from that perspective]. Everyone loves the assistant coach. The players love the assistant coach. You're seen as the person who's not making that final decision.
“But by having that time as the head coach, I've also seen the other side of it, and know how you have to build those relationships [as a head coach]. You're the one, having to plan practice completely. Having to think about those decisions in-game, and then you know living with the results. So, I think that definitely prepared me for that type of stuff; the in-game decision making on the fly and having to navigate when something doesn't go well. You're responsible for that and and some of it’s just how you hold yourself accountable afterwards, too.
“I'm grateful that I had those three years at John Bapst with the girls there, because it also taught me a lot about the differences between coaching females and males. Prior had been boys and then the men at Schreiner. And so that first season at Bapst, I just said ‘basketball is basketball,’ and I probably coached it too much the same way. If I had to go back, I wish I could be a little better for that group because I didn't fully understand the difference in communication style. I didn't fully understand the difference in how the athlete might perceive the things that I would say and understanding that your intent doesn't matter, it’s how someone receives your communication that matters. So it was really good, because at three years helped me become better at effective communication.”
Everyone has a journey that they progress through in coaching. But where did that passion and desire to coach originate for you?
“I think it is probably the same for a lot of people: through positive experiences growing up. My stepdad was in the Air Force, so we moved a lot, and sports were one of those common things [that stayed consistent for me]. Then when he and my mom got divorced, and mom moved back to Maine, sport is what I had. I feel like my coaches really helped shape and mold me and were super supportive.
“I think about in high school, where some of the coaches let me stay at their house because I lived out of town. So after a game, I could stay there. They'd give me rides to places. They were really impactful in my life and I wanted to have that impact on others.
“I loved basketball in general. So, you know, it was a great way to have that, to be able to be around it, and then be able to use the game to teach those life lessons that last long after the ball stops bouncing. I remember, being 18, going to college, and there was a principles of coaching class that they offered at UConn. They said I couldn’t be in it until I was a junior and I was like, ‘I want to do it now.’ I didn't get in, but you know, that's where I was headed. I started with the local recreation department in that first year and, and you know, that was fun watching seventh and eighth graders, out of a mix of skill levels, get better.
“My buddy, John, we're talking about a fifth grade team that we did one year because they needed an extra coach. We had a young man named Michael. And Michael was not a basketball player by any means. He would show up in hiking boots and like sweatpants. But we still remember this day when he dribbled the ball for the first time in a game. Those moments, where you could see them having success, I really enjoyed. I like seeing other people's passion come out. I enjoy seeing other people's joy, and I think sport brings that for a lot of people.”
You talked about initially coming to Saint Joseph’s as a professor and obviously getting the opportunity as well to be the assistant coach. So what stands out to you about the institution itself, and what makes it a special place that you are able to recruit so well to?
“It’s almost cliche, but community. It truly is a family feel, and I think it's something that you could probably only replicate at a smaller Institute. Obviously, everyone loves the lake. That's beautiful, right? Let's not hide from that. People certainly love the lake, but I don't think the lake is what brings people here.
“What keeps people here is the fact that everyone really feels like part of your family. When you go down to the lunchroom, you see the president eating lunch with students. Where else do you see the president eating lunch with people? Our athletic trainer is going to All-Star games to support players. If you just go down the line of these different people here. It really becomes a family, and so. I think that's what makes it special. The community is what makes it special, and if somebody wants that family feel, I think that's what draws them. A lot of times, people think if you go to a big school, you get a lot of friends. Sometimes you go to a big school—I was at UConn—and you actually just get lost in the crowd.
“You're not ever lost here. If you missed class, your professors know, and they're reaching out to your coaches, and your coaches are reaching out to you. When you don’t come to lunch, the lunch lady is checking in on you. This past year, we missed the Thanksgiving dinner that they had, and Sheila just put stuff aside for our entire team. So when the girls returned from the game, there was an entire tray of stuff ready for them. It’s just got a testament to who they are. So, I really do think, it might sound cliche, but if you're here, you know it. If you listen to people talk in the community, the family is what separates it.”