Philly Leader

Building a sports program from the ground up is a challenging endeavor, requiring dedication, resources, and an effective leader. Colin Leach, head coach at William Tennent High School in Warminster, PA, exemplifies these qualities. His journey began during college when he took on a coaching role at Bishop McDevitt, his alma mater. While aspiring to become a guidance counselor, Leach joined William Tennent to continue supporting students.

"The real story for me is just the fact that I continued my growth through helping kids inside the classroom and outside," Leach stated. He describes himself as someone who prefers teaching strategies over yelling. "I try to teach the game, I try to teach the 'why', I teach those strategies that we're going to use as life lessons."

Despite not having a winning season since 2006, William Tennent has seen improvement under Leach's leadership. In his first season as head coach, he led the team to more victories than they had achieved in the previous two seasons combined.

"It wasn't easy, I'm not going to lie," said Leach. "It took a lot of extra time in the offseason." His philosophy emphasizes family; players conclude each huddle with "Family on me, family on three."

"A lot of times we see our team and our coaches more than we see our own family," explained Leach. He aims to foster a supportive environment where teammates back each other on and off the field.

When Leach started at William Tennent, there were only 26 athletes on the roster. By August 2023, just before his first camp with the team, numbers had risen to 59 players; this season sees 78 athletes participating.

"One of the things that really shocked me was over spring and into summer of my first year," said Leach about witnessing increased commitment from players.

Leach focuses on incremental successes such as personal records in weightlifting. "For us those are the wins we needed," he said.

Leach also includes students with special needs in his mission for inclusivity: "Just because a student has a disability or special needs it doesn't mean they should not be included."

As this year's season concludes for William Tennent football, Coach Leach reflects on being named Coach of the Week: "This recognition is unbelievable...it's a testament to everyone that is part of William Tennent football."

William Tennent looks ahead with optimism as their program continues growing stronger under Coach Colin Leach's guidance.