52 JUNE 2017 ARCAD A NEWS By Megan Forrester After coaching the Brophy Broncos baseball team for nearly 40 years, beloved head coach Tom Succow is passing the baton. Class of 2007 Brophy alum Josh Garcia will take over the squad next year. The coaches not only share a love of Brophy and baseball, but also a close personal friendship. Coach Succow began his career in the dugout at Brophy in 1975 as a varsity assistant for the baseball team, before moving up to the head coaching position in the spring of 1978. He views sports as an avenue to impact kids in a positive way. “Coaching is a different part of education where you can have an impact upon young people,” he said. “I love how it molds young men and I think the athletic field is an extension of the classroom... How we conduct ourselves, our character, our beliefs, and our ethical background have a lot to do with shaping young people.” The relationship between the past and future Brophy coaches began in 2005 when Garcia played for Succow on the Brophy varsity baseball team. Garcia was a major part of the team that won a state title in 2006 and was runner-up 2007. Their relationship continued to evolve through Garcia’s two years at South Mountain Community College and subsequent time at the University of Arizona. “Our relationship has grown from the time that he was at Brophy as a student athlete, to where it is today and we talk several times a week now,” Succow said. “We never would really talk about baseball, he would just call and ask how I was doing,” added Garcia. “It’s about what you are doing as a man. That’s really what Brophy’s core values are and that’s what he did such a good job with.” Garcia previously coached at South Mountain Community College as recruiting coordinator, hitting coach and director of the Student-Athlete Success program. He has also served as an assistant coach at Yavapai College and at the University of Arizona, where he was on the coaching staff at the 2012 NCAA D1 National Championship team. Now he will be taking the place of his former high school coach. The two men admire each other’s approach to coaching. “Josh is taking the head baseball position with a great even-keeled demeanor, not getting too high and not getting too low. That’s a huge quality about him,” Succow said. “He’s has learned from some of the best coaches at U of A and South Mountain Community college and has implemented a lot of their qualities into how he deals with young men and how he acts as a person.” One Succow coaching characteristic that Garcia would like to emulate, is the relationships the older coach has built with his players. “It doesn’t matter that we are ten years out of the program, we can go back and it will still feel like home,” Garcia said. “That’s because of the relationships that Coach Succow has built and how he always welcomes us back to Brophy.” Garcia is thrilled to return to Brophy as the head baseball coach, where he hopes to leave a legacy that his former coach will be proud of. “I’m committing just like Coach Succow, I want to stay there just as long, hopefully longer than him,” said Garcia. “I’m two feet in and if I had a third foot it would be in too.” Brophy alum succeeds legendary Broncos baseball coach By Laura Stoddard Log on to any news website and you’ll be immediately inundated with the latest happenings around the world, including sports news. But if looking back in time is more interesting to you than the scores of the day, there’s an excellent local resource for you. Jim Edwards, Arcadia resident for more than 20 years, created The Daily Dose , a website dedicated to bringing readers unusual, little-known or discussion-evoking sports facts of a more nostalgic nature. “It all started when I came across a great, vintage, black and white photograph of a football player,” Edwards said with a reminiscent smile. “He had a crew cut, he was playing in the mud, and I thought of a half-dozen people that would love the picture as much as me. So, I sent it to them, got some good feedback and was motivated to look for more stuff like it.” From there, he started adding captions and bits of information with the photos, and before long, was regularly sending out full stories to friends and family – and the word spread. “When I realized that this was something people really cared about, I looked at it harder,” said Edwards. “I saw a little niche that wasn’t being served and thought I’d go for it.” The Daily Dose features a new story each weekday morning. You’ll never see the same topic featured within a week. Edwards has decades of material from which to draw endless ideas and research topics. With more than a dozen categories, the site covers a broad range of topics, including people, teams, venues, specific events, anniversaries, mascots – pretty much anything sports- related. Edwards writes all the content himself and emphasizes that he intends the content to be nostalgic. However, stories from the past collide occasionally with the present. “I once featured a golfer named Rickie Fowler – had the story scheduled for a Monday,” Edwards said “As luck would have it, he won a huge tournament the Sunday before. Total coincidence, but it does happen.” Nearly two years old, the Dose has a loyal (and growing) following, from both occasional readers and regular subscribers. Subscriptions are free and subscribers are guaranteed an original feature story distributed via email, each weekday. Edwards sends his stories out at 6 a.m. Eastern time so he can hit East coast commuters who peruse his website over morning coffee. Edwards draws most of his ideas either from his idea book, or historical research, but also loves it when people send him suggestions and leave feedback or discussion in the comments section of the website. He will be rolling out a Throw-Back- Thursday series on June 1, providing some of his favorite past stories from the archives for new readers who haven’t seen his older articles or want to be refreshed on a subject. “I think the Dose is shared enthusiastically by a lot of readers because all of us have that event or place or athlete or game that resonates with us from when we were growing up,” Edwards said. “That’s what the website’s all about.” So, take me out to the ballgame! You know – that one from 50 years ago. For more: www.dailydsports.com. Here’s your ‘Daily Dose’ of sports nostalgia Jim Edwards Tom Succow (right) is passing the coaching batton to Josh Garcia. 4 SPORTS CAMP LOCATIONS MAY 29 - AUGUST 4 Sports Camp (ages 4 1/2 - 13) Teen Leadership Camp (ages 12-16) learn new games and new sports all in one camp! Full and Half day · Extended Care 1 week sessions Play, Laugh, Learn! Conveniently located at 50th Street & Oak HUBBARDSPORTS.COM 602.971.4044