The tight ends and H-backs coach, Pat Hornak, shares his story of being a Charger athlete and how he earned his position as a well-respected coach. Hornak also gives insight into the Charger Football team’s offseason training program.
What made you come to Hillsdale?
I was recruited to play football in the year 2000. I was from Grand Haven and I decided to walk on to the team. I came with two guys from my high school, but I was the only one that stuck with it. After my freshman year I received a half tuition scholarship for football.
Why did you choose to play football at Hillsdale?
I liked the atmosphere and I liked the academics. I didn’t want to play Division III football. I wanted to play football at the highest level I thought I could play. Division II was it. I fell in love with it. I really liked the small atmosphere. I liked getting to know the professors and being able to utilize their office hours. They knew me too; I didn’t want to be a number.
How did you transition from being a player to a coach?
I blew out my knee again during my sophomore year. I had to have three more surgeries for a total of five on my left knee. I had two ACL injuries in high school and those haunted me in college. I was the backup center for the Chargers and before my career-ending injury, I was only able to play one game. When my playing career ended so early, Coach came to me and gave me an opportunity to be a student coach. For four years I was a student coach. The transition was easy; I knew I wanted to be in the game. I am passionate about football. I was planning on going to school to be a teacher and a high school coach. An opportunity to coach college ball never occurred to me until I got hit. Once I got hurt I learned how to use the equipment. I was the “guru” of the equipment and film, and those skills proved to be very useful.
What was the most difficult part about student coaching?
You’re friends with the guys and they’re your peers and you have to remove yourself and they have to be able to respect you at a different level. It can be difficult for the guys you’ve been hanging around with to now look up to and listen to you and respond. Now that I’m an actual coach, there’s not that issue. The respect comes as you’re around the guys on the team.
Are there any issues with respect on the team now?
We have a great bunch of kids. The nice thing about coaching here is we have guys of character. We don’t have to deal with the off-the-field stuff as much. It’s not like other places; we don’t have to deal with a lot of the issues. We have great character kids. What the student-athletes here are doing is amazing. What they do in the classroom and on the playing field with competition is amazing. To be in the best conference in Division II and be in the best programs of all sports, it’s amazing. It’s cool to see it all kind of change. My freshman year we were 3-8—not very good. From those years to now- being conference champions- it’s amazing. It’s a great atmosphere. I love Charger athletics.
After you student-coached what was your next step?
After I graduated, Hillsdale gave me a job. It wasn’t a full-time job at first, but after a year I was promoted to a full-time position.
What is your relationship with Coach Otterbein?
My number one priority, and it’s in the job description, is to keep his blood pressure down. Things are done the way he wants them done. I have to be a step ahead for him. I have to take some of the burden of travel and equipment off of his plate so he can worry about other things, especially on game day. He wants it perfect.
Now that the team is in the offseason, what is the main goal of morning conditioning?
Push the guys to the limits; mentally and physically, it’s about toughness. Our motto is “to build a bigger tank” and by that we mean pushing yourself- making yourself go longer and harder. We want to be the stronger and more physical team. We need a mentally tough football team.
Is morning conditioning any different or more brutal this year?
It doesn’t change much year to year anymore. When Coach Otterbein was first here, we used to go 11 days straight. That was to set the mentality. Now we don’t have to do that because guys understand what the program is about and they understand the mentality. It’s hard; it’s not easy. Once the guys go through it they know they can do it.
What are the goals for the spring season?
We need to be mentally tough, physically tough, and no injuries. And hopefully our tank has gotten bigger. It’s about not making mistakes, we have to make it tough on the guys. If it’s not tough, you get into the mindset of everything’s easy- there’s no goal and nothing to reach for. We want the mentality of being tough. We have smart guys already, we want everyone walking off the field saying, ‘man those guys love the game of football and they play hard.’ That’s what we coaches are pushing for everyday.
-Compiled by Matt Melchior
