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It takes a special kind of coach to win 500 games at 1 school…and Dave Boots was made for coaching. He was hired at South Dakota in 1988 and retired a quarter-century later with a record of 503-235. The winningest coach in Coyote history, he had 23 winning seasons in a row from 1989-2011, made 10 D-2 tourneys, and even won the 2010 Great West Conference tourney. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Coach Boots about being a great FT shooter and winning so many games. Today is Dave’s 67th birthday so let us be the 1st to wish him a happy 1!
In 1979 you graduated from Augsburg after serving as team captain/team MVP: how good a player were you back in the day, and how far did you think you could go as a player? I was a decent player who was on a better team. Basketball is and always will be a team sport 1st in my book so I have to attribute a lot of my success to my teammates. I would have loved to further my playing career but I knew that coaching was my ultimate calling.
You set the Augsburg career record with 88.1 FT% and the MIAC single-season record with 97.1 FT%: what is your secret for FT shooting, and do you remember every single FT you missed during that amazing season? I never really had a secret for shooting FT: it is all about concentration for me. I was able to block out distractions and focus on the task at hand. Of course, a lot of practice helps too! I do remember a few misses from that season but I would say that they made me better in the long run because I worked that much harder to not miss the next time.
Why did you decide to become a coach, and how did you end up at South Dakota? Coaching is something that I have been compelled to do. I was lucky enough to catch on with my alma mater right after graduation and eventually became the head coach there. It was a great experience to work so hard for the college you love and we also had some good success there. The USD job came open and it was a position that I felt fit me well. My goals/priorities matched with those of the athletic department at the time and they continued to match over the length of my extended stay there.
2-time All-American Tommie King said that he enjoyed working with you because of your laid-back personality and that you really know how to help players develop/show their talents: how are you able to be so effective without yelling at your players, and what do you think are the most important character traits in being a good coach? Tommie is 1 of the greatest players in USD history so it was not that hard for my coaching staff to develop him! Every coach gets frustrated with their athletes at times but yelling has never really been a part of my approach. Part of being a good coach is having the patience/temperament to work with your players and teach them how you want them to play, even when they are struggling. Another important trait in coaching has to be determination: you have to have thick skin in this business because everyone has critics.
You did not have a single losing season at USD from 1989-2011: how were you able to remain so consistent for such a long time, and how did you reload every single year after losing guys to graduation? I think the key to consistency is getting your student-athletes to buy into the system. We have had some stars here but we always had players ready to step in because they realize that the Coyotes are a team first and that USD basketball is a family.
You also worked as assistant AD: how did the AD gig compare to the coaching gig? Coaching was always something that I wanted to do but serving as an AD was something that I had to be recruited into. It has given me a great appreciation for all of the people that work hard behind the scenes in athletics. From SIDs to custodians, all of the members of an athletic department have to pull together toward the same goal and being an AD helped me understand that.
You coached All-American Turner Trofholz, who became the 1st player in NCC history to be named NABC national POY: was he the best player you ever coached, and could you tell at the time you recruited him that he was capable of becoming national POY? Turner is definitely in the discussion for the best player I coached at USD. He was a very talented young man and even more importantly he was a hard worker. When we were recruiting him out of a small town in Nebraska we knew that he had the potential to be good…but he obviously surpassed our expectations. Turner was a kid who worked hard for everything that he got.
You won more than 600 games during your career: do you consider yourself to be 1 of the best coaches in D-2 history? There have been some great coaches over the years at the D-2 level so it is hard for me to put myself in their category. Honestly, we do not spend a lot of time thinking about D-2 anymore. After we became D-1 we liked to focus on the future and excelling at that level.
Your athletic program eventually made the move from Independent to the Great West to the Summit League: what was the biggest adjustment? Our 1st year in the Great West was a great success for both our team and our athletic department. Going 11-1 in the conference and winning the regular season/tournament titles was a special achievement for the Coyotes. The added bonus of playing Creighton in the 2010 CIT was an event that really energized our fan base and was a great reward for our team’s hard work during that season. We were excited to play in the GWC but have been looking forward to joining the Summit League and playing South Dakota State again.
When people look back on your career, how do you want to be remembered the most? It is an honor just to think that people will remember my time here at USD. I have had many great years with the Coyotes, but I hope that people remember me for turning young men into adults and how my staff and I helped develop some of tomorrow’s leaders.