Anguish: Thompson Chooses Lord Jeffs
by Jac
Coyne | Lacrosse Magazine Online Staff
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It was just a kitchen table, a cell phone and Jon Thompson.
The former Colby coach, who had just accepted the offer to become
the new head man of NESCAC rival Amherst, paced back and forth in
his Central Maine house, eyeing the Blackberry sitting on the
Thompson family buffet with contempt.
It wasn’t the device; it was what was waiting on the other
end.
Twenty or so Colby players, about to be blindsided by the
announcement of his departure, were unknowingly gliding through
their summers and the prospect of shattering their peace was nearly
unbearable.
While it was quiet in his house – the tears streaming down
his face made no noise – Thompson knew things were about to
get really loud.
The easy route would be to send out a brief email to his players,
pack up the wife and flatware, and hop the next bus to Northampton.
It would be a clean break; painless, allowing everyone to just move
on.
The longer he stared at the phone, Thompson understood that was
impossible. He had spent the previous two years looking for players
of high character, and now it was his turn to return the favor.
The device he had been so wary of didn’t disappoint in the
level of pain it inflicted.
“Everytime I picked the phone up, the wound opened and got
more and more raw,” said Thompson. “It got harder and
harder. But they earned the right for me to make the call. At this
point, three or four days later, I’m finally out of
tears.”
Thompson wasn't looking to leave Colby, but Amherst reached
out to him.
With Tom Carmean having moved on to Guilford at the conclusion of
the season, the Lord Jeffs were in need of a coach. Suzanne Coffey,
who was the AD at Bates before taking over at in-conference rival
Amherst, targeted Thompson.
It was somewhat flattering for Thompson, but was it the right
time?
“I was actually considering not going, but once my wife and I
looked at it, we saw it as a way to explore some other
options,” said Thompson.
To keep those options open, Thompson traveled to Amherst at
Coffey’s invitation. By the time he was done with the campus
tour, he knew he had a tough decision ahead of him.
“Amherst was so aggressive and so assertive in finding their
new head coach, and once I was told about their newfound dedication
to the program and dedication to winning, I said, ‘Oh, my
gosh. This could be ridiculous,” said Thompson. “It
could be incredibly long-lasting. The Amherst brand is an
incredible brand, and now that they are putting their resources
into the lacrosse program, the potential is
extraordinary.”
Thinking about the Amherst job had his heartbeat racing, but on the
drive back to Waterville Thompson and his wife had to pour over
what their next step would be.
Could they really leave Colby after just two years? Would they ever
be able to sell their house? Where do they want to raise their
children? Was it a good career move? Was it fair to the Colby
players?
“We really enjoyed it up at Colby,” said Thompson, who
was out scouting on Tuesday morning, whistles and horns sounding in
the background. “My wife and I were really excited about
being there for a long time, but the way the whole thing shook
itself out, it was the best it could have been for both sides, but
not the best situation for my wife and I. We’re really
excited about going to Amherst even though it is going be hard
transition.”
Just a week after officially applying to Amherst, he was announced
as the new head coach, leaving him with the excitement of a new
challenge and the angst of officially ending his previous
commitment with his players.
“I was literally in tears for three days,” said
Thompson. “During the decision process, one of the problems
was how can I leave these guys with all of the work we’ve put
in? The easy way out was to email the guys and not follow up with
any phone calls.”
After the long stare down with his cell, he did make the calls. Now
he takes over a program looking for a new beginning with a bunch of
players who will be more than happy to receive a phone call from
Jon Thompson.
