Local contingent to share knowledge at annual MCA Clinic

The annual gathering of coaches at the annual Montana Coaches Association Clinic in Great Falls is much more than a party. It's also much more than coaches getting together to socialize and network – though it all of that too.

Most importantly, the MCA Clinic is a sharing and gathering of knowledge, and it's always one of the best tools a coach, young or old, rookie or veteran, can have in his or her arsenal each year.

And in that sharing of knowledge, the Hi-Line always has plenty to offer, and connections to the Hi-Line to Havre High and Montana State University-Northern will be very prevalent at the 2016 MCA Clinic which runs Wednesday-Friday in Great Falls.

Of the 60 guest speakers and clinicians at this year's MCA, six are either coaching in our area, or have ties to the area.

Included in that list are three basketball coaches who have had enormous success of late.

MSU-N head men's basketball coach Shawn Huse has been a regular at the MCA over the years, and he'll speak again this week. Huse is about to embark on his 14th season at Northern, having already compiled 294 wins and nine 20-win seasons. Huse, a former Frontier Conference MVP at Montana Tech, is also the Lights' all-time winningest coach and is 15th among active NAIA men's coaches for wins in a career. So, there's no doubt, one of the most veteran coaches in the Frontier will have plenty to offer this week.

So too will a pair of Class C coaches from the area. Box Elder's Jeremy MacDonald is speaking this week in Great Falls after leading the Bears to the 2016 Class C boys state title. MacDonald has led Box Elder to four straight District 9C titles, three Northern C titles and two state championships in the last four years.

Also speaking in the basketball portion of the clinic is Belt head coach Jeff Graham. Perhaps no girls basketball coach in the state has had as much success in recent years as Graham has. The former Chester Coyote, and one-time football player at MSU-Northern, has been the Belt head coach since 2007, and he's led the Lady Huskies to four Class C state championships in the last five seasons. He's also won six Northern C titles and seven district championships in his time at Belt, while also serving as the head football coach as well.

The Class C football ranks will also have a local speaker this week in the form of Chinook head coach Scott Friede. Since returning to football for a second stint with the Sugarbeeters Friede has led them to back-to-back Class C 8-man championship game appearances, finishing second in 2015 before rolling to an undefeated season and the 2015 Class C title last fall.

Two other speakers with strong ties to Northern will also be featured at the MCA.

Former Northern women's basketball Sherry Winn, a member of the MSU-N Hall of Fame will be giving a motivational talk in Great Falls. Winn led the Skylights to their only NAIA national championship

Winn is an in-demand motivational speaker, a leading success coach and seminar trainer, a two-time Olympian, a national championship basketball coach, and an Amazon best seller. She has written five books including, "Unleash the Winner within You: A Success Game Plan for Business, Leadership and Life." With over 34 years of practicing leadership as an elite athlete and collegiate basketball coach, Sherry is an expert on mentoring athletic coaches and athletes to champion-ship status.

Former Montana State-Northern athletic director Dave Gantt will also speak on volleyball this week in Great Falls. Before serving as MSU-N's AD for a period of time, Gantt coached the Skylights in volleyball, earning Frontier Coach of the Year honors in 1989.

The MCA is always loaded with Montana high school and college coaches who speak and teach every year, and this year is no different, as Montana head football coach Bob Stitt, and new Montana State head coach Jeff Choate will be in attendance, as MSU head men's basketball coach Brian Fish and women's coach Trish Binford among others.

However, the clinic also is able to draw some big names in every year as well, and the 2016 lineup will be a great one.

At the top of the list of speakers is former Super Bowl winning head coach Dick Vermeil. Vermeil had a successful run with the Philadelphia Eagles before taking over the St. Louis Rams, leading them to the 1997 Super Bowl title. Also speaking this week will be current University of Oregon men's basketball coach Dana Altman and University of Minnesota head wrestling coach J. Robinson.

The 2016 MCA Clinic starts on Wednesday, but, the week is also the kickoff for the 2016 Frontier Conference football season, as the league's head coaches will meet in Great Falls on Tuesday for a media conference, and to announce the 2016 Frontier Preseason Coaches Poll.