After a nine-year career with the SAIT Trojans Women’s program and a lifetime of volleyball, Art O’Dwyer is retiring from coaching the sport he loves.
O’Dwyer wrapped up his coaching career last weekend versus the Lethbridge Kodiaks. In his nine seasons, his teams have made the playoffs five times. He was named the ACAC South Division Coach of the Year in 2015-2016, and in his next season, the Trojans went 18-6, a record for wins.
“It’s a little bittersweet, it brings back a lot of memories, so yeah, it’s a little bit tough,” he said of his final weekend on the bench. “On the other side of it, I am leaving on good terms and there is a time for everything.”
His volleyball pedigree goes back decades to playing high school and club volleyball in Drumheller. He was part of a powerhouse program in the valley that includes names such as Derek Wade, Glen Farmer, Kelly Colberg, Bob Rosgen, and Tony Rosgen.
“Often you run into mentors, people who tell you that you can do something and then provide the opportunity to do something. That for me was Howard Rasmussen and Ian Jones. They were the two people that started that whole thing for me,” he said. “I played a lot of sports, but volleyball was one that gave me some opportunity.”
He went on to captain the University of Calgary Dinos and played on the junior national team. He went to work as an assistant coach for the Dinos on a couple of occasions before joining up with the Trojans for the 2011-2012 season.
After such a long career being involved in the sport, it is going to be an adjustment to walk away.
“I am going to take a little bit of time, but I will always be involved in some way or form,” he said. “I’m just trying to limit the amount of time coaching. At the ACAC level is a pretty big time commitment.”
A rewarding part for coaching for him is to slip into the same role that his mentors did for him.
“That is a big thing, I don’t know if it is conscious or not, but when somebody else has put in the time and showed you the passion for the sport, it kind of makes you want to do the same for someone else, that never seems to go away,” he said. I think that is part of being passionate about the sport, you naturally promote the sport because you love it and you want other people to get some of the joy you get out of it.”
