GALESBURG - Good assistant coaches can make a big difference to a sports program.
They have a strong loyalty to the head coach and to the program, and you seldom hear about them.
The Galesburg High School baseball program has just that in Jake Miller. He spent over 10 years as an assistant coach for Arnie Gonzalez and he’s now starting another run under head coach Jeremy Pickrel. He’ll probably continue to work the infielders, the hitters and help out with the day-to-day stuff.
“We’ll see how long I stick around with Coach Pick,” Miller said. “I don’t know if it will be another 10 years, but as long as I enjoy it and if I can still be at the things that my kids are doing. It’s
work-life balance.”
And through it all, Miller has enjoyed the learning curve as an assistant baseball coach at GHS.
“They (Gonzalez and Pickrel) are different, but they are the same,” Miller continued. “I’m not saying one is right or wrong and I’m really excited about that. They are Silver Streaks through and through. Both of those guys have invested everything they have into this program.
"Coach Gonzalez has a relationship with his players like no other coach I’ve seen. He was a master at that and I loved watching the kids play
hard for him. They knew he was going to be there for them. Pick played with Arnie, so he brings a lot of that with him. There is no doubt about it.”
A 1998 graduate of Monmouth High School and a 2002 grad of Augustana College, Miller went on to serve two years as a teacher and baseball coach at the former Union High School in Biggsville.
Miller is currently a social studies teacher at Galesburg High School. Plus, he’s just started to work on his educational administration degree from Western Illinois University in Moline.
“I don’t know if I want to be an administrator, but I do know that it gives me a new perspective on things in the middle of my teaching career,” Miller said. “This is a neat opportunity and I’ve really enjoyed it so far. It is making me a better teacher. I’m trying to balance all that with a new baby.”
Miller is going that extra mile in life as an assistant coach and is on board to help make the Pickrel era of Silver Streaks baseball the best it can be.
“Arnie was a little more old school in his approach and Pick likes gadgets,” Miller said. “He likes his radar gun and embraces the new statistics - launch angles and spin rates, and we talk about that.”