Dickson County gym brings Vanderbilt flavor with bench location

DICKSON — Jason Tigert is a Vanderbilt fan.

When Tigert left Marshall County to become the Dickson County boys basketball coach five years ago, he decided to bring a little bit of Memorial Gym with him and moved the team benches from the crowded sidelines to the more spacious end lines.

"I wanted this," said Tigert, a Dickson County alumnus. "When I took over for Coach (Kevin) Tuck, this is what I wanted.

"One, I'm a Vanderbilt fan. Two, we loved the idea of getting chairs because we never had that. And I'm originally from Dickson. With the chairs it was just too tight (on the sideline)."

However, there was plenty of room on the end lines behind each basket.

"We can utilize that space by putting the chairs there," Tigert said. "It's something unique and something we wanted." 

However, it can be a tough adjustment.

First-year Loretto boys basketball coach Greg Tipps struggled to get used to the gym set-up in his two seasons as Dickson County's girls basketball coach.

"It was real tough," Tipps said. "I had to deal with not coaching angry in that gym because at times that leads to an inability to communicate there at times.

"It raises your blood pressure a bit. It's a huge challenge to reach your point guard to make adjustments. It changes how you signal things. You need a mature team."

His teams reached the Class AAA state tournament both seasons, including a state semifinalist team this past season.

Current Dickson County coach Catie Embrey wasn't aware of the gym set-up when she took over the program. But it hasn't bothered her.

"It doesn't bother me at all because I can coach hard on the offensive and defensive end," Embrey said. "The only time it's frustrating is when I'm trying to get a timeout on the other end.

"The referees aren't used to listening for us that far away."

Franklin boys coach Darrin Joines likes the bench configuration as it sets Dickson County's gym apart from others.

"I love it," Joines said. "It's different. There is nothing wrong with it.

"People complain about lights at some places. I just think it makes it fun."

Tipps admitted the gym set-up almost cost the Lady Cougars a spot in the state tournament in his first season when they beat Rossview 50-45 in a Class AAA sectional.

"It easily took me half a year to get used to it," Tipps said. "I thought it almost cost us a sectional. (Rossview) was probably better prepared than we were for the noise. Normal communication wasn't effective."

That next year, Tipps said, the team was better prepared with signs and colors to call plays.

"It is unique," Tipps said. "Vanderbilt, though, has a bigger coaching box. They can go up the sideline some. You can turn the corner. It's a challenge."

Reach Tom Kreager at 615-259-8089 or tkreager@tennessean.com and on Twitter @Kreager.