Head Baseball Coach John Pope’s trophy case is filled to the brim—with three baseball championships spanning eight years, he’s been on the receiving of no shortage of recognition. Now, Pope can add another accolade to his ever-growing list: Coach of the Year.

“It’s an honor,” he said.

Pope began his journey when he was young, playing football, soccer, and baseball as a kid while growing up in Houston. After getting a scholarship to Seminole Junior College in Oklahoma and learning there for years, Pope switched gears and played baseball at Rice University.

He says this period of his life most impacted his current career.

“The coaches you play for have a lot to do with the way you coach later on,” he said. “I’ve been very fortunate to play for a lot of great coaches in the past and they’ve had a huge influence on me.”

This season marks Pope’s eighteenth year in coaching, and for him it’s been an eventful ride. Beginning at Scarborough High School, Pope worked his way through the ranks, becoming Head Baseball Coach at Westbury High School and Assistant Football and Baseball Coach at Cy Fair, before being named Assistant Football Coach and Head Baseball Coach at Cy Ranch in 2008.

“I knew coming over here that this was going to be a great place to work,” he said. “This is a great community. We’ve got some talented kids who aren’t afraid to work hard and I think that’s one of the reasons we’re so successful.”

That success isn’t unearned—in 2007, he coached the Cy Fair baseball team to a UIL State Championship. He brought his success with him to Cy Ranch when, in 2012, he coached the Cy Ranch baseball team to their first State Championship, and worked his magic again this past summer when the baseball team secured its second State Championship in three years.

“It all comes up to preparing your kids,” he said. “I think we prepare our kids very well, playing in such a tough district. It’s all about preparation and what you do with practice that sets you up for success later on.”

Though he’s a coach, his players aren’t the only ones learning. Throughout this journey, Pope says that the most valuable thing he has learned is patience.

“It’s not how you start the season,” he said. “It’s how you end the season. We try to chalk everything up to a learning experience—if you lose a game, you learn from it. If you win a game, you learn from it.”

Pope says this award is more than just a personal honor—it’s indicative of the talent and hard work that every player puts into this sport.

“It’s truly an honor, but the way I look at it, it’s a team sport,” he said. “I wouldn’t be getting this award if it weren’t for my kids or my coaching staff. When you’re successful, the accolades come along, but it’s because of my players and my coaches that I’m receiving this award.”

Pope is not denying that coaching is hard work, but he wouldn’t trade it for the world.

“The reason you get into coaching is that you like working with kids,” he said. “So to see the excitement on a kid’s face when they’re successful makes it well worth it.”