ETERNAL STRIDES: The Legacy of Coach D'Anthony Collins

Intro

I initially considered reflecting on my four years of doing track in high school. Ultimately, I came away with foggy memories of my time on the track. However, I ended up remembering coach D’Anthony Collins' legacy. A good friend, mentor, and coach. In my freshman year of high school, I joined the track team for the 2016-17 season. I had a reluctance to join track my freshman year. However, a friend of mine was there, and I ultimately talked myself into it. I recall skipping practice one day while still being on school grounds. He ended up catching me too. I remember times when my teammates and I were at practice warming up, and he was running late (no pun intended). We felt some relief when we had somewhat of a shorter practice. However, when he arrived, I knew we would be running for our lives.

“Speed Kills”

His practices consisted of sprints, long-distance runs, long-jump practice, block-start practice, form technique, etc. While I would not consider myself one of the fastest individuals on the team, I did consider myself someone who desired to improve my skills. I knew practice was going to be hard, but I enjoyed being at practice. He showed me techniques to improve my speed, pace, and form. I recalled a moment when I was running a 200M at practice, and midway through my run he came up right next to me. I think he knew I would run faster if under pressure. I wanted to avoid being embarrassed by him. Unfortunately, I do not think I avoided it though.    

Usually, there is a bus taking runners to a meet, however, one day we were without one. So, for this meet Coach Collins drove me there himself. I remember I initially had not done much talking on our way there. In 2017, I would say I was barely mediocre in initiating conversations. However, I learned we had similar tastes in music when he had Kendrick Lamar’s DNA playing in his car. Afterwards, he needed to go shopping for some items and he offered to buy me whatever I wanted. I was apprehensive about buying something, but I ended up getting a fidget spinner. In retrospect, I hate how I did a poor job of taking care of it since it was one of the only mementos I had of him.

Coach Collins was a competitive individual, who wanted to see our track team succeed. In one 30-degree practice, with our first meet of the season on the horizon, he was livid with our effort and challenged us to be better. In future meets, we would be running in inclement weather. We were in situations running in rain and even snow. In hindsight, I learned he was preparing us for the future in battling adversity.

While I would not consider myself to be one of the fastest runners on the team, I had my fair share of trying different opportunities presented to me whether it was 100M, 200M, 400M, or long jump. I would say for sure my greatest strength was 400M. My personal record was 1:00.08 seconds in 400M. This would place me 13th in school history for 400M. This PR happened in 2019 after D’Anthony passed away. During the 2017-18 season, I would primarily be in the long jump. Now, did I have hops? No, not even close. I did my best at practices with the long jump although I would say my friend Derrius had me beat there. I also had an embarrassing finish at our last meet in the long jump as I got ND (No Distance). I jumped as far as I could, but unfortunately, I went past the white tape, so that is why it did not count.

Varsity Letter Award Signed By Coach Collins

D'Anthony’s Superstar Stats

I would also consider D'Anthony one of the best athletes Carroll County High School has ever had when he played track almost a decade earlier. As of February 2024, he still holds the record time for the 400M dash at 51.94 seconds as a senior (2010). He also has the 4th highest time at 55.79 seconds as a sophomore (2008). He still holds the record time for the 800M dash 2:03.46 seconds, as a sophomore. As a senior, his team still holds a record time of 1:34.20 in the 4x200M Relay. As a senior, his team still holds a record time of 3:39.13 in the 4x400M Relay. He finished 7th all-time in school history with a time of 24.86 for 200M dash, as a senior. He also finished 7th all-time in school history for the long jump, as a sophomore.

Closing

I would see him one more time on May 31st, 2018, at our end-of-season banquet. Little did I know it would be the last time. I had my share of aspirations of improving more for him during the 2018-19 season, but ultimately, they were never realized. A memorial service for him was held here in my hometown and my teammates, and I went there for him. While I would not have considered myself one of the best players on those track teams, I still enjoyed my experience as he created a great atmosphere for all of us. Years later on October 21st, 2021, a Carroll County football game was dedicated in his honor. It was also recognized as the suicide awareness game. I also got a chance to talk to D’Anthony’s brother after the game and reflect on his time coaching.

In conclusion, I am glad I can share D'Anthony Collins' legacy with all of you. He was one of the greatest athletes ever at my high school, but most importantly a good friend, mentor, and coach.

2021 CCHS Football Team Huddle Honoring D'Anthony