Mr. Gregory Ladd, head baseball coach, has been named a new assistant athletic director of Gonzaga, joining Mr. J.T. Thompson ‘19, current ASC. The second-year teacher and coach on Eye Street has always had a passion for working with student athletes; he also helps coach football.
“I’ve always loved working with student athletes,” Mr. Ladd said. “Since I was a student athlete in high school, my goal was to do my best both in and out of the classroom. And now, with the new position, I’ll be able to help them in the same way that I got help.”
Mr. Ladd has always had a passion for sports, both on and off the field. At his former school, Mr. Ladd worked as the head athletic director for five years, giving him experience for his new job, but it is not the reason that he was appointed to this position according to Mr. Terry Kernan ‘08.
“While his past experience did make him a strong candidate,” Mr. Kernan, the head athletic director, said, “his passions for learning, participating in and supporting all the sports here at Gonzaga made him a great fit for the position in which he would be asked to do all of those jobs.”
Mr. Ladd couldn’t agree more with what Mr. Kernan said.
“I’m definitely excited to get to games with different sports that I haven’t necessarily been able to get to in the past,” Mr. Ladd said. “My old school was great, but the chances and opportunities that students have to find the perfect sport for them here at Gonzaga. Gonzaga is so great because of how many different ways that someone could get involved in the 17 different varsity sports.”
Even though he has only been at Gonzaga for two years, Mr. Ladd has still managed to be a part of everything.
The current math teacher is a skill position coach for the varsity football team and the new head coach for the varsity baseball team, both of which have had amazing seasons. Through these many jobs, Mr. Ladd has managed to make an impact on a lot of people, both the students and faculty alike.
“Coach Ladd has been one of the best coaches that I have ever had,” Luke Forde ’25, one of the baseball players that has had Mr. Ladd both as a coach and as a teacher, said. “The advice that he gives me both in school and on the field has allowed me to grow into a student athlete that I have become very proud of. The relationship that I have with him is special and I am extremely grateful to have a coach like him.”
This ability to communicate well with students is not just noticed by them but also by his new boss Mr. Kernan.
“The way both his students and players respect him shows how much of a good role model he can be for the students here. And that is one of the things important to us, the ability to not only lead his players into games, but also have good relationships with them off the field,” Mr. Kernan said.
Mr. Ladd believes that he establishes these relationships in multiple ways, but the most common ways he does it is through advice and seeing himself through his students and players.
“My goal when I was in high school was to have a great academic experience while also really competing in co-curricular and extracurricular activities, which is what I see a lot here,” Mr. Ladd said. “These goals are very similar to those I see in my players and students, which allows me to establish that connection between us and for me to get the best out of my players and for them to get the best out of me, too.”
Now, with his new position starting in July, Mr. Ladd will be able not only keep the connections he has with his players on football and baseball but make more with players across all of the sports at Gonzaga.