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NewsIHSA Coach of the Year Courtesy of the Rosell Press
Roselle, IL -
Keith Matune's resume is impressive. From national titles to state qualifier to historic coaching results, it's all there, including being named the 2008 IHSA gymnastics coach of the year. "I was completely surprised," Matune said. "It has my name on the award but it's the result of all the coaches I had at Downers Grove North, my father, and especially all the boys I've ever coached. I share this honor on behalf of all those people." Then take a look at how it began.
"I grew up a gym rat - I loved basketball," said Matune, whose dad, Walt, was the boys coach for five years at Downers Grove North. "I followed him (Walt) around from gym to gym and wanted to play, but as a freshman I was 4-foot-10 and 72 pounds. My dad, who also taught there, told the freshman coach to cut me because I had no future in the sport." Father convinced son to give gymnastics a go and Keith Matune shrugged off those overtures at first. But physical education teacher and future coach Al Bekkedal convinced him otherwise. As a member of the 1986 Trojans squad that took sixth in the program's first state meet, Matune got to enjoy a piece of history - even if he wasn't the top athlete. "I was the worst guy on that team - I had no experience prior to high school," Matune said. Despite a broken arm as a sophomore, Matune worked himself into a top talent who really blossomed senior year, a season tempered by missing qualifying for state on high bar by .1 of a point. "I wrote to every school about my willingness to walk on - I just wanted a chance," Matune said. "I felt like I had something to prove." He got that chance at Radford (VA) University, a small Division I school where he set several records and was team captain. But, with one more year of eligibility remaining and his coach leaving the school, Matune transferred to Purdue, where he met his future wife and many of his close friends. It's also where he established himself by captaining the Boilermakers to an NCAA runner-up team finish in 1992 and winning national titles on both the still rings and the all-around and being named a consensus All-American. From Purdue's West Lafayette, Indiana campus, Matune returned home knowing he wanted to continue his life in the sport as a coach. "That 1986 (DGN) team had a powerful influence on me," Matune said. "A lot of things I do as a coach I picked up from those coaches, athletes and from my dad." Matune's philosophies have been used as a volunteer assistant at his prep alma mater, which he helped guide to a fourth-place state finish in 1996. He also coached at York (which won state last year) for two years before arriving at Lake Park. Now in his fifth season leading the Lancer's program, he looks to use his experience as a motivational tool. "On day one, I try to impress upon the guys that if I can do it anyone can," Matune said. "I show them a picture of me freshman year. I was so scrawny the uniform hung off of me and in the picture, I'm standing next to the pommel horse - which was almost bigger than I was. They always get a good laugh out of it." 'And I say to them "all of you are bigger, stronger and better than I was but the question is do you have enough heart and willingness to put in enough effort,"' Matune added. "You can ask any of my teammates from anywhere I competed and they will tell you that no one outworked me." While convincing athletes of the need for hard work, he also knows there needs to be more of a draw for them if interest in the sport is going to grow. "You can't just take any kid and throw them into gymnastics which, I believe, is the hardest sport from both an athlete's and a coach's perspective," Matune said. "Wherever I've coached, I've always tried to create a team atmosphere, get the guys to believe that they are part of something bigger than themselves and that will in turn motivate them to get more of their friends to come out for the sport." Matune feels last year's team bought into what he preaches, which includes gymnastics is not forever. "When I was in college, there were 90-something Division I schools who had a men's gymnastics program," Matune said. "Now, there are around 16. Even if you're a state high school champion, it's no guarantee you'll make it in college." Continuing with gymnastics may be a slim option for most, so Matune also tries to instill the need for being a complete person, both on and off the mats. Last year's Lake Park team matched the best state finish in the program's 43-year history and had arguably its best season ever, also winning Independent Conference and IHSA Sectional titles along the way. A total of 11 Lancers qualified for state (most in school history and bringing the total to 26 in Matune's tenure). Two earned all-state honors and one, senior Gary Soper, was runner-up on still rings. The squad was also recognized by the IHSA as an All-State Academic Team for earning a collective team grade-point average of at least a 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale). Even with his program's relative state-meet inexperience, Matune had high expectations going in. "Absolutely that (title) was our goal but we also realistically talked about winning a trophy (top-three state finish) and I thought we had a good shot at it," Matune said. "We had defeated Palatine (2006 state champ) by five points at the Leyden Invite - that's like winning football by two touchdowns and a field goal - and we had scored 158 at sectionals. It showed how developing and maintaining consistency is perhaps the most difficult part." "So I was a bit disappointed because I really thought we could do it," Matune added. But if you had told me four years ago that we would go to state and finish fifth, I would've said that is fantastic." Though Matune graduated several key members from last year's team, he brings back Soper and sophomore Jesus Soto as part of a group of athletes that carries on what he learned growing up, including the importance of peer-to-peer relationships. "I tell our seniors to bring guys in to fill the spots they open up by graduation but also show how they were able to enjoy success - they do a lot of the recruiting," Matune said. "I learned the importance of program-wide enthusiasm and a family atmosphere (Matune lives in the same neighborhood as Bekkedal and former assistant coach Bill Hois), and so many other things, from my start at Downers North. It's interesting how far things have come."
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