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April 20th, 2012 Michigan State coach visits Upstate Mauldin Middle School student Austin McNulty aspires to be a defensive back in the National Football League. He had doubts about whether his dream was too big -- until Thursday night, when Michigan State men's basketball coach Tom Izzo spoke at the Coaches 4 Character Program at Redemption World Outreach Center. Izzo recalled the big dreams he once shared with his childhood friend, Steve Mariucci. Izzo said like many young

February 17, 2012 Life has thrown Victoria Green a series of stumbling blocks in her 17 years. She's hurdled them all. "My success comes from my obstacles," Green said. "My mom always taught me determination, so I got my strength from her." Green was one of two Berea High School students honored with The Greenville News character awards at the Coaches 4 Character Series Thursday night at Greenville's Redemption World Outreach Center. Joan Cronan, longtime Women's Athletic Dir

December 13, 2011 Wofford College football coach Mike Ayers gave a rousing speech to kick off the fifth year of Coaches 4 Character programs, Monday night at the TD Convention Center. While Ayers, who has led the Terrier program for 24 years, which includes advancement to the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision playoffs in four of the last five years and several Southern Conference titles, gave the children and adults in attendance the story of his life and the importance

September 28, 2011 Roy Williams confessed, he is a compulsive competitor. Williams, the men's basketball coach at the University of North Carolina, admitted his compulsion as the speaker of the Coaches 4 Character program held Tuesday night at Redemption World Outreach Center. Williams qualified his confession as he addressed a crowd of about 800 students. He contended that "life is competition" and should be approached with enthusiasm. "Do something to help yourself everyday

May 20, 2011 Rutgers University women's basketball coach C. Vivian Stringer is the third winningest coach in the history of her sport, was the first coach to take three different universities to the Final Four and has been inducted into several Hall of Fames. But, at the Coaches4Character Young Ladies Night Program at the Redemption World Outreach Center Thursday night, Stringer sent out a message that anything is obtainable - with hard work. "I found that my passion was coac

February 23, 2011 Meeting C.J. Spiller and standing on a stage with him Tuesday was a big deal for longtime fan Jonathan Herlong, a Mauldin High School senior scheduled to enroll at Clemson University later this year. Running back for the Buffalo Bills and an All American at Clemson, Spiller opened a window to the largest audience in series history and offered a look at his life and his choices during the Coaches 4 Character gathering at Redemption World Outreach in Greenvill

December 15, 2010 Datavious Jenkins never realized he had so much in common with Jay Bilas. Jenkins, a student at Blue Ridge Middle School, was honored on Tuesday night with The Greenville News Character Award, during Potential Youth Foundation's Coaches 4 Character program. Bilas, an award-winning college basketball analyst for ESPN, served as the guest speaker for the event, held at the Redemption World Outreach Center. Bilas presented the award to Jenkins along with Blue

September 29, 2010 Having served as a coach on five baseball teams representing the United States in international competition, perhaps it should have been no surprise that University of South Carolina baseball coach Ray Tanner was extolling the virtues of the Red, White, and Blue Tuesday night. Speaking to an audience of several hundred at the Potential Youth Foundation's Coaches4Character meeting at Redemption World Outreach Center, Tanner said "It is important to realize y

May 12, 2010 University of South Carolina women's basketball coach Dawn Staley told a large audience at the Redemption World Outreach Center on Tuesday night that basketball helped shape her life. The featured speaker at the Potential Youth Foundation/Sid Wilson Foundation Coaches 4 Character "Young Ladies Night" spoke of her humble beginnings, growing up in the projects of North Philadelphia and how basketball helped shape her life. "To ask why the game has been so goof to m

March 5, 2010 Watching Greenville High School School senior James D. Smith earn the Coaches 4 Character Award at the Carolina First Center. Friday night got former University of Tennessee football coach Phil Fulmer thinking about a former Vols student. Although Fulmer coached one of the greatest quarterbacks in National League Football history. Peyton Manning was the player who succeeded him at the position who led the Vols to the only national championship under his tenure.

December 18, 2009 Zykiesis Cannon said meeting Clemson coach Dabo Swinney and hearing his message at Thursday night's Coaches 4 Character gathering was a thrill. Swinney drew from personal experience in challenging Cannon, a student at Berea Middle School, and several hundred other young people at Carolina First Center in Greenville to reach for the stars. Other than a few who fidgeted, Swinney held the majority in the audience rapt as he smoke in detail of growing up in a dy

October 14, 2009 Not too many people could get away with telling a room full of young students to pursue three D's. However, Bobby Cremins did so confidently on Tuesday night at the Coaches 4 Character ceremony presented by the Potential Youth Foundation and the Sid Wilson Foundation. ​Cremins, the men's basketball coach at the College of Charleston opened the third year of the Coaches 4 Character series, delivering an alternative lesson, although it had little to do with rep

May 20, 2009 Over her 30-year career, University of North Carolina women's basketball coach Sylvia Hatchell has won three national championships over 700 games. She would have won twice as many by now with a team full of players like Christian Taylor. For her consistent display of compassion even in competition. Taylor, an eighth grader at League Academy, was presented with The Greenville News Character Award at the Coaches 4 Character program held on Tuesday night at the Car

January 22, 2009 Skip Holtz, East Carolina University's football coach, delivered a high-energy address about choices Thursday night as the seventh speaker in the Coaches4Character series. Speaking to an audience at the Carolina First Center equally populated by youngsters and adults, the son of former University of South Carolina coach Lou Holtz touched on a number of personal experiences. He drew on his years as a member of the Gamecocks' staff with his father, as head coac

December 12, 2008 Vanderbilt University football coach Bobby Johnson shook his head and smiled prior to beginning his speech at the Potential Youth Foundation Coaches 4 Character Series at the Carolina First Center Thursday night. After listening to Sevier Middle School principal Karen Kapp extol the virtues of eighth-grade student Taylor Lamb he was amazed. "Congratulations Taylor, that is a fantastic award," said Johnson. "For a principal to be able to get up and say all th

October 1, 2008 Credit Rafael "Junior" Alcantar for recognizing that he had an innate gift for sharing, caring, and inspiring. Credit his fellow students at Carolina High School and Academy for recognizing that. Alcantar, a 17-year-old senior, was named recipient of The Greenville News Coaches4Character Award Tuesday night in the latest installment of the Potential Youth Foundation's Coaches 4 Character Series at the Carolina First Center. "I've always been told that I can do

April 23, 2008 Greenville Middle student Adam Puznik is presented the Coaches 4 Character award by school principal Dr. Robert Palmer, left, and Maryland head coach Gary Williams during the Potential Youth Foundation's program to encourage and support character among youth Tuesday at the Carolina First Center in Greenville. By: Bart Boatwright -- Greenville News

December 13, 2007 Steve Spurrier couldn't have illustrated his point any better Thursday night that when 12-year-old Tyler Stroud of Inman came onstage to meet the head football coach of his beloved Gamecocks. Tyler's appearance at Potential Youth Foundation's Coaches 4 Character series drew the evening's loudest and most sincere applause. Afflicted with osteogenesis imperfecta, more commonly known as brittle bone disease, Tyler has become an inspiration to people throughout

December 14, 2007 Potential Youth Foundation, a local organization that promotes sports, fitness, and character, handed out its initial Outstanding Character Award Thursday night, with Tanglewood Middle School eighth grader Sameia Robinson selected as the award's first-ever recipient. The event was held at the Carolina First Center as part of a Coaches 4 Character series sponsored by Potential Former University of Michigan head football coach Lloyd Carr was the evening's main

September 19, 2007 Former Clemson men's basketball coach Rick Barnes returned to the Upstate last night for the first time since resigning in 1998 to take over as the head man at the University of Texas, and said he was sorry it taken so long to make the trip. Barnes was in town at the Carolina First Center as the keynote speaker in an event sponsored by the Potential Youth Foundation, a non-profit organization that focuses on disadvantaged and at-risk youth in Greenville Cou