EAGLE, Idaho — Eagle Police Chief Travis Ruby has spent the last 30 years as a kids' soccer coach, teaching the game, life lessons, and kindness on and off the field.
At Idaho Storm Soccer Club in Meridian, Ruby happily trades in his Police Chief title for "coach" as players pivot and pass during practice.
"I started coaching in 1996, about 30 years ago, when the first team I coached [included] my youngest brother," said Travis Ruby, Idaho Storm Soccer Club coach.
Idaho Storm Soccer Club is a local competitive soccer club serving the Treasure Valley, with most players from Ada County and the surrounding areas. Ruby currently coaches the 2012 boys' team, which he's been with for about three years.
"Our goal is to teach the beautiful game to some of the young men and young women here in Ada County in the Treasure Valley and teach them some life skills along the way," Ruby said.
The coaching philosophy extends beyond soccer fundamentals.
"The goal of our club, the goal of our team, is to teach these young men and young women life skills through using soccer as our subject matter," said Ruby. "And teach them teamwork, teach them how to work together, how to overcome adversity, how to work through loss, how to be a humble winner as well."
While rewarding, many coaches find the career also comes with significant downsides.
Learn more about how Coach Ruby continues to make an impact, despite youth coach shortages.
A nationwide survey by the U.S. Center for SafeSport found 46% of coaches in the U.S. have experienced verbal harassment or abuse while coaching.
About 56% of that harassment comes from the athletes' parents, which is why Coach Ruby sets expectations with families from day one.
Ruby's children have aged out of the club, but he continues coaching because of the impact coaches had on his own life.
"When I look back on my life, and I look at influential people in my life outside my mom, I think the most influential people in my life have been coaches and teachers, and to me, coaches are teachers; their subject matter is soccer. So for me it's a way to continue to give back to the community," Ruby explained.
Ruby believes the pressure to succeed at high levels is contributing to coaching challenges.
"Kids come out here because they want to smile, they want to laugh, they want to have fun, and we need to remember that that's why they're here. Yes, we're going to teach them life skills, but also, this isn't their job. Realistically, their job right now is to be students and to be good sons, good daughters, good neighbors, good family members." - Travis Ruby, Eagle Police Chief
He advocates for multi-sport participation rather than single-sport specialization.
"I think it becomes so much pressure to succeed and excel and earn scholarships and make professional-level teams and make national-level teams. And so I think part of what happens is families become so focused on a single sport. In my opinion, when you look at Division I athletes, when you look at first round draft picks, all of them were multi-sport athletes," Ruby said.
"What I really want from the parents is: I want excitement. I want them to cheer on their players. I want them to encourage them to go out and have success," Ruby said.
When parents don't play nice, it can force referees out of the sport — many of whom are only a few years older than the athletes themselves.
"One of the reasons that kids leave refereeing is because of adults, because of coaches and parents yelling at them," Ruby said. "I remind parents that a lot of the referees that we have at our level are two or maybe three years older than their own son."
Ruby emphasizes the importance of treating young officials with respect and kindness.
"It's certainly okay to respond to a play or respond to a call or a lack of call. That's normal. But let's remember that most of our officials, they're children too, and so let's be respectful of them and let's encourage them as well," Ruby added. "Kindness is free. It costs nothing to be kind and smile and give a nice word, and kindness goes a long way when you're talking to the next generation of leaders and coaches and players and varsity athletes."
Despite challenges, Ruby notes that the Treasure Valley has actually seen an increase in referees. "Our soccer organizations here in the Treasure Valley have done a very good job of recruiting youth referees, compensating them fairly, and then providing them support."
Despite the challenges, the survey found 92% of coaches feel their role positively impacts their life — something Ruby sees in connections that last long after the final whistle.
"You'll start receiving graduation announcements. In my case, I've received a few wedding invitations. I've gotten to go to some weddings and take pictures with my former players, and it's just been fantastic," Ruby said.
For coaches considering stepping away, Ruby encourages them to remember their purpose. "It comes down to your why, why do you do this? And for me, it's about giving back to the community and hopefully being a positive impact."
For more information on the U.S. Center of Safesports national survey, you can click here.
