Manatee County coaches show staying power with milestone accomplishments

It was December 1991 when Andrew Gugliemini Jr. graduated from what was then called Manatee Community College and was eager to begin his career as a high school wrestling coach.

A Manatee High graduate, Gugliemini tried getting the open gig with the Hurricanes.

He wasn’t hired, so Gugliemini went south to Sarasota Riverview.

“Every year we beat Manatee,” Gugliemini said. “We didn’t have much down there, but every year we beat Manatee. That was probably the worst three years of Manatee wrestling.”

It wasn’t long before Gugliemini came home to take over the Hurricanes once the job reopened three years later.

Just before Christmas, Gugliemini’s 26-year coaching career landed him his 500th career victory.

In an age when coaching vacancies pop up regularly at the high school level, Manatee County possesses some long-tenured coaches who have accrued lofty career win totals.

There’s Gugliemini at Manatee, who tallied win No. 500 at the Gulf Duals in late December.

There’s Southeast girls basketball coach John Harder, who is nearing 800 career wins. Whether it happens this season or next, the feat is remarkable for the Hall of Fame coach.

There’s Saint Stephen’s boys soccer coach Marc Jones, who has a shot at recording his 375th career win this season.

And there’s Lakewood Ranch girls soccer coach Guy Virgilio, who collected his 300th career victory in January 2017.

“It doesn’t just happen over night,” Jones said. “There’s a lot of hard work that goes in to set the culture of the program. The culture I’ve set with the soccer program is pretty much a mirror of what is expected at Saint Stephen’s. So we really look to prepare the kids, not only with soccer with giving quality training ... but also to instill in our student-athletes life skills that will benefit them, not just in the athletic arena, but in whatever facet of life they choose to push forward in their career.”

Lakewood Ranch cross country coach Bryan Thomas recently retired after 31 years, while Manatee County football featured two legends roaming the sidelines for many memorable seasons in Joe Kinnan (Manatee) and Paul Maechtle (Southeast) before they retired a few years ago.

The coaches still grinding each season have built a lasting legacy with high-caliber players and solid coaching staffs.

“I was smart enough to surround myself with some great people and they make me look really good,” Gugliemini said.

Gugliemini is one of seven kids. His parents, Jean and Andrew Sr., died about one year apart. Gugliemini said his dad, who passed away after his mom, died of a broken heart despite the two being separated at the time of his mother’s passing.

What he learned growing up, though, was never quitting.

That attitude carried him through to get his degree at MCC even after his parents passed away. It took him 6 1/2 years to get the degree that led to his lengthy coaching career, but he never quit.

“Her being a single mom, watching her sacrifice big time just in life so her kids could have more made a real impact on me,” Gugliemini said.

That impact is something Gugliemini’s passed down throughout the years as a wrestling coach.

Harder has won three state titles and had Southeast’s basketball court named after him in 2016; Jones won a state title in 2001; Virgilio got the Mustangs close to a state title a few times – all three have provided immeasurable knowledge to the countless student-athletes they’ve coached during lengthy tenures.

“I’m able to teach life skills through the sport I love,” Jones said. “That includes, hopefully winning and being successful ... being humble but at the same time when you lose, which of course that’s life ... is to accept defeat.”

This story was originally published January 4, 2018 at 5:14 PM with the headline "Manatee County coaches show staying power with milestone accomplishments."