How to turn that "No" into a "Yes"

By: lars gjelhaug

My path into the sports industry began when I was five years old in Raleigh, North Carolina, when my parents started to get annoyed that all I wanted to watch on TV was Food Network. Sounds ridiculous, right? That's what I thought at the moment, but little did I know it would open the gates to a whole new world of entertainment and opportunities. I had always been surrounded by sports with my parents spending their Saturdays watching college football and growing up next to the family of Stuart Scott. I was bound to be a sports fanatic. 

After I began watching sports, I knew I had to choose a team to cheer for. With Carolina fans as Parents, I thought it would be funny to cheer for the other blue in the Triangle. That team would be the Duke Blue Devils. The matchup blockbuster Tobacco Road matchup between my Blue Devils and NC State in 2008 was one I'll never forget. My younger brother made the house a triple house divided as a fan of the Wolfpack. For that game, we both painted our chest with our respective colors. It was that point I knew that I wanted to put my passion for cooking in the backseat and continue to ride with sports in the shotgun seat. 

After watching basketball, I began playing it in 2nd grade and loved it, but I fit into the stereotype of what a basketball player is not. Instead of leaving sports and finding something else, I knew my way into the field was not participating but instead working behind the scenes or on the sidelines. 7th grade was when I began working in sports, where I volunteered at the Rex Hospital Open, which is a Korn Ferry Tour Event and the SAS Championship, which is a Senior PGA Tour event. Both of those I was a standard-bearer, which I continue doing to this day. Many of the golfers in those tournaments were great people working for, but two of my favorites were Brad Faxon and Tom Kite. 

Fast forward two years later to my Freshman year of high school at Heritage. I was zoned to a high school well outside my neighborhood, where I had to drive past my rival high school, Wakefield, to get to mine. I was always one to hold a robust small circle of friends, and that's what I had done in middle school. At this new school, I was sent to; I only had one of those friends who went to the same school but would not end up having classes or seeing him in the hallways or at lunch. It was primarily a neighborhood school where everyone lived close to each other and went to school together from Kindergarten through High School. I was so jealous that all my other friends would still hang out with each down at Millbrook & Wakefield. While they had a blast, I struggled to make new friends at this new place. 

It seemed that things would keep going downhill. I tried out for the JV Basketball team my freshman year and the first day of tryouts, I looked over the shoulder of the Coach and saw the evaluation sheet, and it was not what I wanted to see. Next to the number that they gave to me wrote the word "No." It was then I knew my chances of playing high school basketball were down the tubes. I wasn't going to make the team, which also happened in middle school—the feeling of playing basketball for eight years to see those results sucked. I didn't want to go to the second day of tryouts, but I listened to my Dad, and he highly recommended that I go. Little did I know what such a big deal that choice would mean. 

After I was cut, I knew that I wanted to be apart of the team, so I emailed Coach Greening, and he said that if I wanted to, I could be the Manager. It was the spark I needed after some tough times. That season would end up being a rough one going 2-19, and one of the two wins I was unable to be there. It taught me to not take for granted whenever I would end up on a winning team again. 

That winning time would come fast. I would begin the season on JV, which is what I had expected. The day before the varsity team had their Christmas tournament, I got a message from Coach Brill, the varsity coach, asking if I could do the water bottles for the team. To me, it was a huge deal being able to be on the bench for one of the most premier high school basketball tournaments, The John Wall Holiday Invitational. On top of that, the hype was real for our team to square up against powerhouse Hillcrest Prep from Phoenix. 

After I had been positioned to do the water bottles for the varsity team, I wanted to make a name for myself and not just be the waterboy. I knew that my thing was going to be wearing Craig Sager/John Daly like outfits. It created a camaraderie that I never imagined would happen, but fans and students would get excited and try to guess which outfit I would have for the games. 

The Christmas tournament would end up being a roadblock, finishing 7th out of 8 teams, but it only went up there. I would work for both JV and Varsity games and win the conference regular season and tournament for varsity. It was a glorious playoff run as we would win our first three playoff games. It qualified us for the Eastern Regional Championship, where we would face 30-0 South Central. The odds were not in our favor, especially playing 10 minutes away from their school and an hour and a half from ours. Minges Coliseum at East Carolina University was filled with 7,100 people hoping that their hometown Falcons would go onto the State Championship. It was not looking suitable for the Huskies. 

There has not been a better feeling in my life than seeing that clock hit 0:00. My team had done the unthinkable, taking them to overtime without our best player and winning 61-55. It was a dream come true that we would be playing for the NCHSAA 4A State Championship at Dean Dome, home of the UNC Tar Heels the next Saturday night. 

In Chapel Hill, we would take on the Independence Patriots, who only had one loss on the season. This was the biggest athletic event in our school's eight-year history, being the first bracketed team to qualify for the State Championship. All the talk around the school was about the game, and I had my best outfit prepared. Unfortunately, the season would not end how we wanted to, but going from 2-19 to 25-5 was quite the turnaround that I would be shocked if many people have experienced. Me on the bench at the Dean Smith Center watching the game with my teammates during the State Title. 
After that state title run, I had such a competitive edge that I joined the cross country team for my junior and senior years. I had never run in my life but Antonio, one of my long time friends also-ran, was a fantastic experience. I have never worked so hard for something. I went and spectated regionals my junior year, and as my teammates walked up to the start line, Coach Burrows told me that I was going to be on that line next year, and I laughed. I put in a lot of work in the offseason and would end up lowering my time from a 21:01 to an 18:23 and guess where that lowest time came from? Regionals my senior season, the same thing I thought was so out of reach just a year ago. Track, cross country camp, and the hard work paid off.   

I would be the Varsity basketball manager for the next two seasons, where I got a promotion from making water bottles to doing the scorebook at the center table. Senior night was the best recognition I ever had received a standing ovation from what started as a place where I didn't want to be, to fellow students, parents, and teachers that I would call a family. It was the icing on the top of the cake that the three other seniors and I would get a win that night, our biggest rival, Wake Forest. We will be able to say forever we never lost a varsity game to those Cougars in our four years of high school. 

I would win the conference my senior year and make it to the playoffs both seasons. On February 29 at Pinecrest, I would be the last time I would be doing the books as a student of Heritage. It was a hard reality but showed to have fun. At the same time, I'll continue to do the scorebook for the next two seasons while I get my Associate in Arts from Wake Tech Community College and transfer to a four-year university after. It will not be the same without my three fellow seniors by my side, but I am still excited to work with such a great group of Coaches and our upcoming players. 

While the pandemic may be portrayed to some as a setback in their careers, I began my path in networking. After participating in some live events, I made some great connections. Those connections gave me this opportunity to write for Sports As a Job. I couldn't thank Kolby enough for giving me a chance. 

What I think the key to thriving in this industry and in life is to surround yourself with people who are going to make you a better person and allow you to excel to your fullest potential. Those people for me would be Coach Greening, Coach Brill, Coach Burrows and Kolby Castillo. I found mine, find yours. 
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Thanks to everyone who has been apart of the journey and for taking the time to read this article. Feel free to share your story or ask questions about mine on Twitter @LarzBar, Email lgjelhaug02@gmail.com, or Lars Gjelhaug on LinkedIn