The Lion’s Roar: This is your first season as head coach for the women’s basketball team. What are your goals heading into the season?

Errol Gauff: I want each young lady to give one hundred percent of herself that day, at that moment, no matter what it is they are doing. That’s how we will become better people, better students and better athletes. CPR (Competitive Positive Rivalry) compete to your fullest at everything. In the classroom, community service and practice, it doesn’t matter, compete. That’s individually and collectively. Have faith. Faith in themselves, faith in the process and faith they can play at a championship level.

TLR: Will your coaching philosophy change now that you are coaching women’s basketball?

EG: No. I might tweak a few things, but that will be more because of rules and personnel than gender.

TLR: When did you decide you wanted to start coaching?

EG: Around 1992 and 1993.

TLR: How many years have you been coaching and how many years have you been coaching for the university?

EG:  I’m going into my third year at SLU. I’ve probably been coaching all my life, I just didn’t have a team until 1993.

TLR: How did you become head coach of women’s basketball at Southeastern?

EG:  Faith, timing and prayers, mixed with the good fortune of coaching a lot of great young men who were from awesome families that both allowed and encouraged their sons to make a commitment and dedicate themselves to a process.   

TLR: What got you interested in coaching basketball?

EG: My love for sports and my infatuation with basketball.

TLR: You were an assistant coach for men’s basketball for the past two seasons, have you learned anything from Head Coach Jay Ladner?

EG: Definitely. I learned a ton working with Coach Ladner.

TLR: What do you think will be your biggest challenges heading into the season?

EG: Besides our opponents, patience.

TLR: What do you hope to improve from last season? 

EG: I wasn’t a part of Coach Moore’s staff so I don’t really know. The obvious answer is our record. However, a more truthful and meaningful answer to me is to change the mind-set of everyone affiliated with the women’s program and associated with SLU.

TLR: What is your favorite part about basketball? 

EG: There is no favorite part. What I love is how I have the opportunity to make a difference in someone’s life by using something we both love, basketball as the mechanism. It’s about helping people realize their gifts. How making commitments to something and to others, working hard and being faithful will bring about success in any field or arena.

TLR: Did you play basketball when you were younger? For how long? 

EG: Yes, I still love playing. It just takes me a lot longer to get up and down the court and to recover the next day.

TLR: What do you like to do on your off time?

EG: I’m not home much, but I love spending time with my family. I really wish I spent more time with them. That’s one of the reasons I love working at SLU, it’s a family oriented environment.

TLR: How do you balance coaching and your personal life?

EG: As I mentioned, I probably don’t do the best job balancing things between work and family. I’m just very thankful my wife and daughter are understanding and they make sacrifices so we can spend time together.

TLR: I have read that you and your wife have one child, were you an only child? 

EG: No. I’m the youngest, but I have a brother who lives in Laplace and my sister lives in Dallas.

TLR: How big of an influence is your family?

EG: Not an influence in coaching, but a huge influence in philosophy on faith, helping others better themselves, pride, honesty and hard work. Most of all, they’re my huge and constant support staff. I hope you realize I’m not just talking about my immediate family, I have an enormous family.

TLR: Was this always the path you wanted to take?

EG:  No. But I believe it’s the path God wants me on right now. For that, I’m truly blessed.

TLR: Did you expect to be where you are now twenty years ago?

EG: No. Twenty years ago I was too immersed into my calling at STA to think about twenty years from now. Heck, I was consumed with trying to make people take STA hoops serious.

TLR: While working, what is something that keeps you going throughout the day?

EG: The thought of failing or not doing my best. That scares me and motivates me through the day.

Coach Errol Gauff has been a member of the Hammond community for more than twenty years. Gauff  graduated from the University of Alabama in 1992 and was an assistant coach for the men’s basketball team last year.  He immediately decided to coach basketball for a living. He lives in Hammond with his wife Medria and his daughter Hailey Elizabeth.
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