BY NATE KOTISSO | THE MONITOR
MISSION — Sharyland Pioneer secondary coach Doug Bulthuis has what most family-oriented adults long for: a delicate balance between work and family.
As the Diamondbacks (4-4, 3-3) are in the hunt for a playoff spot in District 31-5A, Doug and his son, defensive back Tyler Bulthuis, are enjoying their last run as coach and player.
“I consider myself lucky, because not many people can say their dad coached them (in high school),” Tyler said. “My dad’s an awesome, person and I want to be just like him. I’m super blessed to have him coach me.”
“I never pushed Tyler into football. It was just one of those things that they wanted to do,” Doug said. “But I’m enjoying it and having the time of my life.”
Doug’s journey began in his native Jackson, Michigan, a city a little more than an hour’s drive west of Detroit. Jackson, a moderately sized place of approximately 40,000 people when Doug was growing up, is best known to be the birthplace of state prisons in the United States.
Doug went on to play football at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, but he didn’t play much for then-WMU coach Jack Harbaugh, the father of eventual University of Michigan coach Jim and Baltimore Ravens coach John. Doug knew what his post-graduation plans would be.
“I knew I wanted to be around football, and I knew I wanted to be a coach,” Doug said. “I was in pre-med. I was in physical therapy for awhile, but when it came down to it, I wanted to be around football.”
Doug began his coaching career at Weslaco High in 1991 and continued on with one year at Corpus Christi Carroll, 17 years at McAllen High and a one-year stint at Weslaco East during the 2013 season.
The Bulthuis family lived in McAllen, so the commute and demands of the job crept into other parts of the coach’s life.
“The bad thing was, when I left in the morning, there are times I’d leave and the kids were asleep,” Doug said. “I’d come back at night, and they’d be asleep again.”
When Sharyland Pioneer opened in 2014, Doug thought it’d be a no-brainer to put in an application, at least.
“I wanted to be in the same place as my family,” Doug said. “Sharyland ISD’s a great place to raise a family and everything else. It’s just one of those things that opened up at the right place and right time.”
Doug became Pioneer’s secondary coach as his oldest son, Tyler, started his Pioneer career on the opposite side of the ball.
“That’s (quarterback) the position I played since the rec league and Boys & Girls Club days,” Tyler Bulthuis said. “I played a little quarterback during my freshman year. Sophomore year, I played some wide receiver, but the last two years I’ve been a defensive back.”
Tyler welcomed the position change with open arms.
“I was willing to do what was best for the team,” Tyler said. “And I’ve loved every minute of it so far.”
Tyler’s first season as a varsity safety last year yielded him three interceptions, five forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries in 11 games. This season, Tyler upped the ante to six interceptions, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery with two regular season games remaining.
“Tyler’s one of the few experienced guys coming back this year,” Sharyland Pioneer head coach Jason Wheeler said. “With the inexperience we had back there, he’s kind of like the quarterback of our secondary making sure everybody gets lined up.
“He did a great job of that in the Rio Grande City game (on Oct. 13). They motioned about three or four times before they snapped the ball one time. We had to shift three or four times, and Tyler was the one that got them all lined up. I was like, ‘Oh man, are they going to snap the ball?’ Sure enough, they did. Thank goodness we were lined up correctly, because they didn’t try that again.”