Coach Josh Franklin

It’s the best-case scenario for a coach. You resign from coaching immediately after winning the highest level championship for which your team can compete. That was the scene for Coach Josh Franklin of Cobden Appleknockers Softball.

Having known and worked with Coach Franklin for fourteen years, I was amazed when he announced that he would be leaving teaching and coaching to become an associate minister at his church. Josh had been a highly achieving athlete in high school and in college. He was an Academic All-American as a baseball and basketball player at Missouri Baptist College in St. Louis.

He coached boy’s basketball and later girl’s softball at Cobden. A year ago he was telling me that his softball team had a chance to be really good next year. He was right. I saw them play in the Illinois High School Class 1A Regional tournament and their pitcher threw a no-hitter. They progressed through the tournament and made their way to the championship game, won it and brought home the first state championship to this small, southern Illinois community, ever in any sport.

Coach Franklin had earlier told his team, the school board and others that he would resign at the end of the season. His successor had been chosen and everyone knew that this moment would come. They didn’t know the end of his coaching career would come equipped with a midnight caravan to the high school and a State Championship victory celebration.

Throughout his career as an athlete and as a coach, Josh played his heart out and now both sport and the Lord are paying him deeply in his soul. Do the same today and watch for a similar dividend paid in your heart.