Assistant coaches have a very important role in every sport, whether it includes different coaches for each position, event group, or just for the whole team. Many times, the assistant coaches don't get the glory or recognition that head coaches receive, which makes their position even more difficult. Most of the time, assistant coaches have their job because they love their sport and they love coaching. Here are four things that assistant coaches do that you might not know about: 

1. The Recruiting Process

At the collegiate level, head coaches are very busy taking care of their own team. This means that the recruiting process is just another item added to their to-do list. Most assistant coaches are a key factor in the recruiting process whether it is finding and reaching out to the athletes, taking them on visits around campus, or just being someone the athlete can talk to if the head coach is caught up.

2. Position or Event Groups 

In most sports, there are different positions or events where more than one coach is needed in order to provide every athlete with the necessary attention. Assistant coaches specialize in a group to coach while the head coach looks over the whole team to make sure everything is running smoothly. Not having an assistant coach would mean that the athlete-to-coach ratio would be very high and athletes wouldn't get enough 1-on-1 attention.

3. Game or Meet Schedules 

While head coaches have the final say in the schedules, the assistant coach makes sure that the team is fully scheduled and everyone is cleared to play. They also help the team set up transportation to get to and from the game. Unless the team has a team manager, the assistant coach will also likely be in charge of coordinating food on game days.

4. Coordinating a Practice Plan

Although many people think that the head coach comes up with the practice plan, most of the time all of the coaches work together to come up with the best plan for their athletes. The assistant coaches give each team the opportunity to have different practice plans based on position or event depending on what the team needs to improve on. The more coaches, the more that athletes will get out of practice each and every day.