Daniel Wall has been quietly coaching kids and changing lives at Eisenhower High for about five years.
Watch him on the sideline of any Lady Eagles game, and that is the description that comes to mind. Wall's unique relationship with his players is one of the first things you notice from the stands.
One can catch a glimpse of this during the starting lineup announcements. Rather than giving each player a simple fist bump after they complete their handshake rituals, Wall embraces them with a hug.
Although the gesture is unusual compared to traditional means, Wall said it displays the level of trust and respect between him and players.
His heart is big. His impact has been even bigger.
"Not all of our girls come from a perfect home environment, so being in that position, it's important for me to establish that the girls know Coach Wall loves them," Wall said. "That's me before games saying, 'I love you, go out and do the best you can'. Through those things, we're able to establish trust. I'd do anything for those girls, and I truly believe that they know that. They're like my kids."
However, when he started coaching, Wall had no idea the kind of influence he could have on high school athletes, especially young ladies. He admittedly volunteered to take the ninth-grade girls basketball job in 2014 as a way to make more money.
What he received in return was far more valuable than monetary compensation, though. He became a role model, teaching athletes he now considers his own children.
"My first year of coaching, that ninth-grade group included Jaeda Reed, Gena Rogers, Delicia Brown, Juliette Harvey and Destinee Rush," Wall said. "The next year, Jeff Mahoney was hired, and he got a different job and stepped away not too long before the season started, and I was pretty much told, 'You are the new girls' coach'. That's the role the Lord put me in for right now. He wants me to be a part of molding and shaping young ladies to become the women He would desire them to be, and that's women of purpose, women of character and for them to know they are loved, they are worthy and they are valuable.
"Teaching those things are a lot more important to me than teaching young ladies how to put a ball through the hoop. If they can do that, that's great, but what kind of person are they becoming when they leave?"
Athletes refer to him as a mentor, a father figure and a friend.
Although the spotlight rarely shines on the man who has led the Ike girls basketball program from irrelevancy to a title contender as the No. 1 team in Class 5A this season, his deeds haven't gone unnoticed by the seniors.
Destinee Rush said Wall is unlike any coach she's had in her playing career.
"The thing about him is -- he's a basketball coach, yes -- but he's more about character," Rush said. "He wants us to grow as young ladies and be good in school and classy. He's very close to us, and we love him dearly. We know that if anything happens, we can turn to him and he'll help us out.
"He's more off the margin of basketball also with building our character and helping us be successful in life. Right now, he's helping us with our FAFSA. Things like that are what we're thankful for."
Kelsey Donnelly said Wall helped change her outlook on basketball, making her a better teammate.
"He made me committed to the team," the senior said. "I used to be not really into commitment, but I got onto this basketball team and I've been very committed. I've been passionate about it. He's changed my attitude because I used to have a bad attitude. Now that I'm on the team, I have a better attitude and I'm a better person."
Jaeda Reed is another senior who has experienced change at the hands of Wall.
Reed is essentially the ace of the Lady Eagles, providing a dominant presence in the paint for teammates to take advantage of, game-in and game-out. Wall describes her as the team's rock and foundation because of not only her consistency on the basketball court, but also because of her character and brilliant mind.
Reed's accolades on the court even earned her a scholarship offer from Texas State.
However, she appreciates the fact Wall cares about more than developing only her athletic ability.
"He's just the type of guy who's not so focused on us being athletes," Reed said. "As he disciplines us for the mistakes that we've made, it's kind of helped me become the athlete and young lady I am today."
Of course, Wall knows when to tone down the intensity and have fun. Gena Rogers helped the Lady Eagles rally late in the second half to claim a win against Putnam City North on the road, and after Wall thanked her for her contribution, Rogers presented an interesting response.
"Coach Wall, somebody had to shut you up."
The ability to take jokes and jabs from his players is another quality that makes bonding with players even easier for Wall.
There are limits, though.
Delicia Brown, who returned this season after suffering an injury last year, said he "doesn't take just anything" from the team.
"We can't just do whatever we want," Brown said. "He wants only the best from us. He's not going to let us cuss or run slow in the sprints and have attitudes with one another or the coaches. After the Midwest City game, we had to run nearly the entire sixth hour, a good 45 minutes of running. If you have an attitude or something, you have to go do stairs for the rest of practice or he'll send you home."
The change in quality of basketball also indicates the impact Wall has had since taking over the program.
In both of his first two seasons at the helm, the Lady Eagles claimed at least one regional playoff victory. Last season, Ike made it all the way to the state tournament.
Rogers, who Wall said brings energy, passion and hustle to the court, said witnessing the ascension of the program has been a surreal experience.
"It's just crazy because our program was taken as a joke," Rogers said. "No one took it seriously; it was all for fun. We didn't do it to win state or even go to state. When Coach Wall came, it was an eye-opener because we weren't used to discipline, we weren't used to working hard. We slowly, one at a time, started giving in to the program, and when we gave in, it was successful, so we just put all of our faith in him."
One thing is clear -- Wall has Ike ready for a state championship run thanks to the culture change he's created through his coaching techniques.
The tools are there, it is simply about execution for here.
Wall said it would mean a lot to claim the program's first state championship because the players and the coaches commit so much to being successful.
"It would be great for our community and our school," Wall said. "It takes a whole group to accomplish what we've been able to accomplish, and we've been blessed to get to the position we are. It takes a great and loyal coaching staff buying in, and it also takes these young ladies going to work every day and having great attitudes and being disciplined.
"Winding down to the end of the season, we've set goals, and for our program, it's important that we do everything that we can to make sure these seniors move on to their next stage of life having accomplished the goals we set at the beginning of the season."
Regardless of how the postseason plays out, Wall said he will miss this group of seniors immensely because they've been with him since Day 1 of his coaching journey. Despite that, he acknowledges bigger and better things are on the horizon for them, and he can't wait to see them excel in life.
"Senior Night was tough," Wall said. "This is the first group that's actually our group, and they're going to leave. They're going to go out and do amazing things and come back to tell us all about it. That'll be the payoff for me as a coach -- when those things happen."