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Join Coach Q for an inspiring conversation with Pottsville High School senior basketball player Kade Breautigum. Fresh off a huge rivalry win against Dardanelle, Kade shares his journey from second grade training to senior leadership, discussing the mental challenges high school athletes face, balancing academics with athletics, and his plans to study engineering at Arkansas Tech. From overcoming burnout to developing relentless defense, Kade offers honest insights about small-town basketball, community support, and the grind of a loaded conference schedule. Whether you're a young athlete, parent, or coach, this episode delivers practical wisdom about dedication, goal-setting, and finding rewarding moments in the journey. Plus, get the inside scoop on Pottsville's tight-knit basketball program and what it takes to represent your community at the highest level.
Interviewing the student athletes of the River Valley
Hello, everyone. How y' all doing? I'm Quentin Collins. We're here at the Coach's Corner, and I have a very, very special guest today. I've known this young man for quite some while now. You know, I coached him. I've trained him. He's a very great young man. Hard worker, knows what he wants to do in life, just like in all the other guests. So I'm gonna allow him to introduce himself to y'. All. My name is K. Brodagum. I go to Pottsville High School. I'm a senior this year. I've been working with Q for. Well, probably about second grade, right? Yes, sir, something like that. And if I have that picture. So if we can. Can we put that picture of Kate and I from back in the day, you know, so that they can see how long it's been? So. Yeah. I appreciate you for being here. I know you had a long game last night. Congratulations on the win against the rival, Darnell. How long has that been since y' all beaten them? Well, last year, we played him five times and obviously lost all five year before. I think we. That was the last time we won my sophomore year. Okay, nice, Nice. I know that was pretty exciting for y', all, you know, to get that win. Oh, yeah. Nice. Conference win. First conference game. Okay. Awesome. Awesome. So now we're just going to get into a little Q A part of it and, you know, just. Anything you want to answer, don't answer, that's perfectly fine. So you've introduced yourself, but can you tell us what position you play in basketball? I mean, it's pretty much wherever coach wants me to go. Right. I'm not really. I'm not really set to anything, but I usually play A. Like a three. Okay. Okay. Two or three. Gotcha. What's one word that your teammates would use to describe you? Probably say relentless. Okay. Because, sir, I mean, they know. They all know me as a defender. Right. So they know I'm always gonna be right there. Right. And he's a defender, but don't get it twisted. He can't get some buckets. Okay. You know, so, yeah, that's what's up. So how did you get into basketball? My grandpa kind of built it into me. Okay. When I was really little. Okay. We'd always go shoot on the driveway at their house. But he. He played in college, in high school, so I was always kind of looked up to him. Okay. Nice, Nice. And if I remember, do you are. You did wear his number? I did. I did. Okay. Nice. Nice. So do you remember your first basketball game that you ever played? Not really. Not really, to be honest, it's been a while. Okay. No doubt, no doubt. So who or what inspires you to work hard every day? I probably say my mom and my dad. Okay. Because, I mean, they. They do everything for me. Right. Right. Yeah. So shout out to Carrie and Kenneth. Y' all raised a great young man for sure. Definitely. Definitely. So when you're not playing basketball, what do you like to do? Well, this last couple of years, I've been picking up golf. Okay. Pretty. Okay. Big. How's that been going? It's been pretty good. I kind of been building my bag up. I got one of those little starter sets. Okay. Been building my bag, and, yeah, I've gotten a lot better since I started. So definitely. Definitely. I played golf one time, and I liked it, you know, but I just wasn't as good, you know, as everybody that I went with, so that, you know, that competitive nature. I was wanting to swing and do that, and they were like, yeah, you just take it easy. Just have fun. So. But I liked it, though, and it's been years since I played. But, you know, that game, what is it, you know, you in the course. Yeah. You know, type of deal. Yeah. So definitely. I could definitely see that. For sure. So for the younger athletes that are listening, what made you fall in love with the basketball and keep. Kept you coming back? It's just so rewarding. Like, you put in all the work you do, and. And when you finally see it all come out on the court. Yes, sir. And it's like, it's. It's an unreal feeling. Right. It's just like a relief. Like. Like you. You kind of get that affirmation. Like, I. I did that. Right. So it's just. Yes. I feel like it's really rewarding. Definitely. Definitely. Great answer. So what is a triple training week look. Look like for you during the season? So during the season, it's not. Certainly not as hard as offseason, but it's more focused on, like, just reps, and instead of trying to learn new stuff, just a lot of catch and shoot shots, a lot of ball handling stuff, and still get in the weight room a little bit, obviously more working on keeping myself flexible and still being able to move pretty good. Yes, sir. Instead of trying to bulk up any. Right. Do you work out on your own? Like, as far as hitting the gym, on your own with the weights? Okay. Yep. That's very important. I'm glad you do that. So as a Senior, how has your role. How has your role on the team changed compared to when you were a sophomore? Oh, it's. It's definitely changed a lot, really. Just depending on how our team, like, looked at the time. So, like, on my sophomore year, we were pretty guard heavy, right. And I was a little bit. I was stronger for my age, so. Right. I could play bigger than I was. Okay. So I don't. I'd play like a four. Right. And I'd be able to set screens and just. My role is pretty much go rebound. Yes, sir. Shoot. Keep shooting. Yes, sir. So can you share a moment when things didn't go your way or maybe a loss or setback that you learned from? I'd say probably last year playing Dardanelle. Obviously, it's a rival game. We all want to win it, but it's just like, I feel like, really defeated every time we lost because, like, why can't we get over the hump, right? It's. It was just. It felt like it just. We couldn't get over it. Right. And for those wondering, Pottsville and Darnell that are in. Aren't in Arkansas or aren't familiar with it, Pottsville and Darnell is like Duke in North Carolina. It's right across the bridge, and it's big rivals. Just to give you a little, you know, insight on how big the game was last night and how big the games are when they play each other. So how do you stay disciplined when motivation is low? I definitely just pray about it. A lot of times, if you're devoted to something like, especially sports, you'll get. Get burnout. Yes, sir. And obviously, I feel like a lot of high school athletes have gone through that. I went through that this summer. Yes, sir. But like I said earlier, the game's so rewarding when you see it all come out on the court. That's all you need to just keep yourself going. Yes, and that is so true. You know, anything that you're going to do for a long period of time, there may. Or, you know, you. There may have that. There may be that burnout period where it's like, do I want to continue to do this? And mentally, you have to find something that keeps you going or someone or, you know, that can occupy that. I'm not really feeling this anymore type of, you know, motivation, as we say. So what's one habit training or that you think is the biggest difference in your development? I think this year, the biggest thing has just been, like, I get up every morning, like, and get myself Going. And then on Mondays and Fridays, I come to you and yes, sir, we'll get our, like, agility and yes, sir, jumping training in. I feel like that's been probably one of the biggest differences this year. Right. On just getting myself up in the morning. That way I'm fully awake by the time, obviously I gotta go to school. And then when I get to practice, I'm already 100% going. That is very true. That's what the great ones do. And you're a young, great man, so that doesn't surprise me for sure. So how do you balance school, basketball, family and a social life? That's something, you know, that the younger athletes may want to know. Especially with your success that you've had at Pottsville. And I'm sure the younger kids have seen you and know you. You know, how do you balance all that? It's difficult. It really is. A lot of times you just got to make time for it all. Like, there's gonna be a time and place for everything. So. Right. I try to get all my basketball stuff knocked out in the morning. Right. Like the stuff I'm doing on my own. Right. Obviously I'll have games and stuff. I can't really change the time on that. But I knock all my stuff out in the morning. That way if I want to spend, like I can spend time with my family right throughout the day right after that, so. Right. That's very true. And especially in yalls age, yalls generation and social media, you know, it can be hard. You know, y' all grew some. You know, y' all grew up on, you know, the social media, the Internet, you know, there's a screen in your face. So, you know, it's kind of hard to shut it off. But when you do shut it off, you know, that's a good thing. Yeah, I try to limit myself to probably about 2 hours, 2, 3 hours on my phone for all day, so. Right. That way, like, obviously. And you said with school, that's. That comes first. So no matter if I have basketball or not, I gotta get that done first. So. And, you know, you'll hear my generation or older generations, you know, say, just get off the social media. Da da da da. Or this and that, you know. Yeah, you can, you know, but there's. It was easier for us. Cause it wasn't around. So all we had to do was go outside. So how can we say, oh, we wouldn't be on it, you know, and our younger selves probably would if we're on it now, as Adults, you know, so that Yalls generation, I think y' all handle that well, you know. Cause it can be, you know, as you playing sports and you know, looking on the comments and things like that. So especially with the mental health aspect of it, you know. So, you know, that's a good part that you limit yourself and what you see and how long you're on it because that can be detrimental to your play and just your overall well being, you know. So that's, that's very good. What's something that. What's something your parents might not realize that high school athletes go through mentally or physically? I think a lot of it is like the burnout kind of aspect of it. Right. Especially with high school and depending on how your schedule is with classes. About this time of year is when it gets really hard. Like I was telling mom last night after the game, I was like, yeah, this is, this is where the grind starts. Because we got January, February. April. Yes, January, February, March. Right. And January and February is loaded. We got two games a week. Right. Some of them are two and a half hour drives. We'll be back at midnight. Right. And just. You'll definitely start to feel. Be feeling it by about third or fourth game and then you still got five more. So. Yes. Then once you get into March, it's. You got regionals and then you go state. If you make it, then state is different animal. We figured that out last year, right? No doubt. So the younger or not the younger, the smaller schools. You know, I haven't uh, Obviously I graduated from Russellville, but I haven't really or ever been familiar with like the, the regional. So what is it regional then? So first we play our district. Okay. We'll have our conference champ. And then depending on how we do in the conference, we'll seed us into that district district tournament. And then after that, how we doing that? Seeds us into the regional tournament. Right. And then the regional tournament goes to the state tournament. Right. And I said smaller. They have that in bigger cities as well. It's just depending on, you know, when I was. It was just conference and then state, so, you know, we didn't have the district or. Yeah, there's anything. There's just. There's a lot of teams forays. So it, you kind of gotta. Gotcha. Got a couple tournaments. Yeah, right, right. I understand that. If you could go back and talk to your 8 to 10 year old self, what advice would you give? I'd probably say just keep going. Like you'll, you'll go through that Burnout stage. But just keep going because it's going to be so rewarding by the end of it all. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. And then you'll start to feel. Feel the happiness of senior success and how much work you put in, so. Yes, sir. Because I'm sure K with the goggles, if y' all remember that picture that we. That we showed y', all, I'm sure he'd be like, oh, yeah, I'm. I'm definitely him. I'm definitely him. So. For sure, man. So what are your goals? You know, do you have any goals after basketball that you want to do or. I would say, since I'm going to tech, I'm going to tech for engineering. Okay. I'd like to get a pretty good job doing that. And then obviously, I want to have a family one day. That's one of my big goals. Right, right. Just have a family like I've had. Right. Because it's completely shaped my life the way it is. Yes, sir. So. Yes, sir, definitely. And how do you. How has playing sports. Do you think playing sports will help you for the next chapter in your life? Oh, yeah, for sure. It'll. It. I mean, it teaches you desk discipline and holding yourself accountable and holding other people accountable as well. Yes. And always kind of having to look on the bright side of things. Right, right, yes. And try to work your way through everything, so. Yes. Yes. Yeah. I think any type of activity, sport to where, you know, you have to have a schedule, have a game, I mean, it could be chess, it could be anything, I think is good, you know, for young kids so that they can have that discipline and that. That motivation, that. That drive that, you know, waking up, wanting to do something, you know, so that's very good that you already have that in mind. Like, I always tell the kids that. I mean, the last two young gentlemen that I've trained, I didn't know what I was going to do. You know, I was like, I'm NBA. Then all of sudden, wait a minute, life started hitting me. So, yeah, you know, that's great that you wanted to do that. So now I'm just going to get into a little, you know, fun community. You're from Pottsville. Very small, tight community. What's it like playing there? It's awesome. I love. I love playing there. Right. A lot of people show up to the games. No matter if they have kids there or not, they'll. They'll show out and they'll always be cheering for us. And especially when we go, like, we Go to rivalry games and conference games. It's always packed. They'll fill up, fill up the gym. So it's. It's definitely awesome having a community like that to back us up. Right. Did a lot of them show, show up last year? Oh, yeah. Okay. Nice. I. I saw. I'd seen probably everybody I know from Pottsville walking out of the locker room. So tell us a little bit about your team. What makes them a special group? Well, a lot of them, I've been. I moved to Potsville in fifth grade from Russellville, so. Right. I've grown up with a lot of them for, I mean, most of our lives. So it's. It's just been cool seeing us all grow. And obviously the ones that have quit, Right. We miss them, but the ones that have stuck to it, we all understand how much of a grind it's been. Yes, sir. And I feel like that's what brings us all together. Right. And then even the younger ones, like, we've been with them three throughout the years, so. Right. It's been. It's been pretty cool. Okay. Who's someone on your team that you think doesn't get enough credit? I'd probably say Eli. Maudi. He's one of the ones that doesn't get a whole lot of hype over anything, but. Okay. He's always there. Like just this year, he hadn't got to play very much because he's. He broke something in his wrist in practice one day. Okay. And hadn't got to play or shoot the bar, like, anything for like a couple months. Right. And he's. He's there at every. Every game, every practice. Right. Every shoot around, every open gym. Right. And I mean, he doesn't get to play, but it don't matter. He's still there, so. Right. I was looking at the score sheet. You brought his name up. Did he hit some big shots? Oh, yeah. Last night was huge. Okay. Okay. I seen where I think he hit. Did he hit 2, 3 hit back to back in overtime. Nice. And kind of let us pull away a little bit. Right. Because we got. We hit those two threes and then we kept getting stopped. So it was huge. Yes, sir. That's awesome. That's awesome. So what are your short term and long term goals for basketball? Short term probably obviously want to win the conference. I like, I'd like to make it deeper in the state this year than we did last year. So how far did y' all go last year? We made it the second round. We pulled a tough Mills team. Okay. In that second round. So it was. Right, it was, it was a tough game. We kind of got dug ourselves a hole in the first half and yes, we outscored in the second half but it was okay. It was just we dug to the deeper hole in that first half. Right, right. You say that you're going to go to Tech for engineering. Do you plan on playing basketball there or are you just going to go for. Oh, I'd like to. Okay. Okay. I'd definitely like to. Yeah. Awesome. Do you watch any pro players or try to model your game after them? I've been watching a lot of Shay Gilgis. He's good one. He's been, he's been one. I've been watching a lot. No doubt. Just how good he can create contact. Yes. Get himself to the line and. Yes. Still be able to get his mid range. Yes. And you know a lot of people don't like that. Oh he gets this foul or. And it's like he's playing within the rules of the game. Yeah. So he's doing exactly what he should do. I mean that's, I mean yeah, he's not doing nothing crazy but he's sure good at what he does, so. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. What would it mean to you to represent Pottsville at the next level? It would definitely mean a lot to me especially like all the people have come up to me after the games and stuff and come out of the game or whatever. Right. It's nice to be able to represent them at the next level, sir. So are there any kids that run up to you and ask for your autograph? Have any of them done that? No. Okay. Okay. No doubt. So this is just going to be a quick lightning round just to kind of, you know, give some insight on what you like to do. Just more about K they say. They say. So what's your favorite pregame meal? Probably Chick Fil A. We had Chick Fil A last night, so. Okay. No doubt, no doubt. Do you have a favorite song that you listen to before you play? Not really. Not really. I kind of just lock in, press play and. Okay. Just let it. Whatever's going to play, play. So do you have a hype ritual or a pre game ritual that you do before the game? Not really, I just kind of. I don't really. I kind of go off on my own a little bit and just kind of think to myself about how the game's gonna go and kind of. I just keep my thoughts together and calm myself down because obviously pre game nerves and Stuff. So, I mean, I'll just kind of lock myself in and get ready. Yes, sir. Do you. What type of shoes are you wearing? Do you have a favorite pair of shoes? I've been wearing the GT cut threes. They're. They've been pretty good. Okay, nice, Nice. If you could watch any basketball player. In history, who would it be like in person? Yeah, probably Michael Jordan. Michael Jordan. Yeah. Yep. Yeah, that's probably a lot of people's answers, just because, you know, our generation is always talking about him. You can see the film, but just seeing a game is like. And, you know, he was definitely that guy. Yeah, for sure. For sure. Yeah. Either him or probably young Kobe. Right, right. I had the older Kobe. Okay, Okay. I want to see the young Coke. Oh, yeah, man. Kobe. I seen him, you know, when he first came into the league. I remember him, you know, air ball in threes and just couldn't figure it out. But, you know, he kept grinding. And you would see it year after year, like. Oh, yeah, you see it. And I would say, you know, 99, 2000, once they won that first championship, you could see, like, the work that he was putting in the. The mentality that he had, you know. For sure, for sure. Do you have any pregame superstitions that you do or. I'm not a. I'm not a superstitious person, so. No doubt. No doubt. What's the best advice you receive from your coach? To keep shooting. Right. Even when I'm not. Even if I'm not confident in my shot, just to keep shooting. Right. Because that can be a hard thing for a basketball player or shooter. If they don't see that first one, then the next two or three is off. It's like, mentally, and I'm speaking that from experience, it was like, man. So, you know, that's like. Feels like there's a lid on it. You know, am I gonna hit one? Like, what's going on? So definitely. So that's good that you have that. Cause, you know, it's easy, especially, you know, with how we were saying social media and players to get down on themselves that could cause that drift. And, you know, so that's very important, you know, that you keep a positive mindset and, you know, keep trying to do what you can do to help the team win and get those games. For sure. What would. What advice would you give to the younger athletes that are just starting out? Just have fun with it. Don't. Don't put too much pressure on it and, like, be able to enjoy it. And not think of it as a job, because it's not. Yet. It's not. You're not in the NBA. You're not a professional. Come on. You're not getting paid to do it. So just enjoy it as a kid. Yes. Yes. And still I thought one of my big problems, I didn't make. I didn't make time at first to go do fun things and stuff. Right. Which, I mean, you need to be in the gym and stuff, but you also need to make time for yourself and have relationships with other people, so. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. Yep. And, you know, you're still young. You still got that time. So, you know, it's. You know, you're doing what you love, and you'll look back and, you know, you may be like, you know, I am kind of glad I did that. You still may not be like that, but that's okay because you still have a lot of time ahead of yourself. So that's the most important thing. What do you want people to remember about you, both on and off the court? I just want them to remember me as a hard worker, somebody that goes out and earns what they get and it's not just given to them. Right, Right. Definitely. You've definitely worked for it. You know, I'm proof of that. You know, you come in ready to work, never complain, always, you know, doing it. I may crack a joke in there, and you may smirk, and then, you know, you're right to it. So I can very, you know, testify to that. For sure. For sure. How can. How can the Pottsville community support you and other athletes better? Like I said earlier, just showing up at the Games, it means the world to us. When we look out there and our people are there. Right. Not just family, but friends and friends of friends and just people that will show up just to watch you play, it means the world. Yes, sir. Pottsville community, y' all do an awesome job of doing that. Like I say, I'm not from there, but a lot of athletes that, you know, come to me and train are from Pottsville, you know, like yourself. And I will say that they do support their athletes in all the sports and everything going on. So, you know, that's kudos to them for sure. Where can people follow you at? You know, do you have a social. Media handle on Instagram? Just on Instagram? Do you want them. Do you want them to, you know, see what you got, or do you not want. You don't have to. I don't. I don't think I have. I don't think I have any videos on there. I think I got, like, one or two. Right. I don't really post much. Right. No doubt, no doubt, no doubt. Yeah. That's, you know, pretty much all the questions I had to ask for you. Do you have anything else that you want to, you know, let the people know? When is your next basketball game? Is it Tuesday? Tuesday. Tuesday. It means is, I think, either at me and. Or at home. Okay. And if they want to check you out and see how you play, where is there, you know, everybody can watch on TV now. Is there Arkansas Sports Network. Okay. And then the YouTube channel is Apaches on ASN. Okay. Awesome. Awesome. Yep. Go check him out. He's a great young man on and off the court. Kate, I want to thank you for your time. I know you're tired, so I appreciate you getting up. Thanks for having me do this interview. And until next time, I'm Quentin Collins. This is the coach's corner, and I'll see y' all later. Thank you.