A wife, three kids and two teams

Somewhere around Olympia High School, wherever Todd McDougall is coaching, there’s a good chance you’ll see his three young children, too.

They’ve practically grown up on the athletic fields at the school, spending countless hours having fun and just being kids.

And not too far away is always their dad – either on the sidelines of Ingersoll Stadium or in the dugout of Crandall Field.

Sometimes on Friday nights during football season, McDougall’s children – 8-year-old daughter Marlee and 5-year-old twin boys Andrew and Dylan – can be seen on the playground at Pioneer Elementary School. Every so often, they peer through the fence to catch a glimpse of the action on the field.

During the baseball season, they’re at Crandall Field a few times a week.

When Olympia’s baseball season ended in late May, McDougall knew he had something special to look forward to during the final few weeks of school: picking up his children from school and hearing about their day.

It’s something he can’t often do during the school year because he’s a coach for two of Olympia’s varsity teams – the head coach of the baseball team and an assistant coach for the football team.

“I like being able to do that stuff,” McDougall said of picking up his kids after school. “I can’t do that during the season.”

But on this day, Father’s Day, as has been the case on so many Father’s Days, McDougall isn’t spending the day with his children. He’s with his home-away-from-home family – Olympia’s football players.

McDougall and some other members of the Bears’ coaching staff are with 133 Olympia football players at Oregon State University’s team camp in Corvallis, Ore.

Over the years, a football team camp has fallen on either the weekend of Father’s Day, or McDougall’s birthday, June 25.

“I always get a gift from the kids, but I don’t know if I’ve ever been home for Father’s Day,” McDougall said. “At least once. It’s rare.”

Double-duty dad

In a time when more and more athletes specialize in one sport, McDougall is a part of a shrinking club – those who coach more than one varsity sport.

McDougall has coached baseball and football at Olympia since the mid-1990s.

He was hired as the Bears’ head baseball coach in 1993 and just finished his 16th season at the helm of the program. He led Olympia to its second straight Narrows League Bay Division title and Class 4A state playoff berth this season.

McDougall moved up the assistant coaches’ ladder during his 14 years under Bears football coach Bill Beattie and has been the team’s defensive coordinator since 2001.

Beattie said coaches don’t often coach more than one sport anymore because they have so many commitments during the offseason.

“You’re seeing so much emphasis on out-of-season stuff, playing year-round and going to camps,” Beattie said. “It makes it very difficult to coach multiple sports.”

For McDougall, it is a balancing act between teaching English at Olympia, coaching two high school sports and having a family life.

“I’m getting better at it,” said McDougall, 38.

A few years ago, McDougall seriously thought about giving up coaching baseball. But then-athletic director Eric Rowe talked him out of it. And McDougall is glad he stayed with it.

He no longer coaches the summer program he started and doesn’t do the routine maintenance on the baseball fields. He’s been able to pass those tasks to some of his assistants.

Twelve-hour days are the norm – and so is participating in two sports.

McDougall played football and baseball at Stadium High School and transitioned smoothly into coaching two sports, too.

He says he does something involving one of the two sports every day – year-round – even if it’s only for five minutes.

“There are times when it’s hard to be there,” McDougall said. “When that gets more and more, that’s when you know it’s time to go. But I still like it and still enjoy it. The bond you have with the guys you coach, it’s totally worth it.”

At one point a few years ago, he and his wife, Julie, were both coaching. Julie, who teaches at Marshall Middle School, coached volleyball at Olympia before the couple’s sons were born.

After the boys were born, Todd and Julie that a change was necessary.

“Something had to give, and (coaching volleyball) is what gave,” Julie said.

The next generation

Neither Todd nor Julie has a strong interest in coaching their kids just yet. Andrew and Dylan recently finished their T-ball season, during which Todd helped out with the team.

It was the same situation with Marlee when she was playing soccer, one of her favorite sports. She’s also taking ballet.

“I like it when he comes,” said Marlee, who just finished second grade at McKenny Elementary.

As the children spend time near their dad, both on and off the field, Todd and Julie see them being drawn into playing sports as they get older.

“My guess is they’ll spend a lot of time on the fields, and eventually, they’ll want to give it a shot,” Todd said.

Perhaps even coaching, too.

Meg Wochnick: 360-754-5473

mwochnick@theolympian.com