COLUMN: Peripatetic Ronan grad returns home

May 16—Nate Harris was well-traveled by the time he was a second-grader, so it makes sense that his coaching career can be described the same way.

Hired a couple weeks ago by incoming Montana Lady Griz coach Brian Holsinger, the Ronan High graduate is adding assistant duties at UM to a resume that includes Montana State and, in years prior, MSU-Billings.

Before that — way before that — Harris' parents were teaching in Poplar (he was born in Sidney), Lewistown and Colstrip before landing in Ronan. This was more permanent, and Harris started matriculating through Pablo School.

A decade later, he was a 6-foot-5 post player on a Ronan basketball team that lost to Leo Bullchild-and-Mike Chavez-led Browning 80-62 in the State A title game.

"We were lucky we had Zachary Pitts," Harris remembered. "We were down two at half, and a lot of that was because of him."

It may have also had a little bit to do with head coach Jim Stergar — who has since guided Billings Central to seven State A championship games, with two titles in the last three seasons — and of course, Harris.

He laughs.

"Jim Stergar would always say, if I got Athlete of the Weeik they should call it 'player of the week' because there's not an athletic bone in his body,'" Harris said.

Then he added his own scouting report:

"Talented offensive player. A reluctant defender. But I was good to work with."

Against this backdrop Harris has carved out a niche as a defensive coach.

"It's funny," he allowed. "If you watch me play, even at noon ball, it's more of a, 'Do as I say, not as I do,' thing. It's a reputation built on the backs of players who have done all the work."

He doesn't name names: The 37-year-old has coached too many players and been too many places to single out even a few.

As Holsinger became the guy to take over the proud Lady Griz program, it made sense that Harris would follow. He was playing at Montana Tech when Holsinger was named head coach for the Orediggers' women's basketball team in 2005.

Harris began his own coaching career in 2007-08 as a men's assistant at Tech, and continued with men's basketball for a season at Fresno Pacific. Then, in 2011, he took an assistant's spot with MSU-Billings women's coach Kevin Woodin.

Call it coincidence if you like, but Harris' arrival in Billings and then Bozeman coincided with unprecedented heights for those programs. The Yellowjackets played for a spot in the Division II Elite 8 in 2014; and while Harris was in his first season on Tricia Binford's Bobcat staff the next season, MSU-Billings did make the Elite 8.

"That team was so together," he said of the Jackets. "We made the Regional championship game, and we had beaten Montana State the year before (in 2012-13)."

In October of 2013 Harris was with the Jackets when they lost at Montana 69-65 in an exhibition. The next season he was with MSU, which oddly enough began to win more and more in what had been a very lopsided intrastate series.

Through all the time, Harris and Holsinger, an assistant at Washington State and Oregon State, stayed in touch: They were a pair of well-established women's basketball assistants. This wasn't on purpose.

"I was coaching at Fresno Pacific and we were starting our family and the job we ended up getting was with Coach Woodin at MSU-Billings," he said. "Another tremendous human being.

"I do have four daughters, so it has started to make more sense over time, that it would be a good fit. Just wanting opportunities for my daughters and how much we have to fight for those things for young women."

Harris' wife Elise is a Missoula Big Sky graduate, and so this move — he had been head women's coach at Angelo State in Texas the last two seasons — makes even more sense.

That and Holsinger, in Harris' words, "Is really good."

So back "home" comes Harris, helping another program reach possibly new heights — a lofty goal given Robin Selvig's success at UM.

"We are excited to be back in Montana," Harris said. "It's great to be close to family but especially to be at the University, and be a part of this culture that Brian is going to build. I think it's going to be awesome."

Fritz Neighbor can be reached at 758-4463 or fneighbor@dailyinterlake.com.