“Prayer!”
He added: “The amount of prayer that’s gone into our recruiting — opening doors, shutting doors — it’s been His perfect timing. That’s so evident.”
This year was no different than past seasons, but they hit on an unusually high number of newcomers.
They won spirited recruiting battles for Indiana high school stars Michael Cooper and Kellen Pickett. And the freshman pair have even exceeded expectations in making instant impacts.
No one really knows what they’re getting in the transfer portal, but the Raiders landed a starter from Stephen F. Austin in Dom Pangonis and arguably their MVP in do-it-all guard TJ Burch from Ball State.
But what the coaches hadn’t counted on was that so many would be like-minded in their Christian beliefs.
When they first started to gather as a team in June, the Raiders engaged in voluntary player-led Bible studies. They coaches were invited, too.
“I feel like believing in God, there’s no one higher than Him. Our team is big on that. When the season’s going on, it’s hard to find the time (for Bible studies). But in preseason, we did it, trying to get it in once a week,” Pangonis said.
“Last year, at SFA, I didn’t do that. We were still believing in God, being Christians. But it’s different when players demand it from each other, rather than the coaches.”
Asked how many of the players participate, Pangonis said: “Almost everyone.”
Along with reading the Word, the Raiders also discuss their personal lives. And they go deep.
Sargent said they started with an exercise called the “Six H’s,” which includes your heritage, hardships and hopes.
And it ended with a question: “What’s something internally you want to kill?”
It helps that Sargent is vulnerable and sets the tone by being authentic.
“We said, ‘What’s an area you struggle with, a sin area or whatever?’ I went first,” he said.
“It’s just an introspective look where you go, ‘Man, that’s something I need to kill.’ And then after you go, you pick somebody else. The answers in there — that I won’t go public with — were unbelievable.
“Only by the Holy Spirit would they unleash these comments. And that was week ONE. And these are COLLEGE kids.”
The Raiders by all accounts are unified — despite a 10-man rotation that requires them to make sacrifices in playing time. And it started with those sessions where players felt the freedom to bare their souls.
“It’s good when everyone’s got the same values. It shows up on the court,” Pangonis said.
Sargent, of course, realizes he’s hired to be a coach, but he also wants to fulfill his calling as a believer.
“These guys are in a window of time where they need truth and honesty. In this generation, they’re figuring out, man, we’ve been fed a lot of lies. We try to incorporate all that within what we do daily. We have some leadership on our team to help with that, Sam (Alamutu), Solomon (Callaghan). It’s important to them,” he said.
“The peer-to-peer influence is where it really happens. It’s not just me as a coach saying this is right, wrong or indifferent, but them as peers going through it and being unbelievably honest.”
Credit: JEREMY MILLER
Credit: JEREMY MILLER
After the debacle of last season, finishing 15-18 for the program’s first losing season in 10 years, Sargent purposely set out not to recruit Christians, but high-character players.
“It’s a sensitive subject because you’re trying to respect everybody’s beliefs and how they see the world. And the main point I make right away to people is we’re really trying to operate out of love,” he said.
“I’m going to be dead in a second,” he added — figuratively speaking, of course. “I’m going to be gone one day. It’s not going to be about wins and losses. It’s going to be, ‘Did you feed my sheep? Did you love them?’”
He knows he’ll have some detractors for his unapologetic approach to his faith. But he’s finding a receptive audience in the ones he’s paid to lead.
“Keeping faith as the highest priority in my life has been really important for me, especially going through lulls of the season. It’s not just basketball for me. I’m rooted in something way deeper than that. I’m rooted in faith,” Callaghan said.
“It’s great having a group of guys around me who are encouraging me in that and just keeping it the main thing.”
Next game
Who: Cleveland State or IU Indy at Wright State
When: 7 p.m. Wednesday
Streaming: ESPN+
Radio: 1410-AM, 101.5-FM
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