As a freshman at Monta Vista High School, Vance Walberg felt inspired by the coaching style of his P.E. teacher, Chuck Rogers. Though he had spent his life playing basketball with his six brothers, it wasn’t until then that Walberg realized that he could make his passion for basketball his career — as a coach. Fifty-one years later, the MVHS alum ‘74, who was the team’s MVP during his high school years and was California State University, Bakersfield’s team captain, lives his dream every day. Now, Walberg is a professional basketball coach who has worked at the high school, junior college and National Basketball Association levels, and is currently the head coach for the Fresno State Bulldogs, a Division I team.

Walberg’s experience at various levels of basketball has given him a nuanced understanding of the techniques and coaching required for the sport. While he says that junior college is the easiest to coach due to the lighter workload, and the NBA is the hardest, with 12 to 14-hour-long days of pure basketball, he always enjoys the experience of immersing himself fully in coaching players. To him, the best part of his job is seeing players grow through their years on the team, both as athletes and as people.

“Coaching is like a jigsaw puzzle,” Walberg said. “It’s really neat to put all the pieces together. For me, the high school level was great because we would work with our first graders all the way up to 12th grade. One of my last years at Clovis West High School, we had 17 players on the team, and 16 of them we’d had in the school district since first grade. You get to develop players, watch them change, watch them grow. Finally, when they’re done playing, you see what influence you had on them. A lot of them come back to watch games. I’ve coached a lot of their kids. It’s been a phenomenal experience.”

Walberg is credited with developing the dribble drive motion while at Fresno City College, an offensive strategy that relies on players dribbling towards the basket to force the other team’s defense to collapse. The strategy has been used in the NBA, the Philippine Basketball Association and beyond. To Walberg, this innovation wasn’t intentional — it happened naturally as a byproduct of his desire to learn from top coaches and adapt to his players’ strengths. Fresno State Bulldogs Associate Head Coach John Welch, who has been friends and colleagues with Walberg for over 30 years, says Walberg’s innovation influences his own coaching style.

“A lot of times I would be implementing different things and realize, ‘Oh, I got that from Vance,’” Welch said. “I’ve been fortunate to have worked with five or six Hall of Fame coaches, and I probably learned as much from him as I’ve learned from any of them.”

Walberg’s coaching record boasts winning seasons, championship titles and major team improvements. One such improvement was when he took over the Mountain View High School basketball program at the age of 22, bringing them from a losing 1-41 season to 11-11. To Walberg, discipline is the reason behind his success, and this is part of what Welch most admires about him. He highlights Walberg’s devotion to the sport, particularly how he commits to getting to practice at 5:30 a.m. every day. Walberg believes he can’t just expect discipline from his players — he has to model it for them first.

“The other day, one of my players didn’t feel good and didn’t want to practice,” Walberg said. “I told him how I’ve never missed a practice in my 48 years, with the exception of when my mother passed away. I’ve never been sick to a practice. Mentally, during the season, I just can’t and don’t let myself get sick. When the season’s over, I’ll crash and burn for one or two days, but during the season, I won’t miss anything.”

CWHS P.E. teacher and basketball coach Tyrone Jackson says Walberg’s influence on players extends far beyond instilling basketball skills and discipline. Walberg coached Jackson both at CWHS and later at Fresno City College, and Jackson credits Walberg with influencing him to become a basketball coach. While Jackson was a skilled player under Walberg’s guidance, winning California Player of the Year multiple times and bringing his team to league victories, he says the most important things he learned from Walberg were attention to detail and respect. These are values he tries to instill in his own players, like by making sure they treat custodians with as much respect as the principal, and show good sportsmanship.

“Coach Walberg taught us work ethic, discipline and the sacrifice needed to achieve something and to be great,” Jackson said. “He made sure I understood that you have to work hard and do your best every day, even through tough situations. He taught me a lot of resilience, and it was an honor to see someone sacrifice so much. He understands that building young men into men is bigger than basketball. It’s always been bigger than basketball.”

To Jackson, Walberg has always been more than a basketball coach — he’s been a father figure and life mentor to him since seventh grade.

“My father went to prison, and my mom was a single mother, so through trials and tribulations, it was a struggle,” Jackson said. “Coach Walberg and his wife took me in. I lived with them through high school, and they helped me out tremendously. Him being there for me during some of the worst times in a young man’s life, not having a father and having a single mom — that’s how we became close. His guidance propelled me to this position that I am in today. ”

Walberg’s own responses to setbacks have helped Jackson learn how to deal with the challenges he’s faced throughout his life. Walberg says getting fired from the Sacramento Kings and experiencing a physical injury and the death of his mother, which led him to step down from his coaching position at Pepperdine University in 2008, were some of the hardest things he’s experienced in his career. He emphasizes the impact his wife, Rose, has had on him as his biggest supporter. Despite experiencing struggles, he appreciates basketball and the opportunities coaching gives him. Walberg mentions sharing basketball with his family, as his four kids and 11 grandchildren all play the sport. To him, no matter how hard coaching might get, these rewards are what keeps him coming back season after season.

“I’ve been really blessed,” Walberg said. “You’re going to have good days, you’re going to have bad days. I say this all the time: I haven’t worked a day in my life so far. I get to go to work every day in shorts and tennis shoes. I enjoy what I do, and it’s really fun. Coaching has given me an awful lot. I think I’ve given it quite a bit, but it’s given me an awful lot more.”

This story was originally published on El Estoque on November 2, 2025.