Thirty-eight years after coaching his first game at Carleton, men’s basketball coach Guy Kalland is hanging up the towel. And while he’s experienced unprecedented on-court success during his tenure—three-time MIAC Coach of the Year, 24 playoff appearances, a conference title, and the program’s first invitation to the NCAA Division III national tournament—Kalland is most proud of the relationships he’s forged and maintained with players and fellow coaches, past and present.
When asked to name a favorite moment, in fact, Kalland doesn’t reference any one game or season, but instead points to times when “his kids” achieved goals—on court and off—that they’d set for themselves and each other. Celebrating those moments, he says, always “feels the sweetest.”
During his last season, Kalland gave those around him another reason to celebrate: Already Carleton’s all-time winningest coach, he coached his 500th victory, a milestone that only five others in MIAC history can claim.
Kalland is the “gold standard” for physical education, athletics, and recreation faculty and staff, says athletic director Gerald Young, who marvels at his colleague’s ability to consistently produce “some of the most successful and well-rounded young men” to ever wear the maize and blue.