Colorado Christian coach Tim Hays' unlikely journey from FCA staff to Australia to national champion

My dad may have been playing in the NBA at the time, but the best basketball games I remember from my childhood were the ones between my little brother, Seth, and me on our backyard basketball court in Charlotte, N.C. We’d play for hours and hours, oftentimes well into the night with the use of a bright stage light shining on the court, until our mom would yell out the window for us to come in. Those games would get pretty heated, but that was the norm for brothers as close as we were.

On the day he became an international sensation, Jeremy Lin feared for his NBA livelihood. Has irony ever been so thick?

But then, who could blame him? The previous night hadn’t gone well. In the New York Knicks’ 91-89 loss to Boston on Feb. 3, 2012, the point guard’s statistical line was wholly non-descript: two points, two rebounds, one assist, one turnover and two personal fouls in 6 minutes, 36 seconds of floor time.

Back in 1973, God had a plan for Steve Robinson, who’s become one of the most influential FCA staff members in the Tennessee area.

When he joined FCA, the former Tennessee Volunteer football player was promised a year’s salary, a company car and the opportunity to travel through a mission field ripe for spiritual growth within Nashville and Middle Tennessee. The young ministry had a foothold in just 15 area schools at the time.

Now, by God’s favor and grace, FCA’s influence can be felt in 234 schools across the region and in a growing number of FCA events, summer camps and retreats. Robinson will quickly deflect any praise to those working around him, but he is directly responsible for much of the growth in the area.