Jim Murphy brings passion - loads and loads of it - to Hope Christian basketball in New Mexico

Does anyone on this planet love basketball more than Jim Murphy, the head boys coach at Hope Christian (Albuquerque)?

The 55-year-old Murphy entered his 32nd year at Hope with a 681-188 record and has a good shot at surpassing 700 this year, which would place him No. 4 in state history. His 12 state titles already have tied the state record held by legendary Ralph Tasker of Hobbs. He has sent 22 players to college basketball programs -  four to Division I - from a school with 425 students in grades 9-12.

Though he claims no particular style, his teams always can be counted on to play hard-nosed defense.

Records aside, it seems that every game is a life-or-death proposition to Murphy, because his passion borders on the fanatical. He has missed just one-half of two games during his coaching career. His dedication is based partly on insistence that his players never miss, either. To ensure this, he makes up his schedule (including many summer games) a year ahead so the parents can find a brief "hole" to fit in their vacations. No excuses accepted.

Murphy missed one half of a game due to taking a Master's degree test and the other because he got stuck in an elevator at a hotel.

On the first occasion, his good friend and assistant of 10 years, Lon Perry, told MaxPreps, "He told the JV and C team coaches to 'Call as many timeouts as you can.' He came in sprinting."

And there are many other examples of why Murphy lives basketball 24/7.

* His wife, Angela, is a nurse, and when their three children were young he often had to babysit and would be conducting practices while "screaming and yelling with a baby on his back," according to Perry.
 
* When his daughter, Charity, was around 5 years old, he got in such a hurry to leave for the state tournament that he left her in the gym. About 15 minutes later, he realized his error and quickly returned. Apparently she was not hurt by the trauma because today she is a standout defensive stopper for the Hope girls team.

* At age 55 he still plays pickup basketball three days a week at 6 a.m. with other coaches and alumni. Perry recalled, "When he turned 50 we put a rocking chair in the middle of the court and sang happy birthday to him."

* While driving the team bus to road games, he looks back at times to talk game strategy with his assistant coaches, causing the bus to rattle on the scarred edges of the road. Players delight in counting 1-2-3, etc.

* He took an Athletes in Action team to Spain one summer and his high school teams have been averaging around 120 games over the past eight years. One of their favorite stops is a major tourney in Las Vegas where they face big-time players like current NBA star John Wall.

* His passion is neatly summed up in this quote: "Big games get you pumped up just like the kids."

Perry noted, "We get our butts whipped, but we stay there and watch games 24/7. We also go the Nike Clinic. Coach never stops learning. Our wives tease us that we spend more time on the courts than with our wives. They understand because this is our only vice. We don't drink or party."
 
Even Murphy is a little surprised that he didn't wind up following his father into the ministry.

He jokes, "I have a tendency to preach to my players and maybe that fulfills my dad's wishes for me."

Actually, he probably could blame his father - and brothers - for encouraging him to play sports growing up in Johnson City, N.Y. Their church had a gym and he spent many happy hours there playing hoops. He wound up playing four years of basketball, two of baseball and one of football and graduating from Johnson City in 1977.

A 6-foot-2 guard, he then played four years of basketball at Division III Messiah College in Harrisburg, Pa. While there he received an encouraging letter from his freshman basketball coach back in Johnson City. It mentioned his passion and love for the game and hinted that maybe he could give back what he had gotten from the game. He still has that letter.

With that seed planted, he wound up graduating in 1982. Thanks to his future wife, he moved to Albuquerque where her father was a college professor and was offered a job as a girls basketball coach and Bible teacher at Hope Christian. His first team compiled an 18-7 record, but the next year the boys job opened and he launched a career that brought Hope its first boys state title in 1985 with a 27-1 record.

"I think it was God's hand in that," he said of planting his highly successful roots in Albuquerque.

He actually did give up teaching (not coaching) for one year to pastor his church, Sandia Chapel, but after one more half year of helping out he has not regularly manned a pulpit since then.

He enjoyed his preaching days, but he is the first to admit, "My heart was in the gym."

Murphy has coached one undefeated team (the 29-0 Class 2A state champions in 2001-02) and has been saddled with just two losing seasons.

Though he has made the coveted New Mexico Hall of Honor, his greatest thrill probably was coaching his three sons. Josh played for Hope's 2006 state champions, Matt played for the 2009 and 2010 champs and Micah played for the 2011 and 2013 champs. Matt is the school's No. 2 career scorer, while Micah left his mark in assists and steals.

The low point of his career probably came during the 2012 state title game which may have been lost due to a malfunctioning scoreboard. In the closing seconds, the clock didn't start on time and the Huskies were nipped by St. Michael's (Santa Fe).

"It should have been over and we would have won," Murphy recalled. "We didn't make any excuses or point any fingers. I told the kids that we were winners despite what the scoreboard said. We got redemption the next year with less talent and beat the same team.."

Though Murphy no longer teaches Bible - now being full-time athletic director - he realizes that he lives a fish-bowl type of existence because teenagers don't miss anything. One year he gave a chapel talk about the Good Samaritan who stopped to help a man who had been beaten and robbed and left at the side of a road.

Well, while driving the team bus to a road game, he came across a hitchhiker.

"Remember what you said (at chapel)," they reminded him.

He recalled, "I started to pull over, but I realized (from his appearance) that he was drunk and would endanger the kids. The kids were just roaring. I wanted to help him, but I wanted to protect the kids. I'm kind of a second father to these kids - sometimes a first father."

So he left the man standing, because his players' safety was most important.

Murphy has coached several second-generation players. One of his assistant coaches, Lance Milford, played for Murphy and his son, Dedrick Milford, is a current player.

Milford has a unique look at Murphy from a player and coach's perspective.

He points out, "First and foremost he is a very Godly man. He's constantly trying to relate Christian principles to us. He still demands players to work hard. His motto is ACTS: Attitude, Committed To Team Success. He is all about team. Back then (when he was a player) he was a lot more calm, cool and collected," he laughed. "He didn't allow any kind of complaining - no talking to referees. He would get on us. There was a sort of reverence and fear.

"Being an adult now there is a tremendous difference. I really respect him a lot more now, because he's always trying to improve, learn and get better as a coach. He really immerses himself in the game. He's so good at teaching these boys different principles that they can take on in their lives."

Perry probably knows Murphy the best since he is more like a brother than an assistant coach.

He says being around Murphy is "like working with a badger. Everything down to tying a shoe is important to him. He's an old fashioned disciplinarian - a John Wooden kind of guy. Everything with us relates to the Bible. Resting and taking a day off is not an option. We are so much alike. He's a mentor to everybody and a great guy."

Perry does admit, however, that Murphy has his problems with technology.

"He can't operate a computer or cell phone," Perry said. "He gets so frustrated. When he sent his first text, he got so excited."

How long will Murphy coach?

Perry already has asked him to at least stay until his third grade son, Noah, graduates. Murphy's first grandchild is due this year. Maybe he'll coach until his grandchild graduates. Who knows? Retirement probably never will be an option.

However, there's an immediate problem facing the driven coach this summer. Hope's annual tournament in Las Vegas is scheduled at the same time as a family reunion.