MILWAUKEE — Participating in athletics can be challenging whether you’re an athlete or a coach. But it also has the opportunity to help one grow and develop as a person. Someone who knows this firsthand is Bryant & Stratton College’s head men’s basketball coach, Charles “Chuck” Ruffing.

Ruffing, a native of De Pere, Wisconsin, grew up playing sports and while they played a role in his life, it was his family that significantly impacted him from a young age, especially two of his siblings, Andrew and Annemarie, who have autism.

“I think having siblings with autism has given me a unique and positive perspective on life,” Ruffing said. “They’ve been a massive blessing and have played a large role in who I am today.” 

His parents, Terri Sneckenberg Ruffing and Charles Ruffing also had a profound impact on him becoming a coach. His long-time girlfriend, AudriAnn Schwindt, has always provided encouragement. 

“My mom was a swimmer at the University of Oklahoma,” Chuck said. “I believe [she] was a three or four-time state champ and an All-American, so she was big time. She likes to rub it in my face all the time about being a former D-1 athlete.

“My father has been instrumental towards my career in coaching. He’s always been my rock and the person I bounce ideas off of and has been extremely supportive of my career. But he is in competition with girlfriend AudriAnn, who has been with me through the highs and lows of coaching throughout the last four years. She was a softball player at Mt. Mary so she understands the demands of the job.”

While his family plays a vital role in his life, others influenced him, like the Pritzl family, who sparked his love for basketball.

“I was probably in fourth or fifth grade and Brian Pritzl, a coach at De Pere, came up to me and asked me if I wanted to play,” Chuck said. “His son Brandon and I became best friends. He went on to play at Hillsdale and his younger brother, Brevin, played at Wisconsin.”

Chuck’s love for basketball continued to grow and he played travel ball with the Wisconsin Blizzard and Milwaukee Spartans. He even had the opportunity to play alongside future Marquette basketball star Vander Blue.

His basketball career continued at the collegiate level and Chuck’s first minutes were played at Marian University. He played 50 games with the Sabres and recorded 86 points, 64 rebounds and 80 assists. As a sophomore, he recorded 58 assists, which was the second most for the team that season. Chuck played his final two seasons at Concordia-Chicago and he went on to be named a Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) scholar-athlete as a senior. 

Chuck knew his playing days were coming to an end and he wanted to get into coaching. It was former Marian associate basketball coach, Marcus Weigert who planted the seed in Chuck’s mind. 

“He pretty much told me that I need to get into coaching as soon as I’m done,” Chuck said. “He’s definitely somebody that encouraged me to get into coaching and actually helped me get my first job at Franklin College in Indiana.”

Chuck worked under Kerry Prather, who racked up over 500 wins as the head basketball coach of the Grizzlies. He took those lessons to Rockford University, where he spent four years as the Regents’ assistant basketball coach and helped the program reach the NACC Tournament for the first time since 2012. Chuck took another job, this time at Wisconsin Lutheran College (WLC), where he worked for current head basketball coach Aaron Aanonsen.

“He challenged me to continue to learn and study the game more than anybody else I’d ever worked for,” Chuck said. “He also taught me that you have to continue to grow as a coach, too.”

Chuck’s coaching journey continued when he became the head basketball coach at West Bend East High School, where he helped the program capture its first regional championship in 20 years. He then took another assistant role with his former team in Marian under Drake Diener.

“Working for Diener was a lot of fun,” Chuck said. “My first season there, I was fortunate enough to be a part of one of the biggest turnarounds in college basketball. The year prior to me getting there, I think they won three games, and we won 19 in year one. We went to the D-III NCAA Tournament but lost to Platteville. He gave me a lot of responsibility within the program, which was extremely rare … it was really good for my growth as a coach, and it helped prepare me for the position that I’m in today.”

Today, Chuck is the Bobcats’ head coach and he led them to a 23-10 overall record and the NJCAA Region 4 Championship. He’s now entering his second year as a JUCO head coach and being able to see a number of players prosper and grow is why he believes Bryant & Stratton is a special place to play. 

“I think it’s a really good opportunity for guys to find out where they’re at,” Chuck said. “You have South Sub who’s won a national championship, MATC that’s won a national championship and I think the unique thing about being at a junior college like Bryant & Stratton is you've got guys that are going to different levels of college basketball. The player of the year last year, Jemel Jones, is going to play D-I. We got a guy like Parker Grant, who’s going to play D-II and an All-American in Karter [Thomas], who’s going to play D-III. It’s fun to watch these guys grow and develop at this level, even though we do only have them for a short time.”

Chuck’s been fortunate to be surrounded by plenty of mentors and it’s helped him find success. As he and his staff prepare for the upcoming season, there’s sure to be added pressure, but he’s ready to capitalize on everything he’s learned and lead the Bryant & Stratton men’s basketball program to the national tournament for the first time.

“I think pressure’s good. Pressure has the ability to burst pipes or create diamonds.” Chuck said. “I don’t think it’s something that I really think about, though, because I’m extremely confident in the work that we do. When you care about the right stuff and you’re focused on what really matters, the pressure kind of takes care of itself.”