Head basketball coach Ken George is worried about how his team will handle adversity this year. After graduating seven seniors and losing a key transfer, it’s not a matter of if the adversity will hit, but when. However, new student teacher Chris Hutton will be on the sidelines with George, and he knows a thing or two about overcoming adversity.

Going into his senior season on the Albion basketball team, Hutton had tendons in three fingers sliced through while working on a lawnmower during a summer job. That injury required him to redshirt and try again the next year. It took a full year of recovery and a lot of rehab before he was able to play basketball again.

“Obviously his hand injury was something you couldn’t control,” said Jody May, who was the head coach at Albion College while Hutton was there. “It was just a terrible accident. I knew in the bottom of my heart that if Chris was able to return to basketball, he would work as hard as he could to do it.”

It was seven months before the season when he was cleared to play and on that same day Hutton played in a summer league game. On one fateful drive to the hoop, Hutton attempted a spin move. The only problem was that while the rest of his body spun, his left leg was still planted and trapped by an opposing player’s foot. Initially he didn’t think it was that bad of an injury, but upon further diagnosis it was realized that he had torn his ACL.

“[Coming back from the ACL tear] was hard,” Hutton said. “I knew at that point that if I wanted to play my last year I was going to have to do surgery. That same week I went into surgery and then I started rehab the day I got out.”

For Hutton, a guy who had never had a serious injury until those two freak accidents, having to undergo so much rehab in such a short amount of time was strange. He said that being able to do rehab at the University of Michigan and Albion College at the same time was a big reason why he was able to come back from his injury so quickly.

“I was getting double the therapy every day for almost six months,” Hutton said. “I was pushing myself probably more than I should have been. But I think at the same time my body was able to handle it and it got me back and able to play for almost my entire senior year. I think I missed four games waiting for the doctor’s clearance.”

Those around him were thrilled to see him back on the floor. The coaches at Albion were especially ecstatic since they knew how much work he put in just to be able to come back from the injuries.

“I always thought Chris had a great work ethic when it came to basketball,” May said. “For him to be able to see the floor after two serious injuries shows how hard he worked.”

Hutton was able to come back very well considering the injuries he sustained, averaging just under ten points per game with a couple of rebounds and assists to go along with it.

“I think I finished strong for my last year,” Hutton said. “For me, I feel blessed because I could’ve been not playing at all on two separate occasions. To not give up and just finish that year out was a great accomplishment for me.”

He finished his time at Albion and is now a graduate student at Grand Valley State University.  He is working on becoming a physical education teacher, which is actually what led him to FHC.

When he learned that he was going to student teach, he began by looking at his hometown of Lapeer and schools around Grand Rapids as potential destinations. When it eventually got down to FHC and Lapeer, GVSU chose for him. For Hutton, ending up at FHC proved to be the perfect match, as he will get to help coach – something he has always wanted to do.

“I don’t want to say that it’s the main reason,” Hutton said, “but [coaching] has definitely been an influence on why I went into teaching. I want to coach. I want to be involved with basketball and athletics somehow.”

George is looking forward to having him on his staff as well and realizes that he is able to bring something to the table that most aren’t able to do.

“He’ll be an invaluable part of our staff,” George said. “He’s young enough to relate as a player and talented enough to be respected by the players as a coach. I’m sure our guys will love having him on staff.”

While Hutton is definitely looking forward to coaching, teaching is on the forefront of his mind as well.

Right now, he is student-teaching with Physical Education teacher David Mills. He works in many classes ranging from Fit for Life to Strength and Conditioning. He feels as though he would be better suited for a strength and conditioning type of class when he gets his own job.

“I feel like all [gym classes] are important,” Hutton said. “I enjoy doing fitness and weight lifting types of classes just because of past experiences in sports. Also, having gone through rehab I know a lot of different things that other people might not know.”

Hutton sees another way in which his injuries could help him while teaching.

“I think it’s really about all of the values that I learned during that time,” Hutton said. “I think I will be able to incorporate that into my own teaching style and just how I come across to my students or other coworkers.”

Hutton has endured things in his life that few people will ever have go through but those around him know that those things will only end up helping him later on in life.

“Chris will be an excellent physical education teacher because of the adversity he has gone through,” May said. “He knows that if you want something bad enough, hard work will get you there.”