Andy Hadfield grew up in Lehi, Utah, where his father and grandfather before him also lived. He played college football and returned home to build a life rooted in the same community that shaped him. After a friend invited him to casually help with basketball at Lehi High, he ended up as the head sophomore basketball coach, then joined the football staff under Coach Larson. He coached both sports simultaneously for six years before committing fully to football. As assistant coach for tight ends, he helped Lehi win three state championships and reach the semifinals six times in seven years. When Larson retired, the staff and community looked at Andy and said: 'Go get it.' He did. Outside coaching, he runs a local lawn care business and raises a family in Lehi. His daughter's cancer diagnosis at age four — and two years of treatment — permanently deepened his understanding of presence, gratitude, and what ordinary days are worth.
Life Lessons
- • The process is what makes you who you are.
- • Be where you’re supposed to be, doing what you’re supposed to be doing.
- • Comparison is the thief of joy.
- • Teach for perfection, knowing you’ll never achieve it.
- • If I have to force you to go to practice, we’re done.
- • Kids are generally good.
- • Potential is a really bad word.
- • It takes a village — we need each other.
Memorable Quotes
"Potential is a really bad word."
Andy Hadfield
The Steward and the Game — Andy Hadfield on Coaching, Fatherhood, and What Football Really Teaches
"Be where you’re supposed to be, doing what you’re supposed to be doing."
Andy Hadfield
The Steward and the Game — Andy Hadfield on Coaching, Fatherhood, and What Football Really Teaches
"If I have to force you to go to practice, we’re done."
Andy Hadfield
The Steward and the Game — Andy Hadfield on Coaching, Fatherhood, and What Football Really Teaches
"Comparison is the thief of joy."
Andy Hadfield
The Steward and the Game — Andy Hadfield on Coaching, Fatherhood, and What Football Really Teaches
"The process is what makes you who you are."
Andy Hadfield
The Steward and the Game — Andy Hadfield on Coaching, Fatherhood, and What Football Really Teaches
"Kids are generally good."
Andy Hadfield
The Steward and the Game — Andy Hadfield on Coaching, Fatherhood, and What Football Really Teaches
"Teach for perfection, expect perfection, knowing we’ll never achieve it."
Andy Hadfield
The Steward and the Game — Andy Hadfield on Coaching, Fatherhood, and What Football Really Teaches
"I wish there was another way."
Andy Hadfield
The Steward and the Game — Andy Hadfield on Coaching, Fatherhood, and What Football Really Teaches
Stories
Andy Hadfield
My Daughter's Cancer Changed Everything
When Andy’s daughter was four years old, she was diagnosed with cancer and underwent two years of treatment. Plans could disappear overnight — a vacation cancelled instantly because a fever sent them back to the hospital. The family learned to live day-by-day. That experience reshaped how Andy values presence, ordinary mornings, and the gift of being able to do something you love. 'When that gets taken away from you, you realize how important it is. I wish there was another way.' He doesn't romanticize what his family went through — he acknowledges plainly that suffering is not the lesson he would choose. But it became a profound teacher anyway.
Andy Hadfield
The Players Who Barely Played
Some of Andy's closest relationships are with players who almost never saw the field. They weren't physically gifted enough to start — there was always someone better ahead of them. But they showed up every day, sacrificed, worked hard, and refused to quit. 'Playing time and stats and college recruiting don't mean the season was a success. The effort you put in — that’s the story.' Andy describes putting his arm around these players and saying: 'This is just going to teach you to be a better person. You didn’t quit, and that matters.'
Andy Hadfield
The Coach Who Never Planned to Coach
Andy Hadfield's coaching journey began almost by accident. A friend — the head basketball coach at Lehi — asked if Andy would casually help out. What he thought would be 'popping in once or twice a week' turned into leading the sophomore basketball team. When that coach retired after one year, Andy thought his brief coaching chapter was over. Football players on his team introduced him to Coach Larson, who invited Andy onto the football staff after learning he'd played college ball. Andy said yes. He ended up coaching both basketball and football simultaneously for six years before committing fully to football — and eventually inheriting the head coaching role when Coach Larson retired.
Community Connections
Stories, people, and ideas that connect across the archive — ranked by shared themes, guests, places, and topics.
Related Episodes
(4)Behind the Coach's Whistle: Andy Hadfield's Story as Lehi HS Football Head Coach
Andy Hadfield
From California Wildfires to Utah's Pro-Life Movement: Merrilee Boyack's Journey
Merrilee Boyack
From Nursing to Missions: Joan Collett’s Story
Joan Collett
How One Family’s Farming Legacy Continues to Shape Lehi
Nathan Bushman
Related People
(4)Doug Webb
Former Principal, Lehi High School · Agriculture & Science Teacher · Lifelong Lehi Resident
Phil Hanks
Grandson of Ephraim Hanks · Mission President (Samoa) · Temple President (Samoa) · Church Education System Leader · Stake President · Senior Missionary (Ukraine, Freiburg) · Lehi Resident
Paige Albrecht
Lehi City Council Member, Attorney, Community Advocate
Lara Bangerter
Manager, Lehi Historical Society & Archives
Related Stories
(4)The Coach Who Never Planned to Coach
Andy Hadfield
My Daughter's Cancer Changed Everything
Andy Hadfield
The Players Who Barely Played
Andy Hadfield
Baby Land — A Place of Refuge Most People Don't Know About
Paige Albrecht
Related Quotes
(4)"Teach for perfection, expect perfection, knowing we’ll never achieve it."
— Andy Hadfield
"The hardest part of leadership is slowing down enough to take care of people."
— Doug Webb
"We are not meant to do this life alone."
— Ryan Harding
"I've had people sit in my office in tears because their kids can't afford anything here."
— Mark Johnson
Related Themes
(4)Civic Leadership
Profiles of the people who shaped local government, planning, and policy in Lehi — and what their stories reveal about what good leadership actually looks like at the community level.
Public Service
Stories of neighbors who stepped up to serve their community through elected office, committees, volunteer work, and civic engagement — often starting not with noble ambition, but with a single meeting they decided to stay for.
Family Legacy
The stories of families who planted roots in Lehi across generations — the ones who built the traditions, the parks, the businesses, and the sense of belonging that others now enjoy.
Community Resilience
How Lehi residents have navigated challenge, change, growth, and hardship — and emerged with optimism, connection, and a deeper appreciation for what they've built together.
Ways to Serve
(4)Mentor through the Miss Lehi Pageant
Miss Lehi Pageant
Volunteer for Lehi Roundup Committee
Lehi Roundup Committee
Mentor youth through the FFA program
Future Farmers of America (FFA)
Become a Buddy in the 'Stage for Everyone' Program
Lehi Arts Council