Coaches see their athletes almost every day, which means a coach is often the first adult to notice that something has changed. Most coaches are not trained clinicians, and they do not need to be. What they need is a way to start the conversation and a clear path for what happens next. This guide covers both, drawing on guidance from TrueSport and the NCAA's own mental health resources.
Start before there is a crisis
- Do not wait for a problem. Psychiatrist Dr. David Conant-Norville tells coaches the conversation about mental wellness should start before there is one, so that talking about it feels normal long before it feels urgent (see Sources).
- Lead with performance when an athlete is skeptical. Conant-Norville suggests framing mental wellness as part of performing well: your health is only as good as your mental health, and an athlete cannot function at their best without it.
- Build the habit early. Short check-ins during the season, and simple tools like a minute of quiet breathing at the start or end of practice, make the harder conversations less strange when they come.
Go in with observations, not conclusions
- Name what you have actually seen. Longtime college coach Mark Potter, writing for the NCAA, advises watching for changes in behavior, even subtle ones, rather than assuming an athlete will simply shake something off (see Sources).
- Signs are observations, not a diagnosis. The International Olympic Committee's Sport Mental Health Recognition Tool, listed in the NCAA's Mental Health Best Practices, is designed so coaches and other non-clinical staff can recognize a possible concern. Recognition is the coach's job. Diagnosis is not.
- Skip the ambush opening. Conant-Norville warns against starting with "tell me about your emotions," which puts most athletes on the defensive. An observation works better: "I have noticed you have been quieter since the road trip. How are things?"
What to say when you sit down
- Choose a private, unhurried setting. A quick word after practice in front of teammates will not open anything. A quiet office, a walk to the parking lot, or a few minutes before everyone arrives will.
- Ask open questions and listen. "How are things going?" and "What has this week been like for you?" go further than a checklist. Let silences happen.
- Give permission. Potter's experience, after his own depression, is that athletes are often conditioned to hide struggle, and that many simply need permission to get help. A coach can give exactly that: "It is okay to get support for this. A lot of athletes do."
- Offer a concrete next step, not a fix. The goal of the conversation is not to solve anything. It is to connect the athlete to the right support: "I know who we can talk to at school, and I can help you set it up."
Know your lane and your referral path
- Coaches are not therapists. Conant-Norville is direct about this: if you suspect an athlete is dealing with a mental health problem, your role is to make sure they get help from an expert.
- Use your school's process. The NCAA's Mental Health Best Practices call for every member school to have a written and rehearsed mental health action plan with well-defined referral pathways for both routine and emergency care, and NCAA legislation requires schools to make mental health services and resources available to student-athletes consistent with those best practices (see Sources). Find your school's plan now, before you need it, so the next step is a door you already know how to open.
- Stay in your lane afterward. Once the handoff happens, keep being the coach. Check in as a coach would, respect the athlete's privacy, and let the professionals do the clinical work.
- Know the training baseline where you coach. In California, for example, our guide to California AB 1985 coach mental health training explains what the state expects of coaches who work with student athletes.
If you suspect a crisis
Treat it as urgent the same day. Follow the emergency pathway in your school's mental health action plan rather than handling it alone. If you ever suspect an athlete is in crisis, the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is available around the clock by call or text to 988, and the NCAA lists it among its core crisis resources for member schools (see Sources).
A whole-person check-in
At Wilson4Q we are innovating a new category of wellness: emotional fitness. It is an education framework for athletes and the people who support them. Feelings do not live in a separate box from the rest of an athlete's life: the four quadrants of athlete wellness look at physical, mental, emotional and spiritual wellness together. The free 4Q check-in is a starting point for reflection across all four. It is not a diagnosis and not a substitute for licensed care.
Your next step
- Read How coaches can support athlete mental health (without being a therapist)
- Read California AB 1985: mental health training for coaches
- Browse more guides for coaches
- Explore training and certification for coaches
- Try the free 4Q check-in with your athletes