Coach

"I ain't gonna die waitin' on salvation."

- Coach

Coach is one of the four playable survivors in Left 4 Dead 2.

Official Description
Age: 44

Hometown: Savannah, GA

Nicknames: Blackie, Nig (both used by Nick but later cut out of original game due to protest)

Coach has a big heart, a healthy appetite, and a wicked swing with a chainsaw. After a knee injury ended his career as a defensive lineman in college, Coach salvaged his Physical Education degree (barely) and landed a job teaching health at the local high school in his hometown of Savannah.

Working as a defensive coordinator for the freshmen team might not have been the best path to a pro coaching career; but it’s come in pretty handy in guiding a group of Survivors to safety. Coach has watched his beloved hometown get ravaged by infected—now it’s time to deliver his own brand of Southern hospitality.

Relationships with other Survivors
Like Bill, Coach stands out as the leader of the group. As of now it is a bit unclear what Coach's disposition towards the other survivors is.


 * Ellis: Coach and Ellis don't seem to have much of an evident relationship. Being native Georgians (unlike the other two survivors) they are genuinely friendly to each other, and don't openly make fun of each other very often. Coach may often treat Ellis like a kid, calling him "Young'un" on several occasions. They also liked Whispering Oaks carnival and are Fans of the race car driver Jimmy Gibbs Jr. and the Midnight Riders, which might be why they get along well.
 * Nick: Nick and Coach appear to have a "love-hate" relationship, similar to what Francis and Bill have. They often make fun of each other, and it is apparent that Coach dislikes Nick's attitude, but both seem unhappy to see the other die.
 * Rochelle: Rochelle appears to like Coach in a way that somewhat resembles Zoey's and Bill's relationship. They act friendly to each other, but not in a romantic way. They compliment each other, and are quite unhappy to see the other die. Coach often refers to Rochelle as little sister meaning they may be related, but this is unlikely and and probably just means they are very close.

Quotes
"See: Coach/Quotes"

Trivia

 * Coach seems to despise Witches to the point that he refers to them as, 'Bitches', instead of Witches, though he refers to most of the other Infected as "bitches" as well. This hatred could stem from witches enjoying the smell of sweet things, making chocolate (something Coach enjoys) a risk to either obtain, carry or eat.
 * Coach appears to have a slight west-Southeastern accent, occasionally dropping his R's and G's.
 * He may also be somewhat religious as he usually makes comments referring to the Bible and stating the last time he saw his grandmother, she asked if he was still a praying man. Also during Dead Center, he will sometimes close his eyes and pray that the team can make it through the mall alive, and that the food court is still intact (because he is obviously overweight).
 * Bill and Coach have many things in common. According to their back-stories, both Bill and Coach have knee injuries. They also are the oldest in their group, and have a dislike for climbing stairs. On top of that, they both have a different physical disadvantage. Bill's disadvantage is that he's older than anyone out of the two groups. On the other hand, Coach's disadvantage is that he is overweight, preventing him doing similar things to Bill. (Note how Bill is quite healthy for his age).
 * "Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death" is a quote from the Bible, Psalms 23:4.
 * In an issue of PC Gamer, the original concepts of the Coach can be seen, including a skinny coach, a white coach, and a coach in football shoulder pads used as armor. He also holds a bow and arrows (depicted in the gallery below).
 * Coach appears to hold a pistol or Magnum with only one hand when his health is lower than 40 HP.
 * It seems from the new trailer he highly enjoys chocolate, as he is seen eating a bar of it and Nick teases him with the idea of a chocolate helicopter to lead him up stairs quickly.
 * In this same scene Coach asks "Who the hell puts an evac station up thirty flights of goddamn stairs?". This is a possible reference to Mercy Hospital which had an evac station on the roof and had thirty floors as well.
 * Coach's shirt has the abbreviation "FHS," which implies that the school at which he coached has a name that starts with an 'F' (F... High School). His shirt is also purple and yellow where it says FHS, which implies that his school colors are purple and yellow.
 * Some of Coach's audio files hint at the military killing uninfected civilians, which could possibly tie in with the graffiti about carriers in The Parish's first safe house.
 * According to many official videos as well as his description, Coach's weapon of choice is the Chainsaw.
 * Coach's wireframe is the same one used for Team Fortress 2's Heavy.
 * When Ellis says he would take a bullet for Jimmy Gibbs Jr., Coach says "Amen", suggesting that he too likes Mr. Gibbs.
 * Much like Ellis, he too is a fan on the Midnight Riders even claiming to have all of their CDs and their "new stuff that ain't no good".
 * Coach has the habit to read signs throughout the campaigns.