Jackson and Nate Arnold help push each other, Gulf Breeze boys volleyball

Nate Arnold was already playing beach volleyball a bit, and was part of the C2 Attack Volleyball Club in Tennessee.

He and a couple friends, including Spencer Smith – also a beach player – went to a Choctaw boys volleyball practice and had one simple thought.

“Why can’t we do this in Santa Rosa County?” they asked.

A group of parents in the Gulf Breeze area gauged interest in creating an area high school boys volleyball team. There was already a handful of beach and indoor players involved in different programs throughout the southeast, and Gulf Breeze High would be the host school.

The Dolphins had players from Gulf Breeze, obviously, while gaining others from Navarre and Central – like Arnold.

When the team was announced, Nate’s older brother, Jackson Arnold – a Central alum and a standout volleyball player who played collegiately at Webber International University – initially said he’d come and watch the team play.

After a few weeks without anyone willing to step in and build a program from the ground up, Jackson was approached to be the head coach.

“I started thinking about it and thought this would be a great way for me to give back to the game that gave me everything,” Jackson said. “I decided to do it, and I’ve enjoyed it ever since.”

That’s not to say there wasn’t any hesitation. Arnold, in his early 20s, still tries to play as much volleyball as he can. While there are times he wishes he could play the game he loves a little bit more, coaching that same game has its own rewards.

“I still get that same competitive rush and that same family feeling of being part of a team,” Jackson said. “It did help that Nate was part of the team. … I know that I have someone to tell me, ‘Hey, we didn’t like what happened at practice or this drill, and this is why.’ It’s a good feedback loop where there’s no feelings hurt and it all comes from a positive place. It’s never an attack or a negative outcome. It’s always a good amount of feedback that filters through.”

The Dolphins joined the FHSAA ranks in 2024, making it to the region tournament in their inaugural campaign. On April 30, Gulf Breeze claimed its first district championship, earning an automatic bid into the region tournament this time around.

And the rest, as they say, is history.

“Hopefully we can extend the season as much as possible. I’m just trying to take it all day by day, enjoying the process of what I was thinking on Day 1 here to what I’m thinking now with the team I have,” Jackson said. “We’ve had growth as a team, building the culture and community.”

A family within the family

When Gulf Breeze first got to practicing, building the culture and a team family was one of the top priorities for Jackson.

It helped that the not-blood-related family of the growing team was bolstered by blood-related brothers − brothers who had already played high levels of volleyball in Tennessee at C2 and around different parts of the country in both indoor and beach.

Jackson Arnold had played for about a year-and-a-half before Nate got the volleyball bug. They joined C2 at the same time, though were part of different age-group teams.

“We have our own experiences, being in different age groups. His age group was a little better suited nationally than mine was in his first year,” Jackson said. “Volleyball’s one of those sports where you learn a lot by traveling with your teammates and your family. It’s one of the coolest aspects of the sport.”

“It was cool to see more guys play volleyball,” said Nate, who noted that boys volleyball is more popular throughout the Midwest.

But a few years of traveling definitely took its toll. That’s when the opportunity for the Gulf Breeze varsity team took shape.

“Playing locally is a lot more fun and a lot easier on me, instead of having to travel every weekend,” Nate said.

All they had to do was get enough players to field a roster, while building the foundation. Thanks to the different personalities of the Arnold brothers – Jackson is more of a “vocal and communicative” leader while Nate talks on the “showing” leader – they made it work.

“He’s a different leader than what I am, which is a good mix,” Jackson said. “It’s a good cop-bad cop situation. … (Nate’s) going to do it himself and show it he’s able to do it, rather than telling people how to do it. Younger players will start picking up on his good habits and replicate those.”

“I thought we’d be teaching a lot of guys to play volleyball. I was fine with that,” Nate said. “But I’ve been pleasantly surprised that we have a lot of volleyball players instead of just athletes in Year 1 and Year 2.”

‘A really good understanding of responsibilities’

Having your older brother as your coach doesn’t come without its struggles. Even if they are light-hearted at times.

“I get questions all the time, ‘What’s Jackson doing at practice?’” Nate said with a laugh. “I tell them, ‘I don’t know, he doesn’t tell me anything. I know as much as you do.’”

Teaming up has also allowed the Arnold brothers’ relationship to grow even more. After practices and games, Jackson and Nate can “deep-dive” into what went right or wrong, and why it happened.

Opportunities also present themselves for Nate to be a “buffer” or the middle man between the coach and other players.

“Sometimes players don’t want to tell their coaches what’s going on. Sometimes they’d rather just tough it out. Nate is good about being able to explain situations,” Jackson said. “Or, if other players don’t understand something I’m saying, Nate can put it in better terms so they understand it.”

Being at practice or in games together allows the duo to see each other grow in different aspects of life and in their own volleyball journeys.

Nate noted Jackson’s maturity, taking on the responsibility of leading a high-level high school team, and, in some instances, being just a few years older than the players he’s coaching.

“From a coaching perspective, I think that’s helped Jackson develop even more as a player,” Nate said.

Jackson’s noticed even more of a boost in Nate’s volleyball IQ and assessment of the game from both an analytical and “feeling” side of the game.

“You’ve got to be able to identify who’s in a good rhythm and who’s not. I’ve definitely seen Nate grow in his decision-making, based upon those factors,” Jackson said. “As a teammate with emotional intelligence, he’s grown. He’s found ways to pick up his teammates.”

But, at the end of the day, they’re still brothers. Now, they’re just working together on a common goal for the Dolphins.

“I just have to forget he’s my brother whenever we’re at practice or at games. It’s Coach Jackson, not my brother Jackson,” Nate said.

“If you have a sibling, you know how it is. Everything’s always competitive. But whenever he’s on the court and I’m coaching, we have a really good understanding of responsibilities and boundaries. My responsibility is to provide this team with the best opportunity, and Nate’s responsibility is to execute the gameplan on the court,” Jackson said. “Yes, I am his coach. And yes, we are brothers. But he understands that I’m doing him an injustice if I don’t push him as hard – if not harder – than his teammates. Our team will not be as strong as if he is not pushed to his limit, as well.”