Why I Coach Debate
by Mike Bietz
Founder of Debate Matters
I coach debate. Strategically, seriously… and because I love it.
The best moments in debate come when you, your assistant coaches (for me, all of whom have been brilliant and dedicated), and your students all know exactly what you’re working toward — and you’re working toward it together. I’ve been privileged to work with students and assistant coaches who consistently brought me into some of debate’s biggest rounds — from final rounds at the TOC, NDCA, and NSDA Nationals, to those at nearly every major regular season invitational tournament. We won often. We lost sometimes. But the work we did together — the preparation, trust, and shared purpose — mattered more than the outcome.
After more than 25 years as a camp director, head coach, and community leader, I realized I’d found my purpose — not just in coaching, but in creating the conditions for others to thrive. I get the same charge when a coach and debater I’ve helped place together find their rhythm and start chasing the kind of moments I once shared with my own teams.
Why I Started Debate Matters
I started Debate Matters to help make more of those connections happen — not just between students and me, but between students and the mentors who will believe in them, challenge them, and help them see what they’re capable of. The right coach at the right time? It changes everything. Helping people find that match is still one of the most meaningful parts of my job.
Coaching Coaches
Some of the most fulfilling work I’ve done has been with educators just starting out — people with sharp minds and big hearts, figuring out how to make debate their own. Whether they stay in the activity or take those skills elsewhere, it matters.
Debate isn’t just about chasing trophies. It’s about building something lasting — in students, in teams, in the activity itself.
What I Believe About Debate
Make no mistake, I’m in it for the game.
The late-night card cutting. The pre-round crunch time. The overwhelming nerves during that agonizing stretch between the final word of the last rebuttal and the moment the judges announce their decisions in a big round. And the post-round hugs or head-shakes — and, let’s be honest, it’s tears no matter the outcome.
Debate is bigger than the game alone.
Debate is transformational for everyone involved. It teaches students to think harder, listen better, ask bigger questions, and fight for what matters. It demands clarity, courage, and the willingness to engage — not just to win, but to analyze, agitate, and advocate when it matters most.
Debate should be a wide-open marketplace of ideas, for all wanting a voice.
My job is to help students find coaches who will walk into that space with them — prepared, committed, and ready to meet the moment together.