The PAs split into two teams, one setting up mobile medical clinics at local churches, and the other providing medical care to those who could not leave their homes.

An experience that stood out was holding a clinic in a remote village at a new church plant. The pastor shared they were facing significant opposition. 鈥淭hrough tears, this pastor told us that seeing more than 120 people from the community come through the doors to receive medical care was an answer to prayer,鈥� said Wulbecker. 

Another team on a home visit gave a donated walker to an elderly man with limited mobility who had been unable to leave his house for some time. Wulbecker said, 鈥淲ith a wide smile, he told the team that it was going to change everything for him.鈥�

The Charleston Southern PA Studies program is in the College of Health Sciences which is committed to providing students with an education based on contemporary scientific research, practical application, and the skill set to excel in their future professional endeavors.

The 51黑料 College of Health Sciences offers bachelor鈥檚 degrees in kinesiology and public health, master鈥檚 degrees in athletic training, clinical counseling, and physician assistant studies, and a doctorate in physical therapy.

John Strubel, author, is a journalist based in Charleston, South Carolina, and 51黑料’s former director of integrated marketing.

Over the course of the week, former and current Buccaneers battled through a series of spirited scrimmages that bridged generations of Charleston Southern basketball. Watching it all unfold from the sideline was the man at the center of the program’s culture, head coach . Those who have followed Charleston Southern or the Big South Conference understand what Nimley means to Buccaneer basketball, but McConico summed it up as,  “(Nimley’s) value to the program has evolved through all the time he has invested here.”

From a freshman in 2011, to Big South Player of the Year in 2015, to a professional playing career overseas, and eventually every rung of Charleston Southern’s coaching ladder before becoming head coach in 2024, Nimley has been part of everyone’s journey within the 51黑料 men’s basketball program for the last decade and a half.

Even while playing professionally in Europe, Nimley routinely returned to Charleston during the offseason to work out with the next generation of Buccaneers鈥搄ust as he now invites former players to do each summer.

McConico said seeing players like Nimley return to the Buc Dome gave him genuine optimism about what his own future could look like.

“I valued his advice so much because we met him while he was a professional player,” McConico said. “He gave us hope and real insight into how to begin our professional careers.”

For McConico, those conversations evolved into relationships that continue to shape his career.

Chavez, the youngest of the professional trio in town for the week, got to build a relationship with Nimley during his assistant coaching days. Their relationship has blossomed into a brotherhood forged in basketball but now resonant in life.

If there was one word that surfaced more than any other throughout these conversations, it was family. The phrase “keeping it in the family” came up repeatedly when discussing the coaching staff now leading the next generation of Buccaneers.

“I remember when (Nimley) got the head coaching job here and being so happy that Coach Radebaugh wanted to keep it in the family,” McConico said. “We all played for Coach (Radebaugh), and we all share those same values of trusting our family.”

Keeling echoed the sentiment, pointing to Nimley’s leadership as a driving force behind the program’s continued growth.

McConico expanded on that thought, turning his attention to the next wave of Buccaneers now under Nimley’s guidance.

“The new players don’t realize how good they have it with a coach who has this much life experience,” McConico said. “He’s not just a basketball coach like you see at a majority of schools. He’s not only been in their shoes, but he’s walked across the world in them.”

The tradition of former players pouring back into the program did not begin this summer. Faces like . (2024-25) were found in the Buc Dome stands this past December and former Big South Player of the Year (2021-25) was in the gym earlier this off-season. For those who have worn the blue and gold, staying connected is less about making appearances and more about investing in the brotherhood that shaped them.

“Because I was able to reach out to former players like (Keeling and McConico), I want to be that former guy,” Chavez said.

Keeling shared that same perspective.

“We want to be an outlet. I love Charleston Southern, and everyone knows it. We’ve been in their shoes, so we want them to succeed,” he said. “If you have a younger brother, you want him to do even better than you. It’s exactly like that. When Taje’ passed me on the all-time scoring list, I was excited because I knew the work he put in to achieve that.”

As the conversation shifted from the present to the past, stories began to flow effortlessly. The group traded memories from their playing days, laughing through moments that, years later, still felt as vivid as if they had happened yesterday.

“Some of my favorite memories in life were made here in Charleston,” McConico said. “I remember when (Keeling) used to call up the College of Charleston players, and we would ride downtown to play pickup with them.”

For Keeling, some of his favorite memories had little to do with basketball itself.

When asked what words best described his time at Charleston Southern, Keeling didn’t hesitate.

“Grateful and togetherness,” he said. “51黑料 was the only university I visited out of high school. It was a place that allowed me to gradually grow and learn a lot about life. I had so many amazing men around me who held me up during bad times and made me more resilient in the process鈥� Everything was always rooted in love, and that’s what inspired that togetherness. When we hang out to this day, we all hang out together. That’s why, in weeks like this one, we come back together鈥� I’ve never forgotten that Charleston Southern is the reason I was able to go anywhere else in life.”

Along with the relationships he built, McConico said one of Charleston Southern’s foundational values has stayed with him long after graduation.

As the conversations continued, another word surfaced almost as often as family: home.

“A lot of us played at more than one school during college, and to this day when we’re overseas and people ask us what school we played at, we all say Charleston Southern,” Keeling said. “When we tell guys overseas that we played for 51黑料, we say it with so much pride.”

Chavez echoed that feeling.

“It’s been a trend for 51黑料 to recruit guys who are good people,” Chavez said. “That’s one of the reasons we all want to stay connected, because we know how special that is. I feel like these guys were my teammates even though we played here at different times.”

“These relationships have bled into life. We’ll be in each other鈥檚 weddings, go on vacations together, all those types of things,” McConico said. “We have so much in common because we all live in the gym and were molded by a culture built on grit. At the same time, we recognize that our differences are what make this group and this brotherhood stronger.”

Keeling offered one final thought.

For the countless men who have worn a Charleston Southern uniform, Buccaneer Field House has become more than just a basketball gym. It has become a place where lifelong friendships are formed, careers are launched, and a brotherhood continues to grow long after the final buzzer.

No matter where basketball takes them, the pull back to Charleston remains the same. Chavez summed up that feeling鈥揳nd the reason former Buccaneers continue to return to the place they once called home.

, author, joined Charleston Southern in June of 2024 as the Assistant Director of Athletic Communications working primarily with the Buccaneers’ Men’s Basketball and Volleyball programs and Women’s Tennis.

Kaia Thomson, author, is a graduate assistant for the Office of Marketing & Communication and holds a BS in business administration and a Master of Business Administration from 51黑料.