For most couples, the first question asked at the dinner table is, “How was your day?” At the Gordon household, however, that is the last question that needs to be asked. Aaron Gordon, Mississippi State University head soccer coach, walks through his day with his  assistant coach, his wife Ashley, by his side. 
He said the honesty created through marriage is beneficial for a successful work place since he and his wife have a true working relationship when it comes to marriage.
“We have the best of both worlds, certainly, because we know what each other is doing and what the job entails because we’ve both done each other’s jobs,” he said. “We’re able to cut to the chase on a lot of things because I don’t worry about the consequences of being lied to because I feel secure of where we are as a couple, so we can get to the heat of the matter because it’s for the good of the program.”
The Gordons, who both played soccer in college, met when they coached at a youth soccer camp in Dallas, Texas. Although they went to different colleges, they knew a lot of the same people and started dating after meeting at the soccer camp.
Twenty years later, the Gordons find themselves heading into their second season at MSU with two daughters, Addison (13 years old) and Avery (8 years old).
Aaron Gordon said coaching together at different levels proved they could succeed at the collegiate level, and when he started running his own soccer club, they proved they were a good team on the administrative side of the business as well.
“It was soccer that brought us together. We knew we wanted to coach, and as our relationship grew, so did our opportunities to coach together,” he said. “Coaching on the field is easy because we have a passion for soccer. With administration, you can get on each other’s nerves if you don’t like each other, but we seem to balance each other in our strengths and weaknesses when it comes to that part which makes us a really efficient team.”
Before coming to State, the Gordons coached soccer at Texas Tech University after they spent time at the club and professional level, including a stint with Major League Soccer team FC Dallas.
Coaching as a married couple allows the Gordons to continue their work once they go home. Ashley Gordon said sometimes when they are home, both she and Aaron Gordon may be on the phone with different recruits, which allows them to continue discussing matters after they leave work. However, she said the dinner table is one place where soccer is not discussed.
“When we put dinner on the table, we make sure we eat as a family, and we make a point to not talk soccer or business at the dinner table because it’s all about family and our children, having dialogue with our girls — it’s family talk,” she said.
While the couple makes it a point to have “family talk” during dinner, when it comes to soccer games and practice, Ashley Gordon said they are all business.
“For me, during games it’s just like it would be coaching for someone that’s not your spouse. I turn and look at Aaron, and my immediate thought is, ‘He’s the head coach and I’m going to do what he asks of me,’” she said. “We’re here to do a job, develop our players and win. I think many players will say that they would never know that we’re married when we’re on the field — you wouldn’t know any difference.”
Sophomore defender Addie Tomlin said she agrees with Ashley Gordon’s final statement and thinks the coaches work well on the field together.
“They definitely treat each other as co-workers, but I feel like they compliment each other really well,” Tomlin said. “They also bring their kids around, and we all enjoy hanging out with them. It’s cool to see Ashley Gordon’s motherly side and Aaron Gordon’s fatherly side, too.”
This family atmosphere is one the Gordons seek to create on their team. In addition to their daughters loving MSU and attending all the games, Aaron Gordon said recruits recognize the family feel on the team.
“When we have recruits here, the first thing they say is they get a sense that this program is one that has a sense of family from the get-go because of our relationship as a husband-wife team. Moms and dads want to send their daughters to college wanting to know they’ll be taken care of, and our relationship shows that,” he said. “As we start to continue to recruit and develop this team, I think people will see that and players that we recruit will get that feeling even more.”