you were right to be thrown off because what is is saying & the fact that he is your coach/teacher is giving you mixed messages..... but whether he feels anything more than a friendship kind of love it is still your responsibility not to get caught up in it. Yes, it is hard but if he is appkying no pressure to become romantically involved you need to knnp reminding yourself this is how he is in friendships & distance yourself if you need to. Hard to do....YES....but most things that are the right thing to do aren't easy. Keeping sound moral values is never easy because it is the logical mind telling the emotional mind that it is wrong to act on feelings it has.