Being the vice captain, Sugawara has a soothing personality for his teammates and acts as a pillar of support for them. Even though he isn't Karasuno's official setter anymore, he doesn't dream of giving up on playing in general. As such, he encourages himself and all of his teammates not to give up, no matter how rough the situation might be. Sugawara's dedication to volleyball is clear when he decides to continue club activities even when most third years choose to retire to focus on their futures. In a meeting, his teacher asked Sugawara why he's so determined to continue playing even though he's not a starting member, and Sugawara replied that he doesn't want to have regrets in the future. He is also quite perceptive as he noticed how Tanaka asked for the key to the gym (back during the first years' 3-on-3 match) even though he always comes in late, so Sugawara knew that something was up. He is also intelligent as he can come up with helpful tactics during the game. An example of this is when he came up with the idea of saying "bring it" and "send it to me" for Kageyama and Hinata's combo.
