RAISED RIGHT…IN FOOTBALL

A wise man once penned the immortal words that he was “born of goodly parents”. I too was raised by a pair of parents who showed their love for me in ways I didn’t always understand, but that I now truly appreciate. Entering my thirtieth season of coaching football, and having had a love for the sport for as long as I can remember, at this time I wish to focus on how I was raised in the arena of coaching football.

My dear father, who has moved on from this mortal existence, always had a love for football and passed that love on to his two sons. Dad and I did not always have the best communication skills with each other, but when it came to football we could talk for hours. I have a vague memory of Dad showing off my ability to recite all of the NFL teams when I was quite young. I’m not sure who was more proud of my NFL knowledge…him or me.

Joining the Navy before he would graduate from high school, Dad had limited experience playing football. Being a bit smaller in stature, he did not possess the body of your average football player. I heard stories of his younger days which demonstrated that he was a tough one who could throw a mean punch when necessary. Given the proper opportunities, I could imagine Dad being either a fullback or inside linebacker, while contributing heavily on special teams. Whatever the case, Dad loved football and it was from him I learned to love the sport also.

When I entered the profession of coaching football, I don’t know how it made Dad feel…he never told me. He did support me though, attending games for three of the four institutions I have coached for. Even today I reflect back a bit on memories with Dad when I head to the game field.

Mike Drake was the defensive coordinator at Western New Mexico University when I first met him. He recruited me to play for the Mustangs. For my last season as a player, Coach Drake was named head coach. He hired me the following season as his assistant offensive line coach. Tim Jarequito, my offensive line coach during my senior season, was also instrumental in getting me hired. As a staff, we worked long hours and I learned more about football than I had ever imagined even existed. We were required to wear a collared shirt, tie, and slacks to the office daily. Twelve to sixteen hour days of work were not uncommon, while no stone ever went unturned in search of success. From Mike Drake, who has also left this mortal existence, I learned professionalism. I learned hard work is not only expected from the players. I learned that enthusiasm goes a long way in leading a team. I learned that coaches must care for their players.

Dwight Muskrath more or less accepted me as a hire not of his choosing. The principal of Huntington Park High School, Marjorie O’Hanlon, fulfilled his long-standing request for another assistant coach by giving him me. Coach Muskrath let me coach, and because of that I continued to grow in the profession.

Al Padilla, the closest to a father I have had in coaching, hired me as his offensive line coach at East Los Angeles College. Football was being brought back to the school after having been dropped for some years. Coach hired other coaches who had much more experience coaching offensive line than what experience I had, but he assigned them to other positions. Despite the lack of confidence from those other coaches, Coach Padilla always supported me and helped me grow in the profession by quietly sharing his wisdom and knowledge of the game of football. During the two seasons I coached at ELAC, many were the nights Coach and I would spend discussing offensive line play well after the rest of the staff had headed home. Al taught me that football is not the most important part of life and should not be taken too seriously. Hard work is expected by all, yet teaching the players their position is most important.

Possessing a mere five years of coaching experience, I interviewed with Brent Carder at Antelope Valley College. The interview came about due, in part, to a strong recommendation from Al Padilla. Unlike the previous schools I had coached at, AVC had an extremely successful football program and history. Coach Carder was looking to make a change after his long-time, and highly succcessful, offensive line coach switched to coaching defensive line. I was tabbed to fill the need of offensive line coach. I was the lone member of the coaching staff with no ties to the Antelope Valley…an “outsider”…not readily accepted by the coaching community in the AV. Still, I was hired and put in charge of the offensive line by a man looking for what he felt was the best hire. Coach Carder was the most business-like coach I had come across. He treated all aspects of football with a very professional manner which required utmost discipline by all of those involved in the program. For seventeen seasons I fulfilled the role of offensive line coach, for Brent Carder, to the best of my abilities. Coach allowed me to coach the offensive line in ways which appeared, at times, unorthodox to him. From Coach Carder I learned that there is no such thing as being overprepared.

Upon Coach Carder’s retirement, Perry Jehlicka was hired as the next head football coach at AVC. Immediately I was challenged professionally when I was switched to coaching defensive line. After some initial growing pains, I settled in to the position and gave it my full effort. During the next five seasons I learned more about defense from Perry than I had ever imagined possible. When he chose to switch me back to coaching offensive line, I felt much more prepared and in tune with how defenses are run.

To say that I have been raised right in football is not just a flippant statement…it is the truth. Each coach I have worked for, and with, has helped me grow professionally and personally. Collectively they have taught me a respect for the sport and a commitment to the athletes. They have taught me that although football is important, it is not the most important.

Now that I am one of the more experienced in the profession, I am trying to leave the sport at least as good as it was when I entered the profession. I respect the game and those who take part in it. I’m thankful for what football coaching has given me in the sense of experiences and relationships.

There is no doubt that football coaching surely, in all aspects of my life, has affected my…”View From The Sideline”…

Common Ground

I was the first grandchild on both sides of our family, so I must have been treated pretty special. Yet, somewhere along the line I ended up with mostly memories of fitting into the shadows and quite happy to be there. I truly felt I was loved, but due to my physical appearance and stature I was grounded in humility due to how I was treated by my fellow classmates at school.

You see, I have always been larger and taller than “average”. Along with that, I have worn eyeglasses for as long as I can remember. These qualities alone made me an easy target for ridicule by the insensitivity, and insecurity, of some of those I attended school with. Our family moved around a lot, so I was regularly the new guy who was also the outsider. The result was me having experiences in dealing with racism, bullying, ridicule, derogatory treatment, and unkind remarks about my appearance. “Fatso”; “Four-Eyes”; “Goofy” and “Giant Robot” are just some of the terms of “endearment” that I clearly remember being used in my reference on a regular basis. Of course there were always opportunities, which some could not pass up, to comment on what I wore. At this period in history clothing and shoes for larger individuals were not widely available. When they were, there was not much variety. As a result, my clothing was not as nice as most and my shoes had to last well past the time of needing replacement. Some expert repairing of many a pair of pants, by my loving mother and grandmothers, helped those hard to come by pants last a bit longer. Thankfully, for me, the uppers on shoes were well-made, so some well-placed cardboard on the inside of my shoes made them last longer. Sure the cardboard din’t last long, but boxes were free so I had a seemingly endless supply of materials to use for repair.

Having always loved sports, I was not kind to any of my clothing or shoes as there were always opportunities to cause damage needing repair in pursuit of athletic success. My eyeglasses at times had to be held together with either model glue, rubber bands, or tape….sometimes all three were necessary at the same time. My love of sports leaves me to believe that with the opportunity of settling in one place for longer than a few short months, I would have been accepted more by my peers. Such was not to be the case until my eighth grade year when my dear mother put her foot down and refused to move me any further. So, for the last five years of my public schooling I remained in the same neighborhood and did not have to change schools.

As suspected, I settled in a bit and was more accepted despite my physical attributes and the perceptions of others. I did not become popular by any means, but when we hit high school in the tenth grade (Los Angeles area high schools were grades 10-12 at the time) my size suddenly became a good thing…on the football field. I had dreamed of playing football in my younger years, but was deemed too big to qualify for youth leagues…besides that, we could not have afforded the fees even if I was smaller. High school provided the platform for me to live out a dream and to fit in with my peers.

On the football field I could be myself. I could be big and that was just fine with everyone involved. In fact, I was no longer one of the largest kids on the block. The high school I attended was not only very successful in football, but it also had some very big football players. Those large guys taught me early that I would have to be tough to survive…size was not good enough on its own. There may have been some questions early on about my survival capabilities, but I did survive and even earned a varsity letter in each of my three years of high school. For my senior season, I was even voted as one of the four captains of the football team. No longer did I have to endure the derogatory terms of my younger years. Some, not all, knew my name and accepted me for who I was: a quiet and shy guy who loved football.

Among other factors, football was one which helped save me from that which too many are not saved: a life of having to accept being the victim of the prejudices and whims of others. In football I was under the cover of the necessary equipment of the sport. Not only did that equipment provide physical protection, it also provided protection from the eyes of the world which I did not always find to be friendly or kind. In football, I could put on the gear and play the sport that I loved, all the while being protected from those eyes truly seeing me. In a sense, I could hide in plain sight, do what I loved, and be on common ground with the other members of the team. I had truly found my niche and it has helped me achieve more in life than I ever could have imagined. I have indeed been greatly blessed!

Sadly enough some do not find that niche, which can act as a crutch, until they can stand on their own as I did.

I have heard several times on the radio recently a heart-wrenching message of teenagers and what they learned in school. Each teenager shares negative aspects which peers chose to point out that particular day. Clearly actors are used in these radio spots, but with each voice I can imagine the thoughts of myself when I was their age having experiences similar to the ones depicted on the radio. At the same time I can remember those who were kind to me. I remember how much that kindness meant and how it kept me going…even helped improve my self-esteem.

In my positions of high school teacher and community college assistant football coach, I have the opportunity to pay back what others once did for me: provide a positive experience which can possibly brighten up a day. I now strive to give to students, or athletes, that little spark they may welcome which may help spur them on and possibly help them feel a little better for having had a positive interaction with an authority figure. In a sense, I want them to realize that we are all on common ground, thus we’re all in this game called “life” together and can help each other out a bit. For each one that I can bring a positive interaction to, I consider it as an offering of thanks to all of those who offered me kindness and expected nothing in return. I guess this is what some of us would consider to be love and respect…and I’m more than okay with that!

Experiences in life have taught me that once we are on common ground, we tend to achieve more together than we can achieve individually. In other words, once we accept being part of a team, we realize that “Together Everyone Achieves More”.

Just sharing the musings and thoughts of a football coach entering his 30th season as a coach. Come on over. The sights and sounds are a bit interesting and thought-provoking. And in this guy’s humble opinion there’s no better angle than a…”View From The Sideline”…