|
Inside the
Frattohouse |
|
|
November 29, 2009 It’s been said that football is a chess match with high-speed collisions. I think that’s a fair characterization. So, when two master technicians with a combined 69-years of HS football coaching experience converge, you could expect some clever moves. Tom Mach has been the head football coach at Catholic Central HS since 1974, and his opponent Saturday, Coach Rick Bye of Sterling Hts. Stevenson has been at the helm since 1975. Heading into the Championship game Saturday, collectively, both schools had combined for (11) State Championships. We’ll actually CC had all eleven, but lately Stevenson has been knocking at the door. This year in fact, the Titans boasted (3) First Team All-State players, while the Shamrocks had only (1). And when Stevenson took the opening kickoff and marched down the field for an early 3-0 lead, the pundits that never seem to give CC credit for all their excellence must’ve been secretly smiling. But, not for long… I said in my column last week that we could learn a lot from these young men, and in the next two hours they put on a clinic. Football happened to be the metaphor, but the rest was academic. The men in Royal Blue and White exhibited teamwork, hustle, extra-effort, unselfishness, and of course, superb blocking and tackling. They were prepared, well-conditioned and they took nothing for granted. A blocked punt just before halftime was a prime example of selling out to the process. It was an example of playing all-out until the whistle, knowing it would lead to good things. Their mantra is simple: “Teach me goodness, discipline and knowledge.” To those that paid attention, that is exactly what we witnessed. And, it should be noted, the Sterling Hts. Stevenson Titans gave a valiant effort as well, and they deserve a lot of credit. They simply got beaten by a unit that was poised to win a championship. Now, they have twelve. Game, set, match… (c) 2009 Novi
Information Network ___________________________________ |
|
