Getting Ready for PBL.

 

 

Batgirl (Julie Newmar) Robin (Burt Ward) and BATMAN (Adam West)

 

 

Batmobile (1967 Ford Fairlane) in the Bat Cave. 

 

The original BATMAN series on television was so cool....but it was so bad at the same time.  When I was a kid,  BATMAN was actually shown on network television in prime time.....twice a week!  I remember watching the series and actually being scared for The Dynamic Duo on a weekly basis.  Would Batman and Robin survive the elaborate schemes of death that The Joker, The Riddler, Mr. Freeze, The Penguin, or CatWoman would have for them every Tuesday night?   The announcer would whip us kids into a frenzy by saying: "Tune in tomorrow.  Same BAT TIME, same BAT CHANNEL!  I remember talking with my friends about how Batman and Robin  would break loose (just in the nick of time) every week.  Gotham City would be safe once again!  Looking back on it now, the series was so bad; however, to a six year old kid, the series was about the best thing on television.....all three channels! 

 

We started our practice week today preparing for Palm Beach Lakes.  It seems like the day just flew by.  Today was a defensive emphasis day, so we were short-handed on the offense.  It was a good day however, because we get to work some of our younger kids on the scout team.  Hakeem and Hatch were both having a pretty good practice session, so I rotated them both freely all day long.  Without a doubt, Hakeem is the starter; however,  Hatch needs to be ready to go at any time.  Coach Wilson always says: "You are only as good as your #2"   We are lucky to have a quality backup QB like Hatch.  I actually met Austin Hatch fours years ago down at the little Shark's field.  He was playing senior football as a lineman (and backup QB) for them.  Then, he disappears from football all together until this year....his senior year!  The only thing Hatch is missing is experience.  He has a great arm, and he is a smart kid too.  I wish we would have got him as a freshman.  I think Hatch and Rainey would have a great battle as the starting QB spot.   I think Austin regrets not playing all four seasons.....and I regret him not playing as well.  I tell the kids all the time:  "You only have 4 years playing high school football, but you will spend the rest of your life remembering it!"  This is a Lesson in Life that many kids will find out too late.  Team sports are so important to the development of a young man.....period. 

 

Later 

 

GZ

 

Palm Beach Lakes Prep.

Boyd Dowler - Green Bay Packer Tight End - 1967 

 

Max McGee- Wide Receiver-Green Bay Packers- Super Bowl 1

 

It's amazing how much football has changed over the years.  Look at the top photograph.  Notice anything different?  Here is a hint.  Look at the goal post.   Back in the early days, the goal post actually marked the FRONT of the endzone...not the back.  This meant that the goal post was actually in the field of play which caused many violent collisions with the lightly-padded post.  The referee is actually standing in the BACK of the endzone where the goal post placement is today. 

 

Look at the bottom photograph taken during Super Bowl 1 (Packers vs Chiefs) in Jan.1968.  This is a 38 year old Max McGee hauling in a touchdown pass from Bart Starr.   McGee never expected to play in the game at all; in fact, he was out drinking and partying during the wee hours of the morning the night before.  McGee was known for his hard-living ways, but Lombardi still loved him.  McGee was called into action after the starter was injured, but despite the partying, he had a magnificent game for Green Bay. 

 

Not much going on today.  I went up to school to finish some team laundry earlier today, and I managed to find the time to run the track a little.  I put my I-Pod and headphones on, and I listened to military cadence (and George Strait) as I circled the track six times.  I really need to do that more often than I do, but coaching so many hours makes it difficult to achieve.  No excuses.  I really need the stress relief or I may have a stroke. I will get it done. 

 

The offensive staff met at Randy's house at 4 PM today for a three hour meeting.  We put together our game plan for Palm Beach Lakes (PBL), and planned out our practice week.  This once again a MUST WIN game for us.  PBL is in our district, so we must beat them to stay alive for the playoffs.  Right now we are 4-2 and starting to roll pretty good.  Our next three games will all be district opponents, so it is going to be pretty intense.  I am feeling the pressure already.  I must be hell to live with right now. 

 

There must be something wrong with me.  Why can't I leave well enough alone?  Why can't I just overlook a simple mistake on the wristbands without re-building them perfectly?  Why does a simple leak on the water cows drive me crazy?  Why do I obsess with drawing football plays when I am doodling on a note pad?  Why do I always wear blue and black?  Why do I hate the color red?  Or green?  Or purple, or just about any color not associated with SRHS?  Why can't I buy a simple pair of running shoes out of those color ranges?  Why do I continue to coach when I know full well it is costing me thousands of dollars (of lost revenue) at my business?  For that matter, why do I have  "COACH" George Zaleuke written on my business cards?  Who the hell am I coaching at work?  I can't even talk with my son in Germany unless I spin the conversation to football in some way!  Why do I consider my life "COMPLETE' now that Kelsey has shared to football field with me?   Why am I already thinking about where my grandson (Grice) is going to school, and what position he may play?  Why am I ready and willing to relocate to coach him?  Hell, he is only 5 months old. 

 

I am a sick man. 

 

GZ

 

Big VICTORY and a GREAT NIGHT!

 

Kelsey Cheering At Game 

 

 

Kelsey in Cheerleading Uniform 

 

Kelsey & Kirby Before Game 

 

Marty Holding Grice in Stands 

 

Last night was a very special for me, not because we won a big game, but because I had an opportunity to be young again....just for a couple of hours.  I first started with Sebastian River High School (SRHS) 16 years ago when Coach Bethel first came in.  I remember being on the field and looking over to the sidelines to watch my daughter Kristin cheering.  Last night, I looked over to the sidelines to see my granddaughter Kelsey cheering her little butt off with the varsity girls.  A flood of memories hit me, and I had a special special evening showing off my grandkids to whomever would listen to my emotional bragging.  In fact, I had my QB (Hakeem Rainey) down on the other side of the field just talking, and I pointed to Kelsey and said: "Look at that!"  Bethel would have had a cow if he seen (or heard) me do that, but that's OK, I would have gladly taken his criticism.  Of course, I introduced my family to all my friends, and showed off all three grandkids to my coaching colleagues.  I know it sounds stupid, but Kelsey even got a cool drink of water from my infamous water cows after the game.  Even THAT was special for me....because all of you know how much I talk about those pain-in-the ass water machines.  (By the way, FRED is doing much better after his heart-lung transplant) 

 

I would like to thank everyone at SRHS who allowed me to bring Kelsey down to the field.  Special thanks to all the VARSITY Cheerleaders who adopted Kelsey and made sure she felt at home on the sidelines.  Kelsey was included in EVERYTHING the young girls did during the game, and I will never forget their kindness in making this happen for me.  Also, very special thanks to Delaney Miller (Coach Miller's daughter) for taking Kelsey under her wing and showing her where to go before the game and during the game. 

 

By the way.  We defeated PSL 26-21 on Friday night bringing our record to 4-2.  PSL played very well and kept the game close all evening.  Their QB (DJ Juste) is very special, and I believe you may see that dude playing on Saturday somewhere.  He is the best QB I have seen in at least three years.  Our defense made some adjustments in the second half and shut him down for the most part.  Pork Chop and Brandon Jones both had big games, and of course Javonte and Bookie had their excellent good game.  I noticed that our two Freshmen- Pat Bethel and Terrell Washington- both got some quality playing time on Friday evening as well.  In fact, I think Patrick even started.  I am sorry about not knowing this for sure, but I am pretty certain Pat was forced to start due to a couple of players being out for the game.  We played without James Clark and Gage Moak for the entire game.  Both are expected back for this week.  I generally don't speak with the defensive players at all during the game.  We all have our own positions to coach, so none of us will really say too much to the the other kids unless it is something blaring which needs to be corrected immediately.   Mostly I am a cheerleader for them; HOWEVER, I will speak with Mason at times when I see something.  Last night he came off the field and I said.  "Mason, I know Coach Miller well enough to say that you have to get off your blocks a little quicker."  Always respectful, Mason said :"OK Coach!"  He made some nice adjustments during the second half and played well.  I was proud of him. 

 

The Offense finally got rolling on Friday night too.  All three of our running backs had close to 100 yards of rushing a piece.  All three of them scored on nice runs, and Nate had a few nice catches to add. This kid is so dangerous...he can hurt you from the ground or from the air.  OJ Jefferson is a beast.  He is a two-way player who is outstanding on both sides of the ball.  His speed is deceiving.  He runs just like Eric Dickerson used to run...straight up but powerful!  I was very happy with Hakeem on Friday night as well.  He made some great decisions and did not turn the ball over all night long.  Rainey can be so much fun to coach sometimes....especially when he is 'feeling it'.  I try not to let anyone else speak with Hakeem (except Coach Wilson) when he comes off the field.  I want to be the first one to greet him....good or bad.  Most of the time we just exchange what he is seeing or experiencing up close.  Maybe he made a bad throw, or maybe he made a fantastic throw....I just try to stay positive and calm when addressing him. He has enough pressure during the game without me adding to his emotions even further.  

 

Will check in tomorrow! 

 

GZ

 

Half Pissed Off

 

Jerry Kramer Tries to Block Alex Karris 

 

 

Karris Stalking Bart Starr 

 

 

Alex Karris Dead at 77

 

I hated Alex Karris when I was a kid.  I think I told you in an earlier blog posting that I wanted to be Jerry Kramer when I was young.  Who was Kramer's biggest nemesis?  Yep!  Alex Karris.   Drafted out of Iowa by the Detroit Lions, Karris terrorized NFL Linemen during the 1960's and 1970's.  Built like a fire hydrant, Karris was also extremely strong and quick for a man his size.  He played 12 years in the NFL, and went on to star in network TV sitcoms, and big screen movies.  Kramer and Karris had an informal feud going for years.  After Kramer released his book Instant Replay in 1967, both he and Karris appeared in a sports celebrity roast.  Karris stated:  "Jerry Kramer is the best guard in the NFL, and if you don't believe me, just read his book!"   Kramer retorted:  "Who read it to you?"  Karris was not known for his brains, but he could sure play football.  I am sad to see him go. 

 

This is Wednesday, and it is really our last day of the week to get in any serious work before we line up on Friday night.  Wednesday's are split evenly between the offense and defense.  We also try to hit a couple of special teams on Wednesday's too.  By this time of the week, the offensive game plan is solidly in place, and the defense knows the opponents as well as they know themselves.  Offensively, we are not really doing anything new, but we do have a couple of new wrinkles to throw at Port St Lucie if we need them.  We try to add something new (and fun) for every game.  Do we use all the stuff we have every game?  No, not by a long shot.  However, we do have the ability to adjust our offense to any given situation.  We have the ability to go hurry-up no huddle if we have to, or we can run from the huddle and slow the game down.  We are a Wing-T based team; however, we are really a multiple formation team,  for we have the ability to pound the ball when we have too, or we can spread it out and strike from the air as well.  We have been told that Defensive Coordinators hate to prepare for our offense.  I would like to think that is true. 

 

When does a man become insignificant?  At what age does society start thinking or believing that a man's experience does not matter any more?  When does a man's ideas and beliefs become obsolete?  Why does education and hard work take second place to youthful exuberance?   I am not sure exactly when that happens either.  I remember thinking my Dad was the biggest dumb ass in the world, but now I cherish his life experiences, and I recall his coaching wisdom on a daily basis.  Its funny, the game has slowly turned back to old school football, and the old school coaching tricks are now significant again. What ever happened to the cross body block?  What happened to blocking an area by sacrificing your body to protect the hole?  What happened to "Make a pile?"  What happened to the 'two handed punch to the stomach' to bring a defensive lineman's hands down?  I wonder how Don Shula,Tom Landry, and Bobby Bowden felt when they were put out to pasture?   

 

More tomorrow. 

 

GZ

 

 

Getting Better Everyday

 

Ray Nitchke:  Old School Toughness

 

I love this old photograph of Ray Nitchke taken in 1966.  In this picture, it looks like Ray is trying to rip off the opponents helmet.  In today's game, this would have been AT LEAST called a personal foul, and maybe he would be ejected from the game. Back then,  the referees tended to let players play a little more.....especially when it involved Nitchke or Butkus from Chicago.  I think maybe the referees were intimidated by them along with everyone else.   

 

On Monday, we had a pretty good practice to open the week.  On offense, we put together the game plan (on Sunday) at Randy's house late in the afternoon.  These Sunday meetings are informal, and it generally involves just the offensive staff.  We script the first ten plays we plan on running to open the game.  These plays are really a 'fact finding' mission for us.  We want to see how the defense is going to react or adjust to the formations we throw at them.  From there, we know what plays we should be running, and what plays we need to stay away from.  I know people in the stands often wonder: "What in the hell are they doing?"  Well, now you know.   I am not going to talk anymore about what we are doing this week.........don't miss this game! 

 

I think the defense prepares in much the same way; however, they do not script the defensive plays.  The defense prepares with film study, so they have a pretty good grasp on what they need to be running to start the game.  Our defense is pretty simple and experienced this year, so not much is going to surprise them.  Occasionally, they will get caught out of position, but this is very rare.  The defense plays extremely fast because they know exactly what they are doing, where they are going, and they follow their rules.  Football 101 states: Players who are unsure of what they are doing tend to play slower!"   Our defensive line is awesome.  Gage Moak-Senior,  Pork Chop-Senior-, Brandon Jones-Senior, anchor this awesome front, and it almost takes an act-of-god to move the ball on them.  Mason Wilborn and Bubba Martinez are BIG linebackers (both Juniors) who stand behind the senior dominated front three, so the inside gut game is pretty rugged for any team.  With our defensive backs patrolling in the back, I would hate to be a receiver trying to catch the ball over the middle.   

 

Funny thing.  I never remember being taught how to catch a ball.  It is something which I grew up doing, so it came natural to me.  Either you caught the ball or you got hit in the face....just that simple.  Today, it seems like some kids do not have any sort of hand-eye coordination at all.  In my day, we all grew up playing ball (of some type) all year long.  It never stopped.  In the rare occasion that a player (especially a Tight End or Receiver) could not hang on to the ball, by Dad (a former coach) had a unique way of teaching him how to catch.  We had this player named Mark Maphis.  Mark played Tight End (TE) and generally he was a pretty solid player; however, Mark had an issue with dropping the 'POP' passes my dad used to run.  A 'POP' pass is a very quick throw right off the line off scrimmage (in heavy traffic) which usually was a big gainer for us.  My Dad LOVED to use the tight end in his offense, so he had better learn how to catch.  After one especially bad practice, Dad decided to teach Mark a lesson.  Dad stood Mark up against a wall and drilled passes at his chest until he decided to start catching a few.  After a while, Mark was catching everything coming his way.  After this hard lesson, Mark did not drop a catchable ball again that year.  LOL.  Brutal huh?  Hey, it worked! 

 

I'm done for this evening! 

 

GZ

Homecoming VICTORY!

Zach Finnegan Looking GOOD at Homecoming parade! 

 

 

(L-R)  Shelvick, Clay, Pork Chop, Hakeem at Homecoming Parade!

 

 Rose Morgan- A Former Sharks Cheerleader- Leads her girls down the Parade Route!

 

 

We had a big homecoming parade last Thursday a day before our game against Olympic Heights.  Truthfully, I thought the whole thing was going to be a big joke, and we were being forced to participate in it.  I was WRONG, WRONG, WRONG!  The parade was a big success and I was thrilled to be part of it.  Those of you who know me realize that I am not exactly "Mr.Social" when it comes to things like this...in fact, I HATE things like this.  However, the parade was really nice and well organized.  I believe there were 17 floats in the parade, and numerous organizations and businesses participated in the event as well.  Mr. Michael Stutzke (our Athletic Director) was a key organizer of the parade, and hopefully it will be a yearly event for now on.  Our kids had fun, and we (the coaches) enjoyed walking the parade route.  To everyone involved:  Thank You!  It meant a lot to all of us.  GREAT JOB! 

 

 

Do you guys get tired of me apologizing for not keeping up with my blog?  Again, I am sorry.  We had so much to do before, during, and after the game that I just did not have time to write, and when I tried to write during the evening, I would fall asleep at the computer.  So, tonight I decided to start writing early while working on my wristbands for next week. 

 

 

 

                                   Marty's Laminator comes in Handy for Me! 

 

We had tough 17-14  VICTORY on Friday night.  Of course, the weather did not  cooperate with us, and it poured rain most of the night.  It was a sloppy mess the whole evening.  Both teams matched up well, and it was a quality victory for us.  Olympic Heights (OH) is in our district, and they were much improved from last year. I think we drilled them 58-0 last year, but they have a new coach and an experienced team this year, and they played much better.  They have some good-looking kids at every position.  During warm-ups, they made a critical mistake of stomping on our midfield logo painted on the field.  They MAY HAVE uttered a few choice word toward our side during warm-ups, and this just pissed off our kids.  It may have been counter-productive on their part. 

 

Overall, the game was evenly matched, and it went back and forth all night long.  The defense played well all night long, and kept us in the game.  Our offense played well, and we moved the ball pretty well on a soaked field which made the field slippery, and made the footing difficult at best.  OJ Jefferson and Nate Pryor carried the load for us, and Nick Cooper had some success as well.  We got our big Tackle/TE (Matt Lytle- 'Home School' ) back this week, and he played with a head full of fire all night long.  It was nice to have his enthusiasm back on the field.  Finally, with 3:48 left on the clock, our kicker- Aaron Roberson, made a 42 yard field goal to make the score 17-14 to close out the game.  I could not wait to go inside and dry off, and I am sure the kids felt the same way. 

 

Kickers are weird dudes!  Most of the better kickers are soccer players who are recruited to play football.  They all wear these weird colored soccer shoes made by weird sounding manufacturers I have never heard of.  They generally practice on their own, and most coaches (except Coach Wilson) are afraid to say anything to them....in fear we might jinx them.  I mean, I know the basics on how to kick the ball, but I don't pretend to know anymore than that.  I just say to Aaron:  "Just kick the damn ball between the uprights"  or "Kick the ball into the end zone!"  THAT'S IT!  That's all I will say except for "Great Job" or something like that.   Apparently, Aaron is also a great soccer player too.  I know this much, this kid has a very special leg, and he could go to college just with his football kicking skills alone!   

 

 

 

Wore BLUE on White for the game!  The players also wore various pink colored items for "Breast Cancer Awareness" month!  #2 is Nate Pryor. 

 

We did not have much time to celebrate toe homecoming victory on Friday night.  We immediately moved on to Port St. Lucie who we play at home next Friday night.  This will be a big game for me.  Guess what?  My girls (Kristin-Kelsey-Kirby) and my Grandson (Grice) came here to visit with us for a few days.  I am hoping Kelsey can be with me on the sidelines for the game.  I talked with the cheerleading coach about having Kelsey hang out with the cheerleaders during the game, and she was excited about having her.  This will be emotional for me.  I remember looking over my shoulder seeing Kristin (my daughter) cheer on the sideline as well.  Now, I guess the cycle starts all over again. 

 

 

                     My BABIES are with me!  Kelsey (Left) and Kirby (Right) 

 

My life is complete.  My girls are here, and my Grandson is here too!  I want to be near these babies.

 

 More this week! 

 

GZ 

 

 

Another Great Day

                                "Fred" The Water Cow is Sick...Very Sick

                              Performing a Heart-Lung Transplant on "Fred" 

                            "Fred Gets a new Heart and Lungs (Pump &Motor) 

                                  "Fred" get a new Ticker  (Battery) 

I should have been a Surgeon.  As I told you on my last blog entry, one of my water cows failed on me.  I was really surprised by this, but I did manage to find out what happened.  On Sunday, I rebuilt the the entire machine by replacing the pump and battery.  I went to Northern Tool (in Melbourne) and picked up a pump used to draw water in an RV.  This 12 Volt pump is self priming with an automatic cut-off switch.  I modified the pump to fit inside of the metal box (chest cavity) and rewired the electrical components as well.  The surgery went very well, and the machine is again pumping the ole-life sustaining H2O .  YEP.......Sniff, Sniff!!  lol  (Sorry, old Barney Fife reference...my kids will understand!) 

Again, I am sorry for slacking on my Blog a little bit.  I have been writing quite a bit actually; however, I am deeply involved in a project which will hopefully benefit the entire team at SRHS. I am not going to say anything about it yet, but hopefully an announcement will be coming shortly. 

The team is preparing for our homecoming game against Olympic Heights on Friday night.  The week is filled with all sorts of distractions, but we are managing to get in some fantastic practices.  Luckily, the homecoming dance was last Saturday night.  We have a parade on Thursday along with the Powder Puff game and bonfire later that evening.  We want the kids to have some fun and enjoy the festivities, but we also want them to stay focused.  I was talking with Brad DeMarco (one of our big offensive tackles) and found out he is a powder-puff cheerleader.  I love this......because......YES, I was also a powder-puff cheerleader in high school. 

Ok Mason, before you laugh at me, here is the story.  Me and a few of my teammates were dating some varsity cheerleaders.  They (the cheerleaders) though it would be cute to dress us up in cheerleader garb and teach us how to cheer at the powder-puff game.  My mother had this big-busted friend we all called "Big Mamma"  She had these huge bras that each of us wore under our cheerleader shirts.  Of course, we stuffed those bras with foam rubber, tissue, and just about anything else to bring our bust size to around 46DDDD.  To us, this was just the thing to do!  We had a single cheerleader practice before the big game on Thursday evening.  We learned a couple of simple cheers and routines, and we learned how to bounce around and scream and all that kind of stuff.  Of course, we forgot all the cheers and routines before the game, but it did not even matter.  We had fun showing off our legs and butt....and of course our big Ta-Ta's. 

Our darn defense is a pain-in-the-ass to scrimmage against.  They are sure flying around the ball right now, and they are playing extremely fast.  Problem is that many of their players know our offense as well as we know our offense.  In fact, Bookie and Javonte are calling our audibles before we are calling them.  The offense is really starting to roll right now.  We have three good running backs (Nate, OJ, Nick) who divide the duties of moving the ball on the ground.  Our big line is healthy again, so Friday's game should be a good one. 

I am done for now.  More tomorrow! 

GZ