Maybe he was. Maybe he was not.
Whatever was going on inside him, he commanded respect. Fear, all other motivators trumps ... And I think it's fair to say that we were all just a bit intimidated by coach Gerard Leone.
For an example, even today, his 72 year old cancer even after the recent passing, I "Jerry" as he calls once warned us to never ends football career after I I was reluctant. That's because I've seen her angry before ... And anything that can effectively control it as being the line between life and death do not fully trust.
Coach Leon Franklin, "Massachusetts was the most successful high school coach. At least it was to the best of my knowledge. I any other FHS coach who can claim a 32-game winning streak do not know. This impressive was long in a highly competitive high school football league. Historically, long, really - in time, a "Massachusetts school record. Either red or blue Rocketeers Bombardiers - - Attleboros one finally broke it, I think.
FHS streak after he left for a while, but one in 1983, Franklin returned to the state's Super Bowl victory, showing that he had lost not touch. Too bad they do not when we played the super bowl.
Man was tough, and it was a drama. Not ... Whiskey Point section of Massachusetts, where some sleep grew up in suburban Brookline. I remember one day fall since the math classes he taught. We were in an empty classroom, and he wore a coat and tie, looking totally decent. I do not get any inkling of what was about, I leave for the day under the false impression that a softball-sized abscess on my knee lol I proceeded to ask leave to practice. Unfortunately he's just a lame excuse as it is seen and blew. "You can not skip practice today," he informed me my bad "I'm nervous" tone, "but if you do, go ahead and leave the rest of the season."
Was a real turning point for me.
There any good reason the team did not seem to live. Practice because it was quite rough, but now here I really ... Something that would have been all too easy day coaches were invited to leave. I was being treated unfairly. Was so obvious. Man had to be crazy. That's what I thought, at least.
Luckily for me, I went ahead and practiced that day. I did not leave. I "all" was not for a week or so, but I had left.
And country - these junior year (1968) was a tough one for us. First Martin Luther King was assassinated in April, then Robert Kennedy was assassinated in June, there were race riots and war protests; KIAs, WIAs, MIAs and POWs of the Vietnam numbers kept growing, and, as a dark omen to be (though of less magnitude), America's most beloved games ever one of the heroes, Mickey Mantle, played his final season. Country's environment was dark and doubtful.
Except that every year the last two disappointing games we lost, we tied up next to last contest in a Thanksgiving Day thriller King Philip neighbor Venus beat stay out of the basement.
I remember being a season to (a sprained ankle fracture that masked) and a very sad loss of the injured were slogging. But none of us left. Leon was not the coach we kid. He says, "It's not whether you win or lose, is that you play the game." Was told he would never have such nonsense. It just made us realize that if we really wanted to win We want to make it a lot more and a whole lot harder than other people were going to work - a lesson that, as it turns out, applies to each one important goal in life.
And we do not dog it just because we were down and out. I think the difficult 1968 season was when, near the end of a practice, during the sprint, I caught a blur out of the corner of my eye. I changed: it bigfoot is making up an MX missile looked like. It was really coach Leon destruction throughout the region, a lumbering lineman who was halfway through a deal with Sprint, a much larger than that at which it far less than top speed run the Sprint thought should be found with teammate. It was a lovely to deal with, I had to admit.
For me, it was the trademark coach Leon stuff.
At any rate, this incident only motivates us to work harder to help. Next season, with that behind us, character building in 1968, we picked up where we left off. Year saw more hope - the man landed on the moon in July - and I was lucky enough to be elected a captain, I decided to leave not valid. As usual, legendary coach Leon practices were - when some players decided not to.
We first game of the case (I still know where that place is) through cruised. Unfortunately the next play, Ipswich, one that should never have been scheduled. At least early in the season. As good as we were - and we were good - Ipswich was much better at that moment in time. I still can see his star running back away from me.
Someone said they had seen crying after the coach Leon. I do not know.
I know the devastating loss after exercise was "memorable." Pure vandalism. Fighter training school stuff. Coach was not happy. My cleats squarely before planting it (his facemask, really) - I poor helmet, my good friend, Mike Gilmore remember the framed face. But he survived. We all survived. And no ACLU said.
realted blog
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