GetUrecruited Founder
"Get on the ball" was the last thing I heard before my legs went weak and the only thing resonating in my head was this man's voice echoing off of the concrete walls of FDR's Field. I'd missed an assignment, leading to a tackle in the backfield...that could've injured my teammate.
82 down. I'd practiced that play about, well a thousand times by then...this was just a scrimmage, not a real game...right? Well, that may be correct, but not to Teddy Georgalas...as looked me straight in the eyes and told me what I needed to hear. For the record, I NEVER missed the block again. Ever. As a matter of fact, I still believe the rule is "Down, Gap, Backer", and I always knew mine and my 2 neighbors' rules as well. By the time the first game came around, our team of Football Players were well prepared. Ted would often say "Luck is when opportunity meets preparation", and he was right...and still is. I mean, how many times in a day do you yourself find that the harder you work, the luckier you get? The Mahopac Freshman squad of about 35 fourteen and fifteen year old boys beat JFK, on their home field...by one score.
Playing football for the last 4 years before that season, I knew it all...just not how to win. Our team amassed an incredible 1 and 30-something record (Yes, that is incredible). We never won...until now. We had rules, we had assignments...we had consequences for being unprepared, for being late, for not being a good teamate. We had potential...(Just don't ask Ted what his interesting perspective is on potential). We were told that "we needed guts and discipline" to win games, and "intestinal fortitude" to succeed...and he was right.
Days would fly by, High School was so much faster than 8th grade, and practice was soon approaching. Warm ups would be run by captains, stretching muscles and talking openly about the day's events. Not long into our stretching regimen would approach Coach G, walking like a big cloud rolls in: Methodical, unrelenting. Conversations would slow from a boil to a simmer...and then stop. This is the point that every reader here can identify with, and that's "The Stories." At some point in the practice, Teddy would just HAVE TO bring up a story about something relevant, or pound the earth with his fist that made the school shake. One of my favorites was about "Decadence"which was a word the Russians (during the cold war) were using to describe the gradual decline of American Culture, spirit and work ethic. Teddy was fighting a war for us, not allowing us to fall into the trap of a decadent society. And he was right...
Stories about a man who stood 8 foot tall, and weighed 250 lbs were all too common. William Wallace incarnate was called Mike Russo, and every Mike Russo story was started by somebody making a "lazy mistake"...and we'd all take a knee and hear about the legend of Mike Russo. Since the man was literally a legend to us 14 year olds, and having never met him...we still to this day have no evidence that this Superman ever existed. Is he real?
Ted would drop 2 names a practice minimum, making examples, building character from within...trying to give us examples and inspirations...heroes, players that made Mahopac's rich tradition stand on it's on. There were 2 practices in particular when we never practiced at all, we stretched, got ready...and then "Mike Russo time". To this day, I can't say "my bad" without having a sudden twitch of pain in my right ear from the verbal un-assault I received...comparable to when your parents show you indifference and it hurts more than getting yelled at. My bad is like saying "I screwed up, but, who cares...my bad...we'll get'm next time"...
Some people don't like him, to this day...say he wasn't a great coach or wasn't someone that improved their life; to those people I say "When the student is ready, the teacher appears."
Ted, Mahopac Football is alive and well right now, and much of your inspirational stories resonate in locker rooms and alumni game after parties. He may not always have been right, but to this day he hasn't ever been wrong.
Every overnight success came after 10 years of hard work, and it's evident that the players and alumni of Mahopac have a lot of the Georgalas Factor still living within them.
Please discuss who your favorite coach was here, or feel free to talk about Mike Russo, Ted Georgalas, or any player that you remember being The Example that your coach talked about.
MB
Check the 1986 NCAA National Championship tape for "evidence" of Mike Russo. He recovered a fumble for Penn State against a favored Miami team as he was the starting nose tackle for Penn State without having played a down due to injury his senior year in high school. The legend was real.
ReplyDeleteMike was my neighbor growing up. I used to sleep over his house and the Russo's would sleep over our house. His brother Anthony was also a top recruited football player that ended up playing for UTEP. I remember when Joe Paterno came to Mahopac High School to get Mike to sign. Great memories.
ReplyDeleteConfirming Mike Russo was real. Competed against him and his brother Tony in track (shot put for sure, can't remember if they did discus or not). Both were good guys.
ReplyDeleteI was a left tackle #73 and was in many Bull in the Ring with Mike. When I hear a whistle today I immediately start chopping my feet waiting for the freight train to hit me! Great coaches, great player and teammate. Mahopac Football was badass! #83 Rise to the Challenge!
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