76 replies to this topic

[FlightCrew]

ML & CW obviously....what do they do or know that other programs do not?

[Rajaha]

Kids and parents dont bitch about playing time, they do whats right for the program and take Coaching. They know their roll and whats expected. Plus the community doesnt turn on the kids the first chance they get

[Rocketman]

With now well over 100 state titles the MAC has no equal....and this being from a conference that didn't even have their start until the early 70's.....simply amazing....

Now what's their secret? I agree with the above poster to a degree. It also has to do with the water
and milk they drink.....next to church steeples, the tallest structures in Mercer Co. are the silos
they put the dairy feed in....

good ole-fashioned farm boys AND girls....not afraid of hard work, not afraid to take criticism, able
to follow directions, and come from solid family cultures....the coaching also cannot be overlooked.
Top to bottom, side to side, the MAC has the BEST coaches and philosophies......period!! Wish we had
just a little bit of that rub off up here in Pandora......the good Lord knows we need it....RM

[paperboy]

In no special order, I believe the following are responsible for the incredible run these teams are on...

Solidly middle-class households with two parents - not all, but definitely most kids have these
Excellent coaching - speaks for itself
Good work ethic - the farm background gets a lot of deserved credit here, but ironically few kids these days are actually part of farming families
Athletic kids - not sure if the mostly-German heritage explanation is sound, but kids around here seem to be larger than most
Respectful kids that are raised right - again, not all fall in this category, but they generally take coaching well and that coaching gets support at home as well
Momentum - success breeds more success, and don't forget about the 20 extra weeks of practice the CW and ML kids have gotten over the past four years

And the thing is...it's not just CW and ML that have all of these ingredients. I would argue that St. Henry has all of the essentials also, and they had quite a run of success in the 90's and 00's, but in order to truly get back on track they're going to have to unseat one of their neighbors.

[Bigdogg79]

FlightCrew, on 01 December 2014 - 12:33 PM, said:

ML & CW obviously....what do they do or know that other programs do not?

Most of the things said above are true. I would add: 1) Unusually big strong farm boys (genetics) 2) The largest league in the state without any boys soccer. 3) Freshmen practice and dress Fridays with team. 3) The best programs have excellent coaching and everyone from 7th grade up is on the same page. 4) Most have no organized football until until 7th grade. 5) Most are not concerned about wins and losses in Jr. high, just playing and developing as many players as possible. 6) Everyone is related to everyone and nobody wants to lose to your cousin. Brings out the best in competition;) 7) Expectations are high because your dad/mom/brother/sister has already won a state title 8) coaches of other sports work together so less kids specialize in one sport. 9) Coaches can also be administrators at most schools so they are getting paid $70-85 thousand dollars to stay. 10) The demographics of most MAC schools mirror the demographics of most private schools.

Edited by Bigdogg79, 01 December 2014 - 04:08 PM.

[cubbies4life]

When a baby boy is born in Mac land and gets home, a football goes into the crib instead of a pacifier

[Bluetiger76]

paperboy, on 01 December 2014 - 03:58 PM, said:

In no special order, I believe the following are responsible for the incredible run these teams are on...

Athletic kids - not sure if the mostly-German heritage explanation is sound, but kids around here seem to be larger than most
a run of success in the 90's and 00's, but in order to truly get back on track they're going to have to unseat one of their neighbors.

First off, the MAC is in a league all their own (bad pun), and has been forever. And, I totally agree with most all the reasoning posted thus far. Winning simply breed winners. They seem to reload every year, not rebuild.

But I did do a little investigating on the German heritage comment. I have heard that theory before and never quite "got it". a lot of communities in this part of the state are German heritage. In doing some research on several sites (including wiki) the average heights of most US and German Males are right at 5-11 or so. The weight according to the studies done in the mid 2000's showed the average German male at 182 pounds and the average US male at 194 pounds. Maybe the German heritage factor is valid if we weigh them in high school before they get fat.

[tunnelvision]

It all starts at home. I married a MAC girl and asked her the same question. Her response was "Parents around here teach their kids to take responsibility for their actions. If they don't get a lot of playing time, they tell their kid to get better-not complain to the coach. Marion, Minster, and Coldwater are easily 30 years behind everyone in terms of work ethic, responsibility and rrespect, which is a good thing". I have to say I pretty much agree with all of that.

[racehorse]

Rajaha, on 01 December 2014 - 02:03 PM, said:

Kids and parents dont bitch about playing time, they do whats right for the program and take Coaching. They know their roll and whats expected. Plus the community doesnt turn on the kids the first chance they get

AAAAMMMMMEEEEEEENNNNN!!!!!!!!!

[Dakota Green]

Another word I would use is pride. The people in and around Mercer County take pride in what they have, as far as talents, abilities etc. Just drive around that area and look at all the various properties and farm homes. All are well kept up and neat as a pin. Yards mowed to perfection, gardens to keep everyone busy instead of sitting in the house watching TV. People looking out for their neighbors and sharing a beer or two. All that adds up to being winners in all their endeavors including high school sports. On a side note the weddings in Putnam County are something to behold with all the festivities, but I heard that you have never been to a wedding until you go to one in the Coldwater, Marion Local, St. Henry area. Supposedly the brews flow all night free of charge compliments of the parents of the newlyweds.

[Maltese Falcon]

many good responses on this thread, all of which are correct as far as the bedrock reasons of why MAC schools are so dominant. As far as the success breeds success comment, Marion Local is a perfect example. Since Mike Cramer showed up to lay the groundwork at Marion Local the football program has taken on alife of it's own, that is reflected by the number of boys on the sideline for a school the size of ML, as well as other MAC schools.

Bottom line is people in MAC land care about the success of their schools, and by extension their sports teams, and when you care that much about something you will be bound and determined to make sure you are successful.

[Dman]

Great responses... It is simply a superior culture...

[FlightCrew]

Yes, very interesting. Much more than I expected to hear. Most people around the state would probably just think "good coach".
Obviously way more to it than that. Thanks!

[jeffcat-bucki]

Bluetiger76, on 01 December 2014 - 06:27 PM, said:

First off, the MAC is in a league all their own (bad pun), and has been forever. And, I totally agree with most all the reasoning posted thus far. Winning simply breed winners. They seem to reload every year, not rebuild.

But I did do a little investigating on the German heritage comment. I have heard that theory before and never quite "got it". a lot of communities in this part of the state are German heritage. In doing some research on several sites (including wiki) the average heights of most US and German Males are right at 5-11 or so. The weight according to the studies done in the mid 2000's showed the average German male at 182 pounds and the average US male at 194 pounds. Maybe the German heritage factor is valid if we weigh them in high school before they get fat.

There are different genetic pools outside of just being German. Look at hitler with the Aryan race he wanted to cement in the world. A lot of those communities just so happened to acquire those genes and when nobody really moves into those communities, you just see the same names year in and year out in all sports. Call it inbreeding to an extent, but the towns are small and the neighboring ones have similar genetic pools. St Henry had like 3 girls that were 6"7" on their volleyball team on one of their good teams. I went to a st Henry/LCC game at st Henry back in the day and I'm pretty sure I was the shortest one on that entire side of the field male or female. I think the year they won state, they had the hemmelgarn kid and he was a defective shorty but even he was athletically gifted despite his defect of being average sized.

[jeffcat-bucki]

Dakota Green, on 01 December 2014 - 07:53 PM, said:

Another word I would use is pride. The people in and around Mercer County take pride in what they have, as far as talents, abilities etc. Just drive around that area and look at all the various properties and farm homes. All are well kept up and neat as a pin. Yards mowed to perfection, gardens to keep everyone busy instead of sitting in the house watching TV. People looking out for their neighbors and sharing a beer or two. All that adds up to being winners in all their endeavors including high school sports. On a side note the weddings in Putnam County are something to behold with all the festivities, but I heard that you have never been to a wedding until you go to one in the Coldwater, Marion Local, St. Henry area. Supposedly the brews flow all night free of charge compliments of the parents of the newlyweds.

If that's true somebody in the Chickasaw area owes me about $150.

[caldwell]

I've heard they have an extra tendon in the back of their leg that makes them run faster!!

[waterloowonder]

All above are spot on and are obvious to anyone with any brains and common sense. Political correctness and the breakdown of the American family has not overtaken MAC territory yet.

[Bigdogg79]

Agree, the work ethic is very strong but to say that kids from Coldwater, St. Henry, Marion Local work harder than everyone else has not been my observation and is a slap in the face to the kids I see also busting their butt at other schools.

[paperboy]

Bigdogg79, on 02 December 2014 - 11:15 AM, said:

Agree, the work ethic is very strong but to say that kids from Coldwater, St. Henry, Marion Local work harder than everyone else has not been my observation and is a slap in the face to the kids I see also busting their butt at other schools.

I totally agree, and it's always driven me a little nuts to hear that.. Hard work is necessary but in my opinion, all the other ingredients are just as necessary and if one of them goes the dynasty can end quickly. Now coaching is the one that can go away in a hurry, but a considerable talent drop over the span of a couple classes could do it as well.

One more thing I want to point out...some schools may already have the six key characteristics that I pointed to, and still not have the success that ML and CW do. That's because there is also a little bit of luck involved. In every single one of ML's seven state championship seasons, there is at least one game I can point to that could have gone the other way due to a bit of luck, and if it had, the Flyers wouldn't have won state that year. So yes, luck has something to do with it.

[theWanderer]

Personal opinion is to a large extent it is coaching. They put the kids in position where their hard work and skill sets are in the best position to excel, whether that be superior play calling or scheming.
Secondly, it is a culture of winning. The kids know how to finish the big games, as the classes before them have done. The coaches get them into the position, the kids finish it. It is superior execution in two areas.
A lot of teams seem to choke, play off their game, or become overly nervous when in big spots, does not happen often with MAC kids.

I do not agree with the genetics/work ethic items. Sure some schools have poor work ethic, but a lot of top schools have great work ethic. Does not always equal success at high levels (which is what we are discussing, high level success separates the MAC from everyone else).
Genetics wise, you would be hard pressed to prove this. I think it is frankly a bad argument, almost sounds like an excuse used by those who lose to the MAC.

Edited by theWanderer, 03 December 2014 - 10:29 AM.