By David Hill
David Hill is an Assistant Editor at Coaching Management.
Coaching Management, 13.10, December 2005, http://www.momentummedia.com/articles/cm/cm1310/hoosierheroics.htm
Every championship season has one moment that symbolizes the entire year. It might be a short-yardage fourth down attempt, a brilliant special teams execution, or a standout player taking the game into his own hands. For Roncalli High School in Indianapolis, the play of the 2004 season came midway through the Indiana state tournament, against rival Cathedral High School. In one play, Roncalli showed what it’s made of, and why the team has won three straight state titles.
During its run to consecutive state titles in 2002 and 2003, Roncalli had become known as a power team, relying on strength and ball control. But this was a different group of Roncalli Rebels. They had lost their top running back to an ACL injury in the season’s fourth game. In the previous week, their top lineman broke his arm. His replacement was a capable player, but at just 195 pounds, the change left Roncalli’s line outsized by Cathedral’s, which sported defensive ends at 265 and 250 pounds. “Size-wise, we didn’t match up very well with Cathedral up front,” Head Coach Bruce Scifres says. “That’s why we went to a little hocus-pocus there, I guess.”
The hocus-pocus came after Roncalli scored a touchdown with about two minutes left to cut Cathedral’s lead to 16-15. With the momentum flowing the Rebels’ way, Scifres called for a two-point conversion to take the lead. For the first time all season, star receiver Jason Werner—Mr. Indiana Football 2004—lined up as quarterback in the shotgun formation. He ran a counter keeper and got the two points. An interception by Werner ended Cathedral’s comeback try, and the Rebels advanced.
In each of the next two weeks of the state tournament, Roncalli would take the lead in the final two minutes and hold on to win, never succumbing to season-on-the-line pressure. It was this ability to hold up emotionally and continue executing plays that made its third consecutive title run stand out. It didn’t happen by chance, Scifres believes, but instead reflects the way his approach to coaching has evolved.
“Coaching to me now is more about teaching my players how to live their lives and be the kind of people they were created to be,” he says. “I’ve grown to understand and appreciate that more now. It seems like the time they spend with us is a lot more meaningful to them, and when the game’s on the line, they’re able to make things happen.”
Even though the school, which has about 1,000 students, was founded only 36 years ago, tradition plays a big role in Roncalli’s football program. In fact, five of the eight assistant coaches are Roncalli alumni. “Most of the guys who come through here had brothers and dads and uncles and cousins, and for some of them grandpas, who played here,” says Scifres. “There’s a very strong sense of tradition and legacy here.”
Though he’s not an alumnus, Scifres is in his 16th year as head coach. After playing running back at Butler University and spending a year there as a graduate assistant, Scifres came to Roncalli in 1980 as head track and field coach and an assistant in football. He left in 1983, spending seven years in the same positions at Lawrence Central High School before returning to Roncalli. The public school experience was a positive one, Scifres says, but he came to appreciate the parochial-school atmosphere of Roncalli, which he believes better lends itself to character development, discipline, and building a family environment.
The mental toughness that helped Roncalli win its state titles came, ironically enough, after Scifres stopped judging success solely by wins and losses. “Early on, my priorities had to do with championships and win-loss records, and I was more caught up in being named coach of the year,” he says. “Now that what’s important to me in coaching has evolved, it seems like other things have fallen into place. Every coach likes to strategize, and that’s certainly a big part of coaching, but I’ve grown to believe real success as a coach comes from the way you influence young men.”
Given the way 2004 ended, it’s hard to argue. With expectations running high off two straight state championships, there was certainly some pressure on the team. They were tested by injuries and two heartbreaking last-minute regular-season losses, including one to Cathedral on a field goal with three seconds left.
The week after avenging its loss to Cathedral, Roncalli faced Mooresville High School, who’d beaten the Rebels in overtime during the regular season. Roncalli scored a touchdown in the last minute to win, 20-16, with another late interception by Werner salting the game away. The deja vu continued in the state semifinal game against Columbus North High School, with Roncalli driving and scoring to take the lead with a minute-and-a-half left, and, for the third time, Werner’s pick stopping a drive with 30 seconds on the clock. The state title game the next week in the RCA Dome was almost anticlimactic—a 35-10 victory over Wawasee High School.
School: Roncalli High School
Location: Indianapolis
Head Coach: Bruce Scifres
State Titles: Eight, the state record among all classes; six under Scifres, including three consecutive, 2002-04.
Varsity Coaching Staff: Jerre McManama, running backs and linebackers; Ray Shelburn, linemen and inside linebackers; Make Sahm, tight ends and outside linebackers; Chris Belch, lines and offensive coordinator; Chris Strykowski, wide receivers, defensive backs, special teams; Brian Lauck, defensive backs, quarterbacks; Tim Puntarelli, quarterbacks, secondary; Eddie Keller, offensive and defensive lines.
Notes: Roncalli has had one alumnus play in the NFL, Nate Lawrie, a tight end who is now with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers ... 2004 standout Jason Werner played defensive back, wide receiver, and running back, and is listed as free safety as a freshman at Purdue University this year.