We REALLY NEED To WIN Tonight.....

It was September 25th, 2015. A rainy, Friday afternoon and we are getting ready to jump on the bus to head to Marion County. We were 0-5. Two of our young men had already lost their Father that season, one just the day before. My own Dad was dying and would pass away in less than a week, the following Thursday, 10/1.  Coach Brian Rowland, our DC walked in the office before we left.

 I said to him, "Coach, whatever happens tonight, we will handle it and be ok, but we REALLY need to win tonight."

Mercer at Marion, 2015 photo by Harrodsburg Herald

Fortunately we did win that night. In fact, we won 6 games in a row, and won our district that season. If we had not won, we would have been fine. But, I was very thankful for that victory.

In 1992, my first season at Paris HS, we were 1-1, getting ready to play our cross town rival, Bourbon County in week THREE.  We know their team well. The previous season, their head coach, Roger Gruneisen, was our head coach. We also know their  starting tailback. He had started practice with us that summer, but had transferred to Bourbon and was going to play against us. He had been our starting tailback the year before.

My bosses through the week made it a point to come to me several times and tell me, "Coach, you really need to win that game on Friday." I knew that already. Our players loved Coach Gruneisen. If we didn't win, there was a good chance several of our best guys would transfer because they loved Coach Gruneisen and here the Greyhounds were stuck with a rookie head coach. And, yes, it would be really tough for me to keep my job if we lost to the Colonels.

We won that game, 15-13. When it was over, Stephanie cried her eyes out in the bleachers. The stress on a newlywed couple, in her hometown, in a game we had to win, was monumental. That was without a doubt the most important game I'll ever coach in and I am thankful beyond words that we won.

But, if we had not won, we would have been fine. It might have turned out very different, but God would have provided. He always does.

In 1998, at Mason County, we were 1-6 in and getting our tails kicked in game 8. In 1998, Tates Creek was one of the best teams in the state and defeated Trinity THREE TOUCHDOWNS to reach the state championship game.  If you had told me in the 2nd quarter of game eight,  less than 3 years from tonight, the Royals will defeat a very good Tates Creek football team, I would have thought you were beyond crazy. Things can change, and change quickly.

Maysville Ledger Independent, 2001- Elden May, photo by Terry Prather

Our time at Mercer has been wonderful, but there have been a bunch of struggles, especially getting wins on the field. This past season, game THREE, we are winning late in the 4th quarter against Anderson County, and I notice that the score is 15-13. When I saw 15-13, my mind immediately went back to that Bourbon County game in 1992. I won't lie to you... for a very brief moment, the emotion of those memories and the connection was somewhat overwhelming.  If I told you that right then, God told me we would win that game, it would be a lie. But I can tell you what He did tell me on that sideline in Lawrenceburg...."I am right here and I am much bigger than this football game. Enjoy this moment."

Mercer vs. Anderson, 2019 photo by Arpan Dixit

We won that game 15-13. It was a great win for our team and community and huge step in the right direction for our program. But, if we had lost, that would not change who God is and how much He loves us.

My point, I believe our best days are ahead of us. But, WHATEVER is ahead of us, we can handle it and we will handle it great. Our God is too big and He is always present. He is bigger than the Coronavirus. Of course we need to be smart, cautious & protect the most vulnerable, but fear is becoming way too fashionable. Abraham Lincoln, Dwight Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. never let fear stop them. Fear is not who we are as a nation.

We have great times ahead of us. We have tough times ahead of us. And, HE will be with us, every step of the way. And, nothing we face will ever be as big as our God. Praise Him!

Hebrews 13:8