When you think about high school football, the first city that comes to mind is probably not Portland, Oregon. Better known for its hipsters, coffee, beer and soccer, Portland is also home to one of the top programs in the Pacific Northwest. Defending 6A state champs, Central Catholic HS. For Coach Steve Pyne, he loves the place. Born and raised in the city he calls home, he and his wife might not be the biggest “Timbers” supporters (the local MLS side), but they frequent the local theater often. Not many high school football coaches probably watch plays, but the city of Roses is unique. We bonded over our shared experiences at the famous Multnomah Falls, which sits just 20 minutes outside of downtown. It was here that I proposed to my wife and here that Coach Pyne first told his wife he loved her. A romantic place to say the least. In our conversation we talk about success being a byproduct of good relationships. The turning point for Coach in understanding this was after some research. He visited top programs in the area (also, something Coach Matsumoto discusses in his chalk talk episode with us). The common thread he realized is that football comes secondary to life lessons. Their emphasis is on character development and values. It’s not about wins. Try telling most uber-competitive coaches this and they might be hesitant to believe it. But it was truly the turning point. Three state championships are pretty good evidence too. Another important aspect of his program is the ownership that his players take. No better example of this than the team motto that was created by his leadership council. A white board session that coach facilitated with the group led to the creation of their “CRAFTED” acronym to guide their program. A lot of coaches want complete control of the mission, vision, and direction of their programs. But the humility and wisdom to empower his players to create something they could all believe in was more powerful than just telling them what he thought. They now owned the vision and fully bought into it. As Coach Pyne says, “This is not my team, this is your team.” That’s how you give your players confidence. “Giving the power back to the kids, and being an advocate for themselves, we tell our kids all the time, force us to play you.” We close the time with coach’s “Florida” version of the mesh concept. His clips include plays from their QB’s 400 yard state championship game performance so enjoy.
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