Guest Opinion, Ryan Nase

| Guest Opinion . .

. Ryan Nase Football 2008 Ryan "Goose" Nase , a former

star lineman at Judge ('02), Peddie School in New Jersey and then Lafayette,

and a staunch supporter of this site from writing reports to helping with a

basketball tournament we formerly held for student fans, is now an assistant

coach at Admiral Farragut Academy, in St. Petersburg, Fla. We thank him for wanting to express his opinion. Ryan may be reached at rnase@farragut.org .

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Ted's note . . . This was written in response

to an article about Zakee Moody, who is starting at tailback for new Pub member Esperanza Academy at 5-3, 130 pounds (maybe), and after he

missed the 2007-08 basketball season due to a heart problem.

Ted, I just read your

article

online about Esperanza football player

Zakee Moody

. It really

made me think about a few things and I thought it was a perfect set-up

for what should be a great season of high school football not only in Philly

but around the country. There are so many players and many more parents who

refuse to allow their kids to live and learn on the athletic fields because

they feel their child is too small, too weak, or not going to be

successful. For so many parents high school athletics has become just for

kids to go to college. I was lucky enough to play football at the Division

I level, but I learned so much more from

Tommy Coyle

, the staff at

Father Judge and my coaches at Peddie than merely how to play ball at the

next level. I don't think I would be the man I am today without coach

Coyle, the

Maley

brothers (played at Penn Charter;

Rich

coached me at Judge and his brother

George

at Peddie) or

Frank

DeLaurentis

.

Football by no means came easy to me. I never stepped on a varsity

field until my senior year and even then I wasn't that good. I fought with

Jim Kauterman

constantly about getting in shape and doing the things

necessary to be successful on and off the field. My coaches never accepted

anything but the best. That didn't mean a pancake on every play, but it

meant showing them that the game meant something. We were never allowed to

slide on anything. I think that's why I have the ability to look coach

Kauterman in the eye now and tell him I was wrong, and thank him for helping

me.

I currently coach at a Class A school in Florida

where we have 25 guys on the team. It is completely different from Judge

where we had 25 lineman on the freshman team. So many kids refuse to

participate because they don't think they are big enough, strong enough, or

fast enough. Again, the parents are even worse. I wish I could bring Zakee

to my school just to slap these kids in the face and say, "I'm 5'3, 130 and

had a heart murmur! What's your excuse?!" I have the utmost respect for him

and his coaches for the task of trying to enter directly into a varsity

campaign as well.

With your permission I would like to put this on the lockers of all

my players as they play their first game and in the mailboxes of all the

teachers and parents at our school.

Thanks Ted.