In terms of the current season I would say a couple of things:

Coach Schram has done a great job of assembling a varsity coaching staff and running an off season training program. He will have the varsity prepared. A concern I have is the coaching staffs at the freshman and JV levels. I think he should look to shake things up.

The current Miramonte football team should be a pretty good TEAM. And by that I mean that they will have pretty good players at every position and good depth, but only a couple of guys that are standouts. They will be smart and athletic, but not big and overly fast.

Football will continue to compete more for top athletes with other sports at Miramonte than perhaps in the old days. Water pole, basketball, baseball and lacrosse take athletes from football or relegate football to 2nd-sport status. Coach Schram encourages multi-sport athletes and I support him 100% on that.

Finally, I’m super excited about this year. We have a tough schedule, so if you’re measuring stricktly by wins and losses you may be disappointed. But I know this team will be well prepared and motivated to win. If they can get a couple of key victories it could be epic!

I am witnessing this same transformation take place at another East Bay HS. This school is still “winning” games, but has lost its culture and identity. Its alumni base feels distanced and not at all welcomed.

But those in charge have a vastly different “take”. They continually brag about how much “better” the school is today than it was before they took over.

Unfortunately, those in charge are missing the memo about culture, history, tradition and soul.

I hope what you say about this crop’s work ethic is true! I was only speaking to the kids who can’t be mentioned in the same breath as that group because of a certain degree of apathy. Just trying to light a fire under some butts…

That said, you did agree with my underlying premise; that the program’s prestige is starting to slack. You seem to decry “the good ole days”, and I agree that they were never as good upon reflection, but the fact remains those were the days of championship after championship – not “Welp, almost, maybe next year…”

And if what you say is true, about most of the kids today not knowing or caring about “Miramonte heroes of yesteryear”, then that’s downright depressing. I’m well aware that it’s just HS ball, but if you’ve lost your history & tradition, you’ve lost your soul.

Sure, football should be fun above all. But it’s a hellofa lot more fun and REWARDING when you’ve achieved something great and fashioned your own link in the chain of generations. What great programs don’t idolize and fortify their past, using each year as a stronger base from which to propel itself into the future?

Believe me, I will always support our team, or my name isn’t MiraFaithful! The faith will always be there, all I ask in return is that it be rewarded.

Here’s hoping for a great season!

Thank you for the info about the scrimages.
Friday Aug. 17th JFK-Fremont @Mt Eden 4pm
Satuday Aug. 18th Moreau @St Marys 1pm, Hayward @Mt Diablo (time was not on school web page)
Tennyson?

Like most of those “back in the good ole days…” comments I can’t really dispute with you because I wasn’t around Miramonte in those days. However, usually one finds the good old days weren’t as good advertised. Were these the same good old days in which we used to do steroids to get “BIG”? Were these the days when you would find some hard-luck transfer to plug holes in the lineup? Were these the good old days in which we had a 300 pound line because there were a lot of obese people walking around campus?

However, I agree that Miramonte football had some amazing years and that it is not the elite program that it was 10-15 years ago. Frankly, I doubt it will be in the immediate future for a number of reasons including the size of school, change in transfer rules, changes in demographics and proliferation of other sports.

Your comment about guys not working hard is weird since from what I know the team this year has more guys working hard in the offseason than past couple of years. They just don’t happen to be very big guys! I’d never heard that guys were staying slim to impress the ladies, but hey, I can think of worse reasons! I will say this, the thin guys I know are incredibly fit.

In any case, like a bad archer you shot in the right direction but totally missed the target. Most of the kids today don’t even know or likely care about the Miramonte heros of yesteryear. They just want to play and have fun. If the sport of football and those associated with it are not providing an enjoyable experience they will move on to something else and they have the mobility to move on quickly. I would point to lacrosse as an example. Kids go out and play and have fun. They have expectations, but not because some coach tells them about some team that won NCS 15 years ago, but because they enjoy the game and their teammates. Some kids work hard in the offseason and some kid do not, but no one asks “What did you do in the offseason?” Lacrosse is growing; football is not! Playing for the fun of it. That’s probably what you did back in the good old days!

You’re getting soft. No, not every player, but a lot of you are trying to live off a reputation that was earned when you were but 4 or 5 yrs old. True, the drop off hasn’t been overly extreme – you’re still making it deep into the playoffs each season – but an ever-decreasing number of dedicated players will not be able to continue carrying an ever-increasing number of players coming out just for the jerseys. When guys on the FOOTBALL team are unwilling to get BIG because they’re concerned with keeping that svelte look for the “ladies”, you know you have a problem. Newsflash to those guys who have actually gotten past the HS flirting stage: it’s almost a guarantee that your “relationships” are not going to last past freshman year of college, so stop wasting your time with something you have your whole life to work on, and start focusing on a sport most of you will never get to play ever again after you graduate.

So buck up, go push some iron, focus in, and pave your own path this season. Please prove me wrong…