The Spartans lost to the W-E-M Buccaneers
in that section semifinal playoff game, but that’s not what I remember. The lasting
memory is what the Spartans did following the game, after shaking hands with
and congratulating the Buccaneers. They listened to their coach, St. Clair
principal Dustin Bosshart, who told them, “The coaches who coached you will be there for you for the
rest of your lives. You will remember the lifetime memories you created. You
did it the right way.
“You are a
great group and you will accomplish incredible things in your life. Spartan
family for life, that’s what you guys are.”
As I wrote then,
something special happened...
The players’
families and friends stood 20 or so yards away, waiting for the team’s private
moment to end. And then another incredible thing happened: It didn’t end.
The players remained together, some hugging, some
finding one or more of the coaches to say thank you and share an embrace.
Coaches patted boys on the helmet, returned the thank you and told them they
loved them. The boys then gathered together once more – not wanting the moment
to end -- each of them kneeling, for a few private words. Helmets removed and
heads bowed, they prayed.
And then, only then, did the boys begin reuniting
with their families. A strapping teenager hugged his grandpa and wept on his
shoulder. Moms, dads, friends offered congratulations and condolences on the
end of a great season.
(You can read that story from Oct. 27, 2018 by clicking here and scrolling to the third headline, “Spartans For Life: Lessons Learned On The Football Field … https://old.mshsl.org/mshsl/johnsjournal.asp?index=514 )
The ninth-graders on that team are now
seniors, and the football coop remains in place. Then as now, in the winter and
spring many athletes are either St. Clair Cyclones (from a public school) or Loyola
Crusaders (from a private school). But during the football season, every player
is a Spartan.
If not for the cooperative agreement, each
school would have a very tough time fielding a football team. This year, about
75 percent of the football players come from St. Clair (9-12 enrollment of 219)
and the rest from Loyola (105). The Spartans will take a 5-2 record into the
regular-season finale on Wednesday, hosting Gibbon-Fairfax-Winthrop in St.
Clair. The team splits its practices and home games between the fields at the
two schools. The city of St. Clair is southeast of Mankato, 13 miles from Loyola.
Back in 2018, no one knew exactly how the players
would come together. They needed a little prodding at the first summer camp workout.
“I’m looking around, and
there’s a Loyola group in one spot, St. Clair upperclassmen over here, St. Clair
younger kids in another spot,” Bosshart said. “I told the kids, ‘If this is
going to work, this can’t happen. We have to be one group.’ Afterwards, I looked
at the kids in the parking lot. They were exchanging numbers, creating group
chats, and we were one team.”
There are 12 seniors on
the 2021 Spartans roster, and they remember well what it was like when the
now-rock-solid bonds began to be forged.
“Some of my
closest friends go to Loyola,” said St. Clair senior Hayden Kasprowicz. “Thinking
back to four years ago, I would have never, ever thought about that. I knew of
people but didn't know them on a personal level. I think we were all kind of
nervous but also excited.”
Prior to the football
cooperative agreement, the two schools were already combined in wrestling, golf
and soccer. Athletes in those sports are very familiar with driving between the
schools for practices and games, and they enjoy their friends. But it wasn’t
always like that.
“I was kind
of nervous. I didn't really know all these people and it was a big change,
especially coming from a small school,” said Colby Amundson. “But now, looking
back, I was so happy that it happened. I would not be the person I am today,
either, with the people I’ve met, the connections, the memories I've made with
this team.”
Tyler Ahl said,
“It's been really cool to meet new people and it's been a good opportunity to
be able to see all these new faces and compete with them.”
The Spartans
have a record of 23-11 in the four years since the coop started.
“They are a very
competitive group,” Bosshart said. “It’s almost like watching brothers compete.”
That’s a word –
brothers – that the players use when describing their teammates, no matter
which school they attend.
“We didn't
really want to coop at the beginning. But then we were brought together, and I’ve
made lifelong friends,” said Connor Andree. “We were big rivals, like we almost
couldn't stand each other. It's crazy how you can judge someone, then once you
get to know them, they're just great people and you're having fun with it.”
It’s true
that the two schools are rivals in other sports. At volleyball matches and
basketball games, student from each school cheer loudly for their teams but
then mingle with their friends from the other school afterwards. Sam Carlson,
the head coach of the Loyola boys basketball team, is an assistant coach on the
football team.
“We're
really good in basketball and they're really good,” said St. Clair senior Riley
Fitzloff. “So it's a good matchup. And during those games, the gyms are just
packed. We get fired up. Going into (the football coop), we weren’t really expecting
things to go as well as they did. Now one of my best friends is from Loyola. I liked how everything worked out in the end.”
There are
even some special bonuses, including this: the football team plays two Homecoming
games, one at each school.
“The kids have fun. They understand that
football isn’t life and life isn’t football,” said Bosshart.
“It's been a
fun process just getting to know some new guys, make some new friendships, on
and off the field,” said senior Devin Embacher. “I think we really push each
other, and it's just been fun getting to know everyone.
“We didn't
really want to coop at the beginning. But then we were brought together, and I’ve
made lifelong friends.”
--MSHSL
media specialist John Millea has been the leading voice of Minnesota high
school activities for decades. Follow him on Twitter @MSHSLjohn and listen to
"Preps Today with John Millea” wherever you get podcasts. Contact John
at jmillea@mshsl.org
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