Rome High School Signing Day 2019

Here is a quote from Head Football Coach John Reid: 

“I think the one thing that needs to be said is that although today was about our athletes who received college scholarships, it is just as important that we acknowledge our kids who are going out into the workforce. For example, we have students who will become welders and four of our athletes already have HVAC degrees. So, I don’t want to leave that out of what these kids have been able to accomplish. The university level and trade schools are both huge opportunities for our students. We don’t want them to come back to see us on Friday nights next year and not be working towards their goals. We want to build our career center so that all of our kids will have a leg up on the competition academically as well.

We thought long and hard years ago about creating a four-pillar program, the pillars being core beliefs and core values. Coach Snyder at Kansas State had a model with 27 components. We wanted something that was easier to remember, so we came up with trust, toughness, integrity and family. Those are big words and we had to define what they looked like to us. Take family, for example. That means if someone runs out of gas and calls one of us, then we come. For trust, we asked that they trust each other and trust the coaches. Toughness is mental and physical. We have tried to prove that in all of our athletic programs and we want everyone to know that the Rome Wolves will be tough. We tell our kids that integrity is armor; it is what you wear. If you lack integrity, then you have a crack in your armor.

When you have kids like the ones we have graduated in the last four years coming back during the holidays and verifying what we teach, if helps to strengthen our program. That is important, and it feels good as a coach to know we have several kids playing in the ACC and many others who are getting an education while playing a sport they love. Our goal has always been to help them get what they want, and we assumed that what they wanted was to be great at the sport they play. We have had coaches say to us who are in the process building a program that our kids will help them because they know what being a champion looks like. The same goes for those schools who are already championship-ready teams. They know our kids can stand up to the demands.

This is not a clean break of the bond between these kids and the coaching staff here at Rome High School. We have told all of their coaches that if they sign and we can help them; they are still in the weight room with us. Not many programs offer this to their seniors. They kind of cut them off and tell them that they are on their own. That is not what we do here. And I would like to pass on a great piece of advice that was given to me by my uncle and that was to not miss class. He told me to be consistent. There is not some deep message that we can give these kids as they start this new chapter in their lives. I want them all to know that the key to success is getting up everyday, being your best and doing your best.”