Brookwood Broncos: Life of a Coach's Wife

When Barbara Crews married her husband, he was already into sports. There really was no turning back.

At Columbia High School, he played football and wrestled. No, she wasn't a cheerleader; she was editor of school yearbook. But, while at school, she became good friends with Mark, and also with a guy named Cecil Flowe.

It took a number of years for Mark and Barbara to make it official, and in 1977 while he was teaching and coaching at Avondale High School -- a school that is no more -- the two began dating. They've been married now for 30 years, and they have three children.

The two boys, Daniel who is now 28 and David who is 21, followed behind Dad, right into sports. Daughter Jessica played softball.

"My sons grew up at , and they were both ball boys until they started playing football," she said. "We're huge into football."

Makes sense. Nowadays, the entire family participates, whether it's being a sideline cheerleader, taping the games or reminiscing about the old days. 

"Brookwood is in their blood," she said.

And, everything stops for football, even marriage, Barbara said, a little not-so on the joking side. When you marry a coach it seems, you know he gets into that zone, you know he gets busy, and there's really no snapping out of it.

"It’s a seven-day-a-week thing," said Barbara Crews, 54 "Its very involved and very time consuming."

On Saturdays, he goes in to review films, plotting and planning ways to win the next week's games.

"After 30 years of being married, it's just want you get used to," she added. "It's called being a coach's wife."

And, now that her husband is playing against Parkview High and Cecil Flowe, his good friend from high school days, Barbara is as ecstatic as her husband to hit the field. And, today they plan to a muzzle on those Panthers.

It's a rivalry that goes back years.

"The rivalry, it's really a cool thing," she said, while driving home from work.  "Through the years: two successful schools and lots of competition and lots of energy to get better, and you know, have better stats."

And, it's a friendship. The Flowes -- Cecil married a woman named Penny -- and the Crews are buddies off the field.

"We were at a wrestling state tournament when Penny went into labor with Shelby, so we go way back," she said. "It’s a friendly thing."

Daughter Shelby will be sitting with Penny during tonight's game, as they watch Patrick, the Flowe's son, try to hand the Broncos a loss. Patrick is a linebacker for the Panthers.

Penny Flowe's take on the rivalry: “When you get two great high schools together that close, it’s special."

When asked what she likes about the sport, Barbara spoke like a true coach's wife. "Winning," she said with ease.

And, oh yeah, watching her husband do what he does.

"When we won state last year, it was like a huge feather in his cap," she added. "It's fun to break records, and it's fun to be successful, and it's fun to see the kids develop.

"It's much more than a football game. It's neat to see what Mark does from an all-around way, like just directing and supporting and guiding the players lives. I mean, it's really, really neat."

She thanks the general school community for being so welcoming and supportive, as well.

“I just think that in Gwinnett, it's second to none as far as the talents and teams and the schools," she said. "It's really highly competitive, and it's probably one of the biggest counties in the state that has as much rivalry as we do.”

So, when you see her on the field or hollering from the coaches' wives section, be ware. She can get loud. She's just as competitive as the rest of them.

"If somebody gets too vocal, I just tell them I'm the coach's wife," she added. "Usually, they don’t know."

All in all, Barbara Crews, who is a nurse practitioner at Scottish Rite, is happy with her life. Being married to the coach, is what it is. Some parts stress, some parts excitement.

"It's been a fun ride."

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