Pearl River Football Applying Lessons in Winning

Pearl River senior receiver/safety Sean Wilson summed up the change in the Pirates' program in the moments after a 20-15 victory over Spring Valley Oct. 6.

"Coming out, we're not scared of anyone this year," Wilson said. "We're expecting to win."

Pearl River will put that mentality to the test again when it plays Nanuet for the Little Brown Jug in the Pirates' homecoming game 2 p.m. Saturday. Pearl River ended Nanuet's 13-year winning streak in the rivalry to an end with a 20-0 victory in 2010, one of the program's key turning points.

"After I got the job in April 2010, at one of our first meetings, I asked what do we want to get out of the program," Pearl River second-year head coach Jeff Michael said. "I had them close their eyes and visualize beating Nanuet. I had them open their eyes and asked what do you want to do to achieve that. How do we accomplish our goal? For us, goal-setting is a very important part of the program. We needed a clear understanding of where we want to go and figure out how we want to get there. We wanted the jug back. We had been talking about it for years.

"The experts told us we were going to lose. The closest (prediction) was by 13 points. We took that to heart. We had worked hard. We believed we had a quality program. It was a statement game for us. It wasn't just the brown jug any more. It was who we are and who we want to be."

That victory was just one highlight in Michael's first season as head coach. He came to Pearl River as an assistant on Mark Travaglino's staff in 2006, then coached the junior varsity for three seasons before taking over as head varsity coach.

"When I was coaching with Mark Trav, we had ideas what we wanted to get done," Michael said. "When Mark stepped down, I carried over what he did and added bits and pieces of my own. So far, so good."

"We've changed so much since he took over," Wilson said. "We have a different mentality. We're not scared of anyone. We think we should win every game."

Michael believes it helped Pearl River to leave Section 1 play and spend 2010 in a developmental league, which allowed the Pirates to face comparable programs. Pearl River went 7-2, losing the developmental league championship game to Tappan Zee.

"When we went into the season, the decision was made where we were going and I went with it," Michael said. "We just told the kids, 'We're in this league. Let's learn how to win. Let's figure out what we have to do to have a winning program."

Michael knows that the 5-0 start is just that -- a start. He points to something former Pearl River Director of Athletics Tom Collins told him.

"Tom Collins taught me that the road to success is always under construction," Michael said. "He taught me a lot, but that's the one I will remember until the day I die. It's such a great way to look at building a successful program. Always look to change for the better."