Bill Belichick’s impact in the high school games was probably two-fold.
The local coaching contingent certainly paid attention to the Patriots coach’s work ethic. If Belichick was putting in that kind of performance and effort, they owed their own program’s as much.
But Belichick also changed the sideline vernacular forever.
For decades, the “Get back” coach’s refrain was the loudest and most often heard, as in “get back off the line.”
Not anymore.
These days. Pick a field, any field, on a fall Friday night, and you are sure to hear three words:
Do. Your. Job.
“The whole ‘Do Your Job’ thing where everyone takes care of their own responsibility and doesn’t worry what everyone else is doing, that’s the pure essence of what sports should be,” said Pinkerton Academy football coach Brian O’Reilly, whose tenure with the Astros began with Chuck Fairbanks running the show in Foxborough.
Next season will be the 10th New England Patriots head coach since O’Reilly hit Derry.
And the coach is not happy about it.
“I thought he deserved another year. Everyone talks about how bad a team they are, they’re not. Defensively, they’re up there with any team in the NFL,” said O’Reilly. “Fix the offense a little bit, and I thought they were right back in the mix. To bow down to the public pressure, to bow down to talk-radio callers and reporters, it’s too bad.
“I’m not happy (Thursday). It’s certainly nothing I wanted to see. I thought he earned the right to go out on his own terms.”
The region’s coaching contingent was hurt by Thursday’s announcement that Belichick would be headed elsewhere to close out his coaching career.
Ex-Central Catholic boss Chuck Adamopoulos shares more than just football passion with Belichick. Like Bill’s father, Chuck’s dad, Arthur, was an old-school football coach, who nurtured his passion for the game.
“I’m very sad about it. I didn’t like that being the end for him here. As a coach, I had the utmost respect for how he ran the Patriots,” said Adamopoulos. “I’m in my 60s. I go way back with the Patriots. To see what he’s accomplished in the era of the salary cap, the man is a great coach.
“Listen to the comments from this year;’s team, they loved playing for him, even with the losses. The players had his back. I have a lot more respect for him than I do the owner of the team.”
Adamopoulos’ successor, John Sexton, is just old enough (44) to have tasted some of the leaner times in Foxborough. His appreciation for Bill knows no bounds.
“He’s brought a lot of joy into my life. When I was a young football fan, I still remember how bad the team was through Rod Rust and Dick McPherson in the 90s. They’ve done nothing but win for 20 years,” said Sexton.
“It makes me sad in a way. A lot of us around here lived and died with them.
“He’s so singularly focused, that kind of consistency is rare. He’s a great coach, but he was frighteningly consistent, all the time. The thing I would take away from Bill is when they were in the game, they never seemed to beat themselves. When things were even, they played smarter and made fewer mistakes.”
Andover High coach EJ Perry took it a step further.
“I go back to watching Jim Plunkett with my dad (Ernie) with (legendary Lawrence coach) Bob Fitzgerald and his son, Bob Jr. in the early 1970s. Then we had Steve Grogan and Tony Eason,” said Perry.
“The struggles we watched. I mean, 1985 was a miracle, but then there was nothing but mediocrity. Belichick set a standard and held his team to that standard for such a long stretch. I think in every conversation I have with my Andover High team, I mention the Patriot Way.”