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Dear Wolf Pack Football Families:

I hope everyone had a great no contact period.  As we get ready to return to football, continue SWAT, and begin Fall Camp, here are a few things to know:

• The skill players performed well at this summer's passing tournaments.  We reached the finals of the Hilltop Tournament, went undefeated at the A-Town Throw-Down, and won our bracket at the Southwestern Passing Tournament.
• Now that summer school has come to an end, the remainder of our SWAT workouts, beginning on Monday, 7/15, will begin at 6:00 am.
• Your son should have spent some time over the last few weeks selling their discount cards.  We will collect money on Thursday, 7/25 from those who have sold all ten cards.
• We will be taking our annual field trip on our final day of SWAT (7/25).  Your son should bring home a permission slip next week; please sign it and return it with your son.
• With construction currently taking place in both the locker room and team room, we have been unable to distribute gear in our normal fashion; however, I remain assured that we will be able to do so in the next couple of weeks.  Stay tuned...
• JV football players will submit clearance paperwork in the front office on Monday , 7/29 between 12:30 and 2:30.  Varsity players will submit their paperwork on Tuesday, 7/30 between 7:30 and 11:30.  Make sure your son's physical is completed prior to this date.
• Fall Camp begins on Tuesday, 7/30.  See the calendar tab on this website for details.
• Our Parent Meeting will take place on Thursday, 8/1.  Varsity and JV parents meet at 6:00, while Freshman parents meet at 6:30 (Location TBA).
• Team and individual pictures will be taken by Susan Cooper Photography on Tuesday, 8/6 at 4:00 for all levels.  Look for a flier to come home with your son in the upcoming weeks.

I'm sure we are all looking to getting the season started with our opening game on Friday, 8/23. 

GO BLUE!

Coach Ash

Dear Wolf Pack Football Families:

·      Thank you to all of the families who have donated to our training table program.  Every week has gone perfectly!  If you’re interested in signing up for a week, you’ll have to wait until next January.  We are booked for 2019!

·      The boys have been doing a great job in the weight room.  We completed our second round of strength testing the week before Spring Break.  Many of their exploits can be found on my twitter account (@whfbcoach).

·      Spring Football begins next week (Tuesday, May 7^th).  All students must be cleared before this date.   Those who have a physical that expires before June will need a new physical as well.  Information regarding the clearance process can be found on the **SPRING FOOTBALL DOCUMENT that your son brought home from our April meeting.

·      Athletes who are involved in WHHS Spring sports beyond May 7^th will join us at the conclusion of their season. Finish strong!

·       On May 9^th, boosters will be giving the boys their allotment of ten Black & Blue Jamboree tickets to sell.  Purchasing a ticket gains the buyer entry to all of the day’s games and our $500 raffle.  The Black & Blue Jamboree, including the Powder Puff game, will take place on Thursday, May 23^rd.  Save the date!

·      We are hosting a meeting for new WHHS Football parents at 6:30 on May 16^th in room S8.  The information is aimed specifically at parents of incoming freshmen but all are welcome.

·      Spirit Packs will be available for purchase after practice on May 9^th.  For more details, including price, see the **SPRING FOOTBALL DOCUMENT that your son brought home from our April meeting.

·      Please check this website (under “Schedules”…”Calendar”) for our complete spring and summer schedule.

·      2019 Fall Camp begins Tuesday, July 30^th!

**If your son failed to bring home his SPRING FOOTBALL DOCUMENT from our April meeting, tell him to get his act together and send him to see me for another copy.

                                                                                                            GO BLUE!

                                                                                                            Coach Ash

After a great deal of thought, I've decided to cancel this week's JV football game at Southwest--El Centro.  As many of you are aware, we came into the season with very few sophomores in the program; then, at Friday's scrimmage, we suffered a couple of injuries at key positions.  We will play a JV game the following week against Valhalla, and we hope to play out the remainder of the season.  In the meantime, our JV athletes will continue to attend practice and several of them will make the trip to Southwest as members of the varsity squad.

Obviously, we never wanted to be in this position at West Hills, but participation has been a problem at area schools for the past couple of years.  So far in 2018, El Cajon Valley and Valhalla have had to cancel their freshman seasons, while Mt. Miguel has decided they are unable to field a JV team.  I anticipate these won't be the last changes to our lower-level schedules.  I will do my best to keep schedules up to date here, but, for better or worse, your son is your best resource for information.

With fall camp beginning this week, I wanted to reach out with some information about the start of the regular season...

CLEARANCE--Your student-athlete must be cleared by the school in order to practice on Monday.  Ms. Pitones will be available in the Administration Office from 8:00 until noon to clear players on all three levels.  The clearance document (which needs a parent signature) and physical information can be found online here.  Most of you get your physicals completed during the summer; however, if not, you need to make sure it expires no sooner than November.  Those with physicals that expire mid-season will not be cleared.  After Ms. Pitones stamps your son's clearance document, he will turn it in to the coaching staff at his respective check-in time and be eligible to begin practicing.  **Check-in times are 12:00 for varsity, 1:00 for junior varsity, and 2:00 for freshman.

GEAR DISTRIBUTION--All players should have already received their gear.  If your son has not, he needs to be at the equipment room at 11:00 on Monday.

PRACTICE ATTENDANCE--From Monday until the end of their respective season, it is critical that your son attend every practice.  His absence negatively affects not just him, but his entire team.  If your son is on JV or varsity, please schedule medical/dental appointment for Wednesdays after school.  If he is on the frosh team, please schedule them on Fridays (except for 8/31).  The only reason anyone should miss practice is an unexpected emergency.

PARENT MEETING--Our annual parent meeting will be held on Tuesday (7/31) near the front of campus (either The Pit or Bob Guess Theater).  At this meeting, you will receive important information about the program as well as your athlete's game jersey.  Student-athletes may attend, but they are not the target audience.  The meeting is at 6:00 for JV and varsity parents and 6:30 for frosh parents.

TEAM/INDIVIDUAL PHOTOS--Susan Cooper Photography will be taking pictures of all three levels on Wednesday at 4:00 sharp.  You athlete should have brought home an order form last week.

DISCOUNT CARD BLITZ--Hopefully, your son has been working on selling his allotment of 10 discount cards.  Boosters will be available to collect card sale money on two more occasions: Tuesday, before the parent meeting, and Saturday, before the blitz.  On Saturday, those who haven't sold their 10 discount cards will participate in the blitz from 11:00-2:00.

We've had a strong summer on all levels, and I am looking forward to taking the next step beginning on Monday.

GO BLUE!

Dear Wolf Pack Football Families,

I hope everyone enjoyed the holiday season and has seen their 2018 get off to a great start.  Our football program said goodbye to 2017 with our varsity banquet last week at SDCCU Stadium.  Thank you to Andrea Leggate for doing the legwork to secure the site and all of our boosters for all of the time they put into decorating and preparing. 

In the meantime, our preparation for the 2018 season has gotten underway with morning workouts on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays lead by Coach Shumate, Coach Deal, and myself.  Our theme for this off-season, created by Coach Shumate, is "Commit Yourself".  Thank you for your help in getting your student-athlete to these important training sessions and supporting our mission to teach our young men the importance of devoting themselves to a greater cause.  

Speaking of off-season workouts, we are again looking for families to contribute to our Thursday morning training tables.  For those unfamiliar with the concept, on Thursdays athletes visit the training table for a quick snack to help them re-energize and prepare for their school day.  Popular items include things like chocolate milk, juice, Gatorade-type drinks, fruit, muffins, etc.  We started this program last year, and I think the kids really appreciated it.  It's something that we are able to offer that most other schools in the county are not, and we are always looking for an edge.  If you are able to take care of a Thursday for us, please contact me.

We have a couple of important events coming up in early February.  On February 7th , WHHS is hosting our annual Freshman Showcase.  As always, the football program will have a presence at the event.  Please encourage any 8th grade families you know to come by and see us.  Also, the following night, February 8th, we are hosting our first Family Night Out of 2018 at Wings N Things in Santee.  Please stop by to say hello and help us raise funds for our program.

GO BLUE!

            Football is a great game, in part, because of its ability to teach young men life lessons.  The most important role of a football coach, therefore, is to highlight and embed these lessons.  The master coach must wear many hats—father, mentor, disciplinarian, teacher, role model—but, in the end, it will be the ability of his players to play those same roles in their own future lives that truly measures his effect.

            Our program is relationship-based.  By making an investment in the myriad of relationships that exist in a high school football program (coach and player, coach and administration, coach and parents, etc.), we seek to create an environment in which the personal ties extend beyond the confines of the football season and have a positive, lasting impact on the lives of all involved.

            Another one of the bedrock beliefs that I subscribe to is that a strong work ethic can overcome deficiencies in many other areas.  The job of a coach is to teach the value of hard work to his players by first creating an environment that demands it, then assessing it, and finally providing feedback.  The object is to do the job to the very best of your ability; then and only then, can one experience a feeling of true accomplishment.

            As far as I am concerned, teaching our young people to work through the difficult situations that they are bound to encounter is the most important thing we can do.  This is seldom easy or glamorous; but, as I look around our society, I see too many adults taking the easy way out and becoming a friend rather than doing the difficult work of teaching. My question is, if we do not help them develop the necessary tools to deal with life’s obstacles, how can we expect them to succeed once they are on their own?

            Any person can call him or her self a football coach.  Knowing how to teach a 3 step drop or defend the dive option are things anyone is capable of studying and learning.  What separates the impactful coaches from the mediocre—and what I take a great deal of pride in—is the ability to teach everything else.  

GO BLUE!