| 100 the hard way |
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Mike Menozzi JolietCatholicfootball.com
With Saturday night's victory over St. Pat's, Joliet Catholic's Dan Sharp gained his 100th victory as head coach of the Hillmen in just his 9th season.
Not unlike the 200th victory he alluded to when recounting Gordie Gillespie‚s milestones, it sure wasn't easy. In Gordie's 200th, the Pesavento brothers rescued a near defeat to Sterling in the second half. Similarly, a second half explosion of 34 points led by FB Joe Benson's 5 TD's and 338 yards erased a 17 point deficit on the road at halftime against St. Pat's.
Gaining your 100th victory in less than 9 full seasons has to be some sort of record I suspect, but the IHSA doesn't keep such records.
I spoke to Coach Sharp last week about the possibility of winning #100 on Saturday, as expected, Coach Sharp was quick to deflect the praise for any possible achievement.
"We've had some very good players in my time here," said Coach Sharp. "Nothing would be accomplished without the hard work and dedication of the talented coaching staff we have as well."
No question about it, as a team they work very well together.
Winning a state championship in 5 of the last 6 years certainly has helped. Allowing JCA to play deeper into the year and expanding the possibility of the number of wins by up to 14 per year.
A few things to consider:
- Sharp's head coaching record at JCA is 100-14
- An 88% winning percentage.
- If you throw out his record the first two years turning the program around, he's 85-5 in the last 7 years.
- That's a 94% winning percentage.
- Toss in 5 championships in the last 6 years and it's not hard to see this is the most successful program in the state of Illinois.
An unbelievable accomplishment for the players, Coach Sharp, the entire coaching staff, and the program itself.
If things continue on their current pace, we'll be talking about Coach Sharp's 200th victory about this time of year in the 2013 season.
Just kidding . . .
Well, maybe not . . .
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