Catholic Central coach Aldrich reflects on special season
The high school football season lasted nearly four months in the area, with Catholic Central and Lake Geneva Badger both losing in their respective state semifinal games last weekend.
Waterford made it to Level 3, and both Union Grove and Wilmot had impressive runs to the playoffs.
Personally, I ended my predictions season with a record of 51-18, but I was only 3-3 in the final two weeks.
I was way off in thinking the Toppers would wind up in Madison, but I don’t think anyone could’ve expected such a lopsided loss. Bangor played exceptionally, and Catholic Central couldn’t stop it.
Also, I was only seven points off (28-21) in Waukesha West’s 28-14 victory over Badger.
The bottom line is that area football is stronger than ever, with six area teams that made the playoffs, and it will only get better.
After Friday’s devastating loss, I managed to catch up with several players, and the emotions were pouring out. It’s certainly one of the hardest parts of the job, so I tried to be as understanding and empathetic as possible.
The young men from Catholic Central showed poise, maturity and courage in giving honest answers, despite the worst of circumstances, a 48-6 loss.
I didn’t get a chance to catch up with head coach Tom Aldrich Friday. But he returned an email Tuesday after a few days of reflection on the game.
Before we jump into it, I’d just like to thank all of the parents, students and athletes that helped me on Twitter @mikeramczyk17 and @PrepsReport and on the Standard Press Sports, SLN Walworth County and SLN Kenosha County Facebook pages.
For the past few months, people like Jim Neuhaus, Barb Berezowitz, Matt Allen, Adam Brechtl and countless others (sorry if I didn’t name you) have provided me with score updates, tips on stories, photos and more.
The fall was fun, and in the next couple weeks, we’ll reveal our All-Area football and volleyball teams.
For now, reminisce on a wonderful season with Aldrich, who enjoyed the team’s first conference title since 2010 and a 12-1 record.
Even if you’re not a fan of Catholic Central or have no affiliation, all high school teams should strive for this kind of success on and off the field or court.
Q: What are your thoughts on Friday’s season-ending loss?
Tom Aldrich: Friday night we got beat by a team that played outstanding football. They were definitely the better team Friday night.
Q: Why was Bangor so difficult to stop?
TA: It was difficult to stop Bangor offensively because our defensive game plan didn’t work. In part due to scheme but mainly because of Bangor’s execution up front.
They had good size up front, and they were fast and athletic. They beat us at the point of attack, and they had very good skill players to take advantage of that.
Q: Did you and the coaching staff get frustrated that nothing seemed to stop their run game?
TA: I don’t feel our staff was frustrated by the game. I know, as a staff, we were disappointed that we didn’t have an answer to help give our players a chance to be more successful in their efforts, on the field. They really played hard and gave us a great effort all night long.
Q: Is there a silver lining in this loss?
TA: The silver lining in all of this is that after the regular season ended we were able to play and practice for an additional four weeks with an outstanding group of young men, who loved playing the game of football together.
More importantly, they genuinely cared about and loved one another. They made this season a blast for everybody involved in the program. I hope they are proud of themselves, because I’m sure proud of each and every one of them. This was a special team, and we had a great year together.
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