It’s the Marksmen tradition.
Standing in front of Centennial Hall, the path to manhood statue overlooks the whole campus. The young Marksman on the shoulders of an older Marksman symbolizes the brotherhood of the school, actualized through traditions like seniors carrying their own Lower School buddies through the Great Hall during the all-school Christmas party and the Telos program where Upper School students mentor their younger brothers in advisory meetings
Yet more recently, this tradition has expanded into the world of sports, as Upperclassmen coach teams of younger classmates.
The school places an emphasis on both leadership and giving back to one’s communities and through coaching Lower and Middle School athletics teams, Upper Schoolers around campus strive to deliver on these tenants.
Last year, sophomore football players Blaize Schuhmacher, Reid Smith, Grant Kennington and Ford Robinson took on the responsibility of coaching a Fourth Grade football team. Over two seasons of competition, the four coaches put together an impressive record, while experiencing unforgettable moments and bonding with the younger Marksmen in the process.
“We went undefeated, and that was awesome,” Schuhmacher said. “There was one memorable game where we were losing at halftime, and some kids stepped up, and we were really proud of them. When they listen to our coaching, it’s really cool to see because it normally pays off.”
All of the coaches incite energy and excitement in each of their players, leading to countless memories and moments of entertainment. Schuhmacher and the other coaches also take pride in coaching the younger generation of athletes and recognize the importance of setting a strong example.
“Even though they’re sometimes hard to control, they definitely follow our lead and look up to us,” Schumacher said. “If we say something, they’re gonna agree with that, or if we do something, they’ll try to do it too, so we definitely have an impact on them.”
Youth athletes can be difficult to coach, but Smith finds that balancing hard work and careful instruction with fun activities and encouragement creates an environment where young players can improve while truly enjoying the sport.
“During our second season, we started really practicing every week, and we really started bonding as a team,” Smith said. “I feel like throughout the season, we got a lot closer, and something that we implemented is always playing games with them at the end of practice.”
History instructor and Student Council Sponsor Michele Santosuosso has witnessed first hand the positive effect of the sophomores’ coaching as her fifth grade son, Kane, plays on the team. After coaching both of her son’s teams for several years, Santosuosso retired after the pandemic and decided to look in another direction.
“Andrew Laczkowski (‘20), helped coach Jacob’s (Santosuosso’s other son) basketball team, so this has been going on for a while,” Santosuosso said. “For this particular team, I thought it’d be cool to have freshmen coach Kane’s team because then they could potentially stay with them for three years. Grant is in my advisory, and I taught Blaize, Reid and Ford last year, and so that’s how that happened.”
When choosing a new coach for her son’s teams, Santosuosso favored Upper School coaches. She believes that while parent coaching is great, mentorship from Varsity players can bring about different levels of success and improvement.
“The relationship between the big boys and little boys is really special,” Santosuosso said. “I think it’s a good opportunity for the little guys to have a positive role model. In all honesty, they usually listen better because they want to impress the big guys.”
Although winning is important, Santosuosso appreciates Upper School coaching because she believes that it is essential for the younger athletes to see how the older players react both in times of victory and defeat. Santosuosso aims to have other Lower School teams coached by Upperclassmen and evolve it into a tradition like senior buddy meetings, and the Telos program. In fact, multiple parents have reached out to her looking for coaching opportunities.
“Once these parents start seeing the incredible experience for both big and little kids, they will want to pivot away from dads,” Santosuosso said. “When the parents witness the improvement of Upper School coaching, it makes me happy.”
Kane Santosuosso agrees and appreciates the efforts of the coaches to bring fun and energy to the game, taking the messages they send to heart. When the players see the coaches at school, they make sure to talk to them and hear what they have to say.
“When we went undefeated we were really happy. We went to Village Burger Bar after the game, and the coaches had awards for us,” Kane Santosuosso said. “Ever since the dads stopped coaching, we’ve been winning a lot more games.”