DIFFERENT COLORSJessica Pluchino
Football is one of the few arenas where men are made and life long bonds are formed. Character and maturity are developed and nurtured by men who have gone through the same rights of passage. Many never forget the teammates who they have lined up alongside.
Tonight’s game will be no different. The boys from Venice and Cardinal Mooney are learning to become men. They are learning these lessons from two men, who in the past were once teammates themselves. Since 1990 they have both been donning the same cardinal and gold of their Alma Mater. This is the present however, and tonight they will be across from one another not as friends, but as rivals. John Peacock and Josh Smithers both start the 2007 football season out as new head coaches, new coaches who make their debut against each other.
Cardinal Mooney in 1991 found John Peacock going in to his senior year of high school. Football had started and two sophomore players were called up to the varsity level, one was Josh Smithers. When you ask either one of them to recount their high school relationship, both respond with that the older John was Josh’s mentor. “My sophomore year I wasn’t really sure that I wanted to play on varsity. All my friends were still on JV, and I was going back and forth. John really took me under his wing and made me feel comfortable.” “We had a good relationship,” says Peacock. “Josh was a hard worker, and I had been in the same position, so I tried to help him along as much as I could have.” Peacock and his buddies seemed to go out of their way to make Smithers’ move up to varsity a smooth transition. “I can remember Peacock and his friends would always fight over who could carry my books and walk me to class.”
John graduated in 1992 and went on to East Carolina. After graduating high school a couple of years later Josh went to Georgia Southern. It was at this time that Peacock transferred to Georgia Southern. “We became even closer in college”, said Josh. “We had the same classes, we played the same position, and we were roommates on the road.” He continued to look up to Peacock, and attributes getting through those tough years at school to him. “If it wasn’t for John I would have never made it through college. He helped me deal with a lot mentally. He was mature and had been through it already.” After graduating and coming back home John started coaching at Venice. Josh did the same when he returned and started coaching at Mooney.
It is 2007 and we now find both men taking over the helm at their respective schools. “I think we always knew that we wanted to coach”, said Peacock. “I’m excited about this game.” When you ask both of them what they anticipate tonight, they are both modest with their answers. “Josh has a clear advantage,” said Peacock. “They’re coming off a 12-1 semi-final season, and we are coming off of two down years. I just want to keep it as close as possible and keep the game interesting.” Smithers’ response is quite the opposite. “It’s going to be a fun game, I just want us to be competitive against Venice. They’re a bigger school and I don’t mind playing a bigger school. I know John won’t try to run the score up on us. If it starts to get ugly out there, he will keep it under control.”
No matter what happens tonight, these two men will continue to remain friends. They will continue to provide an environment where boys can grow into men, and where friendships can be forged on and off the field. They have both become mentors and role models now. It is no longer Josh looking up to John; it is Cardinal Mooney and Venice looking up to them.
The new era has commenced.
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1-2 PUNCH
Like peanut butter and jelly, or Batman and Robin, Jimmy Laurie and Paul Costanzo are the perfect combination. You just can’t picture having one without the other. That’s what most folks around Venice High think any way. The two just go hand in hand. Luckily for the Venice Football Program, they got the package deal. Both explosive out of the backfield, Jimmy and Paul are looking to make their senior year on the gridiron a memorable one.
Friends since first grade, it’s easy to tell that these two go way back. Their camaraderie on and off the field is obvious. They constantly push each other to perform better. “We’re pretty intense at practice”, says Laurie. “When we’re on opposite sides of the ball we get real competitive. On the same side the intensity is lethal. We’ve been playing tackle football together for the past seven years. We’re really good friends.” “Yeah”, says Costanzo, “We’re kinda like Coach Peacock and Coach Shannon.”
Jimmy and Paul note that there have been a lot of changes made since Coach Peacock took over as Head Coach. The biggest difference between this year and years past is the level of commitment from everyone. “As a whole, we all seem more dedicated”, said Costanzo. “We have put a lot of time and effort into getting better.” According to Laurie much of that can be attributed to the example that new Head Coach John Peacock and his staff have put forth. “Coach Peacock puts a lot of time into the program. As a team we can see he is committed and we know he’s there to help us get better.” When asked about Coach Peacock, Laurie and Costanzo speak for the team when they say that everyone likes him and the changes he has made to the program. “Coach Peacock is easy to get along with”, says Costanzo, Laurie nods his head in agreement. “He can joke around with you, but he has a good balance. There is a time to have fun and then there is a time to do work. We all have a job to get done.” When asked how the team has come together Laurie responds, “It started over the summer, lifting and conditioning. We started to come together then, but in the past few two-a-day practices we’ve really come together.”
The season will start with the Kickoff Classic against Cardinal Mooney. The Indians and the Cougars have already somewhat of a rivalry going. “There’s tension between us”, says Laurie. “We have played them three times this summer in 7 on 7. We’re really excited to play them. We got a good luck at them over the summer and can’t wait to strap on the pads and hit someone.”
So what does the future hold for these two? Costanzo says that he’s focusing on having a ring on his finger by the end of this season. Laurie’s sentiments are the same. After school is over and they have graduated both are going to wait and see what the cards hold. “I’m going to wait and see what happens”, says Laurie. “If I get an offer from a school to play football and I like it, I will go. If there isn’t anything out there, I would like to go to FSU.” Costanzo’s response is the same, “I’m waiting to see what happens too. If I don’t play football, I would like to stay in Florida.”
Tonight will be step one for the two seniors. A step that they will take in unison towards what they hope will be a very special season.
