Coach covers character, discipline, dress

WAKE FOREST -- As the chill falls on these November nights, competition in high school football is heating up.

Once again, Earl Smith, 54, the head coach at Wake Forest-Rolesville High School, is in the midst of the playoff-season mayhem.

Smith is one of 256 coaches who led their teams this month into the playoffs, games that bring together school communities for sudden-death, win-or-go-home contests that will ultimately produce state champions three weekends from now.

Smith is one of the winningest, producing an average of more than seven wins a season, year after year since the mid-1970s. His teams have won or shared three straight league titles, though one crown remains elusive: a state title.

His team is back in the hunt again this year.

While winning is ever a major goal, Smith, like so many others, also strives to lead his players in ways that will help them long after the Friday night lights flicker out.

To play for Smith, much more is required than blocking, tackling and running his hard-to-contain Wing-T offense.

The coach stresses character, discipline, hard work and appropriate behavior.

"You treat people like you want to be treated,'' he preaches to his players. "We talk a lot about being a gentleman and showing respect to everybody."

At the start of each season, Smith gives a "priority list" to parents of every player.

It spells out what's important:

No. 1: Faith

No. 2: Family

No. 3: Academics

No. 4: Football

No. 5: Social life.

To build a family atmosphere and community camaraderie, he has enlisted mothers of players to prepare pre-game meals.

The Cougars are required to wear a shirt with a collar, dress pants and dress shoes on game days. They eat at one of three area churches each Friday during the season. They are usually welcomed by a pastor, who offers a prayer.

After games, Smith invites families and fans to join him at midfield, where he talks to the team.

Old-school approach

A strong support system, with an emphasis on accountability, is in place at school, too.

Every player is required to turn in a weekly progress report signed by all of his teachers, who each answer three questions: What was the player's grade in class? Was he a "gentlemen" in class? Does he need extra school help?

If there's a "no" to the gentleman bit, it means the player will do extra drills or clean-up chores after practice. If academic help is needed, a tutor is provided.

Players who don't turn in their reports by Wednesday don't dress for that week's game. This year, two players didn't put on their uniform for that reason alone.

Smith, adhering to some old-school philosophy, is a stickler about dress. No earrings and no hats worn inside the school's field house. No low, drooping pants. No nonsense.

Players are also taught to offer firm handshakes, make eye contact, say "yes, sir" and "no, sir" and assist with housekeeping. Every week after practice, four underclassmen -- supervised by seniors -- help clean up the locker room.

Organization. Structure. Discipline.

"It's small things that I think help build character,'' says Smith, whose sturdily built 6-2, 210-pound, frame commands attention.

The coach knows what he's doing. When Smith arrived five years ago, Wake Forest-Rolesville had not won a conference championship since the school was built in 1958. Now, fans and players have been a part of three in a row.

Overall, Smith has won 235 games and 13 conference titles in 32 years at Thomasville Ledford, Millbrook, Wilmington New Hanover and Wake Forest-Rolesville.

Smith still takes defeat hard. But he said his most painful losses weren't to opponents. Earlier in his career, two of his players died -- one in an automobile accident and one from what was described as heat stroke. Smith said he still grieves for them.