MIDDLETOWN >> Former NFL linebacker and head coaching great Bill Cowher delivered a message to the Middletown High School football program on Tuesday afternoon during a daylong trip to a community ravaged by the Valley Fire last month.
That message wasn’t intended solely for the consumption of those Middletown players and coaches who had their lives undeniably altered in the blink of a raging firestorm that claimed thousands of homes and four lives on Sept. 12-13, but rather for everyone in the south county area affected by the fire. It was a message of hope, of strength, of never giving up. Small town football has a way of bringing a community together during times of trouble, serving as a focal point of healing, according to Cowher.
If you’re not familiar with the 58-year-old legend, now an analyst for NFL Today on CBS Sports, his career resume speaks for itself and hits as hard as he did during his playing days in the late 1970s and early 1980s for the Philadelphia Eagles and Cleveland Browns. As head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1992-2006, he posted a career record of 161-99-1 and took the Steelers to two Super Bowls, including a win in Super Boxl XL.
Soft spoken but with a fiery disposition, Cowher spent the day Tuesday touring the fire area and meeting with community and school members before addressing Middletown’s football players and coaches and also participating in some team drills.
“He is a genuine caring person,” Middletown varsity football head coach Bill Foltmer said of Cowher, who was accompanied by a CBS film crew who plan to air segments of his trip to Middletown early next month (a firm date for its airing hasn’t been set yet). “After everything we’ve been through, he told us to keep fighting, keep our spirits up. He said the number of wins and losses we had didn’t matter. He told us how important football can be to the community. He said he could relate because he went to a small high school as well.”
Foltmer, the Mustangs’ head coach since the 1985 season, said one of his former players, Chuck Norton, sent a letter to NFL Today recommending that Middletown’s recovery from the Valley Fire and its effects on the local high school and its football team might make an interesting topic.
“I guess they liked it,” Foltmer said of the network’s decision to pursue the story.
Mike Wink, a battalion chief with CalFire and another of Foltmer’s former players, accompanied Cowher on a tour of the fire area Tuesday.
“They took the film crew up to Cobb, to Pine Summit,” Foltmer said.
Cowher attended the Mustangs’ practice later in the day.
“As he talks, you sense that emotion in him. It was a real inspirational speech. He had everyone fired up … players, coaches, parents. He talked about how important football is to a community. It was a little bit of a life lesson.”
Of course, Cowher the football coach couldn’t help but offer a handful of tips to the Mustangs, such as how to disguise their man-to-man coverage on defense.
“He was giving us pointers on a few things,” Foltmer said.
Cowher didn’t bolt the premises the moment his speech ended or even after the Mustangs’ practice was complete. He stuck around.
“He wanted to make sure that anyone who wanted to take a picture with him got the chance,” Foltmer said. “He was patient, he was kind and he was interested in what people had to say to him.
“Bill Cowher is fantastic,” Foltmer said.
