Brendan Blair, the new Head Football Coach of the Sto-Rox Vikings, knows exactly the kind of coach he wants to be.
“It’s time to make a change and I feel like I can be that change, that person that makes a difference,” he said in an interview leading up to Friday’s season opener at home against South Side (Beaver). “It means a lot to be in this position, and I take it very seriously.”
Reflecting on his rise to head coach after working as an assistant coach, Blair hasn’t flinched when taking on new responsibilities.
“Being an assistant coach is very different from being a head coach,” Blair said. “Added responsibilities such as meal prep, Friday night equipment inventory, cleaning up after the kids even more.”
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A prime focus for Blair is helping student-athletes make strides in the classroom, whether it’s with grades, behavior, or attendance. Blair, a Program Manager for Steel City Impact, knows he must help his players onto a successful track.
“We’ve got to keep this train rolling,” he said. “I’m not just a football coach, I’m also a life coach. Guide our guys, steer them in the right direction and lead by example.”
Blair’s example is a stellar one. A 2014 graduate of Sto-Rox, Blair played football at PennWest California as a linebacker. When he graduated from college, the real world beckoned. He got a job installing countertops. It was good, hard work - long days in an important trade - and Blair was learning a lot. But he still felt a connection to his community - and football.
“My parents lived around the corner from the school…so I was always around,” he said. “I would always see the kids coming from practices.”
Blair went to games, and “gravitated” to then-Sto-Rox Football Coach LaRoi Johnson.
“I give a lot of credit to him,” said Blair. “He showed me the ropes.”
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Blair volunteered, doing “the little things” for the team and putting in the work - working two jobs - and helped when he could. The influence of his father, who was a baseball coach, and his mother, who instilled in him the importance of volunteerism, was clear. Blair’s former Sto-Rox Coach, David Coleman is another chief influence.
“He played the game. He was a coach we could talk to about life and football. Football is the easy part - coaching football is easy - it’s the life skills that we try to implement with these kids (that are truly important).”
While Sto-Rox went 2-7 last year, Blair has a positive outlook for the year ahead.
“I’m excited for the ups and downs, the adversities we’re going to face,” said Blair. “It’s just about attacking the season and attacking those challenges. Last year many of these guys played a lot, and now it’s time to see how they respond.”
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“It’s easy to go the wrong route, to do the wrong things,” he continued. “To be an all-the-time guy, and do things right all the time, that’s what’s hard.”
The new head coach also has a message for Sto-Rox students, alumni, and fans.
“Take it one game at a time, because these kids go through things that we don’t see, so that’s why I say (that). You’ve just got to be patient with this process, be patient with these kids. I feel like they need us - they need role models, leaders and successful people - to show them the right way to do things.”
With a head coach like Brendan Blair leading the way, it’s clear the Vikings have the potential to set sail for success.