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‘We are family’ With help from community supporters, Wootton hopes newfound unity translates into newfound wins

Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2006

Click here to enlarge this photo tom roff⁄special to the gazette At the Friends of Wootton Football BBQ Monday evening in Rockville, Wootton head football coach Greg Malling (center with clipboard) and assistants Paul Kirk (seated) and Tony Maturana (right) enjoy a festive, preseason atmosphere.

The Patriots went 2-8 last year and were outscored, 280-93, by their opponents. They’ve compiled only a 21-67 record since 1997. But to its credit, the Wootton community has remained supportive and has tried to keep the players optimistic. And now, with second-year coach Greg Malling’s arrival in 2005, comes the development of Friends of Wootton Football. The non-profit organization helps fans, parents and all supporters of Wootton football aid in the recovery of the struggling team.

Since its inception last season, Friends of Wootton Football has helped fund new equipment, run clinics and leadership sessions and created a Wootton football newspaper, increasing the school’s and community’s interest surrounding the team. And Monday, after the Patriots picked up their equipment for Tuesday’s first day of practice, FWF hosted a kick-off barbecue in the school parking lot. The players, joined their family and friends, gathered around the grill and enjoyed the music of DJ Huggy Bear. It was the start of a new tradition. Thanks to FWF, among other things, the buzz in the locker room has been more positive and optimistic than it has been in a while. And the Patriots are hoping that translates into perhaps their most successful season in quite some time.

‘‘We really wanted to bring the Wootton football team together,” FWF member Rosemary DiPietro said. ‘‘There’s so much positive going on right now. It is exciting to feel the energy kind of booming here. A commonality has kind of started among the community here. And having that energy really gives the kids confidence.”

The seeds of the organization were planted last year during an attempt to purchase new equipment. And it flourished from there. FWF is not the only committee of its kind in the county, but it is the first one of its sort, at least in recent history, at Wootton. It is not under the umbrella of the Wootton athletics booster club, which supports all Patriots sports. It is just a bunch of parents and supporters dedicated to helping the Patriots claw there back up the county football ladder. In the last year the Patriots have been able to splurge on some new shoulder pads and jerseys and are hoping to raise enough money for upgraded helmets, more concussion-proof helmets.

‘‘Friends of Wootton Football is a way of organizing the football parents to support their kids,” Malling said. ‘‘It is just getting the parents together to generate fundraising ideas. The equipment was so terrible so we had to figure out a way to fix that, so it kind of started out that way and then it started going in all sorts of directions. They’re a very aggressive group. There are people who are very eager to be involved and we’re happy to have them involved. And I think generally having something more of an organization does help generate that excitement. There’s a clear direction and people have different responsibilities. No one is over loaded. But I think it is almost a dangerous group right now. And not in a bad way, but in that if I come up with an idea, or someone comes up with an idea, they’re just going to go.”

The athletes will enjoy donning their new jerseys for sure. And they’ll have additional protection with new, more effective shoulder pads. But other than physical and material improvements, the Patriots have endured a massive attitude adjustment thanks to courses funded by FWF. This past spring the team was motivated by a ‘‘Be an 11” seminar in which the athletes were taught on a scale of 1-10 they should shoot for an 11. The Patriots set various goals and have worked on achieving them step by step through the spring and summer. They also spent one day a week through summer off-season training in leadership courses. The parental support backing these clinics was only the start. The athletes have proven they’re committed to taking the opportunities FWF has provided and using them efficiently. Malling has already seen an increase in communication among the players, just in summer workouts. And he’s expecting that to continue on the field.

‘‘One of our senior leaders Josh Dhyani, as a part of ‘‘Being an 11”, signed this pledge thing that the kids came up with and it said ‘No drugs and alcohol,’” Malling said. ‘‘Then he goes and gets his knee scoped and won’t take any pain killers because he considers that a drug. ... There’s no doubt we’re stronger now, mentally. The kids understand controllables and non-controllables. I think these clinics have really helped the camaraderie of the team. ... In order to have success on the field you either have to have a ton of talent, enough so you don’t have to necessarily get along, or you have to have high camaraderie and good talent. And I think we have that.”