Max Hayse celebrates with Keagan La Belle on his shoulders after a football game several years ago in the sixth grade.
Submitted photo
FORTVILLE — For many Mt. Vernon High School football families, today’s state championship game is the culmination of a journey they’ve shared since the players were little kids.
A lot of the athletes started competing with one another in their youth football league days. Even that far back, those watching from the stands and sidelines saw the likelihood of the success achieved this season.
The Marauders, who have won 13 straight games, take the field for the Indiana High School Athletic Association’s Class 4A State Championship at 3:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 27, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. They will play Northridge High School of Middlebury in Elkhart County.
Laying the groundwork
Chad Masters, Mt. Vernon’s defensive line coach, coached many of the team’s seniors when they were in the second grade and many of the juniors when they were in kindergarten in the Mt. Vernon Youth Football League. His son, Chase, is a junior on the team.
“For the most part, all these kids, they’ve stayed together their whole football careers,” Masters said.
He recalls seeing their talent and potential even then.
“I remember that we would, not just I, but parents and other coaches, we told the kids that when the current seniors got to their 12th grade year and they had that junior class below them to help, that they could win a state title,” Masters said. “We told them that since they were young. And to actually think that it could happen, it really hasn’t set in, to be honest.”
Reggie Johnson, a former Mt. Vernon football player and father of senior linebacker Owen Johnson, coached youth football along with other fathers who had also played football.
“Being former players, we kind of knew what we had, because we had some good athletes,” he said. “They weren’t huge by any means; we knew we had some speed.”
By Owen’s third-grade year, that potential started manifesting more fully.
“Because we would go to these all-star tournaments and win them big, and we were never the biggest,” Johnson said.
They’d often play teams with far bigger players, he continued.
“But our boys didn’t care,” he said. “They literally didn’t care, and we would just run around them. That’s kind of what you’re seeing on Friday nights now, these last few Fridays. We’re not bigger by any means, but our boys don’t care.”
Brian Gentry, father of senior wide receiver Ashden Gentry and a former youth league coach, recalled the wins racked up by those young all-star teams, too.
“They were always successful,” he said. “They had a lot of success against the area county teams, and we always said that if they all stay, they’re going to be successful and have a chance to go to state.”
Reggie Hayse, father of senior linebacker Max Hayse, watched his son play in the Mt. Vernon Youth Football League as well.
“I think we were very fortunate to come up through the MYFL with groups of outstanding coaches,” said Hayse, also a Mt. Vernon alumnus and former football player.
He remembers the prowess of his son’s football teams, too.
“That was just kind of what laid the groundwork for where they’re at today,” Hayse said. “And just for them to all step in together as freshmen. … These boys really persevered through a lot through all these years, but they’re such a tight-knit group of boys and so close. We’re all just family.”
It was important to Hayse to encourage his son’s interest in football.
“A lot of it was just to overcome difficult paths in your life where football will help you understand there’s bumps in the road and how hard you need to work for things, and there’s trials and tribulations you’re going to encounter,” he said. “And you don’t do it all on your own; you need to rely on your team and the other fellas to help you succeed.”
Bonds across generations
Many of the friendships among Mt. Vernon’s football parents extend further than their sons’ school days, and back to their own.
“Some of these parents were our classmates back when we were in school,” Hayse said. “You’re talking almost 30 or 40 years that you’ve been together with these people — their whole lives. You know their parents, you know their grandparents; it just stems from back in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s with a lot of these families.”
Johnson agreed.
“A lot of people from Mt. Vernon our age ended up marrying someone from Mt. Vernon, and then we stayed in the school, so it’s always been very close-knit,” he said. “We’ve all become very good friends.”
Parents often tailgate before games, with Gentry bringing the grill on the back of his pickup truck. He remembered going to Ohio one year to watch his son play football in such cold conditions that parents wrapped themselves in sleeping bags in the stands to keep warm.
“We’ve chased these guys around with other parents and stayed at hotels and it makes for a fun atmosphere,” Gentry said. “It’s a good group of families, and everyone’s all in.”
Tim La Belle, father of Mt. Vernon players Keagan and Kellan La Belle, works an hour away and noted the family easily could have moved.
“But we have such a nice, small community,” he said. “We grew up with these people, and dads, and coaches, and we’ve all been a part of each others’ lives.”
It’s also a trust factor for him and his wife.
“Outside of Lori and I, we know who’s going to be helping raise our children, helping teach them how to be a good man, how to be responsible, how to overcome adversity,” La Belle said.
A parent’s pride
“It’s hard to wipe the smile off my face, I can tell you that,” Hayse said of when he watches his son play football. “It’s not the pride I take in just watching him, but it’s just watching all these boys. Such a tight group, and there’s so many years invested in each of them. It’s family, and it’s just been an absolute joy to be a part of this and to see this; it’s just been so much fun.”
Gentry feels the same about his son.
“He’s loved every minute of it,” he said. “It’s been so fun to watch him over these last four years in high school, and the success Mt. Vernon’s had has made it even more special. This has been amazing.”
Johnson said he’s been nervous watching the team’s recent games, fearing a loss could make it their last.
“But now that this is the last game, I’m honestly not as nervous about the game as much as I’m wondering how I’m going to be next week, win or lose, because I know it’s over,” he said. “It’s been such a weird feeling this week. This is it.”
Hayse hasn’t thought too much about it all being over just yet.
“That’ll definitely hit real soon,” he said. I hope it doesn’t hit Saturday night. I hope Saturday’s full of fun and celebration, and maybe that’s something I’ll reflect more on come Sunday.”
La Belle is taking a similar approach.
“Obviously these boys we love and care about are all going to go in different directions after the game Saturday,” he said. “In a lot of ways it’s kind of heartbreaking, because they have all grown together and gone through so many challenges together. But other than that, it’s a great opportunity too. We’re trying not to think past Saturday. We’re just really proud of these boys, and looking forward to Saturday, for sure.”
