As the conclusion to the school year nears, one of many names at Morse High School deserves special recognition. High fives and congratulations are in order for Morse Tiger football coach, Tracy McNair, who has achieved the coaching milestone of 100 wins after a victory over Coronado High School last November.
By Darrel Wheeler, Contributing Writer
Coach Tracy summed up the winning philosophy that helped him to attain this momentous milestone: “As a coach, athletic director, and teacher at Morse, my goal when I took this job was to put Morse athletics back on the positive-map, to be competitive and consistent in a good way. As a teacher, some of the things I want to do is help guide students into successful careers, and help them become productive members of society and to be leaders not followers and also know how to give back to their community.”
As a result of Morse’s new-push for excellence they won the 2018 Div-3 football Championship.
Assistant Coach Charlie Brown had this to say about his long-time friend’s 100 game accomplishment: “He would have more than 100 wins, and probably more Championships, if most of the kids from the area came to Morse for their athletics and academics.”
“Going to Morse was a decision I will never regret. I enjoyed my experience there and Coach Mac had a lot to do with that,” shared Former Morse graduate and current assistant Coach Tyler Butler, who was a student athlete from the neighborhood that decided to pursue sports and education at 6905 Skyline Drive. “With Coach, what you see is what you get. He is about that truth; he will tell you the truth whether you want to hear it or not. If you can’t handle the truth you might not want to ask the question. He also helped me get into college and gave me an opportunity to Coach here. He has been there for me through thick and thin and I will always appreciate him and his family.”
Before Coach McNair secured his 100th prep victory, he was an assistant Coach at Southwestern JC and other schools. After that experience, he felt he was ready to be the boss. He auditioned for and was selected as the Head Coach for Crawford High School’s Colts. Coach McNair and his staff took a perennial losing football program in 1995 and turned them into legitimate playoff contenders, including an undefeated regular season in 2003.
After eight years as the Colt’s fearless leader, Coach McNair accepted the head coaching responsibilities at his alma mater, Samuel FB Morse. That position came loaded with challenges, many unique to the inner-city high school experience, including, but not limited to one-sided busing and propaganda from opposing schools trying to recruit Morse players. However in large part due to his passion for his community, Coach McNair willingly accepted those challenges and took them head on.
“He is a good listener and an excellent organizer and he knows how to make necessary adjustments according to the situation. He wants the best for his players and wants them to succeed in athletics, academics, and life. He can be a little tough on his students sometimes but that’s only because he genuinely cares about them,” said Coach Charlie Brown about Coach McNair’s winning ways.
In addition to McNair’s Head Tiger-in-charge responsibilities, he is also currently involved with youth football as a head coach and is a board member for Skyline’s Youth Football Association.
“There is no way I could reach 100 victories by myself! Coaching ain’t easy…I’ve been very fortunate to have great coaches, players, administrators and family. They know who they are, thanks!!” shared Coach McNair. Now, the countdown to 200 wins begins.
