We were lucky to have Millspaugh

To the editor:

This is a tough one. We were prepared for this result but it’s difficult to read it in print.

I met coach Tim Millspaugh in 2002 as a junior offensive lineman who just wanted to win some football games. He was a young coaching prospect with a head full of hair and the desire to help make Jay County the best program it could possibly be. Initially, he was just another football coach to me. I had already played for two coaching staffs in two seasons.

It didn’t take long to understand this wasn’t just another coach. From the beginning, coach Millspaugh preached the importance of being an upstanding citizen and how football applied to the real world. Together, him and head coach Shane Hill turned out some of the most successful teams Jay County has ever seen. I was fortunate enough to be a part of many of those teams as an assistant coach and player.

Coach Millspaugh was a role model to me as a 17-year-old kid. As I transitioned into coaching, he was a mentor. Today, as I write this, he’s a great friend. In all of these roles one thing has always remained consistent — day or night, rain or shine, I can call him when the chips are down in my life and he’ll care enough to take the call and give me his two cents. It doesn’t matter if we had just spoken yesterday or if we hadn’t spoken in two years. Throughout the darkest moments of my life, Tim Millspaugh has been a consistent face in my corner, genuinely rooting for me and encouraging me. I’m not unique. He’d do the same for anyone who has ever played for him.

The school board decided to go a different direction, and I respect that decision and the people who made it. That said, there’s one thing that can’t be disputed — we have all been very fortunate to have coach Millspaugh as a part of this football program throughout the years. The last few seasons weren’t the result that we wanted, but coach Millspaugh’s desire to see these young men develop as players and human beings was second to none. He put in the time and he studied the game with the same youthful passion in 2020 that he did in 2002. There were weeks where my goal was to watch more film than he did. I gave it all I had, but it was never enough.

Thank you for all you’ve done for this community, coach. You are appreciated more than you’ll ever know.

Tony Minch

Portland