GHSF Daily asked Georgia head coaches to answer these four questions. We'll report from a different head coach each day.
Paul Standard, St. Pius
1. Who is/was the most influential person in your coaching career? "No. 1, coach George B. Maloof. He is the reason I am in this profession. Coach Maloof taught me that you can coach your players hard - and I mean hard! - as long as they knew you genuinely cared about them not just as a football player. And the relationships he built with his players were for a lifetime. He also taught me and all the young men he coached that a "champion" was the person who has done the best with the ability God has blessed us with. We try and do that every day. No. 2, my mother and father. Neither were involved with education, but they taught me how to treat people, and their work ethic influenced how I approach my job."
2. Who is the best Georgia player you ever faced? "There have been so many great players I have coached against, but one of the best that comes to mind is Thomas Brown of Tucker High School. One game against us he fumbled the pitch on a toss play, then reversed his field for a 70-yard TD run."
3. What is the best team you ever faced as a coach? "Again, there have been so many. One that sticks out in my mind - 2009 Peach County. Great team speed at every position, players were hard-nosed and got after you. We lost to them in OT in the quarterfinals, and they went on to win the state championship."
4. If you were Gary Phillips, the new head of the GHSA, what would be the first rule that you would try to change? "I would like to see a change in the process with the executive committee as it pertains to voting on issues brought before the GHSA. I would like to see a motion passed that would not allow any 'New Business Issues' to be voted on at the same meeting. I would like for the new issue/motion to be tabled until the next executive committee hearing so all schools could be informed of the issue and allow the schools to communicate with their executive committee rep with their concerns."
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