All about the kids

Humble Jacksonville coach in it for players’ sake

By Eric Moore

LITTLE ROCK — When it comes to talking about himself, Jacksonville head football coach Mark Whatley would rather not.

“It ain’t about me,” Whatley said. “It takes a whole program to be successful. One person doesn’t get anything done.”

The upcoming season will mark his fourth season with the Red Devils, his alma mater. But for Whatley, who has spent 20 years coaching at five different schools, coaching at the high school he attended is nice, but not the be-all, end-all of coaching.

“If you’re not trying to do the best you can every time, then you’re in the wrong business,” Whatley said.

And the best is what he has been giving the community of Jacksonville. In his first two years at the helm of the program, Whatley led the Red Devils to the playoffs. In a town like Jacksonville, he knows the importance the team has for the community as well as the impact the community has on his team.

“We can’t survive without the community’s support,” Whatley said. “They are a knowledgeable fan base, and they are very supportive of what our young folks are doing.”

The bond between the community and the team is so strong that Whatley constantly strives to produce “a product they can be proud of.” Last season, on the advice of assistant coach Rick Russell, Whatley enlisted his team in a onehour-per-week “Character Counts Seminar.” Each week, the players would get away from the field and weight room and spend time in a classroom developing stronger understandings of how to conduct themselves on and off the field.

“It really helped a bunch,” Whatley said. “We all learned a great deal, and we only had oneguy in ISS (in-school suspension) all year.”

Much of the focus of the seminar is what it takes to be successful once the players hang up their cleats for good. Whatley invited guest speakers to come talk to his team, and his team’s response to the program made their coach proud.

For Whatley, “seeing the light come on when they see the big picture, in class as well as on the field,” has been one of the highlights of being a coach. A perfect scenario for success in Whatley’s eyes is a former athlete coming back to him 15 years down the road with his wife and children, giving him the opportunity to see how they have succeeded in life.

Family is a big part of Whatley’s life. Married to his wife, Perri, for 24 years, Whatley has two daughters and twin boys. His oldest daughter is a senior at the University of Arkansas, while his other daughter is a junior at Jacksonville High School. His two boys are 14 and are getting ready to start playing for their father in another year.

“They’ve been on buses with me since they could walk,” Whatley said.

While they have been around him as a coach their entire lives, Whatley isn’t sure how he will handle seeing them as his players. Likely, he will take a cue from former coaches and mentors who have helped him develop into the coach he is today. People such as Tommy Tise, who gave Whatley his first job at Harrison, as well as his high school and college coaches, who have all impacted his style of coaching.

“There are so many people you come in contact with that you learn a lot from,” Whatley said.

If there is anything 20 yearsof coaching has taught him it is that you can learn something new every day. Whether it be from your opponents or even your own players. One thing he doesn’t know is what he would be doing if he wasn’t a coach.

“Athletics have been my life since fourth grade,” Whatley said. “I don’t know if I’d know how to do anything else.”

At 47, Whatley still loves whathe does and has no plans to give it up any time soon.

“I still enjoy getting up and coming to work for the kids,” Whatley said. “They keep you young and on your toes, but it ain’t about me, it’s about these young people. That’s what we need to be focused on in the kid business.” - emoore@ arkansasonline.com

Three Rivers, Pages 120 on 07/20/2008