Coach,

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! I hope you all have had successful and rewarding seasons, and more importantly, I hope you have had a chance to take a step back and enjoy some good quality time with your families. The job of a high school football coach can seem like a never-ending grind at times, but always remember that your value and contribution to the community go far beyond the football field. You are all GREATLY appreciated! This past season was filled with highs and lows for me personally. After winning the 2021 Open Division State Championship, our program was elevated into the 6A conference (AZ’s largest classification) and given one of the 10 most difficult schedules in the country according to Maxpreps. After a disappointing 2-3 start to the season, we reeled off 5 consecutive victories to finish 7-3 and qualify for the Open Division playoffs as the #5 seed. We upset Hamilton HS on the road in the first round, and then pulled off a “shocking” victory over Liberty HS (#1 in AZ and #14 in the country) in the semi-finals. We played another national top-25 team (Basha) for the state championship but ultimately fell just short of defending our title in a 28-21 defeat. It was an awesome run and our team showed a tremendous amount of grit to claw out of our early season hole.

At the conclusion of the season, I was offered and accepted a position as the Tight Ends coach at Arizona State University. While this opportunity was a dream come true for me to coach at my alma mater, it was also an extremely emotional end to one of the greatest chapters of my life. The 16 years I spent at Saguaro High School were the most rewarding years of my life! Earning the opportunity to coach at the major DI level did not happen overnight. I started coaching 7th-grade flag football as a sophomore in college. From there I spent 5 years coaching youth football, 3 years as a Frosh coach, 2 years coaching varsity RBs, a season as the varsity offensive coordinator, and 11 years as the varsity head coach at Saguaro HS. I share this for those of you with similar aspirations of coaching college ball as a reminder to just focus on being the best coach you can be at whatever level you are currently at. I started from the very bottom and worked my way into an amazing opportunity. Every step along the way helped shape me into the Coach and man I am today and I wouldn’t go back and skip any of those steps if I could. Keep being the best version of yourself every day… you never know who’s watching!

I look forward to continuing to provide content through the JMO System and hopefully I’ll get a chance to see some of you at clinics this winter/fall. Best wishes for a happy and healthy New Year and a successful 2023 season!

All the best,

Jason

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