J.T. Curtis and John McKissick, the two winningest football coaches in history, have combined for 1,121 victories.
Curtis, the son of John Curtis who founded Curtis Christian High School, assumed head coaching duties at the school 43 years ago. Since then, his Patriots have won an incredible 90.2% of their games and that includes his first season when they went 0-10 and managed only two touchdowns.
The list of accomplishments is staggering.
• An overall record of 520-54-6.
• 25 state championships in 32 trips to the title game.
• 16 consecutive appearances in the state championship game, winning 13 times.
• 19 undefeated regular seasons.
• 13 perfect seasons, including 2012.
“Success starts with your administration,” Curtis said. “You must have an administration that understands the importance of extracurricular activities. Second, you must have a staff that is committed to not just coaching but are committed to the kids. If they’re looking for financial reward for the time that’s put in, they’re really in the wrong business. The bottom line is if you’re going to coach, you’re going to put in a lot of time. As your staff develops, the time needed becomes less because of the expectations of each other and the knowledge you have of each other.
“A third key is that you are consistent in what you teach. I don’t think you can go with the defensive flavor of the year or the offensive flavor of the year. You need to zero in on what you want to be offensively and defensively and continue the repetitions year after year after year.
“We’ve been a spilt back, veer team since 1975. We can do other things but basically we’re an option based team. We teach the same techniques and same offensive schemes that we’ve been doing for the last 30 years.”
Obviously, it works. Curtis boasted an explosive punch in 2012 that produced a touchdown every 5.8 plays. “Defensively, we base out of a 5-man front. We make adjustments off that to changes to offenses that have progressed through the years.” The Patriots defense is equally effective. They allowed only five touchdowns in all of 2012. “We have a nickel package that goes with that and a dime package that is part of what we do,” Curtis continued. “But when you come to see us in the spring we’re going to line up in a 5-man front and learn how to play out of that. Those things go a long way providing the consistency that the kids need to learn and be successful on the field and the answers that you need in pressure situations as the game unfolds.”
Year in, year out Curtis remains a commanding force. The player roster is in a continual state of turnover. Assistant coaches consider options of whether to move on. Head Coach Curtis remains the constant.
“You always try to improve,” Curtis explained. “You want people who have an understanding of new techniques or new ideas or thoughts that tweak what you’re doing and might help you do better. But the basics of the game never change. How you teach sometimes can be improved. It’s the same way with young athletes. The same things they needed 40 years ago are the same things they need today. And that’s to have discipline in their life and to be loved and cared for and be part of a team that’s working in a positive direction. They know the team is first and we’re working for a common goal.”
According to Curtis, this is true at every level of the game. “This is true at any level, high school, college or professional. If you listened to Coach Harbaugh after winning the Super Bowl he talked about how diligently his team have worked together to overcome adversity. How close they were and how committed they were to each other and to the objective of learning to overcome deficits in games. They embraced that and worked hard to achieve through it. That’s the same thing I’m talking about. Those are the ingredients that are going to make a team successful.”
There are very few guarantees in sports. There is one at Curtis football. If a boy tries out for the team there will be a spot for him on the team, as long as he fulfills his obligations in all areas. Curtis said “One of my personal preferences is I don’t cut players. If you come out for the team, you’re going to be a part of the team until you decide you don’t want to be a member of the team either by your behavior off the field, in the classroom or you decide they’re asking too much of me. Because to be successful at this level, or any level, is a huge time requirement. There’s running and lifting through the summer while fall and spring occupies a lot of time and effort. Some people decide they don’t want to be part of it, that it is too much. I have no problem with that. But if a guy wants to be on the team we’re going to allow him to take an active role on the team.
Coaching is stressed at Curtis Christian. “One of the things I stress and I think we do it well is we’re going to coach every kid, every day. There’s not going to be any standing around. No one is just a dummy holder. We coach at a tempo that allows us to get a lot of repetitions and teaching done in a two-hour practice.”
When Curtis fielded his first team squad in 1969, that 0-10 season, he dressed 21 players. Last season he had 97 players on the team. And what they do more than anyone else is win – over 90 percent of the time.
While John Curtis Christian has won the greatest percentage of its games, Summerville High School (SC) has amassed the most total victories. JohnMcKissick was appointed Summerville Head Coach the same year Dwight Eisenhower was elected 34th President of the United States. In the 61 years since 1952, McKissick’s teams have won an astonishing 602 times. Almost as amazing, during that span he suffered only two losing seasons. At one point, 1982-84, Summerville put together a string of 41 consecutive victories that included three straight South Carolina championships.
McKissick’s philosophy epitomizes the cliché, “there is no ‘I’in “team.” Joe Call, a one-time quarterback for the Green Wave and now Offensive Coordinator, understands and supports McKissick’s standards.
“There have always been certain rules he stood by,” Call said. “No hair hanging out of the helmets. No earrings or jewelry once you’re in the football mode. No names on the back of the jerseys. At times parents have objected to some of his standards, like the haircut rule and even taken their kids off the team.
“But it is a privilege to play football,” added Call. “We have our standard set of rules. We’ve maintained them because it is an extracurricular activity. If you want to be on the team, you follow the rules. If you can’t, well that’s fine. His policy was always ‘together everyone achieves more.’ That has always been a main staple of Summerville football. And it works.”
The 86-year-old legend appreciates everything that goes into creating a winning athletic partnership. “The most important thing is to surround yourself with good people,” McKissick said. “You’ve got to let your assistant coaches coach but you’ve got to know before you go on the field what they’re going to coach.
“Your town has a lot to do with it,” he added. “We’re had an outstanding football town in Summerville.You’ve also got to have good backing from your school administrators and that includes the school board, superintendent, district office and principal. If you have those people behind you and they don’t look at athletics as a necessary evil, then you’re be okay.
“Personally, I don’t look at athletics as an extracurricular. I look at it as a co-curricular. To be a good coach you have to read and study and talk about the right techniques and skills. You must have teachers as coaches or else you’re not going to win.”
Does McKissick approach his job differently now than he did decades ago? Have his methods changed? “Now I coach coaches instead of players,” he explained, “but I’m on top of it in practice. I want the players to see me in there. I want the assistants to do the teaching but I’m always around. I approach it a little different now because I have more resources.”
One of those assistants is Fred Edwards, who has logged 37 years under McKissick at Summerville. “He tells you he coaches coaches but he’s always in there. There’s nothing that’s going to get by him,” said Edwards. “He probably watches more video than we do. You’re not going to put one over on him. He’s there. He’s involved.”
The head coach picks it up from there. “I don’t think a day passes that I’m not studying up on football. These days there’s always something you can learn. If a guy thinks he knows it all he should get out. And I don’t think I know it all.”
Coach Call credits McKissick’s foresight for his perpetual winning ways. “He was always ahead of the curve,” Call acknowledged. “He was one of the first in our area to start a spring training program with a year-round strength and conditioning program. He was one of the first studying video. He was usually one step ahead of everyone else for what was the next big thing, whether it was new strategies on offense or defense. He also maintained consistency doing everything the same way in what he taught year after year.
“He has not changed in his philosophies of what he believes in,” added Call. He believes in the basics of blocking and tackling and teaching fundamentals. That’s never changed. But he has changed in that he’s been able to adapt over the years to the different types of kids. Kids grow up differently now than they did 20, 30, 50 years ago. He’s also been able to adjust to the changes in technology. From an assistant coach’s point of view, we appreciate that he lets us do our job. He’ll add to what we’re doing but he doesn’t dictate. He lets us evaluate the players we have and adapt our schemes to our players and skill sets. He lets us do our job. I don’t necessarily have to run everything by him. He knows he has good assistant coaches that he trusts. As an assistant coach, it’s comforting to know he’s not going to come over and mess with us.”
Coach Edwards respects McKissick’s keen eye for execution. “When he sees something he doesn’t like he’s not going to embarrass you on the field but when you come off the field he’s going to want to know why we’re doing certain things. He’s always judging the talent and the player personnel.
“A lot of coaches have tunnel vision,” Edwards continued. “They’re going to run this particular offense regardless of the defense. He’s changed with the times. He adapted to his material. At one time you would run the wishbone but if you don’t have the wishbone backs you can’t do it. He’s adapted to his players but the players had to abide to McKissick’s edicts. It was always that discipline that was needed to be a team. He always said,’ You can’t be an individual. You have to be a team player to win.’”
If opposing teams aren’t at least a bit intimidated at the prospect of facing Summerville’s system, they are reminded of what’s ahead before they even reach the locker room. Their bus travels down John McKissick Way before entering John McKissick Stadium. They know he’s the coach who has defeated his competition over 600 times.
John McKissick’s Resume:
• Overall record: 602-147-13
• State Championships: 10
• Regional titles: 33
• Undefeated seasons: 7
J.T. Curtis’s Resume:
• Overall record: 519-54-6
• Playoff record: 160-15
• State Championship record: 24-7
• Undefeated seasons: 13