‘Sacrifice Me 4 We’: West Orange football’s team-first mindset leads to best start since ‘15

Culture is more than motivational speeches or posters with quotes on the wall. It’s more than mottos or mantras that often are repeated by out-of-touch leaders to their team but are rarely digested and applied in reality. 

In actuality, culture is simply how an organization’s standards, usually set by its leader, are met by those being led. Culture is tricky, because you need the buy-in from the people who have the least control. You need them to trust that what you’re asking of them will produce the proper result.

For West Orange High football, you don’t have to ask anyone if coach Geno Thompson’s players have bought into the standard he and his staff have set. 

Players such as lineman Nico Marti, who plays both ways; seior defensive lineman Jackson Delgado, who often spends most games occupying two blockers to open up gaps for the linebackers; and sophomore starting quarterback Brian Dillard, who often sacrifices his own accolades, attention and glory for the team. All three representative of the effect their “Scrifice Me 4 We” mentality has on helping build up these young men and push the West Orange football program forward.

This was on display in the Warriors’ Week Four win over Boone High, to move West Orange moving to 3-0  for the first time since 2015.

“We saw the perfect example of what we’re preaching this past Friday night with the situation with Brian,” Thompson said. “We’re leading by seven, and there’s like a minute left on the clock. Boone had just scored on us the possession before in like 15, 20 seconds, and they had two time-outs left — which Brian was fully aware of, we didn’t have to remind him of any of this — so it was a situation where that game could very well have turned out differently if Brian doesn’t make that decision.”

The decision Thompson’s quarterback made was to give up a walk-in touchdown and give the Braves offense another possession to score points. Instead he slid short of the end zone to keep the ball and let the clock run out, sealing the 24-17 win for the Warriors.

“There was only a little time left on the clock, and I knew that one first down would essentially win us the game,” Dillard said. “Once I broke free, my head just went straight to I have to slide mode, and I was definitely hearing coach in the back of my head, too. … Obviously, I trust our defense and scoring a touchdown is always nice, but ultimately ending the game faster and getting the win is more important. There’s also no need to extend the game and risk someone getting injured or anything crazy like that.”

Unlike Dillard’s sacrifice, which came with all eyeballs on him, players in the trenches such as Delgado usually don’t get the same sort of attention from the outside for their sacrifices. 

“When you’re on the field, a lot of times you have a job or responsibility that you have to do,” Thompson said. “For example, a defensive lineman like Jackson — his job may be spilling or cutting, maybe it’s taking on a 350-pounder. Those responsibilities don’t usually get your name in the paper. Not many people are going to know that the reason why that middle linebacker made the tackle is because that defensive lineman did his job and took on the pulling guard. 

“But the guys in the locker room know and the coaches know how important it was to our success that you did your job,” he said. “And that’s what we try to preach across the board with our guys; do your job to the best of your ability and sacrifice yourself for the betterment of the team … it’s not about me, it’s not about my stats, it’s about the team and what can we do to better the team.”

Delgado has bought into that mindset.

“I play nose tackle, so that means all night, I’m getting double-teamed, and most of the time, I don’t make the tackle,” he said. “But if I can take those two big linemen’s attention and they come toward me, that leaves my linebackers free to make the tackle, right? Every player on this team does little stuff like that, and that’s what makes this team special. I always receivers blocking for the running backs, or if another receiver catches the ball. Our O-Line is always pushing forward, pulling and getting to the second level. Guys like Brian are always unselfish and always put the team making big plays ahead of getting things like stats.”

On the other side of the trenches — the offensive line — there’s an inherent sacrifice that just comes with playing a position whose sole purpose is to help others succeed. 

“Playing offensive line, that’s like the classic sacrificial/unselfish group on the football field,” Marti said. “You just go out there and have to block every play, without nearly ever getting to touch the ball. At the end of the game, if you did your job well, your name doesn’t get called out, you only get called out on the negative stuff. To play this sort of position, sacrifice for the team is just part of the job.”

These three Warriors are great representatives of the numerous players  who have bought into the team-first mentality. 

“What I’ve seen over my years, coaching and playing, is when teams are willing to sacrifice for (one another), they win games they shouldn’t,” Thompson said.