Saturday was James Runner’s birthday. And judging from his reaction after Lynn Tech’s 47-26 romp over Northeast Regional at Breakheart Stadium, it was a very happy one.
The fifth-year coach is living the dream these days. He has a 6-0 team, a wagon of a squad, two players who could start for any school on the North Shore, and a supporting cast that, collectively, has bought into Runner’s attitude of positive reinforcement.
That defines James Runner. He is a relentlessly positive person. This isn’t to say he’s Pollyanna. He can get after his players, as he did several times Saturday while his team was running up and down the field.
But judging by the reaction and genuine affection his players seem to have for him, they appreciate his constant affirmation of their talents. After Saturday’s post-game huddle, star running back Steffan Gravely led a spontaneous round of “Happy Birthday” for his coach.
Don Heres, Runner’s counterpart at Northeast, is also a positive force. Under Heres, the Golden Knights have been to two Super Bowls, and had a championship in their trophy case.
Sadly, however, Tech and Northeast Regional have one thing in common. Both schools lost star players to auto accidents. For Northeast, it was Ed Reppucci. Tech’s Rick Drislane died on Thanksgiving night 1987 in a horrific crash on Chatham Street. He’d been a passenger in the car.
Drislane’s death occured a mere six days after he’d run for more than 200 yards against the Knights in a big victory in what was then the Tigers’ principal rivalry (in some ways it still is).
I was on the football beat in 1987, and remember waking up to the details of Drislane’s death. Hearing about it was surrealistic. And hearing the details were not only sad, it made me angry … angry that a young life was snuffed out so needlessly but also because of how and why it happened.
I’ll leave you to draw your own conclusions, but I’m sure no one needs a magnifying glass to read between these lines.
After Saturday’s game, as dictated by a tradition that is now 30 years old, both coaches lined their teams up at midfield and awarded game balls in the players’ names. The Drislane award went to Gravely, who scored four touchdowns and made maybe twice as many tackles. For Northeast, it was Connor Joseph, a tough junior running back who ran for 62 yards and scored a touchdown.
The coaches also talked to their players about the importance of making good choices. Said Runner to his players, “I get home at night and I worry, even now, about whether you guys are going to make good choices.”
These aren’t just words. They come from the heart. All coaches have their players’ welfare at heart.
Watching this scene Saturday and seeing the genuine affection coach and players have for each other makes you hope and pray that we don’t ever see a repeat again. It would be too much to bear, whether it is Tech, Classical, English, St. Mary’s or KIPP, or any other school, to see a season or such positives blown to smithereens by this type of tragedy. One can only hope the players listened as intently as James Runner spoke.
I suspect they did. Runner may not be the tallest guy on the planet, but he makes up for it in zeal. Maybe it’s his theatrical background (he appeared in several productions, both at Classical and in Lynn youth theater and knows his way around a stage). He obviously learned how to emote and project early on, and takes full advantage of his ability to do both.
There are five high schools in Lynn, and Tech often gets lost in the shuffle. But in a lot of ways, the school has as strong a tradition as any of the others. The Tigers have a very supportive alumni association and a very loyal following.
What’s happening with the Tigers this season is one of the nicer stories in Lynn, and it couldn’t happen to a more deserving bunch.
