REFORM, Ala. — The word “family” often becomes a cliche in the sports world.
Coaches and players talk repeatedly about chemistry and how their bonds off the field help performance on the field or on the court.
While some coaches may give lip service to doing things for their players and being there for them, Pickens County High School football coach Patrick Plott has made sure to instill the notion of family and togetherness as pillars to his program.
It’s hard to deny the formula works.
Thanks to a 38-18 victory against Maplesville in the Alabama High School Athletic Association Class 1A state title game on Dec. 5, Pickens County capped its first 15-0 season in program history. The Tornadoes also had four players earn first-team All-State recognition on the Alabama Sports Writers Association Class 1A squad.
For his accomplishments, Plott is The Dispatch’s West
Alabama All-Area Coach of the Year.
Plott, who played football at Carrollton High and went on to play for Bill Burgess at Jacksonville State, learned early on about the importance of creating a family atmosphere in his program. When he returned to Pickens County in 2011 for his second stint as a coach at the school, he knew he had to re-build that foundation if the program was going to have success. Senior quarterback/defensive back Devonte Simon said establishing the importance of family came easily for Plott because he is easy going and the players can get along with him.
“Us knowing he is willing to do anything at any moment for us, like late in the game when he tells us he needs us to make a play for him, we make plays for coach,” Simon said. “We respect him so much. We will do anything for him.”
Senior running back/defensive back Jermarcus Brown echoed those thoughts. Brown might have been the player who benefited the most from Plott’s high-octane offense, scoring a AHSAA record 51 touchdowns this season, including a Super 6 record 329 yards in the state title game.
“Coach Plott is like a dad to us,” said Brown, who made the Class 1A All-State first team with offensive lineman Zev Finch, defensive lineman Dontae Hughes, and quarterback and defensive back DeVonte’ Simon, who was chosen as an athlete. “You can ask coach Plott anything. You can talk to him. I like talking to him. He is the best football coach I have ever had. I feel like I have anything going on — bad or good — I can tell coach Plott about it. He will either smile at you and talk about it or he will tell you to sit down and let me tell you about it.
“It is a family thing. Anybody on our team can go to coach Plott with anything.”
Plott said he grew up in a caring home and credits his mother, Mary Jo, for always being at his game. He said Burgess cultivated the importance of family during his time at Jacksonville State. That’s why it was natural for him to want to create a similar environment for his children and his players — or extended family — at Pickens County High.
“I let each kid know that I cared about each kid individually as a person more than anything,” Plott said. “They were always open to come talk to me about anything. We always talk about it being a family atmosphere because I want my kids to be able to come around and run around while we are practicing. I have three small ones who don’t play, so it is good for them to come around. I treat all 42 of those guys like they are my own. They treat each other like brothers, and they treat my kids like they are their brothers and sisters.
“Every time I get a chance to do something for them I will do it. They trust me and I trust them. I respect them and they respect me. It all works hand in hand.”
Plott said it isn’t challenging to discipline his players and to relate to them and to get them to perform at the highest level because he has established a relationship with the players outside of football. During football season, Plott said he feels like a father to all of his players and he is willing to do whatever he needs to do to make sure everyone is cared for or disciplined.
“When I took over the basketball program, it had won two (state titles) before I got here, so those guys knew how to win, and knew how to win the big game,” said Plott, who led the boys basketball team to a state title in 2012. “With the football team, we really taught these guys how to grow up. I think game No. 1 vs. Fayette is when we really grew up and knew we had something special here.”
The victory against Class 3A Fayette gave Pickens County the confidence to know it could move past a one-point loss to Marion County in the 2012 playoffs. With each step, Plott was there to provide a steady hand and to orchestrate an offense that averaged 44.6 points per game.
“What makes coach Plott a great coach is he can see things from a player’s point of view,” Simon said. “He listens and understands what is going on out there. If we mess up, we are hitting somebody in the mouth going 100 percent. He just corrects us and tries to keep us motivated. He doesn’t bring us down. He just keeps us going.”
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor.
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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