BY DOUG McKENZIE
Staff Writer
Above, Jonas Salk Middle School co-head coach Andy Foote watches one of his grapplers pin his opponent during a match against Carl Sandburg Middle School in Old Bridge on Tuesday. Below, Jonas Salk’s Mike Nadera tries to fight off an attempted crossface and complete a takedown against Sandburg’s Fran West during their 77-pound bout Tuesday night. Talk about going out on top.Andy Foote, the co-head coach of the Jonas Salk Middle School wrestling team in Old Bridge, is walking away from his team at the end of the season, despite the fact that his squad, the six-time defending league and county tournament champions, is in the midst of an historic winning streak.
Foote, along with co-head coach Bobby Quinn, has helped the Jonas Salk team win its last 81 dual meet matches, a streak that has encompassed the last seven seasons.
On Tuesday night, Jonas Salk traveled to crosstown rival Carl Sandburg Middle School for its final dual meet of the season, and with the 89-15 win (No. 81 in a row), the Salk squad sent their longtime coach out a winner.
PHOTOS BY JEFFGRANIT staff “It’s always special to beat your crosstown rival, and this one was certainly special,” Foote said. “It was a real nice way to go out.
“It was a pretty amazing night, really,” he added. “There were a lot of things going on all night, and it all made for a nice affair.”
Over 1,000 people packed the Sandburg gymnasium on Tuesday, eager to watch the county’s elite middle school wrestling team complete another perfect dual meet season, while also celebrating the end of what has been a brilliant coaching career.
Foote coached the team from 1979 to 1990, before leaving to coach at Crossroads Middle School in South Brunswick, where he coached his sons. He then returned to Jonas Salk in 2000 and joined Quinn when a second head coaching position opened up.
Since then, their team has done nothing but win.
“We’ve had some close ones during that time, especially this year,” Foote said. “We had a three-point match with Sayreville, and beat Crossroads [South Brunswick] by one point last Thursday. [Eighth-grader] Sal Lopez had a big win at 138 pounds that was the decisive win after we kept bouncing back all night.”
Now 11-0, the Jonas Salk team is preparing for the county tournament this Saturday, back at Sandburg Middle School, where they will be the favorite to win their seventh straight team title.
“The kids know my expectations,” Foote said. “But Sayreville and South Brunswick have two real nice teams, so it’s anybody’s team title this year.”
While another team title would be the perfect ending to Foote’s coaching career, in truth, nothing could stain his legacy at this point.
“He’s been the backbone of this program for many, many years,” Quinn said. “For as long as I can remember, he’s coached ‘old school’ wrestling. He teaches the kids the basic moves, works with them until they’ve mastered them, and then graduates to some more difficult moves.
“When he teaches the moves, we get on the mat and roll around with them to make sure they understand what we’re telling them,” Quinn added.
Together, Foote and Quinn have made for quite a team, and their winning formula is part of the reason why Foote is walking away from coaching wrestling at age 54.
“My knees are going out when I’m demonstrating things to the kids,” Foote said. “I’m not a youngster anymore and this is the most physically demanding sport for a coach. I tell the kids all the time, ‘you’re out there for one match, while we wrestle all 20 matches every night,’ “
Foote, who plans to continue coaching both girls soccer and softball next year, said he is looking into getting his referee’s card next year as a means of staying involved with the sport.
And based on the turnout on Tuesday night, there are an awful lot of people in Old Bridge who hope he stays active.
Among the attendees on Tuesday were several former wrestlers from Jonas Salk, including members of the Old Bridge High School wrestling team. Former OBHS head coach Ken Scott even presented Foote with a plaque citing the team’s appreciation for Foote’s dedication and contributions to Old Bridge wrestling.
Foote’s team paid him the ultimate tribute by performing as they did on the mats.
“The kids on the team have been really good with [my retirement] all year,” Foote said. “It’s really been a nice group of kids to work with.”
While this hasn’t been the most dominant Jonas Salk team during the winning streak, you can’t argue with the results.
“Our middle weights are second to none,” Quinn said. “We’ve had better upper weights, but this team has just clicked together. It’s just a winning combination. There are no egos on this team.
“And it’s not about the individual with these kids,” Quinn added. “It’s all about the team concept we teach them.”
That’s not to say the Jonas Salk wrestlers haven’t enjoyed individual success as well.
Shane Raymond, an eighth-grader, is undefeated at 100 pounds, while Joe Suozzo, a seventh-grader, has also been perfect at 100 pounds.
“We have a lot of guys with one loss, too,” Foote said. “Phil Sanford had his first loss, 8-7, against Crossroads, while Andy LaRocca fell 6-4 in his first loss of the year.”
As for the future of the team beyond Saturday’s county tournament, Quinn is optimistic that the team will continue to enjoy the type of success it has over the past seven years.
“We’ve got quite a few sixth- and seventh-graders starting this year,” he said. “We’re not a true eighth-grade-stacked team. I’m not going to promise another 81-match win streak, but we’ll still be a strong team.”
Thanks in large part to the contributions of Andy Foote.