SOUTH BRUNSWICK: Mantz feels foundation is set for SBHS to thrive without him

By Rich Fisher, Sports Editor
   Rick Mantz shot across the South Brunswick High School football landscape like a meteor — quickly, but brightly.
   After being offered a business opportunity from a friend that was impossible to turn down, Mantz regretfully stepped down as the Vikings varsity football coach and assistant athletic director at the last school board meeting.
   He took over the program in 2007 and while two years isn’t much time to make a lot of impact, Mantz made a big one. Hopefully for SBHS, his legacy lives on with whoever is chosen as his successor.
   During the past two autumns, the Vikings went 14-7, made their first two state sectional playoff appearances in 30 years, won a co-Red Division title and won the first playoff game in their history. They set a school record with nine wins last fall.
   ”Obviously there were some challenges,” said Mantz, who won over 80 games and a state title at Hillsborough before coming to SBHS. “But at same time, no matter how smart any of us think we are, you need talented kids.
   ”I talked to the kids when I left. I said, ‘Guys, in all due respect, my ego is not all that. You scored the touchdowns, you made the tackles. You believed, the community believed.’ All it took from me was a little direction and a push. I feel the best thing I did was get the infrastructure in place. The weight training, the classroom stuff, all the things people don’t see that you have to have.”
   What Mantz did, above all else, is prove to everyone that SBHS does have the capabilities to be a good football school.
   ”Without a doubt,” Mantz said. “You got a guy like (Crossroads coach) Jake Rodriguez, who was telling me that all along. Jake believed it from day one, and enough people here believed that we could be successful. And then we had kids like Mohamed (Sanu), who embraced it and went on to Rutgers. This year guys like Justin McLendon, Jimmy Mikedes, Danny Acevedo all embraced it and believed ‘Why not? Why can’t we do it?’
   ”I’m sure that certain critics along the way felt that South Brunswick couldn’t do this. But we’ve shown what South Brunswick can be, and most importantly, I think it will be successful for a while. We’ve got some talented young kids coming up from JV, some freshman linemen who will be huge coming in as sophomores, and some good kids coming up from middle school. So we’ve kind of stimulated an interest in football and a positive attitude.”
   One of New Jersey’s most respected and well-known coaches, Mantz said he will not disappear completely from the scene. He has pledged to offer aid to his replacement, but not the point where it becomes a hindrance.
   ”I’m very conscious of not looking over anyone’s shoulder,” Mantz said. “I don’t want them thinking ‘Oh, there’s coach Mantz in the stands, watching everything we do.’ But if he needs a phone call or a sounding board, I will be there.”
   Mantz was happy to report that after meeting with his assistant coaches, everyone said they were committed to staying on. He also revealed that Tarig Holman, Austin Holman and P.J. Jankowicz have all applied for the head job.
   ”I know for a fact those three guys are going for it,” he said. “I believe those guys are certainly qualified. I’m just very excited they’re all coming back and getting another year under their belts.
   ”I don’t expect them to do it my way, but at least understand what got us here. They have to keep doing what they did. The kids know there’s a formula in place now. We have our strength and conditioning program in place, everyone knows the drill so they can keep it rolling.”
   Indeed, any coach will have his own philosophy, but the staff as a whole would be wise to keep along the lines that have worked. South Brunswick is a program now in need of tweaking, not overhauling.
   And while Mantz will keep tabs on the Vikings, he will keep closer tabs on his family that includes a 13-year-old freshman son at Hunterdon Central and a 9-year-old daughter who is “growing like a weed and involved in everything.”
   ”I’ve had to miss so many events and so many functions,” Mantz said ruefully. “From August to December it’s like I die when it comes to my family. When I was coaching at Rutgers in 1991 I missed my own sister’s wedding.”
   Mantz said his new job will enable him to work at home and set his own schedule, which is perfect for family bonding.
   But first there was the tough chore of saying goodbye to his extended family.
   ”They were a little disappointed, and I was feeling pretty depressed when I told them I was leaving,” Mantz said. “But I reassured them that, for whatever it’s worth, I’m not leaving the country or going to another school. I’ll be around.
   ”But the big thing is, what needed to happen, happened. Everyone embraced this — the PAL, the middle school coaches. There is a system in place. We’ve built a foundation.
   ”We’re not just throwing kids out there and finding a way for that team to have success that year. That’s part of building a program. I think there’s a formula now where they can continue to be successful and win a state title.”
   If that happens in the near future, the man who concocted that formula will always deserve a little of the credit.