COMMENTARY: Hall and Slates deserved better at their alma maters
By Keno Sultan
Stark County Prep Press writer
www.starkcountypreppress.blogspot.com
CANTON--When you hear of Canton McKinley football, you hear of Thom McDaniels being the face of the program. When you hear of Perry football, you hear of Keith Wakefield being the face of the program.
When you hear of Canton McKinley, you hear about the 16 years of stability that McDaniels had from the administration of the high school down to the entire Canton City Schools regime. When you hear of Perry, you think about the two long stints that Wakefield had and the support from the administration of the high school all the way down to the Perry Local Schools regime.
Antonio Hall and Zach Slates are gentlemen who are three years apart in age. Both men grew up attending Canton City Schools and Perry Local Schools respectively from elementary up to high school. Both were coached by McDaniels and Wakefield respectively. Both went on to play at NCAA Division I institutions at Kentucky and Pittsburgh respectively. Both men came back home to lead their alma maters as head coaches in 2021, with Hall taking over as Bulldogs head coach and Slates in charge of the Panthers.
Three years later, both men are no longer head coaches of their alma maters. And that is disappointing. And a problem.
Today we live in a society where social media has become the supreme ruler. Fans have an evil autonomy now to criticize whoever is in charge of their programs. Those are the same individuals who think they know everything ala Albert Einstein. Those same individuals are the ones who were cheering for Hall and Slates when they were on the field at Fawcett Stadium and Wakefield Stadium (then Perry Stadium) and now are expressing joy in their respective departures.
Unfortunately, loyalty was lost and this week, Hall and Slates were the victims. And because of it, McKinley is once again playing musical chairs in yet their ninth search for a head coach since the 1997 season (not counting McDaniels lone return in 2014). Perry doesn't have it as bad as they are conducting just their second head coach search since Keith Boedicker was the Panthers general from 2010-2013 (John "Spider" Miller and Slates were both selected by Wakefield to succeed him).
The McKinley program is in much more stuck in reverse than the Perry program. Since the 2006 season, the Bulldogs have not played in a state semifinal. Since 2009, they have not even competed for a regional title. Their seasons have stalled between the first round up to the regional semifinals. Perry on the other hand has competed in two straight Division II state finals in 2015 and 2016, losses to Cincinnati LaSalle, the latter when they carried a 7-0 lead into the fourth quarter before succumbing 14-7, a far better display than the previous year, a 42-0 loss.
I want to take the time to venture down memory lane. I was a high school sophomore when I became the sports editor of our school newspaper and an eventual team manager and field reporter (thanks to former McKinley boss Kerry Hodakievic and Miller along the way, including Donald Short, an Orrville native and longtime Bulldog football and basketball assistant coach). Hall was one of the most respected athletes in the school who embodied what it meant to be a student-community-athlete at McKinley. No one ever had a bad word to say around him and it was great being around men like Hall and others who I still maintain lifelong friendships with to this day.
There were things said about Hall over the last two seasons that personally speaking were not appreciated, especially after McKinley's 35-0 loss to Massillon. His players were called "thugs" on chat rooms, many said most of them would be in jail, others said to lock them up and some shots were taken at Hall with one labeling him as a "gang leader". I wanted to rip the perpetrator who said that but a person of my stature in the profession of my chosen life had to pull back. Most of those individuals will not have been willing to come to Hall and say those things to him directly including his players and assistant coaches. Forbid if someone said that about any of our family members.
That now brings me to Slates. Slates grew up with aspirations of playing for the Panthers. He recognized his dream and then was bestowed as head coach. However, Slates didn't get the fair support he needed that Wakefield had and with fans also calling for Slates removal, they got their wish. The same Slates who was a part of the Panthers 2000 Division I state semifinal competing squad as a player (Hall won two state titles at McKinley in 1997 and 1998).
It saddens this writer there are fans who think they know everything. Those same fans are again the ones who cheered for Hall and Slates in their prep days. And now they have turned their backs on them. Hall is now moving on to an administrative role and who knows where Slates may coach at.
I have taken my fair share of criticism over the years. There have been things said about me. Heck, a perpetrator promised to (get this) shoot me dead over my disdain for Michael Vick years ago in a chat room. I know people are going to go after me and I embrace it. Two decades ago I didn't as much but over time learned that not everyone is going to stand for you. Hall and Slates sadly found that out this week. Think about how their respective families feel. Think about how their sons, daughters, and wives feel. Think about how the rest of their family members feel.
Whoever becomes the head coach at McKinley and Perry will not only need to have durable skin but also the support of the Canton City and Perry Local administration. Their wives, sons and daughters must be embraced by the community. They will have to be aware of the dangers that will await them quicker than Wile E. Coyote's failed attempts to catch the Roadrunner.
The Einsteins from McKinley and Perry called for a new head coach. They got their wish. They knew everything. At this point, to me they are no longer fans. Their lack of loyalty was cemented this week. They are nothing but Einsteins. They had the brains to force out two coaches who are quality men. Smart of them. Again they knew everything and were not wrong. And I say that with a sarcastic approach, something this writer has never done. Now the question becomes whether both programs will be able to get off the canvas and come out swinging with victories. A losing season for both programs in 2025 will be disastrous and for McKinley, a 10th straight loss to Massillon is unfathomable but at this point with the Tigers being so much better than the Bulldogs, it wouldn't be that farfetched, especially with the Tigers having won five out of six in Canton (4-0 in Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium).
To Coach Hall and Coach Slates, thank you for the four years you gave to your alma maters as head coaches. Thank you for the successes you had on the field as student-community-athletes at McKinley and Perry. It's just sad that social media has become a platform to denigrate men who invested their time to their alma maters and nothing in the end to show for it.
Yes. This was a sad ending for two quality men. Hopefully the fans of McKinley and Perry support the next head coach with far more appreciation than they did for two men who attended elementary, middle and high schools in their respective hometowns, the same men who they cheered for on the football field when they were teenagers but didn't have that same support for them as adult head coaches.
Only time will tell if McKinley and Perry will get back up. But this much can be said. Slates and Hall deserved better at their respective alma maters.
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