Miles returns to Laurel sideline as assistant

By Kayleen Cubbal

New Castle News

It started simply enough.

Longtime friends George Miles and Brian Cooper were hashing around the possibility of Cooper applying for the vacant Laurel High football coaching job in the spring when Miles said something that prompted both to enjoy a good laugh.

“I told him, ‘you know if you get the job, I might have to come back and coach for you,’ ” Miles said. “He said, ‘sure, I’d hire you,’ we chuckled and kept on talking.”

Miles was kidding. Cooper, as it turned out, was not.

Cooper did not forget about that conversation when he was hired as Spartans’ head coach in April and when he had an opening on his staff, he approached the former Laurel head coaching legend about coming on board.

First Miles said no. Then he asked to think about it. Then he said maybe. And finally — with a last little nudge from Cooper — he agreed to make a comeback.

“I kept putting him off,” Miles said. “I had put in so many years and so much time, I just didn’t know if I wanted to get back into it. The last time he asked — probably back in late June or early July — I hung up again without giving him an answer. I looked at the phone amd said to myself, ‘why am I putting him off?’ And so I called him back and said yes.”

And so Cooper, who was hired at the age of 44, happily welcomed an assistant who, at age 67, is 23 years his senior.

HANGIN’ WITH MR. COOPER

Miles originally became aware of Cooper when the latter was a star lineman at Wilmington High in the 1980s. Cooper went on serve as an assistant coach at his alma mater and also was head coach at Shenango High.

“We were always friends and when he was at Wilmington after they went to District 10 and we quit playing each other, we would talk all the time. We ran similar defenses, which evolved from the old Westminster stuff put in by Joe Fusco and Gene Nicholson, so we would compare notes a lot.”

Miles called it a career following the 2003 season with a 32-year record of 201-128-4.

Although he said during his retirement year that he might someday consider “helping out somewhere someday,” Miles added he likely would not consider returning to the Spartans sideline because he didn’t want the head coach to feel like he was meddling. Yet since he continued to coach track and field at Laurel, his high school alma mater, Miles retained his connection to the district and continued to follow Laurel football. And since Cooper is Shenango’s girls track and field coach and Cooper has a close friendship with Miles’ son, Ryan, he and George Miles’ paths continued to cross quite often.

For Cooper, when a coaching position opened that he felt would be right for his mentor, he had no qualms about asking.

“I think he was surprised when I asked, but I could tell he was pretty thrilled,” Cooper said. “I don’t know who was happier when he said yes, him or me.

“I don’t think he’s regretted coming on board one bit and neither have I,” he added. “George has been wonderful, he has done everything I’ve asked and his input has been a great addition. I know what I look for in a good assistant coach and he’s all of those things. He is just the perfect guy to have on your staff.”

SITTING UPSTAIRS

Miles is coaching quarterbacks, linebackers and special teams. He sits in the press box on Friday nights and talks on the phone with offensive coordinator Scott Sauders, who is on the field. Miles reveled right along with everyone else when the Spartans got their first win last Friday night, shutting out Freedom 38-0.

“It’s amazing how much I’ve loved it,” Miles said. “The first time I addressed the kids, I was so excited, I got all choked up and couldn’t talk. It still means that much to me. I just didn’t realize it would until I went back out there.”

Miles says that he has had no trouble making the transition from main man to understudy.

“I know what a good assistant should do and be and I’m trying to contribute the best I can,” he said. “I honestly would not have coached for a lot of people, but Brian is at the top of that list. It’s a treat for me just to watch him at work after I saw him grow all these years from a great young player to a great young coach. He relates so well to the kids, that is one of his great strengths.

“And his organization skills are just unbelievable. He is much more organized than I ever was as a head coach, I have to say. I learned to be a student of the game from (former Laurel coach) Sam Nan and Brian is that same kind of student of the game. I love the way he runs his practices and meetings, he is incredibly organized and prepared.”

STAYING AROUND

Miles, who retired from his position as a junior high reading teacher at Laurel when he stepped down from coaching football, said he doesn’t know how long he will serve on Cooper’s staff, but if things continue the way they have been, he will consider making it more than a one-year stint.

“I’ll see how it goes,” he said. “I had some health problems, I had a kidney removed a few years ago and am diabetic, so I get tired sometimes and have to sit down for a few minutes. If Coop sees that happening, he tells me to take a break. But I still have a lot of energy. And since I’m retired, I have the time for the meetings and the preparation part.”

Miles always was known for his keen sense of humor and he hasn’t lost a step in that area.

“The kids who don’t run track didn’t know who I was at first, but I coached their dads in a lot of cases, so they went home and came back with a few stories from the old days,” Miles said. “I like to tell old stories and get everyone to laugh. You gotta throw a little bit of fun in with the hard work and I’m pretty good at that part.

“I wasn’t looking for this, but it found me,” he added. “Now that I am back out there, I can’t believe how much I missed it. I am enjoying every single minute of this and that’s putting it mildly.”

(Email: kcubbal@ncnewsonline.com).