Nov 1, 2014 2 min read

I am writing this letter for two reasons. First, to be thankful that we (Washington High School) has a football coach who is not only a great coach but also a true gentleman, who never downgrades an opponent, nor speaks ill about the opposition. He does not rant and rave from the sideline toward the officials or his players when they make a mistake. They are high school-aged young men and they do make mistakes.

Then there is Coach Ed Dalton at McGuffey. The bonfire comments were bad enough, from a man who is supposed to be a mentor and good influence on these young men, but his yelling at his players and the officials during the (Oct. 24) game was embarrassing. Then, in his interview after the game to berate the officials with his ludicrous comments “I thought the game was over-officiated. That’s my pet peeve in refereeing, when the sideline influences the official. We didn’t think they were better than us. It’s disappointing when you get to this place and it becomes the officials dominating the game. It’s not what it’s about. I thought it ruined the game. It’s disturbing to me that’s the way they officiate.” I guess that’s a comment about the type of coach he is.

I am so proud of our players for not retaliating or taunting, but instead earning a hard-fought victory against a very good McGuffey team. That shows the true leadership of our “Gentle Giant” coach Mike Bosnic, along with the team leaders. This is what “Prexie Pride” stands for. I am very proud to be on our school board and to have been on the committee that hired Coach Bosnic. I was born, raised and still am a proud West Virginia “hillbilly” and a Mountaineer, but I am very proud to forever be a Prexie. Maybe now Coach Dalton will learn how to spell Prexies correctly.

We received an apology from the McGuffey superintendent and other administrators, but nothing from Coach Dalton. McGuffey has a very good team, but I think it deserves better.

William C. Braun Jr.

Washington