ARLINGTON — Arlington Martin is about to face Euless Trinity in the high school playoffs this weekend for their toughest test of the year.
“I've never played against Trinity," said running back Steve Caldwell, "but I’ve always heard that they're a pretty physical team. It’s pretty big. They hit hard."
For head coach Bob Wager, last week’s win over Odessa Permian may have been even bigger.
By winning that game, Arlington Martin reached the Sweet 16 for the first time in the school’s history, and Wager beat a program featured in "Friday Night Lights," the story that inspired him to come to Texas.
"The best thing about it is that's the reason Coach Wager came down," said strong safety Josh Garcia. "He read the story and came down here on his motorcycle. All of us wanted to do it for him."
"I love kids. Absolutely love kids," Wager said.
After growing up in upstate New York, he read "Friday Night Lights" while coaching at Springfield College in Massachusetts. The next thing he knew, he was headed to State of Texas.
"I had a rusty old Jeep CJ7 that I knew wouldn't make the 1,800-mile trip, so I traded it in for a motorcycle, threw a gym bag on the back and moved to the great state of Texas," Wager said.
Wager is living proof that $500 can take you a long way. That's how much money he had in his pocket when he left the East Coast 17 years ago. His goal: Come to Texas and coach high school football.
"I think Texas high athletics, and in particular, high school football is the best in the country," Wager said. "I'm humbled to be in the position that I’m in and have the opportunity to have the role in the lives of the kids that I coach, and it's never been a disappointment."
The book that lured him to Texas became a movie in 2006. It also inspired a TV series, and aside from a state championship, not much will replace Saturday's win over Odessa Permian.
"Amidst the entire situation and the irony of my inspiration to move down here, the one constant through all of it has been that I’ve been very fortunate to be surrounded by great coaches and had a chance to coach great players," Wager said.
E-mail griba@wfaa.com
