Alumni Athletic Spotlights

[caption to come] Spotlights

CHRIS BROOKS ’98

Chris Brooks played hockey at Yale University in addition to playing professionally for four years. He currently works for an industrial conglomerate in Boston focused on product management work.

Tell me about how you came to play a sport in college. I started at A-S in Kindergarten, and in 1st Grade, I began skating. I played for a team in Rye, New York—we would go out there on the weekends. At Allen-Stevenson, I played hockey beginning in 4th Grade and had a couple of tremendous coaches in Rich Columbo and Phil Amplo. They loved the game and loved coaching. It was a great experience. I played on the Varsity team in 5th Grade, which was the first time I had played against bigger kids, and it helped me get better. Although hockey was a big part of my life, I loved being able to play football in the fall and lacrosse in the spring. That whole AllenStevenson coaching staff was such a great group from which to learn. Not only did they love the game, but they loved teaching the game.

My A-S athletic experience was awesome– I couldn’t have asked for more, especially at a city school. We had a great class of athletes, and there was always healthy competition. There was a ton of fun and camaraderie. We moved out of the city for my dad’s job, but I kept in touch with all of my Allen-Stevenson friends, like Alex and Mike Faherty ’98 and John Flinn ’98, who I played football with while in High School at Hotchkiss.

Hotchkiss was a different experience; it felt more specialized. Almost everyone on the hockey team was recruited. It was a pretty competitive school, as most of the athletes were going on to playing at the Division I college level. In my first year, I was initially cut from the Varsity team to then be called up in the middle of the year—where I didn’t see much ice time, which was frustrating, but I was coming from a different world. It was an eye opener because I was a smaller fish in a bigger pond—I had to figure out my role and how to impact the team. From there, I played a year of Juniors in British Columbia. After that, I had the opportunity to go to Yale. My first year I struggled with injuries but was able to come back and adapt. I learned that I needed to be a responsive defensive player, be a good teammate, block shots, and play a really physical game. It was the first time I had to change my style of play. The higher up you get, the more specialized you need to be, which helped me tremendously when I played professionally after three years at Yale.

As you know, Allen-Stevenson places a lot of importance on social skills in our PE and Athletics program. How do you think the balance of motor skills, teamwork, respect and communication helped you as an athlete? I had significant learning disabilities coming into Allen-Stevenson, which they really embraced. I had some caring teachers who knew I learned a little differently than other people. I never saw the classroom environment as being separate from sports—you had to do academics well to do athletics. I always felt that our teachers were so well rounded, whether in 5th-grade math class or playing with a soccer ball around the room—there was also something about teamwork and hand-eye coordination. For being a city school with limited outdoor space, there was always an emphasis on casual sports, hand-eye coordination and diversity of experience.

How was your transition from playing hockey at Yale to playing professionally? I went from having very little free time in college and a very regimented schedule to having tons of free time. I think one of the interesting things is you go from playing 35 games to playing 75 games, so everything is magnified, including how you treat your body. The level of playing is better, the expectations are higher and it’s an extremely cutthroat business. A big part of the transition to playing professionally is figuring out where you fit. There are many great players who score a lot of goals in college but aren’t good enough to be that player at the professional level. These players differentiate themselves and are the ones who typically succeed. The stakes are higher, and you have to figure out what is going to keep you around and allow you to excel.

How do you think your experience as an athlete has impacted what you do today? What are some skills that you learned through your time playing sports that help you in your role today? To be honest with you, you learn so much playing sports. Allen-Stevenson really set the stage for my career in terms of work ethic, camaraderie, and understanding how to be a good team player. I always tell people now that I learned the most for my career from sports. You have team orientation and have to focus on performing when it matters, the small details and bringing your best every day.

Transitioning into the work world, I didn’t know what to expect. Being an athlete served me extremely well. It’s a similar work ethic, with the discipline and getting others to be accountable across a team. I’ve learned how to become a leader among my peers and what behaviors will get me there. Operating like that in a business environment was something that came easier to me than many other people, and it has definitely helped me accelerate in my career.

ADAM DONALDSON ’05

Adam Donaldson ’05 played tennis at the University of Louisville. He currently serves as the Assistant Athletics Director, Production and Media Partnerships for the University of Notre Dame.

Tell me about how you came to be playing a sport in college. I started playing tennis when I was 7 or 8. I vividly remember talking to Coach Alifano when I was at Allen-Stevenson because, of course, we didn’t have a tennis team, but I still wanted to play sports while at school. I can remember leaving football and basketball practice at school to go to tennis practice. I played tennis at the Randy Mandy Academy in New York and the Stadium Racquet Club - I competed in tons of junior tournaments.

From A-S, I went to Taft for high school. They were really great with letting me leave for tournaments—I still played basketball for them through my junior year. I played tennis for Taft too. We had some great teams! I was recruited to play at Louisville—I went on an official visit there in high school and loved how important all sports were there, not just basketball and football. They blew me away.

As you know, Allen-Stevenson places a lot of importance on social skills in our PE and Athletics program. How do you think the balance of motor skills, teamwork, respect and communication help you as an athlete? It impacted me tremendously—even just going up on the roof for kickball or dodgeball and learning how to deal with the dynamics of picking teams. I really loved being competitive. I also will always remember those buses out to Randall’s Island. We spent so much time together as a team because of those rides. You don’t realize until after you leave New York how hard it is to play sports in the city. It makes you appreciate Allen-Stevenson and the coaching staff.

What was your experience playing tennis at Louisville? It’s a full-time job playing a sport at a Division I school. It wasn’t something that I was prepared for right away because of the time commitment. You learn quickly to budget and manage your time exceptionally well, which has paid off in the long run. If you don’t, you can easily fall behind both academically and athletically.

It took me a couple of years to get in the line up there— but it was so worth it. I cracked in my Junior year in third doubles. The spirit there was incredible—we’d have some matches with hundreds of people coming to watch us play, which wasn’t very common in the college tennis world. My favorite part about college tennis was the team aspect of it, versus the individual nature that exists in junior tennis.

What are some skills that you learned through playing sports that help you in your role today? I think that work ethic is a huge skill—having the mindset of pushing myself always to do the best job I can. I tell my team constantly that it’s not about being perfect but pushing through. Don’t bail out when it gets hard. I learned that from an early age, even back to my Allen-Stevenson days.

I would also say communication, has become more important as I’ve grown older. We had to communicate on the court as doubles players. We had to communicate with our coaches. It’s something that might seem simple but is really valuable. If you are going to be late to practice and don’t let anyone know, you’ll have a coach breathing down your neck, and really thinking through who needs what information and when, has greatly impacted my professional career.

What is your fondest A-S memory—sports or otherwise? I definitely remember the roof—I will always remember playing kickball on the roof, looking over New York City and how competitive we were. I also still think about Ms. Schrade-James— being in the music department with her, sitting at the piano teaching us songs.

HASANI FIGUEROA ’10

Hasani Figueroa ’10 played football while at college. He currently lives in New York and serves as a Recruiting Consultant for Daversa Partners.

Tell me about how you came to be playing a sport in college. The first time I ever played tackle football was at AllenStevenson—I believe in 6th Grade. A bunch of friends and I used to play in the park in the afternoons when we were younger. We always dreamed about playing with pads and playing against Buckley. I absolutely loved it! I think I scored my first touchdown in 7th Grade against Fieldston. I remember the nurse, Ms. Shapiro, kept the ball from that game and mentioned it to me every time I stopped by. Our team was super competitive, and every year was about playing against Buckley. I believe we won in 8th and 9th Grade. It’s the team I miss the most.

After Allen-Stevenson, I went to Middlesex School. The football program there felt a bit different, as we played against students of all grades throughout high school, but similarly, I fell in love with it. Football has kept me going and kept me organized. I always started the year well academically because I had that structure. In my junior year of high school, I started getting recruited to play football in college. Some scouts had seen me on the highlight reel of our current quarterback and reached out. It opened up so many doors for me.

I was lucky enough to accept an offer from Amherst College. It was a totally different world. In college, you’re doing something for your sport every day between practices and weightlifting. It definitely taught me time management. In many ways, football saved my life, and playing at Allen-Stevenson has been such a transformative part of it.

As you know, Allen-Stevenson places a lot of importance on social skills in our PE and Athletics program. How do you think the balance of motor skills, teamwork, respect and communication help you as an athlete? I think Allen-Stevenson, retrospectively, taught me to be a good teammate. When I first started playing football, I was hyper-competitive and always focused on winning. I learned to put aside my ego and work better with my teammates. A-S opened so many doors for me—sportswise and life-wise. It taught me to be a better team player.

Who were some of the coaches that influenced you? I loved working with Coach Amplo—he is my guy. As I said, I could sometimes get emotional or hot-headed about playing football. He took the time to make me see the big picture and helped me become a great team player.

Coach Zufall is the GOAT (greatest of all time)! We would all run through a wall for him. Coach Wiseman was amazing. I’m getting nostalgic now…

What was your experience playing Football at Amherst? I had some growing pains at first, but football meant I had to be on top of my schedule and accountable in a new way. I mean, who wants to wake up at 6 AM to lift weights?

I’m appreciative of learning how to understand the internal politics of how a team works. That’s something I’ve carried over in my everyday life. Amherst also provided me with such a great group of guys who helped me, both alumni and my teammates.

What are some skills you learned through your time playing sports that help you in your role today? As a recruiter, I think being an athlete has provided me with a lot of skills I use today. I would say perseverance. You have highs and lows in my job, just like in sports. Often when I get frustrated or am trying to solve a problem, I look back on what my coaches have said to me and apply it to what I’m doing today.

What is your fondest A-S memory—sports or otherwise? Of course, I have to say beating Buckley in 9th Grade in the East Side Classic. I remember my last year; all we would think about was beating them—almost our whole class that year was on the football team. We took it seriously; you would’ve thought we were playing in the Superbowl. We luckily won that game—and we were so proud to do that in our last year. To this day, that is my favorite sports memory. It was the most genuine, unified team on which I’ve ever been.

Larry Greer ’81 played basketball at Northeastern University. Today he is an Advance Scout and Assistant Basketball Coach for the New York Knicks.

Tell me about how you came to play a sport in college. I started at Allen-Stevenson in 2nd Grade. In my day, if you were a boy at Allen-Stevenson, you were involved in sports. We had to take a sport each season, and my big sports were basketball and baseball. In fact, back then, I think I was a better baseball player than a basketball player.

I actually played for the Varsity Baseball team as a fifth grader. While I was in Middle School, we would go to Randall’s Island, and I would stay after the Middle School practice. Then, I would practice with the Upper School team. I did that in 6th Grade for basketball too. I was fortunate to have a lot of great coaches at Allen-Stevenson, and to learn from them.

After A-S, I went to York Prep, which didn’t have a baseball team, so I only played basketball while there. I went to Northeastern for college and didn’t start playing basketball for the school until I was a Junior in College. Allen-Stevenson places a lot of importance on social skills in our PE and Athletics program. How do you think the balance of motor skills, teamwork, respect and communication help you as an athlete? At Allen-Stevenson, you are a gentleman first, and that carries over to sports. When I was there, we had some great competition–actually I was just telling my son—one of my favorite memories was playing against Buckley in baseball.

We learned teamwork— when you’re on a team, whether you’re going through life or sports, you learn to work together. Any success I’ve ever had in basketball is related to the people I’ve worked with who are teammates of mine. I think it’s important you learn about problem-solving together on a team. You’re learning information and how it relates to the sport, but you’re trying to improve your skills as well.

What was your experience playing Basketball at Northeastern? I was able to walk on to the team my junior year, so I wasn’t recruited. Honestly, in my first two years in college, I just wasn’t good enough. It was a Division I program with a well-known Hall of Fame Coach, Jim Calhoun. When Coach Calhoun left to go to the University of Connecticut, I hooked on with one of the players in the off-season, and we trained together. And then, the coaching staff started to notice me, and I was able to play as combo Guard.

I was the only white player on an all-African American basketball team. You learn a lot about life when you are the minority. I was respected by my teammates, who elected me as a captain my senior year. It helped blend me into who I am today.

How do you think your experience as an athlete has impacted what you do today? You know, I went to Northeastern thinking I was going to be a businessman—got a degree in marketing. Once I made the team at Northeastern, it changed.

I really enjoy being around the players. The average person doesn’t get how much an NBA player puts into his game on and offseason. I enjoy studying the different coaches and what they do. My job as a scout— most people think of me as a personnel scout—but I’m an Advance Scout. I come up with the strategy of how to play a team before we play them.

WILL MILNE ’01

Will Milne ’01 played football at the University of Pennsylvania. He is currently a Partner in a wealth advisory practice, Canna Milne Financial. He lives in the suburbs of Pennsylvania with his wife, Elizabeth, and two sons, Brian and Cole.

Tell me about your start playing football and how you ended up playing in college. I started playing football in 5th Grade, but I think I was playing Varsity because of my size. It was always about being really efficient, especially when driving to and practicing at Randall’s Island. Coach Zufall, Coach Amplo and Coach Alifano were great. They taught me a lot fundamentally – especially about time management, which I’ve found to be valuable.

After Allen-Stevenson, I went to Poly Prep, which was a very different environment for football. It wasn’t easy to transition—it was a big shock to my system. My freshman year, sleeping on a cot in the gym at Poly Prep, waking up at 5:30AM for conditioning, and doing 2-a-day practices was a change of pace. It toughened me up and helped me transform, but there were many times I wanted to quit. I will say I give credit to my coaches at Poly Prep and Allen-Stevenson. They could all be tough, but they also all knew when you needed support and a pat on the back.

I played for a successful high school program—the kids that I played with, many of them have played in the NFL or had a shot playing professionally. Almost everyone I played with went on to play in college. In my junior year in high school, my coach told me to start involving myself in recruitment. I had some interest from schools like the University of Virginia, Rutgers, Wisconsin, Michigan State, Notre Dame, etc. I sat down with my parents, both highly educated, and we looked at the different schools interested in me. I took the shot to go to the best business school at Wharton Undergraduate at the University of Pennsylvania. This opportunity wasn’t lost on me.

As you know, Allen-Stevenson places a lot of importance on social skills in our PE and Athletics program. How do you think the balance of motor skills, teamwork, respect and communication help you as an athlete? It certainly impacted me in terms of sportsmanship and camaraderie. I think Allen-Stevenson always preached balance and wouldn’t brand itself as just an athletic school.

William Morris ’15 is a sophomore at St. John’s University who plays lacrosse. William currently plays as a midfielder.

Tell me about how you came to play a sport in college. I started playing lacrosse at Allen-Stevenson through a program called ‘Kids in Sports’ and eventually joined Mr. Dransfield’s after school program. I also played on a club team called Dox NYC. Actually, I would often go to my A-S practices on Randall’s Island, come back to the School, and then go back out to Randall’s Island for practices with my club team.

Our Allen-Stevenson practices ended at 5:30PM, and my other practices started at 6:00PM ending around 8:00PM. After that, I’d head back to Allen-Stevenson. It took me about another 45 minutes to commute home, so it was time-consuming.

When I was in 6th Grade, I remember I started practicing and playing with the Varsity team—I was so excited! When I graduated from A-S, I went to The Peddie School from freshman through junior year. While I was there, I realized that I was getting really good at lacrosse and had some college interest. Rutgers was the first college that demonstrated interest in me when I was a junior at Peddie. I thought, ‘let’s see what I can do’ and how could I better myself at lacrosse, so I transferred to IMG Academy in Florida. I completed my senior year there, as well as a post-graduate year.

At the end of my senior year, I committed to Hofstra University. I went to Hofstra for my freshman year and transferred to St. John’s University this year. Eventually, I want to be a lawyer, so I transferred because St. John’s offered me a better scholarship that goes through law school.

What has your experience been like playing lacrosse at Hofstra and St. John’s? The main difference between my time at Hofstra and St. John’s was the timing of our workouts. At Hofstra, we had weightlifting at 5:30AM, so I was waking up at 4:45AM three times a week. On the days that we weren’t lifting, we were running at 6:00AM, so there were a lot of early mornings. Now at St. John’s, I weight lift at 11:00AM or after practice in the afternoon.

I feel like Allen-Stevenson and the School’s focus on academics, arts and athletics instilled good habits in me for college. I had to commute from the Bronx to get to school every day, so I had to really manage my time. I made sure that during my free time at school to go to the library to do my work. In college, you have a lot of different things on your plate to manage but being able to prioritize my work is a skill that I acquired from my time at Allen-Stevenson. It’s a huge asset to know how to do that.

What skills do you think that you have as an athlete will help you in the professional world? I feel like being an athlete has taught me to regulate my emotions. You can win or lose a game, and if you do lose, it’s not necessarily your fault, but you have to pick yourself up and figure out how to move on. In life, there are a lot of ups and downs, but being able to stay neutral and not get too high or too low is the most important thing.

What is your fondest A-S memory— sports or otherwise? Definitely playing kickball on the roof!

Two teachers that were helpful to me were Ms. Mahida and Ms. Vermont-Davis. Derrick Simmons ’15 and I were in the original BOCAS (Boys of Color at Allen-Stevenson) group. There were 4 or 5 of us who would meet, along with Mr. Kersey, Mr. Spain, Mr. Duncan, Ms. Mahida and Ms. Vermont-Davis. I would say that’s a time that I remember. At one point at AllenStevenson, there were only two boys of color in my class. Not that Allen-Stevenson wasn’t a safe space, but it was nice to have a space for people who looked like you with teachers who looked like you as well.

If I could give myself any advice while I was at Allen-Stevenson, I would say sometimes you think that you know it all, especially when I was playing lacrosse, but the things that my coaches at Allen-Stevenson told me about transitioning into playing sports in high school and college did happen. So, looking back, I would say to myself to be a sponge and soak up all of the information your teachers and coaches teach and tell you.

That process of being well-rounded was important at A-S, and I think it was probably one reason I was recruited for an Ivy League school. It allowed me to go to a top-tier business school as an undergraduate while also being an athlete.

How do you think your experience as an athlete has impacted what you do today? What are some skills that you learned through your time playing sports that have helped you in your role today? I always think sports translates really well to the real world, so I always enjoy, when I look back on it, the ability to get knocked down, get back up and move on, whether that was at Allen-Stevenson, Poly Prep or Penn. You dust off and get ready for the next play. I would also say problem-solving, the ability to think quickly in high-pressure situations. Especially playing as a left tackle, you had to think on your feet and react quickly.

Going from the Upper East Side to Brooklyn was a more diverse setting. A lot of my teammates came from very different backgrounds than I did, even more so at Penn. I’m playing with guys from all over the country. I was able to see how different people approach things, which was tremendous, and a skill I use now working with so many different people. I give great credit to my coaches, which has influenced my leadership style today—sometimes you need tough love, but you can’t always be hard on people—you also need to support them and want them to succeed.

DYLAN PORGES ’16

Dylan Porges ’16 currently swims for Princeton University. He had a very successful first year on the team and has qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials this summer.

Tell me how you came to participate in a sport in college. Back in my day, there was a Lower School swim program at Allen-Stevenson which practiced at Asphalt Green, which was the club program I eventually joined. The entire grade would go to make sure everyone was able to swim. I later volunteered with Asphalt Green in its waterproofing program for underprivileged kids. I loved sharing my abilities with my classmates and being a bit ahead of them was a nice shining moment for me.

After 8th Grade, I went to Fieldston and swam there. Their program wasn’t the most competitive, but the Ivy Preparatory Athletic conference had tons of good swimmers, who often came from my club team. During my freshman and sophomore years, I progressed a lot in the water and grew 4-5 inches. I got myself to the point where my school swim team was more for fun, and my main focus and goals were pursued on my club team. Later in high school, I was recruited by a wide variety of colleges and universities. The combination of my swimming and my strong academics created college options for me. It was a very unique and special opportunity. I had always wanted to go to Princeton, so when they approached me, it was a dream come true. It was the first school I had ever visited as a kid. How do you think AllenStevenson helped your athletic trajectory? I had a lot of accomplishments at Allen-Stevenson athletically. Specifically, Coach Dransfield was super influential to me. He would always check in and was invested in my career. Their focus on athletic fundamentals and strength translated to my swimming as well. Mr. Acerbo has also provided great support and encouragement.

Many of the Physical Education staff helped me continue my trajectory towards accomplishing everything I wanted to in the water. A lot of the teamwork, discipline, accountability and focus that was

intertwined through our PE program was a big part of that. It all fed towards becoming a better person and learning when to persevere when things are tough.

There has also been a wide selection of teachers who have influenced my life and my swim career. Mr. Haarmann really taught me how to be a scholar and a gentleman—how to shake someone’s hand and look them in the eye, how to be a good student and want to work hard. Ms. Leonard is a phenomenal math teacher whose passion is motivating in the classroom every day. There’s also Mr. Kersey and joining generations of history students before me who had the honor of taking his class. Many of the A-S teachers taught me life lessons, in and out of the classroom, that apply to everything—what it means to persevere and problem solve, whether in the classroom or the pool. The teachers at AllenStevenson were always willing to take the time to help each student. They’re not as forgiving at Princeton, so I feel grateful to have had that experience at A-S. It has all influenced how I talk with my college professors, my coaches and how I work with my teammates.

What is your experience swimming at Princeton? I currently swim distance freestyle and 200 M butterfly. In terms of accolades and accomplishments, I would say I progressed tremendously my freshman year. I hit another growth spurt later in life and performed better than I expected. I won an Ivy League Championship title for the mile, set a long course school record, and was the team’s highest-scoring freshman. It was a really exciting first year and set me up well for more to come. I was able to put myself in a place of relevancy on the team and within the conference.

What is your fondest A-S memory— sports or otherwise? I really loved some of the Allen-Stevenson ice skating parties and the Gilbert & Sullivan performances—I was in The Mikado. I vividly remember being drenched in make-up, pounds of foundation, by our mothers.

Some of the fondest memories I have were in class with my friends, whether in science, history, English, or math. I feel like every subject at some point always had a special teacher. I loved going to class every day.

NICK SILBER ’13

Nick Silber ’13 played baseball at Rice University, serving as a pitcher. He currently works for a leadership advisory consulting executive search firm.

Tell me how you came to be playing a sport in college. I started playing competitively with the Yorkville Youth travel team on the Upper East Side when I was six. I played for another travel organization beginning in 7th Grade, called the Gothams, a team with a Dominican coach and many Dominican players who took their baseball very seriously. That was a bit of a step up, competition-wise.

At Allen-Stevenson, I played baseball in 7th Grade and really enjoyed it. I think having a team in school and a team outside of school really helped foster my love for the game.

After Allen-Stevenson, I went to Lawrenceville and continued to play for travel teams as well as the school’s team. My summer-ball organization, Team Citius, is based out of Dallas, and the summer after my sophomore year, one of the assistant coaches from Rice happened to see me pitch at a tournament in Dallas. That eventually led to a scholarship offer in the spring of my junior year. I had offers from a few other places, including some Ivy League schools, and I made my decision largely based on both the quality of Rice’s academic offerings, as well as its baseball program. School has always come first for me, and I think my academic preparation at A-S and Lawrenceville afforded me a bit of a head start some other guys didn’t have. I went into college already having an idea of how to balance rigorous schoolwork with sports.

What was your experience playing baseball at Rice? I had the time of my life playing at Rice, though it definitely wasn’t easy. I really had to learn how to manage my time well, especially given practice and travel demands. I think the preparation I had at AllenStevenson really helped with that.

About halfway through my sophomore year, I tore pretty much everything you can tear in a shoulder (labrum, rotator cuff…etc.) I tried to rehabilitate it that summer and ended up getting surgery, which was a year-long recovery. It eventually became clear that I wasn’t going to be able to pitch again. However, I could still help out in a couple of other ways, particularly by serving as our team’s Peer Academic Advisor.

How do you think your experience as an athlete has impacted what you do today? What are some skills that you learned through your time playing sports that have helped you in your role today? Well, I’m only a few months into my job, so I still have a lot to learn. But I think the skills I do have include asking questions, reaching out to others with ease and building those connections with my colleagues. It’s been really helpful in shortening the learning curve.

What is your fondest A-S memory—sports or otherwise? I played lacrosse in 8th Grade, and I remember leading our pregame pump-up of sorts. It might sound a little silly, but it actually felt a little like going into battle, surrounded by some of your best friends. The bonds I was able to forge with my classmates on the field and in the classroom are what I remember most. Though I’m in Texas now, we’ve still managed to stay in touch!

ALEX SHUMAN ’97

Alex Shuman ’97 played football at St. Lawrence University. He is currently a High School History Teacher at The Taft School, where he also coaches football and ice hockey.

Tell me how you came to be playing a sport in college. I really enjoyed playing football at A-S. I had Mr. Prior, Mr. Amplo, and Mr. Zufall, who were phenomenal. My first year of playing tackle football was in 5th Grade at Allen-Stevenson. I remember Mr. Prior told me I was going to play center. I want to say we played two games that year. We had a fantastic group! In my 9th- grade year, the team was no more than 17 or 18 kids. I was one of three players on that team who went on to play college football. I think that’s pretty impressive.

After Allen-Stevenson, I went to Berkshire and played football, I was a guard and had a lot of success. I wanted to continue playing football, so I went to St. Lawrence and moved along the offensive line as a guard and a long snapper.

As you know, Allen-Stevenson places a lot of importance on social skills in our PE and Athletics program. How do you think the balance of motor skills, teamwork, respect and communication help you as an athlete? I think it was great to be exposed to such strong coaching at a young age. That is part of the mentality that you get at a boys’ school—sports are a big piece

of what we cared about. I learned how to play hard while respecting the opposition. We all wanted to do well and helped each other. We were invested in the team, and that, combined with having really good coaches, made it a great experience.

What was your experience playing football at St. Lawrence? On the field, it was rough. We won three games in four years. We snapped a 20-game losing streak during my freshman year and then lost the next 22. We did win two games my senior year, one of which was the last game of the season, so I went out on a high note.

Off the field, I had a wonderful experience at St. Lawrence. I made life-long friends with whom I am still close. I wouldn’t trade my experience either on or off the field.

What’s your experience now being a High School Coach? I love it. I try to impart wisdom and not get in the way of my players. We (Taft) have had some success in recent years, which always adds a level of enjoyment. I am coaching in the New England Prep School circuit —and it’s incredible how much the caliber of athletes has improved since I played 20 years ago. Many teams in our league have multiple players going on to play division one football each year.

Do you take anything from your A-S coaches that you bring into your coaching today? I learned the idea of playing hard, good sportsmanship, and not making things complicated. The A-S coaches were very good at teaching fundamentals and were incredibly knowledgeable. I had a great time—some really fond memories.

In terms of a direct example, I still use a variation of a saying from Mr. Zufall with my defensive lineman about recognizing trap blocks, “If you’re getting blocked every play and then you’re not, you didn’t suddenly become Bruce Smith—you’re getting trapped.” However, I can’t use Bruce Smith as my example anymore.

How do you think your experience as an athlete has impacted what you do today? What are some skills that you learned through your time playing sports that help you in your role today? My experience as an athlete made me want to become a coach. I love being part of a team and all the experiences that go with it. Playing sports has made me the person I am today. It taught me the importance of giving your best effort, hard work, dealing with adversity, etc.

What is your fondest A-S memory—sports or otherwise? I remember there was a student in the grade above me named Victor Sanders ’96 – he was quite the running back. I have a very clear memory of playing New Canaan Country Day in Eighth Grade. The score was 0-0 with less than two minutes left, and we got the ball back inside our own five-yard line. We were just trying to eat the clock and escape with a tie. Somehow, Victor broke a bunch of tackles, ended up running 95 yards and scoring a touchdown. I remember the excitement of winning and the joyous energy of that bus ride back to school.

DERRICK SIMMONS ’15

Derrick Simmons ’15 is a junior who currently runs track at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Derrick is a sociology major.

Tell me how you came to play a sport in college. I’ve been running track since I was 6 years old. My mom encouraged me to start running, and I kept with it. I competed in my first Junior Olympics at age 11, and up until I turned 18, I earned Junior Olympic medals for several years in both the 800- and 1500meter races. At Allen-Stevenson, I really enjoyed running track. My main events in high school were the 800-meter run and the mile, which are the same events I run in college today.

After A-S, I went to Poly Prep for high school. I worked out over the summer before my first high school cross-country season so I could be prepared. I also trained and competed with an AAU team. Honestly, I don’t think it was much of a transition for me—AllenStevenson prepared me very well for my high school track program. When I competed at Allen-Stevenson, and even at Poly Prep, I didn’t have much competition. As my A-S track coach, Ms. Leonard, would say, it was more about how far ahead I was going to be than if I would win. I used to start slowly, and by the last lap, would reach my stride. Our conference meets weren’t too competitive in high school. There was much tougher competition at the state and national levels. By the end of high school, I had broken the Poly Prep school records for 8 different track events, including 6 Indoor and 2 Outdoor titles. It was after my sophomore year that I started hearing from college coaches and getting interest letters. At the beginning of my senior year, coaches started inviting me for official college visits. The University of Michigan was my favorite. I wanted to go to a large school with excitement surrounding the athletics and one that also has great academics, so Michigan was the perfect choice. I enjoy being a Wolverine.

How did Allen-Stevenson play a role? A-S helped me get involved in a lot of different things. I played the viola and participated in the A-S Orchestra; I sang in the chorus; I was in plays; I did dance crew; and I also played Varsity basketball. I went on to do the same things in high school. Overall, I think A-S prepared me to be an active member of my community. I had great track coaches who helped prepare me well for high school track. Poly Prep was very similar training-wise.

What is your experience running track at the University of Michigan? A Division I track team like Michigan’s is certainly much more competitive. I expected it to be tough going in and knew what I was getting into. How do you think your experience as an athlete will impact what you do after college?

I’m not sure yet what I want to do after college but being an athlete has provided me with skills that I can use in any profession. Training and competing for almost 15 years have helped me develop a strong work ethic and has given me focus and determination. Running isn’t an easy sport mentally or physically. I feel really prepared to handle anything.

There are more practices in college, and they are much longer and more intense. We also lift weights as a team. We do most of our runs together as a team. We have different event groups, and I’m part of the distance runners. We train separately from the sprinters. I run about 50 miles per week. Some of my teammates who compete in the longer distances run 80 miles a week. You must work very hard to compete against other Division I athletes across the country.

Michigan does a good job of allowing us to schedule classes around practice time. We sign up for classes before everyone else, so that we don’t have conflicts. I mostly have all of my classes before practice each day. Sometimes we have weightlifting in the evening as well. We also practice on the weekends.

I love to run. And I love the competition. Even though I don’t win every race, I like achieving my own personal best records.

What is your fondest A-S memory— sports or otherwise? I used to get very excited about the school plays. I really enjoyed my 6th Grade Play, The Jungle Book. I also liked being able to participate in so many extracurriculars. Basketball was also a highlight of my A-S career.

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