Coach’s Corner Featuring Mark White
Jim Render, USCHS Football Coach Every time I write a profile article for UPPER ST. CLAIR TODAY about one of my former football players who has gone on
to become very productive in life after football, I become more aware of how fortunate I am to have coached so many marvelous athletes and, more importantly, so many outstanding people. My guys from the early to mid 1980s are now 50 plus years old and are approaching the heights of their professional careers. I could write a book (which is under consideration) rather than these brief articles, a handful of so many possible stories. In the meantime, let me go forward with this magnificent assignment. It is an All-American success story that needs to be told. In 1981, the Gulf Oil Company transferred Jim White and his family from Columbus, Ohio, to Pittsburgh. Jim and his late wife, Sherry, had four school-age children. The oldest, Mike, Mark White, USC, 1984 was entering his senior year in high school and he was told that he could choose the new school if he would just not raise too much of a fuss about leaving Worthington High School near Columbus. Eventually, Sherry and Mike came to visit Upper St. Clair High School and were greeted by former players Todd Novelli and Todd Lesnett. Since Mike looked like a tight end and linebacker, my guys said that he should join the team. The truth was that Mike was a swimmer, but he said he had an interest in football. He also related that the best football player was his younger brother, Mark. Now it was my turn to recruit, and I think I sold USC pretty well. My Ohio roots were helpful to these Buckeyes. Coincidentally, the Worthington football coach was a family friend, who, like me, grew up in Dover, Ohio. In the fall of 1982, Mike, Mark, younger brother, T.J., and younger sister, Kristine, became student athletes in the Upper St. Clair School District. For the record, Mark White is one of the best athletes to ever play at USC or in the WPIAL or in Pennsylvania, for that matter. Certain facts follow: • Mark was a three-year USC starter at linebacker and tight end. • Our team won 30 games in his three years of varsity football. • Mark was highly recruited and chose Georgia Tech to continue his football career. • Two of his high school teammates and fellow linebackers were Donny Lund, who went on to be captain at Yale, and John Mascaro, who earned a scholarship to Ohio University. How about that for a core of linebackers on the same high school team? • Mark and John graduated with engineering degrees, and Donny is currently a highly-regarded Pittsburgh attorney. 18
UPPER ST. CLAIR TODAY
Spring 2017
Mark is probably most remembered in Pennsylvania for his accomplishments in track and field. Specifically, he threw the shot and discus, winning numerous WPIAL and PIAA championships. He threw the shot put 62 feet (a USCHS and WPIAL record) and the discus 184 feet (a PIAA record that lasted for more than 25 years). He is, of course, in the PIAA Track Hall of Fame, as well as the Upper St. Clair High School Athletic Hall of Fame. His throwing coach in high school was longtime USC teacher Dave Batchelor, who was a track and field Pennsylvania Hall of Famer and served the WPIAL as the head field judge for 40 years. Rare at the Division 1 level, Mark continued to be a multisport athlete at Georgia Tech. In 1985, he made second team freshman All-American as linebacker. His first start was against Auburn, which featured a running back by the name of Bo Jackson who later that year won the Heisman Trophy. Not many people could tackle Bo on a sunny Saturday afternoon! On the indoor and outdoor track teams at Georgia Tech, Mark was a multi-event All-American. I wonder how many student-athletes played three sports while pursuing a civil engineering degree at Georgia Tech, and at the same time received All-American honors in high level collegiate events? I’m sure it’s a very small fraternity. Most successful athletes set priorities with their time. They must juggle two basic fundamental purMark White, Georgia Tech, 1985 suits. First is the devotion to earn a college diploma. Second is the athletic training, along with competitive goals. But, when the birds start singing a little louder and the flowers bloom brighter, romance is in the air. Mark began paying attention to a “friend” from home who was also a Division 1 college athlete. Chris Joyce, a four-year letter winner at USC and Florida State University, excelled in the sport of tennis. If you want to know the driving time between Atlanta, Georgia, and Tallahassee, Florida, I’m sure Mark and Chris could give you the exact answer as quickly as your voice-assisted Siri. They have now been married for more than 25 years. Chris’ father, Jeff Joyce, is a former USCHS coach and school board member who is a longtime resident of Upper St. Clair. Chris’ mother, Ann, and brother, Rich (also one of my former outstanding football players), reside in Connecticut. Mark used his civil engineering degree to multi-task for Exxon Mobile for ten years. Next was a shift to human resources with PepsiCo., the parent company of Pepsi, Frito-Lay, and Tropicana. For the past 12 years, he has worked for Thermo Fisher Scientific, a world leader in serving science. He is vice president of Human