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The imperfect ending
The Immokalee Indians ended the regular season with a 10-0 record, but that is as far as they will go due to FHSAA sanctions
By
Tom Hanson (
Contact)
Sunday, November 5, 2006
IMMOKALEE ? The hip-hop sounds of Fat Joe and Lil' Wayne pumped through a pair of mini speakers in the tight Immokalee locker room following Wednesday night's practice. Indians captain Brian Rolle, standing center stage in the middle of the room, busted out the chorus. And his teammates followed on cue.
Grab an umbrella. I make it rain. I make it rain.
Indians offensive lineman Renold Duperard flickered the lights on and off. The Immokalee football players bounced up and down to the beat. They bobbed their heads in time. They waved their hands in the air. They sang in tune.
I make it rain on them.
I make it rain. I make it rain.
No one should be surprised by the impromptu performance. The 2006 Immokalee Indians did make it rain. And it helped ease their pain.
The Indians went undefeated. A perfect 10-0 record. Immokalee outscored its opponents by an amazing 399-36 margin.
But the Indians missed out on the ultimate ending. Immokalee's season concluded without a single playoff game. There wasn't any state championship run for the first time in three years.
It's the season that doesn't count because of Florida High School Athletic Association sanctions. It's the season that will never be found in the record books. But it will be the season no one in Immokalee will ever forget.
"Undefeated. No one thought we could do it," Brian Rolle said after beating American Heritage, 43-0, on Friday night. "Everyone counted us out. But we showed them. We showed them that we're the ultimate team. We can't win a state title but this team will be remembered as the greatest ever to play at Immokalee."
The perfect storm
Tears rolled down head coach John Weber's face as he led his team out on the field before the first game of the season against the Cape Coral Seahawks. The 62-year-old coach buried his face in the chest of assistant coach Lee Langley so that his team couldn't see his sadness.
"If I have one weakness, it's that I show my emotions," Weber said. "I didn't know what to expect. But I didn't have a good feeling."
That morning, Weber and his wife, Darlene, sat at their kitchen table in their Estero home sipping coffee. He didn't sugarcoat the situation. He feared the worst. He worried about a repeat of his first year in coaching at Bushnell (Ill.)-Prairie City High School.
Weber's tears also signified reflection. As he considers retirement, Weber said he realized that the season opener could be the beginning of the end of his 34-year coaching career. And he worried that his last season would be like his first.
"We went 0-9-1," Weber said about his inauspicious head coaching debut. "It wasn't fun. It was a long season."
Weber's fears about this season weren't due to a lack of talent. He worried about the lack of incentives.
In the past three years, the Indians lost only four games. They won the 2004 Class 2A state championship.
But in June, Immokalee suffered its most bitter defeat. The FHSAA slapped the Indians with a one-year ban from the playoffs for using an overage athlete. Blandel Jean, a kicker that played only four games, turned out to be 30 years old. The Indians were defenseless against the decision.
The news crippled the program. David Lamour, a senior wide receiver/defensive back, took the sanctions especially hard. Lamour missed the 2004 championship season due to poor grades.
"It was like a dagger in my heart," Lamour said. "It hurt real bad. All I wanted was a chance to win a state championship and now that was gone before we ever played a game. Everyone hurt."
Weber's concerns started in the first two weeks of preseason practice. Several players transferred to other schools in hopes of making the playoffs. The ones that stuck it out lacked motivation.
"It was tough," Weber said. "There was no energy."
With the first punt of the season, Weber's and the Indians' faith returned. Aaron Henry grabbed the Cape Coral boot and dashed down the sidelines 70 yards for a touchdown. With that, the contentious summer became an afterthought.
Weber's emotions changed just as quick as Henry's highlight-making play. Following the 28-9 victory, he didn't praise his team. Instead, he criticized them for a flat second half.
"We lost our intensity in the third quarter " Weber screamed. "We can't lose our intensity. If you lose your intensity against Naples, Barron Collier or Lely, you're going to get beat."
Dishing out the pain
After the opening kickoff against Naples High, Indians linebacker Jonel Volce laid on the field in obvious agony. Before the trainers realize what's going on, defensive end Johnny Dor scoops Volce up, carries him to the sidelines and hastily drops him to the ground.
Weber and the coaches look on in shock. Volce ended up at the hospital with a broken leg.
"I didn't realize that his leg was broken," Dor said. "I just wanted to get on with it. I wanted Naples. To me that was our state championship game this season."
Naples and Immokalee both came in undefeated. With a 28-0 win, the Indians left with their third shutout of the season. Naples won the district despite the loss because of Immokalee's status.
The undefeated start surprised Weber. Before the season, he predicted a 3-7 record. Then again, the former pig farmer doesn't have a strong track record of predicting futures.
Before the 2004 state championship season, Weber didn't have much optimism either. He didn't think the Indians would even make the playoffs.
The 2006 Indians proved Weber wrong again. The Indians reeled off convincing win after convincing win, beating county rivals Barron Collier, Lely and Gulf Coast with ease. Only Golden Gate gave them a formidable game, losing 18-7.
"This team is a carbon copy of the 2004 season," said Weber, who collected his 200th career win Friday night. "We have some talented players but I've had teams with more talent. This group of kids are tight knit. They're extremely close and they have bonded into something special."
The Indians' rally cry became "every game is the playoffs." The adversity of the sanctions created an unbreakable bond.
"Each week Coach Weber came up with some speech to inspire us," Indians quarterback Ramces Rouzard said. "But we didn't need the speech. Since we couldn't go to the playoffs our goal was to win every week and go undefeated."
Sophomore defensive back Sadath Jean-Pierre signified the Indians' unique unity. Jean-Pierre is the nephew of Blandel Jean, the kicker whose age caused the FHSAA's harsh ruling. As the Indians posed for a picture Friday night to commemorate the undefeated season, Jean-Pierre stood in the middle of the chaos. He held his Collier County championship medal with pride covering his large smile.
His teammates didn't hold any grudges.
"We don't blame anyone," Henry said. "It certainly isn't his fault. We joked about it at first but Sadath is one of us. We're all brothers here."
After beating Palmetto Ridge 56-0 to go to 9-0, Weber directed the team to the visiting stands. The Immokalee fans held signs reading "District Champions." The players celebrated in a goosebump moment reminiscent to the scene in Gainesville after beating Madison County for the 2004 state title.
The Indians' party carried over to the short bus ride back to Immokalee. Duperard, the 240-pound lineman, anchored the festivities, performing imitations of the Immokalee coaches.
"Does anyone know where my screwdriver is?" Duperard belted in a deep voice doing his best Coach Langley impersonation.
The inside joke ignited uncontrollable laughter. Being undefeated made it easy to be funny. Being undefeated made it easy to forget about the sanctions. One more game. One more win to reach their goal.
Making it rain
On the eve of the season finale, the Indians' joy turned to heartache. A day after the impromptu locker room dance party, Rolle and his teammates realized the end was near.
In Weber tradition, the 19 seniors took one final lap around the field at Gary Bates Stadium. Then they took turns burning a piece of white cloth and dropping the flames into a hole dug near the end zone. An extinguisher wasn't needed. The players' emotions could have doused the flames.
Defensive end Richardson Alusma hurt so bad that he couldn't take off his helmet. His cloth wouldn't light because he had been wiping away the tears. From Henry to big offensive lineman Brandon McCray, they all said a few words. From Fritz Henry to Richie Ayala, they all sobbed.
The outpouring of emotions even drowned out the words.
"That's the first time everyone talked," Weber said. "Many years they just burn the cloth and drop it in the hole. This was the most emotional ceremony ever."
Weber then praised his seniors.
"Don't ever be afraid to show emotion," Weber told his team in a final thought. "Don't ever be afraid to tell someone that you love them.
"I love all of you guys."
Following the emotional ceremony, Weber couldn't sleep. He tossed and turned, distressed that his team might not be mentally prepared for its final test.
"I worried that I created a monster," Weber said. "I worried that we left all of our emotion out on the field during that ceremony. I didn't know if we could get up for the game after that."
Once again, Weber's concerns were unwarranted.
Immokalee jumped out to a 37-0 halftime lead and only a shutout remained in question.
During the fourth quarter, the Indians' defense was forced to buckle down after a Henry fumble on a punt, his only miscue of the season. American Heritage stood just 15 yards from scoring.
But Dor saved the shutout by picking off a pass. The lanky, unpredictable senior ran to the sidelines holding the ball high and then found Volce, who wore his uniform and a large brace as a reminder of his broken leg. The two hugged, cherishing the moment.
Just before the game clock hit all zeros, the Indians used a bucket of Gatorade to douse Weber and assistant coach Izzy Gallegos as they embraced. Then the players stormed the field in a wild scene.
"We're 10-0, baby," quarterback Ramces Rouzard shouted, making a perfect 10 with his hands. "No one can take that away from us. No one can take away this night. They can take away our chance to win a state title but they can't take away our pride."
As the fans went crazy, the players got together. Brian Rolle once again found himself center stage. With sweat dripping down his face, Rolle started the chant "10 and 0, 10 and 0." His teammates chimed in on cue, "10 and 0, 10 and 0." They bounced up and down in pure exhilaration. They raised their helmets high.
Then a few drops of rain fell from the sky. The insignificant shower went unnoticed amidst the frantic festivities.
But the dominance and reign of the 2006 Immokalee Indians will never be forgotten.
