The San Francisco 49ers Foundation's Charlie Wedemeyer Memorial Coach of the Week award for week ten goes to Travis Brackett from Novato High School.
Coach Travis Brackett's Novato Hornets are playoff-bound after last Saturday's clincher against the Drake Pirates. The first half was all it took to give Novato the lead over Drake through the remainder of the game. Sophomore quarterback Robbie Cassie had his team visualizing a win after two touchdown-passes in the first half. The rest of the points depended on field goals by Jackson Wegner, which was enough to seal a 6th seed position in the NCS Division III playoffs for the Hornets.
Tailback Herve Changeux continued to build on his accumulation of 1,000 yards on the season, bulldozing through Drake's defensive line to put the Hornets in scoring position. Inside linebackers Michael Federighi and Cory Inman, and defensive end Trevor Raras led the Hornets defense, which only allowed Drake to gain 20 yards through the entire game. With a "must win" attitude, Novato locked in a spot in the playoffs with a 25-13 win, improving their record to 6-1 in the Marin County League.
As one who chooses not to solely acknowledge individual statistics, but rather what a team has accomplished collaboratively, Coach Brackett instills the motto of "play with honor" in his team. Honor comes from playing the game morally and fundamentally correct. This motto was implemented thirteen years ago when Brackett took over as head varsity coach.
"I believe in stressing hard work. This is something these guys can use now and hold on to forever," stated Travis Brackett, "It is a privilege to play football, and if you do things the right way, it pays off and things work out."
Brackett's approach to coaching has in fact paid off. A once struggling program, Novato has since earned 4 section titles, played for the state title in 2007, and has been a consistent contender in the NCS playoffs under Brackett's 13 years as head varsity coach. Their first playoff game of 2012 has the team more motivated than ever to add to their history of accomplishments. In 2010, their season fell short to the Encinal Jets in the first round of play offs, however, the Hornets will have a second chance this weekend to continue striving for that section title as they seek to knock the Jets out of contention.
"Throughout the season, we take every game one game at a time," reflected Bracket on his team's post season, "Every game is of huge importance, but in playoffs we will work that much harder. It's win or go home."
In addition to being named Coach of the Week, the Novato High football program will receive $1,000 from the 49ers Foundation. Coach Brackett will also be featured in a KRON 4 interview with Gary Radnich, receive two tickets to a 49ers home game where he will be recognized on the field before the game, as well as an article on 49ers.com. In the weeks leading up to the on-field recognition, Brackett will be invited to visit the 49ers training facility in Santa Clara to watch a private practice and receive a certificate from 49ers Head Coach Jim Harbaugh.
