Monument Valley, Utah
MONUMENT V ALLEY FOOTBALL By Ollie Whaley Head Football Coach Editor's Note: One of the first clinics I ever did was in Shiprock, QB Jim Dandy #9 eluding a Red Mesa Tackler. Jim was a state champion wrestler and a 3rd team All-Navajo Area Football player as a Junior. Jim Box Squatted and Dead 32 Lifted 500 lbs. at the BFS Clinic!
New Mexico for coach Sonny Franklin and his Navajo athletes. Since that time, we have done four other BFS clinics in Navajoland. The clinics for me were quite emotional. The human spirit seelllS to be the same no matter what the color of a person's skin or cultural background. The Navajo athletes responded like all athletes. They got excited about lifting big weights, about rising to their potential, about doing their best and about setting worthy goals. The Navajo athletes are not usually very big and when I witnessed their determined spirit to compete against formidable odds, it was venJ hard to hold back tears.
There are over 160,000 Navajo people living in the Navajo territory of over 25,000 square miles. This territory is larger thall the State of West Virginia and is the largest Indian land area ill the United States. Most of the territory lies in the Northeast corner of Arizona. The Navajo or Dineh, "The People," as tlley call themselves construct hogans. These homes are made of logs, stone and mud, with the door opening east to the rising sun. The Navajo began migrating to the Southwest during the 1500's and have developed a rich culture. It is only fitting that the first Americans participate and enjoy the great game of football.
Football Coach, Ollie Whaley brings you the story of how football started in Monument Valley a very short time ago. I did a clinic in Blanding before football was started and I remember some of the Navajo kids rode a bus for 4 hOllrs each way to attend the predominately white school in Blanding. Therefore, it was exciting to see the rise of a new school and a new spirit in Monument Valley. I love the Navajo .people. They will always have a special place in my heart.
Monument Valley High School is located in a remote but singularly beautiful corner of the vast Navajo reservation. In the State of Utah, barely 200 ft. from the Arizona state line, the school has a 7-12 enrollment of 275, 183 in grades 9-12. The enrollment is, of course, mainly Navajo students, the only exceptions being a few children of staff members. Prior to the opening of the school in August 1983 our students had the choice of a 2 hour each way bus ride to Blanding, Utah or attending B.LA. boarding school away from home. This situation precluded these students' opportunity to participate in extra-curricular activities.
As one can imagine the opening of the school in Monument VaHey also opened many other doors to growth, confidence, and self-esteem. Because Monument Valley is a remote community even in the context of the underdeveloped reservation few of our students have the often taken for granted luxury of electricity or running water at home. Many live in the traditional mud and log hogan. English is a second language at Monument Valley. Many of the parents do not read, write, or speak English. This lack of employable skills combined with the lack of economic development accounts for an employment rate of under 20% reservation wide and Monument Valley's situation is even more extreme.
Years of this, combined with government welfare policy, had all but robbed the people of their self-esteem. Few people who haven't been there themselves can understand the attitude that is created by such an environment and how hard it is to change. At any rate we did not schedule any football games that first year as we were unsure of our enrollment and if there was sufficient interest to su pport football. As school started, we did begin non-contact practices to introduce basic skills and did compete in other sports that year.
Douglas Holiday 140 lb. Senior Football Co-Captain 2nd Team All-Area Running Back and State Finalist in Wrestling. Also a Rodeo Bull Rider. Sguat 275, Bench 185, Clean 170. 33 Larry Holliday, 160 lb. Junior, 300 lb. Squat, 210 Power Clean. Coach Ollie Whaley in background. As a former college football player and competitive Power Lifter, I knew weights were an essential ingredient to future success so we also began power weight training from day one. Later that Fall, I ran across the Bigger Faster Stronger 1983 book in a Provo bookstore and implemented immediately. Although none of the boys had had any prior weight training experience progress came quickly and with it our confidence grew.
The next fall we played a full football schedule. With a group of boys who had never been in pads before we finished 1-7-1 losing 3 games by a 1.0. or less. The '85 Season, our second, saw us finish 5-3-1 in the regular season and win a state playoff berth which was our pre-season goal. Many obstacles were overcome enroute. Being so far south in Utah, we cannot play many teams in our size classification due to distance. We played 4 schools in Arizona and New Mexico with enrollments over 800. When we do play in Utah against schools with similar enrollments they usually are much bigger physically than our Navajo 34 boys. Our starting eleven averaged only 139 pounds per man.
Physically most of our boys would not be considered football material at most of our opponents' schools. Last March culminated another long range goal for us when Coach Rowbotham came to Monument Valley and put on a BFS Clinic. He made suggestions to refine and improve our program and gave us a chance to show our stuff too. Coach Rowbotham began with the Box Squat. The excitement built as 135 lb. Jim Dandy and 160 lb. Larry Holiday conquered 500 Ibs. Throughout the day we were inspired and motivated by films and demonstrations. 130 lb. Raymond Fatt Squatted 260 for 3 Deep Reps. As usual, the Dead Lift was the final activity of the day.
With Coach Rowbotham Spotting and everyone cheering,S boys conquered 500 Ibs. These boys were 135 lb. Jr., Jim Dandy; 140 lb. Soph., Jay Bennett; 160 lb. Fr., James Redhouse; 160 lb. Jr., Larry Holiday; and 180 lb. Soph., Sione HeimuJi. Also, 7 other boys conquered 400 Ibs., the lightest being 119 lb. Richard Chief who gave 500 a good shot. For a school with such a small enrollment and boys so physically small J wonder if this may be some kind of record. This is all after 3 years. Each spring, right before school lets out, so as not to interfere with other sports, we hold our Cougar Classic High School Power Lifting meet. We invite all comers from the Navajo reservation and Southeastern Utah.
We have been team champions a1l3 years so far and plan to continue. We try to run our meet first class. We recruit and train community and faculty judges, announcers, score keepers ... etc. We get really nice awards which we pay for by charging an entry fee to outsiders, charging admission to spectators, selling T-shirts and concessions. We also have a large record board in our weight room where we keep the names posted for the top 3 lifts in each of the 4 categories for each weight class. This, along with our annual Power Lift Invitational and our improving sports programs, keeps our boys plenty motivated.
From BFS Magazine — November/December 1986. Part of the BFS Magazine Archive (1980–2014).
