Look at Them Now

Palisades High football Coach Ron Price refuses to claim all the glory for elevating last year’s 3-6-1 squad to a playoff-contending 8-2 team. Instead, the 60-year-old, first-year coach attributes the Dolphins’ success to his assistants and players.

“Most of the credit goes to my seven or eight assistant coaches who are young and energetic, who are having the times of their lives,” said Price, who most recently was an assistant coach at Santa Monica College. “And the kids just want to be better. They’re more structured than last year.”

Indeed, the players say they’re more cohesive as a team because of Price.

“He’s like our dad,” said Rodney Moses, a senior nose guard. “We play even harder because we feel like we’re his kids. He’s been very inspirational for us, and we feed off of him.”

Palisades is having one of its finest seasons in years, finishing second to undefeated Westchester in the City Section’s Coastal Conference. The Dolphins are the eighth-seeded team in the Division 4-A playoffs and will play host to Granada Hills Kennedy on Friday night in a first-round game.

According to several players, last year’s team was more interested in individual goals and badly in need of discipline. While not fully blaming former coach Russ Howard--who had to coach both football and baseball--players are grateful for the new attitude.

“Last year we knew we had the talent, but we just couldn’t put it together,” senior free safety Sean Eugene said. “Also, a lot of players were playing out of position. This year, everybody knows where they’re supposed to be.”

His calm, grandfatherly appearance notwithstanding, Price commands respect and demands dedication from his players. Not everyone, however, liked his no-nonsense approach.

“We wanted guys who would give us their Saturdays and their summers,” said Price, who retired from a teaching a few years ago after 33 years in the Los Angeles Unified School District. “And I don’t allow anyone to miss practice. I didn’t get much resistance, but those who were unhappy dropped out.”

Price, a veteran of City Section football with successful coaching stints at Manual Arts, Hamilton and Fairfax before his two-year service at Santa Monica College, has made a family affair out of football. Older son Steve, who calls himself the “general manager” of the team, and the younger Chuck, whom Ron calls “his right-hand man since Day 1,” have always been an integral part of their father’s teams, working without pay.

“This is as close as I can get to working in a family business,” said Chuck Price, who also owns a sports marketing company. “My dad’s no spring chicken. This is how we’re supporting him.”

The Price family believes that with their father at the helm, the Dolphins will be a consistent winner, a feat that hasn’t occurred at the school since the mid-1970s.

It won’t be easy, though. Only 40 players were out for this year’s team and many have to start on both offense and defense.

“It’s hard, but I’m in shape,” said Marlin Usher, a junior strong safety and tailback who also plays on special teams. “By the fourth quarter, I’m ready for another two quarters.”

Despite the newfound confidence, no one is taking Friday’s game against Kennedy lightly.

“We’re concerned about them because they’re talented and they’re in a much tougher conference,” Ron Price said. “But it’s a real break for us that they’re playing on our field.”

Perhaps the home-field advantage and renewed interest in the program will carry the Dolphins past the first round.

“We got tired of having all those bad years, those 3-7 years,” Moses said. “Now that everybody’s a team player, we win more games. That’s what a team’s about.”