By Marley Seaman
The team¹s star, Julian Hayes ‹ who played six different positions this season ‹ will graduate, and just last week accepted a scholarship to Rutgers. And Ron James, the coach who led the team through 25 seasons, will say goodbye at the end of the school year.
Rutgers representatives called Hayes¹s father on Jan. 27, while Julian was on the court during a basketball game. After the final buzzer, the younger Hayes, using his father¹s cell phone, quickly accepted. He¹ll soon be adjusting to big changes on and off the field: Rutgers recruited him as a wide receiver, one of the few positions he did not play in high school. (For the record, in 2005 Hayes was a quarterback, safety, punter, kicker, punt returner and kickoff returner.)
³It¹ll be new, but it¹ll be all right,² Hayes said.
James is proud of his former QB, but he sees Hayes¹s scholarship as a Mules team accomplishment as well. ³One of our family members reached the pinnacle, reached the pyramid, and that is ultimately to gain an athletic scholarship,² James said. ³If [his teammates] don¹t block for him, he can¹t achieve what he did. So everybody should be proud of this scholarship.²
Rutgers coach Greg Schiano was enthusiastic about his new recruit. ³Julian is a tremendous athlete,² Schiano said in a statement. ³He is a big, strong kid who could probably play any number of positions. Julian is a super kid.²
While football has always been his bread and butter, Hayes is also a leader on the basketball team. ³He¹s the glue that holds us together,² said head coach Darroll Lopez. ³He comes night in and night out, plays tough defense, brings intensity, and he¹s a good role model because he¹s a tough kid.²
Both coaches praised Hayes for his maturity and intelligence as an athlete, and for his kindness as a human being. And for James, who is calling it a career after 29 years at Malverne High, what his players do away from the game is much more important.
³Winning championships, that¹s fine,² he said. ³And getting to the playoffs frequently, that¹s fine.² But he takes much more satisfaction from seeing former players like Stacey Eason returning to Malverne and becoming coaches, mentoring the current Mules.
³It¹s been real, real rewarding,² said James. ³It¹s good to know you¹ve made an impact on young men¹s lives in a positive sense where they want to give back. I¹m most proud of that.²
His football years leave him with a lot to be proud of. He racked up 105 wins in those 25 years, and in 1990 he led the Mules through an undefeated campaign in which they did not give up a single point. That team was the first small school to ever win the Rutgers Cup as the best high school football team in Nassau County.
When the school year ends, it will be James¹s turn to give back. He and his wife, Janet, who is retiring from Elmont Memorial High School, where she teaches math and special ed. and coaches a variety of track teams, will spend more time with his parents in South Carolina. Their health is not good, James says, and he wants to be with them as much as he can.
³I¹m one of the old-school guys,² he said, explaining his devotion. ³I came up the hard way. If it wasn¹t for my family making sacrifices, I wouldn¹t be here today. I don¹t want to have any regrets.²
Comments about this story? Mseaman@liherald.com or (516)569-4000 ext. 205.
