Orson Christensen (left) and Tony Maggio, always discussing strategy, even in the stands. (John Fisken photo)
The Brain Trust.
Tony Maggio and Orson Christensen could probably finish each other’s sentences, and the two football coaches were a perfect match during their time stalking the sidelines at Coupeville High School.
With Maggio abusing his baseball cap as a fiery, but lovable head coach and gridiron lifer Christensen gliding by his side, providing a calm, cool voice of well-earned wisdom, the 2014 Wolves put together the best season in program history in more than a decade.
Utilizing the game-breaking running of Josh Bayne and the pinpoint passing of Joel Walstad, that CHS squad put up team offensive numbers never before seen in these parts.
It’s for that season, and a million other reasons, we welcome the ol’ ball coaches to the Coupeville Sports Hall o’ Fame today.
After this you’ll find the duo of Maggio and Christensen hanging out at the top of the blog under the Legends tab.
We’ll start with the whippersnapper, Maggio, who accomplished a ton in a three-year run as Wolf gridiron head coach.
After working his way up after stints as an assistant with Oak Harbor and his predecessor at CHS, Jay Silver, the man in the #00 jersey fired up a Wolf program in the doldrums.
Two wins over arch-rival South Whidbey put the spring back in Coupeville’s step, and Maggio got the roster numbers up while also increasing his team’s wins.
He brought out the best in players from stars like Jake Tumblin and Nick Streubel on down to the last guys on the end of the bench.
And he did it by genuinely caring about his guys in ways both visible to the public and private.
Since he didn’t teach at CHS, Maggio kept a regular presence at the school by attending nearly every home sporting event the Wolves played.
He showed considerable support for his guys when they played other sports, but he was also front and center, holding court in the stands, for a ton of sports that involved kids he never coached.
The man bled red and black (and still does, frequently popping in even during his “retirement” days) and lordy, he stormed a sideline like few others.
There was one game where the refs were particularly cruel to the Wolves, and the press box had great fun counting how many times the ball cap came off and hit the turf.
But then, in typical Maggio fashion, after slapping his cap against his chest 237 times on one play, shortly afterwards he was standing next to a ref, cracking wise and making the guy smile.
Wins and losses matter, but to really build a high school program you have to invest in the students and see them as more than just athletes, something Tony always did.
We may not have gotten decades out of him, but his impact will be felt for a long time in Coupeville.
The same can be said of Christensen, a ’57 Oak Harbor grad (he was a four-sport letter-man for the ‘Cats) who played both ways on the line for Pacific Lutheran University before starting a 50+ year coaching career.
CHS was the 16th stop on his journey, one on which he’s won eight titles and been named a Coach of the Year five times.
Splitting his time between college and high school coaching jobs, Christensen, an innovator and a people person in equal measures, has been successful everywhere he’s twirled a whistle.
Virtually every coaching position he accepted has had similar trappings — a program which hadn’t been successful for several years prior to his arrival, which then became a winning one while he was employed.
Christensen is a treasure trove of football knowledge and has never been shy about sharing what he’s learned with fellow coaches, players or idiots who write blogs.
He knows the game inside out and it has always been a pleasure to talk with him, or linger in the background and listen to him imparting wisdom.
Like Maggio, Christensen has always seen his athletes as people first, and the respect accorded to him by players, coaches and fans is remarkable, and justified.
Even take away the epic football achievements, and he’s just a truly nice guy, one of the best I’ve met in my sports writing career.
So, today, with a great deal of respect for both men, based on how they conduct themselves on and off the gridiron, I welcome the dynamic duo to my lil’ Hall o’ Fame.
You earned it, gentlemen. You earned it.
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