Rod Wotton remembered as more than just a great coach
Nov. 28—Those who didn't know him well will likely remember Rod Wotton as one of the most successful coaches in the history of New England high school football. Those who were closer to Wotton will remember a man who was much more than that.
Wotton, who spent 15 seasons as the head coach at St. Thomas Aquinas in Dover, died Wednesday. He was 82.
Wotton retired from coaching in 2010 with a record of 342-81-3 during a 47-year career that included coaching stops at three high schools: South Berwick (Maine) High School; Marshwood High School (Eliot, Maine) and St. Thomas. When he retired, no football coach in New England had won more games.
"Not only was he a mentor as a coach, but he was also a great role model for me as a young adult and things that came up in my life during those times," said Dover High School football coach Eric Cumba, who was an assistant under Wotton at St. Thomas for two years. "After college (Cumba played at the University of New Hampshire), I stayed around here and tried to figure out my life on my own. He was someone who gave me great advice and support when I needed it. The lesson beyond coaching kids was to take care of the people around you."
Wotton was a three-sport athlete at Spaulding High School in Rochester and graduated from UNH in 1961. Wotton became the varsity head coach at South Berwick High School in 1964, but is probably best known for his time at Marshwood. His Marshwood teams had a 220-33-1 record and at one point owned the longest winning streak in the nation (45 games). He resigned as Marshwood's head coach in 1992 after winning 17 championships, including at least one in each of Maine's four classes.
Despite being in a lower classification by enrollment, Marshwood moved up to Maine's highest classification (Class A) in 1989. The Hawks went unbeaten and won the Class A state championship that season.
In 2020 the Bangor Daily News asked readers to vote for "Maine's Greatest High School Football Coach of All Time." Wotton received the most votes.
"I was a little bit of a problem kid," said Abel Schultz, who was a senior on that 1989 Marshwood team. "I had a problem being mature. He helped me a lot. Helped me become more of a mature individual ... more of a thoughtful person.
"My sophomore year a bunch of guys got caught drinking and a bunch of us got kicked off the team for a day and couldn't play in a game — a game that ended our 45-game winning streak. The next year the principal had this thing he wanted us to sign, a no-drinking policy. We all signed it, but thought it was stupid. Then Wotton got in that meeting and said, 'Hey listen. We work too hard and spend too much time and energy trying to be successful — don't go out on Friday and Saturday night and ruin it. Just don't do it.' And we didn't do it. It had nothing to do with that piece of paper. It was Wotton. You just had so much respect for him."
St. Thomas was arguably the worst program in New Hampshire when he took over as head coach there in 1996. The Saints had a 15-game losing streak when Wotton was hired, but made the championship game in his second season (a loss to Somersworth). It was the first of five straight championship game appearances for St. Thomas.
Wotton guided the Saints to four championships: 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2006.
"One thing you could notice with him is he was a relationship-builder," Cumba said. "He always understood something about each kid that made them unique to the program and special in their own way. He found a way to cultivate that.
"People tell stories about how right up until kickoff he would be in the office watching film, so if there's a day before a game where I'm watching last-minute film I always think back to that and how that was the type of coach he was — preparing and always trying to find different ways to gain an edge.
"He taught me to make sure that kids understand they all have a role in what happens in a football program. He also taught me to take care of the people around you."
Wotton, who spent a brief time coaching at UNH, showed interest in becoming the head coach at Portsmouth High School before he accepted the position at St. Thomas. He continued to coach at St. Thomas after he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.
Wotton's son Peter, the athletic director at Dover High School, said "A Celebration of Life" will be held for his father in the spring.
"Just an amazing guy to play for," said Schultz, who lives in Eliot but runs a business in Exeter. "Even before playing for him growing up in Eliot as kids it was, 'Oh, we get to play for Wotton.'
"Every school has athletes, but he had the ability to make those athletes not just want to play for him, but give him everything they had. You'd do anything for him.
"One of the greatest mentors I've ever had."
