Strathmore’s road to state football title game started with coach’s near-death experience

During the course of the football season, Strathmore High School coach Jeromy Blackwell has preached a simple message to his players.

“1-0 — that’s all that matters.”

Those words have stuck with him since his playing days at Fresno State — particularly Bulldogs associate assistant coach John Baxter, who shared similar messages with Blackwell when he was a player in 1998-99.

“It resonates with me like every day,” Blackwell said. “All you can do is be the best you can at that moment. Some days are good and some days are bad and everyday is not your best day, but everyday is the day you can do your best.

“Coach Baxter always talked about it. ‘It’s one play, one assignment, one situation at a time.’”

It’s worked this season for Strathmore — a Tulare County town of about 3,000 about 75 miles southeast of Fresno — as the Spartans will play for the California Interscholastic Federation Division 7-A title against Bell Gardens at 11 a.m. Saturday at Pasadena City College.

It’s the second appearance in the state title game for Strathmore. In 2017, the Spartans defeated Orange 31-29 in Division 6-AA.

Quarterback/defensive end Bryson Bias said Blackwell’s message has resonated with the Spartans.

“He lets us know about that every day: ‘1-0 is all that matters. One play, one assignment, one situation at a time,’” Bias said. “It really does help us narrow our focus. He taught us that the saying 1-0 goes beyond just football. Winning one situation at a time can be applied to everything in life.”

Health scare for Stathmore football coach

It was uncertain if Blackwell would coach this fall after a freak accident nearly cost him his life.

On June 30, Blackwell was outside his home working in the yard when he tripped over his 14-year-old Yorkie poodle and landed face first on the concrete.

He said he tried to hold on to a canopy as he fell, but the force in which he hit the ground knocked him out. He was able to move a bit, but ended up in the mud, gurgling in the dirty water.

He was there for almost two hours, as the temperature soared toward a high of 104 degrees.

His wife, Caroline, found him after she took a nap after working an early shift. She woke up and went outside to check on him. He was under a bush — still in the mud, face down.

Doctors told his wife that he was suffering from dehydration, a possible concussion, and heat stroke along with aspiration of mud. They described it as a “perfect storm” of medical issues.

He was intubated and put into a medically induced coma.

Blackwell awoke July 8 and was discharged from the hospital July 13. With clearance from his doctors, he was back on the football field in August and his been with his team for the season.

A distraction?

Blackwell felt he was a distraction to his own players.

“I had to go through a whole bunch of physicals in order to make sure that I’m healthy enough to hit the field,” he said. “I think that my health issues might have been a distraction for some of these guys.”

That’s not the case, according to Strathmore senior running back Jacob Poole, who leads the team with 22 touchdowns.

He said Blackwell is why the players put 100% effort into each game.

“The season started out a little unordinary with coach Blackwell in the hospital,” he said. “We were very worried, but thank God for his speedy recovery.

“We also have a young team that has a lot of growing to do. As the season went on, we exceeded expectations, often being the underdog.”

Playoff push to state title game

The Spartans have won eight of their past nine games, including a 28-21 victory over top-seed Arvin in the playoffs, followed by a 14-7 win over Mendota in the Central Section Division V game.

It was the Spartans’ seventh section title and Blackwell’s fifth, according to section historian Bob Barnett.

Strathmore reached the state title game after defeating Lincoln-San Francisco 41-15.

“They kind of have no doubt they know they can compete with anybody at any time,” Blackwell said.

“It comes down to execution. The team that executes best is going to win every football game.”