Thompson Wins Coach of the Year Honor Again
Mickey Thompson is no stranger to winning the All Gameday Coach of the Year honor. He has won four times prior to this year. In previous years his teams achieved some impressive milestones, but none were bigger than the one his Stone Bridge squad accomplished in 2007. The Bulldogs entered the season with zero experience at quarterback, minimal experience at tailback, and minimal experience on the offensive and defensive lines. In week two, the Bulldogs got embarrassed against traditional power Robinson 41-14. It was only the second loss in the regular season for Stone Bridge since 2002, but it was ugly. People jumped off the Stone Bridge bandwagon, and the media started to count the Bulldogs out. For the first time in 6 years, Stone Bridge appeared to be a team that was in the middle of a rebuilding year, but Thompson wouldn't have any part of that.
If you know Mickey Thompson, you probably are familiar with one of his greatest attributes as a coach. His ability to motivate his players and to get the most out of them is second to none. Stone Bridge hasn't lost much in the past 6 years, in fact, they have won more than anyone in the state during that span. But to really understand why, you must dive deeper into how Thompson has built his football powerhouse.
Thompson has a high football IQ, but his understanding of the X's and O's is only a minor part of what makes his Stone Bridge football program so successful. He demands 100% effort from his players, his staff, and himself.365 days a year. The most impressive thing is those around him want to give him more. His players respect every opponent, and they are the definition of humble, yet confident. Thompson works tirelessly in the off-season to promote his players to college coaches across the country. In his eyes, the off-season is just as important for his kids than the regular season. It's no secret why his program has put more kids in major college football than any other school in Loudoun County over the past 8 years.
People wonder why great players like "Ylou" Brown and Brian Slay continually move from other areas to Ashburn so they can play football at Stone Bridge. The answer is simple, it's because of Mickey Thompson.
It's no wonder his players want to run through a brick wall for him. How could you not want to when you see how much he cares about his players, his program, and his staff.
That is what makes this season so special. 2007 was the first year in a long time that people began to look past, if not under appreciate the most successful program in the state in recent years. This played into Thompson's greatest strength as a coach, and he handled it brilliantly.
The best example of his brilliance was in week four of the 2007 football season. Thompson used the disrespect card with his team; he even put a boycott on Gameday Magazine and our staff after we dropped them below two Group AA teams in our Power Poll. His message was simple to his players; nobody else believes that we can get this thing done but us. His rally cry was embraced by his young team, and the Bulldogs quickly answered the doubters by drubbing Loudoun Valley 49-7. At the conclusion of the game, Thompson said his team didn't appreciate being disrespected, and that they would play with a chip on their shoulders the rest of the way.
That was bad news for the rest of the Liberty District, the Northern Region, and eventually the rest of the state as Stone Bridge never lost again. The Bulldogs won 13 straight games, beating the likes of an undefeated Madison team, last year's state runner up Edison, the undefeated defending state champion Phoebus Phantoms, and an undefeated Potomac Panther team 38-0 in the state championship game. The Bulldogs won their 3rd straight Liberty District championship, their 4th regional championship in the past 6 years, and their first ever state title in school history.
If Thompson's legacy wasn't notched in stone, it is now. He will never again be labeled as a coach who couldn't win the big one. His unorthodox offensive schemes will never again be questioned, and his play calling aggressiveness in big games will be the reason he is considered one of the best of all time, instead of the reason his teams have fallen short in years past.
The most remarkable thing about the 2007 Stone Bridge Bulldogs is how they came together as a team. It was Thompson's biggest concern early in the season. He wasn't sure who would become the voice of the team, or, who would step up to guide the most storied program to never win a title to the promise land.
Enter seniors Ryan Moody and Jeron Gouveia. Moody and Gouveia both played in the state championship game defeat to Hampton in 2005, and both were determined to win it all for their coach. The team's motto in 2007 was "One Time" which meant the team wanted to win a title one time for Thompson. It became their motivation, their purpose, and eventually they made it their destiny.
The Bulldogs finished the year averaging over 40 points per game, and set a school record for the most wins ever in a season. First year quarterback Patrick Thompson set the school record for touchdown passes in a season with 32, and the Bulldog defense was the most dominant in the state down the stretch run. The consensus among area coaches was Thompson had done his best job of coaching ever, and we agreed.
30 years from now, future Stone Bridge football players will hear the stories about the 2007 team. Mickey Thompson will be retired, and the story of this year's championship team will be told like this. The Bulldogs played with more determination, more toughness, and more heart than anyone in the state. They became the best in school history, and they believed they could win it all when nobody else thought they could. They played as one, and they played for one common goal; to win a state title for their legendary head coach Mickey Thompson...
