Embattled Gig Harbor Football Coach's Supporters Make Plea to School Board

To many within the football program, Darren McKay is a father figure.

And on Thursday night, his family rallied to his defense.

Members of his coaching staff, players past and present and their parents were among those in attendance at the meeting of the Peninsula School District’s board of directors.

Board members took no action Thursday night, but said they would continue to discuss the situation in executive session. McKay was not present at the meeting.

“We do listen,” said board President Jill Uddenberg, “and we also are parents.”

McKay technically remains installed as the Tides’ head football coach, but his father, Mike, and brother, Sean, were fired from their positions earlier this school year as part of a district mandated improvement plan. Now many fear that he will be next to go, largely because of the results of an anonymous survey sent to Gig Harbor parents.

The details of what happened remain dicey – several of McKay’s supporters complained that the district isn’t being forthcoming with details – but some of the feedback on the fall-sports survey was negative. And fewer than half of surveys were reportedly returned among the parents of the Tides’ 115 football players. That, in turn, has led to speculation that only select parents received it to begin with.

McKay's wife, Andrea, said that although they are parents of a Gig Harbor athlete, they did not receive the survey themselves.

"It's the one and only time the school district has ever used a survey," she said, "and now they're not using it for the winter."

Andrea McKay said that her husband was told last month by the Washington Education Association that he had three options, "none of which were him coming back as head coach." He also teaches at the school.

Ray Garries, who chairs the school’s football-boosters club, said that the community is extremely concerned about the “negative things and rumors” it is hearing about McKay’s future at Gig Harbor.

“We think we have a very successful football program at Gig Harbor,” he said in pointing out that the team has been to the playoffs 11 times in 12 years. “The systems in place seem to work real well.”

Now, Garries said, that system is marred by instability. He suggested a three-prong solution: reaffirm support for McKay for the 2012 season; reinstate his father and brother; and apologize to all three.

Tides offensive-line coach Robert Luke said that Gig Harbor Principal Ted Strong, whose job it is to oversee the athletic programs, only visited the football field during practice once in two years – for a total of three minutes.

“Have these complaints been verified? Have they been substantiated?” he asked. “Why are we taking things at face value if we don’t know if they’re true?”

Bill Glover, the father of a Gig Harbor player, said that he worries that if the district does remove McKay, the negativity surrounding the situation will make it difficult to attract another high-caliber coach.

“The railroading of these guys out of here isn’t how you do business,” he said.

Many of those who spoke on McKay’s behalf mentioned his commitment to the sport and his players.

“He has the utmost respect (of other coaches),” said Mike Cosper, who runs a local youth-football organization.

Beth Janzing spoke of McKay as a guiding force in her son’s life.

“He wasn’t a star on the field,” she said. “But he learned to work hard. His younger brother sees that – and he wants to play for Coach McKay.”

Tyler Lee, a senior player for the Tides, said he would like to know who voiced the anonymous complaints about McKay and his coaching staff. They didn’t have the courage to show up to the meeting, he pointed out.

“But you can see our faces right here,” he said.

Cheyenne Wong, a junior at Gig Harbor and the football team’s manager, spoke of McKay helping secure a signed football from the Dallas Cowboys for her father, who was stricken with Lou Gehrig ’s disease.

When he died, the football became hers – and McKay became like a father to her.

“If you take them away,” she told the board emotionally, “you’d not just be taking away my coaches; you’d be taking away what I have as a father figure.”

Last to address the board was McKay’s son, Carter, who plays for Gig Harbor.

“I love football,” the sophomore said, choking back tears. “You guys are ruining the biggest part of my life – you’re tearing my family apart. You don’t get it.

“You have to stand up for what’s right.”