Nate Schnieder
Sports Scene
John Herrington is on top of the MHSAA football coaching mountain.
The long-time Farmington Hills Harrison head coach, who took over in 1970 and is the only coach to ever lead the Hawks, broke the career wins record October 13 at home with a 39-0 victory over Berkley.
When the clock ticked down to zero, Herrington walked onto the field with a huge smile on his face and swarmed by a throng of people – players, coach, media, parents, you name it.
It was all to honor and congratulate the legendary Herrington, who has guided Harrison to an astounding 13 state championships and sent countless players onto college football and the National Football League.
“I couldn’t even imagine this when I started coaching,” Herrington admitted after the Berkley game. “I didn’t even know if I’d last three years. We started winning consistently when the playoff format started in 1974 and it’s continued from there for 48 years.”
After the Hawks missed the playoffs in 2016 with a 5-4 record, clinching a berth with the win over Berkley was as important to Herrington as setting the record. He says he doesn’t rank the win particular high in his memories, just because of the blowout nature of it and it wasn’t in a championship setting.
The win was made even more important because of a week nine 23-12 loss at Clarkston that completed Harrison’s regular season at 6-3.
“That was awesome,” Herrington said about clinching a playoff spot. “A couple weeks ago, we weren’t sure if we were going to make the playoffs. Now we’re rolling into them and we think we can do some damage in the playoffs. So I’m excited.”
Farmington Hills Harrington last won a state championship in 2010 when it defeated Lowell 38-28 to complete a perfect 14-0 season.
Herrington now has a career record of 431-110-1, passing former Royal Oak Shrine and Birmingham Brother Rice coach Al Fracassa who retired after the 2013 campaign with a career record of 430-117-7.
“It was great to do it at home with so many people here,” Herrington added. “And everyone stayed until the end of the game. Seeing everyone here was awesome. Thank God we got it.”
Farmington Hills Harrison is shuttering its doors after the 2018-19 school year.