Marco Academy whistles in football

Photo by ROGER LALONDE

Mike Vanderjagt, Marco Island Charter Middle School coach, left, accepts the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference first-place championship trophy. Due to an incident at the school, Vanderjagt's coaching future is in question.

Names will be important as the first-year Marco Island Academy embarks on putting together a football team.

It has one big name, Mike Vanderjagt, former NFL record-setting field goal kicker, who will be the head coach.

“I think I can put together a strong staff, with the possibility of some of them being former outstanding NFL players,” Vanderjagt said. “I think I can put together a staff that will rival any coaching staff.”

But the real names will be the student-athletes who come to the Academy.

“You can have the best coaching staff, but if you don’t have kids for key positions it won’t matter, you need to get good kids for good football,” Vanderjagt said.

Roger Raymond, the academy’s athletic director, said at least 20 Academy students have signed up. He also expects the school to add a third year, a junior class, to encourage sophomores to stay at home.

“The team will be made up of freshmen, sophomores and juniors,” he said.

He also said getting games will not be an issue.

“I have people calling me right and left for games,” he said. “There are schools out there that have to travel a long way to get games. Wouldn’t they rather travel 20 miles than 100?”

Raymond said there are start-up funds, it will be the ongoing costs, like referees, that will have to be raised.

“Mike did a great job in helping get the (Marco Island) Charter (Middle) School program going,” he said.

Vanderjagt will continue to coach the MICMS team, much like Raymond coaches cross country and basketball for both schools. He is the athletic director for both.

Vanderjagt said it is not only the team that has to be good, so does the school.

“I have spoken with Jane Watt (Academy chairwoman) and she feels good about the direction the school is going,” he said. “I like the direction the school is going academically and my concerns have been rectified.”

Vanderjagt is hoping that the Charter football program will be a stepping stone for the Academy football program.

The Charter School was 9-1 in its first football season. More than 50 students came out for the team, which settled down to about 30 players when the season began.

He said there was a lot of talent on the team and that it will help the Academy if some of those players moved on to the Academy.

The Academy’s enrollment program will begin in March, Raymond said. “We’re hoping that Charter kids sign up as students and some join our athletic programs.”

The school also offers cross country, volleyball, basketball, baseball and track.