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WEEK IN REVIEW
Sunday
Six injured, three critically, in wreck near Ma...
Gay marriage issue can wait, say Referendum 71 ...
Glacier Peak freshman overcomes jitters to win ...
Saturday
More snow expected at mountain passes
Suspect identified in Seattle police killing
Thousands honor slain Seattle police officer Ti...
Friday


Officer Timothy Brenton. Gone, but not forgotten
Person sought in officer's killing is shot in head
Thousands to pay respects to slain Seattle poli...
Thursday


Tale of 1916 Everett Massacre retold in style o...
Reservist survived Iraq but not his return to c...
Swine flu suspected in infant’s death
Wednesday


‘Everything but marriage' law close to vi...
Library levy winning by 51% to 49%
Incumbents looking strong in Snohomish County C...
Tuesday


Delayed financial aid forcing college students ...
Slaying of officer reminds police of dangers of...
Edmonds turns over firefighting duties to Fire ...
Monday


Question isn't 'if' but 'how bad' for floods
Slain Seattle Police officer lived in Marysville
Rubatino Refuse allows recycling of food scraps...
 

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Kevin Brown, Sports Editor
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Published: Friday, August 1, 2008

Coaches followed in their fathers' footsteps

While most of the kids in his neighborhood were watching Howdy Doody or cartoons, 5-year-old Dennis Erickson spent much of his free time sitting in front of a screen that provided a different kind of entertainment.

X's and O's.

As the son of a high school football coach, Erickson was learning the game by osmosis for much of his childhood. Coaching wasn't just in his blood, it was also in his childhood home.

"There's nothing else I wanted to do from as far back as I can remember," said Erickson, whose father, Robert "Pinky" Erickson, coached at Ferndale and Cascade high schools.

"When you're in the locker room as a 5-year-old, watching football film when other kids are watching other stuff on television, you feel like that's what you want to do."

Erickson is one of several sons of local coaches who learned from high-profile fathers.

Mike Price, who went on to play football alongside Erickson at Everett High School before making it as a big-time college football coach, is the son of Everett Junior College football coach Walt Price.

Hall-of-Fame high school football coach Terry Ennis learned from his father, Jim, who coached at Everett High and Everett Junior College.

Local basketball coaching legends like Norm Lowery and Marv Harshman had sons who went into the business, while current Seattle Seahawks assistant Keith Gilbertson Jr. is the son of longtime Snohomish High coach Keith Gilbertson Sr.

It's no coincidence that many of the second-generation coaches have been just as successful as their fathers.

Joe Ennis, whose grandfather (Jim) and father (Terry) are among the greatest coaches this county has ever seen, is not surprised by the number of second-generation coaches.

"You meet kids that are positively affected by your father, and you realize you can make a difference in someone's life," said Joe Ennis, a mortgage broker who got into coaching last fall as the defensive backs coach at Archbishop Murphy High School.

The Herald's countdown of the Top 25 most successful coaches in Snohomish County history already includes a father-son combo: The Gilbertsons came in at Nos. 18 and 20.

"In my case, people thought my dad was a very fine coach," said Gilbertson Jr., who is in his fourth year with the Seahawks after a short stint as head football coach at the University of Washington. "He had the respect of a lot of people in the community and in Snohomish County. At the same time, he was pretty demanding on us as kids. But he was very fair.

"I think Mike Price would say the same thing about his dad, Dennis would say it about his dad, and Terry Ennis would have said the same thing about his dad. That's part of it."

1. Gay marriage issue can wait, say Referendum 71 partisans
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3. Forecast for 2010 housing market: slow decline
4. First-time homebuyer credit invites tax cheats
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6. Offensive line helps Marysville-Pilchuck rush into state playoffs
7. Glacier Peak freshman overcomes jitters to win state in cross country
8. Proud union member and veteran had a wild side
9. Snohomish County's former sanitation director claims his ouster was forced
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