Everett native, coaching legend Price holds local youth camp

EVERETT — Mike Price gave a chuckle when asked about how different Bagshaw Field looks now compared to when he played football there as a youth.

The Everett High School graduate and college football coaching legend was back home this week as he and his son, Eric, conducted the Price Elite Passing Academy, a four-day youth camp geared toward quarterbacks. And as he surveyed the recently-renovated Bagshaw Field, with dozens of quarterback hopefuls clad in red jerseys being put through feet-shuffling drills, Price shared his first experience playing at the field as a middle schooler.

”(Bagshaw Field) is nothing like when we played here,” recalled Price, who graduated from Everett High in 1964. “Those are great memories for me. I told the kids a story about my first tackle. I didn’t have a position on the team, they just threw me on the kickoff cover. I didn’t know what I was doing, I ran down and all of a sudden the guy with the ball is running at me. I had to duck and get out of the way, he fell on top of me, and all of a sudden the ball pops loose, we recover and I’m a hero. Heck, I was just trying to get out of the way!”

That player who was just trying to get out of the way went on to play quarterback at Everett High and in college, then embarked on an illustrious college coaching career that included 32 seasons as a head coach. But although Price hasn’t coached a game since 2017, he’s never stopped instructing young football players.

“So far (the camp) has been incredible,” Everett High junior Wyatt Jolley said during Wednesday’s third day. “I’ve learned so much from the Price family. Mostly it’s about keeping my composure, if you keep your composure you win games. But it’s also been footwork and mechanics. It’s been quite the experience.”

Price knows a little something about football instruction. Now 76 years old, Price compiled a 176-190 record during his 32 seasons at the helm at Weber State, Washington State and UTEP, with his teams reaching eight bowl games. His most memorable stint was from 1989-2002 with the Cougars, which included Rose Bowl appearances in the 1997 and 2002 seasons. That first Rose Bowl was WSU’s first trip to Pasadena in 67 years, and that year Price was named The Herald’s Man of the Year in Sports.

Price is also part of the troika of prominent football coaches produced by Everett High in the 1960s, which includes former University of Washington head coach Jim Lambright (class of 1960) and former college and NFL head coach Dennis Erickson (class of 1965).

These days Price, who resides in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, spends most of his retirement fishing and following the exploits of his nine grandchildren. But he keeps his toe in the football world via quarterback coaching. He and his son have spent the past few years working individually and in small groups with high school quarterbacks in eastern Washington and northern Idaho. But this year the pair expanded their work into the Price Elite Passing Academy, which works with larger groups. The session in Everett was the only one west of the Cascades.

“It’s about the kids,” Price said about why he remains involved in instruction. “They look at you and are like, ‘Tell me what to do.’ There aren’t many egos out here.

“It’s also really fun (working with his son),” Price added. “We enjoy a lot of laughs off the field, bunking out in the hotels and stuff.”

Everett High School football coach Brien Elliott, who was responsible for bringing the camp to Everett, said about 65 players from grades 3-12 signed up to receive instruction from a coaching legend who’s from their own backyard.

“It means a lot having him here,” Elliott said, “just having someone to talk about the history of football, especially in this area. We went out and had some sodas and he was talking about the good things Everett represented, the mills and what it was like and how it was so different than it is now.”

“He has such a positive energy about him,” said graduating Everett senior quarterback Noah Schmid, who acted as an instructor as he begins his own path toward coaching. “Everything is positive and I really admire that. He’ll tell you what you need to do, but he’ll do it in a positive manner, and he has a lot of stories and it’s really awesome to listen.”

No doubt there are plenty of stories swapped back and forth in Coeur d’Alene, which has become something of a destination spot for college football coaches. Among those who have relocated there are Erickson and another local college coaching product from the same generation, Snohomish High School graduate Keith Gilbertson Jr. Others who live there include former WSU coach Jim Walden and former Eastern Washington coach Mike Kramer, while former NFL quarterbacks John Elway and Jake Plummer also own homes in the area.

“We meet quite often, particularly the older guys who are our friends,” Price said. “Dennis and Keith are avid golfers and I’m not, but socially we do lots of dinners with each other.”

While Price now resides on the banks of Lake Coeur d’Alene, he always enjoys his trips back to the town where he grew up.

“It feels great being back in Everett, it always does,” Price said. “My mom lived here for a long time before she passed, and I have a lot of really good friends here. I was glad I was asked to come and help, and I’m proud to be here with my son Eric.”