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MFL Director traces roots back to McCook's summer program
McCOOK, Neb. -- With the start of next week’s McCook Football League, Southwest Nebraska will see a familiar face leading McCook’s summer youth football program.
McCook-native Joe Vetrovsky once again takes the reins of the MFL as program director.
In addition to his MFL responsibilities, Vetrovsky is also entering his fourth year of teaching and coaching at McCook Senior High. As a teacher, he works in the Alternative Education department.
Vetrovsky, who previously helped out with MFL as a coach, still remembers being asked to lead the summer program a couple years ago.
“Going into my second year at McCook, Coach (Jeff) Gross approached me about becoming the manager of the MFL,” Vetrovsky recalled. “Because this was always something that I had a passion and desire to do, I accepted his offer.”
While Gross handed the MFL baton to Vetrovsky, the Bison head coach continues to offer advice when needed.
“I have taken on the full managerial tasks of the league with Coach Gross always being there as a helpful hand whenever I need input or insight,” Vetrovsky said.
Even before his involvement as coach, however, Vetrovsky was no spring chicken to the MFL. He also played in the summer league during his early adolescent years.
“Participating in the MFL allowed me to experience football for the first time in my life in a full-contact setting,” Vetrovsky said. “I think, as a young kid, you are always waiting for that opportunity when you’re old enough to finally put on the pads and actually play.”
Vetrovsky also mentioned the MFL allows athletes to learn the game in “a safe and controlled environment.”
That experience was vital in his development as a player. In addition to playing for the McCook Bison, and receiving All-State recognition, Vetrovsky went on to play collegiately for the University of Nebraska-Kearney Lopers.
“It (MFL) provided me with the fundamental skills I would use later on in school-sponsored football,” he said. “Those are the aspects that meant a lot to me, and I want to continue supporting them moving forward so that our youth can have the same influential opportunities that I had as a young kid growing up in Southwest Nebraska.”
Vetrovsky, however, hasn’t been the only MFL athlete to eventually play football at a higher level.
Colorado State (Jake Schlager of McCook) and Nebraska (Matthew May of Chase County) are both Division I programs with ties to the MFL.
And the list doesn’t come close to ending there.
This fall, Southwest Nebraska will see senior studs Caden Houghtelling (committed to Northern Iowa), Zach Schlager (committed to Colorado State) and Phalen Sanford tear up football fields with unrelenting talent. Arapahoe’s do-it-all junior Gentry Anderson will look to lead the Warriors into the playoffs as well.
All four, and many more area athletes, played in the MFL.
“Honestly, our youth watch football on television just like most other people,” Vetrovsky said. “They see the Huskers or the Dallas Cowboys playing, and they see the game of football as something that is pretty cool. The MFL provides them with an opportunity to actually experience football. It gives them a chance to see what it is really like.”
Growing up in McCook, Vetrovsky also noted the special feeling he got being coached by the same Bison coaches and players he would see on Friday nights at Weiland Field.
“Another aspect I loved about playing in the MFL was the opportunity to be coached by some of the current and former McCook High School football players I watched on Friday nights,” he said. “That’s something I will never forget.”
And now, he’s paying it forward by helping the next crop of young talent develop their skills.
“I was fortunate growing up to have a number of great role models who made me who I am today,” he said. “I feel it is my obligation to do the same for others. The MFL is a great way for me to do this. I’ve learned that coaching goes way beyond the Xs and Os. It’s also about relationships and guidance that will, ultimately, last a lifetime.”
Special memories certainly help too.
As a self-proclaimed “lineman by trade,” the MFL also gave Vetrovsky the opportunity he never got to do in high school or college.
Carry the football.
“I will always cherish the memory of an incident during my last MFL game as an eighth grader,” he commented. “One of my coaches, Ryan Moore, knew I always wanted to play fullback. During that game, which happened to be for the league championship, he put me in for a series or two as a fullback and let me carry the ball.”
“That was the only time in my life I ever, or should ever, have carried the football, to be honest. However, I always remember that when I see Ryan around town. It will always be something I remember for the rest of my life.”
With another season of MFL action on the horizon, a new wave of players will look to make their own memories. Most will say this was a starting point to their future high school careers.