By Elite Scouting Services Staff

MIAMI – He played his high school football at Miami Killian High, turned Southwest Miami into something the Eagles had never been, and now, Patrick Burrows is ready to return to the glory to one of the longtime powers of Miami-Dade County football – the Southridge Spartans.

 

Talk about the storied Southridge past and the names come rolling off the top of your head. Roman Nelson, Harvey Reed, Todd Meiklejohn, Patrick Young, Lamont Green, Sedrick Irvin, Robert Bailey, Winston Moss, Troy Davis, Darren Davis, Matt Word, Phillip Simpson, Talib Humphrey, Jameel Cook, Gana Joseph, Kevin Smith and so many others.

 

It’s a tradition that simply may not be matched as the Spartans hit the ground running from the beginning and never looked back, earning state and national recognition within the first 10 years the school was open.

 

Talk about high school football in the 1980s and into the 90s, and the conversation had to include a program that Jerry Hughes and Don Soldinger turned into one of the best in the nation. Forget Northwestern and Carol City, Central or any other power. The road to a state title went through Southridge, and while many still talk about the success of this program, the Spartans have not made an impact on the state of football in Florida since Mark Guandolo took a team to play in Gainesville, losing to a star-studded Tallahassee Lincoln program nearly a decade ago.

 

 Last season Elite Scouting Services had the opportunity to introduce the state and football fans to Burrows as led Lamarcus Joyner, Hosea Williams and a group of overachievers to a rare district title. The first in school history.

 

Now, as he gets ready for his first spring with the Spartans, we had the chance to sit down with this gifted football coach and talk about reviving a program that had meant to much to many for such a long period of time.

 

With six appearances in the state title game and two trophies to show for the hard work and dedication, the Spartans have more than etched their mark in high school football lore in the state of Florida.

 

We spoke with coach Burrows about some of the challenges of bringing the program back and what it will take to make them once again the “King of South Florida” when it comes to high school football.

 

“What we did at Southwest was great,” Burrows said with a smile. “We took a program that was not used to winning and changed the atmosphere there. We want to bring that same atmosphere to the ‘Ridge.”

 

The biggest difference between Southridge and Southwest Miami is the expectations, not only of those that run the program, but many of the fans who were around for all that glory and all that success with Hughes, Soldinger and Guandolo.

 

 “At Southridge, winning is very important, it brings the community together, it brings the students together,” Burrows pointed out. “When I was playing high school football, there was nothing like going to a Southridge game. The stands were packed with fans that wanted to see their team not only win, but dominate the competition. When you played them anywhere, they were extremely tough to beat.”

 

One thing that many of the prior coaches have had a difficult time doing is keeping the top players to stick around and play at Southridge. Coach Burrows agreed that there are so many impressive athletes who live in the district, but to be successful, keeping the athletes home and eligible to play are very important components.

 

 “We need to keep our best players home,” he admitted. “It’s no secret that some of the best players in this area have gone to schools like Archbishop Carroll and Gulliver.  To be able to compete locally with Killian and Homestead, and regionally with Northwestern, Columbus, Central, Carol City and North Miami Beach, we need the best athletes available to us.”

 

The final thing that Burrows stressed about bringing the Spartans back is having pride in what the program has stood for throughout the years.

 

“We need to make it IMPORTANT to be a SPARTAN again,” he said. “The players have to know that putting on that uniform is a privilege. One that you want to put on and any other schools uniform just won’t feel right.”

 

Something that is very obvious from walking the halls of this fabled school is how many posters that hag from the walls proclaiming: Spartan Pride. That is something that seems to have been missing the past few years.

 

“Football is very important to this school and community,” Burrows acknowledged. “The school lost some of that over the past few years. We are intending on bringing that back.”

 

While it’s always great to be optimistic, Burrows understands that talking the talk will come with plenty of hard work to back it all up. He knows that with his impressive record through the years, and his reputation of being a person who gets the job done, much will be expected.

 

 “Yeah, the expectations are there and they should be,” he said proudly. “With all the talent available, Southridge should be the school that represents the southern end of Miami-Dade County. Its time for the ‘Ridge to once again be the team that dominates.”

 

“We want to win state championships,” Burrows continued. “That’s our goal and it should be of everyone that plays for us as well. We want our players believing that they can win a state title ring.”

 

While Burrows has been successful and fully understands what needs to be done, he isn’t too proud to touch a little bit of the past to find the right combination.

 

 “I asked coach Soldinger about how he ran his program,” Burrows smiled. “From practice to game preparation and how to do things the right way. He won here, carved out quite a successful coaching career and still has the respect from everyone – young and old. Who better to seek advice from.”

 

From the moment he took the job, you could hear rumblings from throughout the county from those who understood that there is a great chance that the Southridge Spartans are once again on the map again, and for those who have followed high school football in this area for decades, there’s reason to smile!

 

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