Q&A: Bloomingdale Football Coach John Booth

After being overpowered by nationally ranked football powerhouse Plant High School, the Bloomingdale Bulls still have a chance to finish with their best record in their three years under head coach John Booth.

With Bloomingdale's final game of the season approaching this week, we caught up with Booth to get his take on how the season has gone and where he sees the Bulls going.

Patch: As the season nears its end, how do you feel about the performance of your team overall as the year has progressed?

Booth: We started out with a couple good victories, and it's really been an up-and-down year since. We're moving in the right direction though. Coming into the season I thought we were turning a corner, and I think we've seen that. Last year, we were second to last in the county in offense, whereas this season we've been right around the top 10. We've made some great improvements but we still have room for growth. 

Patch: You've had certain players step up and give you big performances this year. Has there been one player in particular who has surprised you?

Booth: is a player who has matured so much over the last year. We saw the capability that he had last season, but you never know how a 16-year old kid is going to respond to becoming a key player. The way he has handled it off the field has been a big surprise because his maturation process has come along swiftly.

Patch: Every season a coach learns something. If there was one lesson that you would say you took from this year, what would it be?

Booth: I think as coaches we try to control things too much sometimes. We've been working on the way we interact with the kids so that they can let loose and have a little fun at practice. The staff and I have felt that our practices lately have been really good when you see the enthusiasm of the kids and I think that is something that we want to keep going because it's good for us.

Patch: As you go into the rivalry game against Newsome this week, what are some of the things you are looking to see from your team to finish the season strong?

Booth: I think the attitude of just going in and competing strong. It's a rivalry game and a lot of our kids know their kids, they grew up together. We want to win that game and we want to finish with the best record possible. Finishing 5-5 is not what we want to hang our hats on but it's something that we can build on and set a standard by.

Patch: Next season, you have a lot of key players returning to the lineup. What is the feeling about next year amongst the team given the improvement that you've experienced this year?

Booth: It's something that we are excited about. We returning our top running back and receiver, our quarterback and all of our linebackers so we feel like we could really do some damage after the experience those guys gained this year. That said, we still have to have a great offseason like we did last year and the junior guys who stepped into leadership roles have to continue to lead as they become seniors. We expect big things this offseason and into next fall.