Seminole High has long been known as a school with a sterling academic reputation. For example, 92 percent of this year's graduating class, including 64 summa cum laude and 28 magna cum laude graduates, will attend college.
Another thing people should know by now is that Seminole also has become a jock juggernaut.
During the 2003-04 season, the school finished as district champion or runnerup in 15 of the 21 boys and girls sports sanctioned by the Florida High School Athletic Association. The feat is quite an accomplishment considering Seminole does not offer fall soccer or boys and girls weightlifting.
So it is no wonder Seminole's combined excellence on the playing fields lifted it to the 2004 Times All-Sports award. Seminole scored 690 points to beat Plant by 771/2 in the final tally among 75 high schools from Pinellas, Hillsborough, Pasco, Hernando and Citrus counties.
It is the third time in four years Seminole has won the award.
"I knew we were close to winning," said Seminole principal Rick Misenti, a sports afficionado who keeps tabs on such things. "To win again just speaks volumes of how strong the athletic programs have become here."
Much like previous years, Seminole picked up more than half of its points from fall sports. The girls swimming team finished fourth at state. The girls golf team was sixth at state, the boys cross country team eighth and the boys swimming team ninth.
Success continued in the winter with the boys soccer team finishing as state runnerup and the girls basketball team advancing to the region final. In the spring, the baseball team advanced to the state semifinals.
"It doesn't surprise me that the school did so well," said Boca Ciega football coach Jean Gordon, who coached softball and was an assistant coach in football at Seminole from 1988-94. "The school has been a powerhouse in sports for as long as I can remember."
For years, Seminole has enjoyed a stranglehold on the Pinellas County Superintendent's Trophy, winning the award, annually given to the top public school based on points from conference play, 14 of the past 16 years.
It was only recently that the school started making serious runs at state titles in a multitude of sports and dominating in the All-Sports standings.
So what's the recipe for creating a school in which sports are central to campus life, a place where sports-minded students can flourish?
"For starters, they have a great coaching staff that has been together forever," Gordon said.
Football coach Sam Roper is entering his 20th season, joining Bruce Calhoun (boys and girls cross country, 23 years), and Tom Haight (boys and girls swimming, 22 years) as coaches with 20 or more years there. Even the assistants have put in their time. Athletic coordinator Joe Fabrizio has been a football assistant for 17 years and Bill Shepherd was an assistant with track for 18 before taking over the girls program this spring from John Bordeaux, who retired after 20 seasons.
How much does longevity matter? Well, consider that the three sports in which Seminole did not finish first or second in its district were guided by first-year coaches.
Another reason for continued success is the school's facilities. Seminole has tennis courts and a swimming pool on campus. The field house received a $28,000 upgrade, with refurbished pro-style lockers for the varsity football squad, a refinished floor, new ceiling tiles, fresh paint inside and out and air conditioning.
Even the band is first-rate, as evidenced by its appearance at next year's Rose Bowl parade.
"There's a lot of pride that runs through the school," Misenti said. "We have tremendous students who excel in all levels, including sports."
Misenti is responsible for creating a campus crawling with jocks. A former coach who started the baseball program at Countryside High in the early 1980s, Misenti became principal at Seminole in 2001 and is widely known for exuberant cheering.
"I remember as a player and as a coach, it was always a good feeling when your principal was there to show support," he said. "I try to attend as many activities as possible. I can tell you there are weeks on end when I will not see my house during daylight hours."
What Misenti is most proud of is that the school excels at academics and athletics. While winning the Superintendents Trophy, the school had the county's third-highest GPA for student-athletes.
"It's wonderful ingredient to be successful in the classroom and on the playing field," Misenti said.
SCHOOL PROFILE: SEMINOLE
OPENED: 1962.
ENROLLMENT (10th-12th): 2,258.
MASCOT: Warhawks.
ATHLETIC DIRECTOR: Craig Thompson.
TEAM STATE TITLES: Baseball - 2001 (5A). Girls swimming - 1985 (4A). Boys golf - 1976. Boys soccer - 1982 (4A), 2003 (4A). Slow-pitch softball - 1979 (4A). Boys swimming - 1985 (4A).
FAMOUS FORMER ATHLETES: Tony Fitzpatrick (Class of 79, UM football/USFL); D'Qwell Jackson ('02, football/Maryland); Greg Jones ('96, baseball/Angels); Larry Jones ('72, baseball All-America); Tom Kotchman ('72, baseball scout); Casey Kotchman ('01, baseball/Angels); Bill Peterson ('75, basketball coach); Scott Tucker ('93, Olympic swimming gold medalist); Ken Van Ness ('69, UF basketball); Rick Wagner ('74, USF basketball); Todd Wright ('87, baseball/ESPN Radio).
NOTABLE: The school hosts an annual spring break baseball tournament named for former pitcher Steve Georgiadis, who died after shoulder surgery in 1990 while a student at the University of Florida. Longtime baseball coach Bill Brinker was 485-226 with the Warhawks. Fred Robinson, who led the program from its inception to 1982, is one of few Pinellas County football coaches to win more than 100 games. He finished with 123 victories, fourth on the all-time county list. Fred Rozelle, who later became commissioner of the Florida High School Activities Association, was the school's principal from 1971-79. In 2001 Seminole tied a national record for the most players (six) taken in the Major League Baseball draft from one school.
