Media Hub

Retired longtime teacher-coach Mike McMillan passed away March 24 after a long illness, leaving a legacy of life lessons that some of his former students shared during a memorial service April 5 in Tagart Memorial Chapel.

McMillan, husband of third grade teacher Vicki and father of Mike '89 and J.P. '90, was a member of the McDonogh faculty from 1972 to 1993. He taught typing and later physical education. He also coached varsity baseball and football. Twice he received Coach of the Year honors in football. The McMillan family lived on campus for many years.

Along with family, faculty, and friends, dozens of McMillan's students from the 70s, 80s, and 90s attended the memorial service. In moving remembrances, four described how "Coach Mac" had been an enduring influence in their lives.

Rob Young '86, Joe Bosley '79, Jeff Sindler '83 and Casey Clark '88 delivered consistently touching recollections of McMillan. They told of how he motivated them, how he kept them in line, and how he cared for them during some tough times. They remembered him as a "gentle giant."

Each recalled some comedic moments with Coach Mac, too. When they would miss a play at football practice, for example, he would name another team in their league that could make the play. The shame tactic occasionally worked.

They also remembered him as a brilliant tactician on game day. One gave him full credit for the Eagles' surprise win over heavily-favored Poly one year.

In McMillan's final days, Casey Clark decided to tell his mentor what he had meant to him. Casey wrote and read this to Mike McMillan:

"People come and go in our lives for a reason. You came into my life and changed it forever. All I can do for you is say thank you. ...

"When we lost to Gilman in '86, I thought my world was over. I had never been so disappointed. A couple days after that game, you pulled me aside and reminded me that we, you and me, would have one more chance together and now was the time to put in the work. That lesson turned my life around.

"I have suffered many setbacks since then, but I don't allow myself to sit in a corner and cry about it. You would not have tolerated it.

"I learned after that Gilman game that wallowing in defeat doesn't earn you the next victory. Life is a series of stadium steps to be run every day--not for the today experience of breaking a sweat, but for the challenges that come later. When you are tired, scared, unsure. All those stadium steps earned me the right to overcome the next obstacle. When I was 17, that obstacle was Gilman. It wasn't even close. They hadn't spent 12 months working as hard as we had. We earned that day by climbing all the steps that came before.

"When I stumbled in the adult world, getting fired a week after my son was born, I didn't cry. I didn't run home. I assessed what needed to be done to land my next job. I found my next set of steps and focused on conquering them. The result was predetermined because I did my job, I climbed my steps.

"Now, I am losing the man who first showed me the steps. Who made me see the steps as a way to reach my goals ...

"I love you Coach Mac and will always love you. I will carry with me forever the lessons learned on the field that taught me how to live life without protective headgear.

"Thanks for believing in me. Thanks for lifting me up those stairs with your love.

"It's time for you to listen to a different coach now. And when God calls you in and tells you to take a knee, remember to hustle. Coaches like that.

God bless you, Coach Mac."