As the football season has begun, new coach Marcus Mailei has created a culture that motivates the boys at Skyline High School to work hard and show their strengths, inside and out.
Not only is he working to be the best coach he can, but he worked to be the best player he could be as well! Mailei played football at Highland High School and attended Weber State for college. In 2002 Weber State Athletics said that Mailei “Will most likely be looked at by pro scouts this season because of his ability to do many things at a high energy level.” Having led his teams to victory in his years while attending, he understands the game through players’ eyes. Now, he is learning and growing as a coach. Mailei says, “Between my experience as a football player, my ability to teach in the classroom, and my ability to develop athletes, those are probably my three strengths that I’ve got going for me and then everything else is going to come as I get experience.”
Mailei is learning, just like everyone is in this new school, and he is growing from trial and error and making adjustments when needed. He is looking for ways to connect with players and give them someone to turn to when they need help. He builds them up rather than tearing them down. Mailei says, “My approach with my football kids in general is I usually resort to high love, high energy whenever I am in a building situation, so I’m really great at building culture.”
The team is working hard and giving it their best. Mailei led the team to their first victory in a game against Summit Academy on August 23, giving them their first win since the end of 2022. Mailei said, “My goal for the season is to win the region and to win the state championship. It’s kind of a lofty goal coming from an 0-10 season, but it’s helping us stay competitive and helping us keep our edge so that we’re not falling victim to that mindset of ‘here we go again’—just trying to run away from what we’ve been doing and run towards what we want to do, which is win and have fun.”
Mailei is giving the boys the opportunity they need to thrive at Skyline High School. Although we aren’t winning every game, Coach Mailei is giving the boys the high school football experience that they hope for! More boys are playing and Skyline Football will build player by player, year by year. Coach Mailei is looking out for his team and Skyline High School. Geoff Murdock, one of Skyline’s assistant principals, said, “Marcus is definitely a player’s coach. I think he’s there fighting for his players.”
