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HHF/GID Interview with Westfield Head Coach Jake Gilbert


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HHF Interview with Westfield Head Coach Jake Gilbert
The Shamrock freshman, JV and Varsity all ripped thru the HCC undefeated last year, with Coach Gilbert's Varsity Rocks going all the way to the 6A state championship game. The 2021 edition will attempt to finish out the quest left unfinished by their 2020 predecessors
 
 
Thanks for joining us Coach.
 
Question 1
Coach, your teams have played for 3 state championships in your 10 years at Westfield, including a 2016 5A title win over Columbus East, and runnerup finishes in 2013 and 2020. Despite this tremendous record of success, many pundits still view Westfield as an "up and coming program." Why do you feel that perception exists, and do you feel that the program has arrived after falling just short against a historically strong Center Grove team last fall?
 
Response
I agree. We have been to State 3 times in 8 years and the first 10 years of our time here compares favorably to almost any big school staff, but that perception is there. All we can do is win on the field more consistently, but I think until we can beat Carmel or Center Grove we will be considered "up and coming." And I say until we beat them we haven't arrived. To be the best, you have to beat the best.
 
Question 2
The HCC is a ruggedly tough conference, and your 'Rocks ripped thru the schedule unbeaten last year at 7-0 in league play. There are no breaks in the HCC schedule. How do you prepare your team for the weekly grind and do you sometimes find yourself needing to leave some gas in the tank for the post season tournament?
 
Response
We really go all in on each individual week and start over on Monday. Last year we swept the conference in Freshmen, JV, and Varsity. Not sure how often that has happened. I was very proud of our guys to say the least. It's hard to beat these teams and even harder to not have a let down. We are generally pretty good about not looking ahead, so we prepare pretty well for whoever is up next on the schedule. That helps us not get overwhelmed about the HCC as a whole.
 
Question 3
Your program, and your numbers seem to grow and get bigger and stronger with each passing season. What have you done to integrate the lower levels and the feeder schools into one cohesive unit with a shared vision that prepares kids for the varsity when they reach high school?
 
Response
We have great alignment K - 12. We are a one horse town so to speak with one feeder system. I am in control of all personnel at the middle school. I order equipment for the youth league. The biggest thing I do is communicate and guide the culture for the entire program top to bottom. That is so much more important than using the same offense (although I think that is a good thing too!). I train all football coaches in Westfield on how to coach and do my best to teach blocking and tackling to every kid in our system.
 
Question 4
Indy area schools are blessed with great facilities, and Westfield has some of the best of the best. What are some of the most recent improvements and how have they positively impacted your program?
 
Response
We are absolutely blessed! When we came we practiced in a goat pasture, had no locker room, and bussed to our home field. Now we have one of the very best stadiums in IN and are close to finishing the best high school weight room I've ever seen. These things help the prestige but can make you soft and entitled. Great teams like Cathedral and Snider get it done without a true home field. It's more about the kids than the facilities, but I am beyond grateful to coach at a school with this level of stadium and weight room.
 
Question 5
You certainly aren't taking your foot off the gas with the non conference schedule, as you again open with Cathedral, possibly the best team in the entire state, and then a challenging game with an improving Lafayette Harrison program. What is your overall philosophy on non conference scheduling, and do you anticipate any changes in the near future?
 
Response
The Peebles brothers gang up on us to start the year. They are such great coaches. We have major respect for their programs. In a perfect world I think you should play one non-conference that you are typically going to win and one that will really push you for your conference play. I think it's important to start your year with a win if possible and get all your kids in the game, but you also have to understand the most improvement that you see all year occurs from Week 1 to Week 2. I would love to play a game we should win Week 1 and a real challenge Week 2. We pick up New Pal and Lawrence Central next year.
 
Question 6
Westfield has for many years been blessed with a lot of hard nosed , tough kids and a lot of depth, but not necessarily a lot of high end D1 Power 5 type talent. You've got one of the top defenders in the state returning this year in Popeye Williams. Who are some of your other top level players, and do you see any possibly moving on to major college opportunities after graduation?
 
Response
We have done great with D2 and D3 level players, but are starting to get more D1 guys as we improve. Micah Hauser should be a candidate for Mr. Football. He legitimately plays every play for us on O and D as a RB/FS. He has FCS offers. Our QB Maximus Webster is committed to Ball St. and a Junior Safety Dillon Thienemann has picked up a Purdue offer. We have a few other guys who may break into offers as seniors including Zach Williams, Trevon Hatchett, and Caleb King.
 
Question 7
Westfield and Carmel have put up a huge roadblock at their northern border, effectively blocking northern Indiana 6A schools from advancing past the semi state. Are you seeing the northern schools doing anything differently as they try to solve the puzzle and move past the semi state for a shot at a 6A blue ring?
 
Response
I think they are trying to play tougher, Indianapolis area teams to improve the difficulty of their schedule. Lafayette Jeff and Elkhart have done this. Snider and Penn have had plenty of success traditionally. It just takes a lot of depth up front to beat a team like Carmel and both Carmel and us play against plenty of studs during the year, so our teams aren't particularly intimidated by anyone in the tournament. Our schedule really helps us. I think there are great teams doing what they can in the North. Lafayette Jeff beat us in 2018.
 
Question 8
Will you be making any significant scheme changes based on returning personnel ahead of the coming season?
 
Response
Probably not. Last year we lost two senior DT's before the season to COVID related issues and a Junior was injured. We played more three man front than we wanted. We'll have to decide about our best lineup this year.
 
Question 9
What has been the primary focus of your summer workouts? What are the strengths and areas of growth you have identified for the 2021 football team?
 
Response
We have lifted hard. Our biggest focus is staying hungry and not getting complacent. We return a lot of starters, but we have a few guys injured still from the spring unfortunately. Our strengths is experience and our areas of growth is leadership. It will all hinge on our hunger and humility. We have the talent.
 
Question 10
The MIC owns the 6A tournament hardware since the IHSAA expanded to 6 classes. HCC schools have fared well against the MIC in regular season play, but have generally fallen short in the tournament. Center Grove is heavily favored to repeat as 6A champs. Some will suggest that HCC improvement slowed a bit in the past few seasons after closing the gap on The MIC. What is your assessment of the competitive environment between the two conferences, and do you see an HCC school soon breaking through and winning a championship?
 
Response
I agree with all this. I think that the HCC has had a team pretty close about every other year, but hasn't broken through. We became the first HCC team to make the 6A State Championship last year. Center Grove killed us, but we played them as close as anyone else and went toe to toe the second half. Honestly all of 6A seems to be chasing Center Grove and Carmel every year, while Ben Davis and Warren Central have also put together an incredible team recently. New Pal and Cathedral have been capable of beating the MIC and they aren't in either conference. The other MIC schools and HCC schools can do it. I think once it happens once for the HCC it will happen regularly. We have to have the team and the confidence to break through that first time. I'm hoping its the Rocks in 2021.
 
 
Thanks for your time Coach, and best of luck to you and your team this season.
Tim Phillips
Hoosier High School Football
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“I agree with all this. I think that the HCC has had a team pretty close about every other year, but hasn't broken through. We became the first HCC team to make the 6A State Championship last year. Center Grove killed us, but we played them as close as anyone else and went toe to toe the second half. Honestly all of 6A seems to be chasing Center Grove and Carmel every year, while Ben Davis and Warren Central have also put together an incredible team recently. New Pal and Cathedral have been capable of beating the MIC and they aren't in either conference. The other MIC schools and HCC schools can do it. I think once it happens once for the HCC it will happen regularly. We have to have the team and the confidence to break through that first time. I'm hoping its the Rocks in 2021.“

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