| Welcome message from Head Coach Stephen Everette |
Greetings Little Tigers fans old and new, It is that time of year again as we embark on another fun-filled Fall season. Just like in seasons past, we have a theme for our young men- and this year it is Great Expectations! After last season’s division championship and playoff berth, many of our supporters are expecting a repeat of the division title and another berth into the state playoffs. Some of our followers are expecting a 10+ win season and the ever elusive sectional title; others want us to be undefeated and to dominate every game. Well it’s great to hear those expectations and it would be great to have those things happen but there are a great deal of things that need to be worked on before any of them can be achieved. However, that isn’t why I chose this particular theme. In showing how much Princeton High School has rubbed off on me it is because of the similarities between our program and to the Charles Dickens classic which bears the name. In his version of Great Expectations, Dickens breaks the book into three parts of what many believe to be his maturation into adulthood. Bear with me a moment. In the first part, Pip is content with his humble life until he sees the life of a gentleman. With our Little Tigers we were happy with a couple of wins until we saw a division title and the playoffs and that forced us to dare to dream to become bigger and better. We now have the tools to do so: a new fitness center, end zone cameras, consistency of our coaching staff, the support of two communities (Princeton and Cranbury) and administration. Not bad for a start!? The second part of the book deals with Pip learning about his new strata: generous allowance, rivalries, new norms and mores. Well that is our program. We had to develop new norms. No more month long vacations and extended stays at the beach. Our students get up at 6:30 in the morning to workout - all in order to fit into this new lifestyle our program has adopted. Where once we were looked down upon, we are now respected. We don’t have just one rival, we now have nine. It struck me as eerily similar. Finally, in the last phase, Pip learns that all that glitters is not gold. We have to understand that just because of these expectations we cannot forget how we became successful: hard work, dedication, sacrifice and loyalty to one another and carrying ourselves to a higher standard. If we do these things we will meet the greatest of expectations. I know I may not be doing Dickens any justice, but it just struck a chord with me. As always, I want to thank our Booster Club for all of their efforts and continuous support. Thank you for sharing your children with me and trusting that We can make your child’s dreams come true with our collaborative efforts. Thank you to our school board and administration for their constant support in making our football program highly respected in our community and in Mercer County. I also need to extend our gratitude to the Princeton Education Foundation and Friends of Princeton Athletics for our new fitness center and their efforts to improve all of our athletic programs. My admiration goes to all of our former players, managers and cheerleaders for their belief in our ideals which always buoy my confidence in what we attempt to accomplish. Remember you always have a home to which you can return. To my loving family, thanks for always putting up with me as I struggle to become the best teacher and coach I can be. I know it’s difficult; thank you for loving me unconditionally. Lastly, thank you to my current group of players, cheerleaders and managers; there are great expectations because you have and will put in the work to be great. It’s going to be a great ride; I hope that all of you will enjoy watching these remarkable young people exceed Great Expectations. Go Tigers!! Respectfully submitted,
Stephen Everette
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