Dan Angelo
Sandusky Register
CASTALIA – Rock Farlow wanted to stay close to home and Margaretta is more than willing to oblige.
That`s why the Erie County school will recommend the district hire Farlow as its next varsity football coach.
“We tried to relocate and the more we looked into relocating, the more we felt like we wanted to be here,” said Farlow, who lives in Bay View but has spent the last year as a teacher and head football coach at Firelands. “We live here and we like it here.”
In the meantime, the Polar Bears are getting a proven coach who has a state championship ring to his credit.
“We were very happy with the candidates, but Rock`s coaching experience may have set him apart,” Margaretta athletic director Troy Roth said. “His playoff experience at Perkins and New London was something the others just didn`t have.
“Rock is excited about getting here and excited about coaching football. I think our kids will feed off that.”
The Falcons went 1-9 in Farlow`s only season at the school, but that one win ended a
25-game losing streak.
“I had a great time with the kids and think we made a lot of progress there,” Farlow said. “It was bad in terms of the progress there, so you really can`t evaluate it in wins and losses. I was pleased.
“This (change of scenery) doesn`t have anything to do with Firelands. It has to do with the distance and with us wanting to stay here.”
Farlow replaces Don Wilson, who is taking over the program at Loudonville after 13 years at Margaretta, on both sidelines and classroom as Farlow is set to become the career-based intervention instructor.
“You have a long line of guys there like (Dana) Woodring, (John) Zang and Don,” Farlow said. “They`ve had a run of good solid coaches, and I think that makes it simpler. Just contrast that to here at Firelands which doesn`t have much tradition and you almost have to create it.”
Still, Farlow is going from one 1-9 team to another.
“I think these things go in cycles,” Farlow said. “They`ve had a great run for a long time (at Margaretta), but sometimes when you got through that cycle you need a change to spark things up.
“I don`t think there`s anyone to blame, it`s just a combination of a lot of things. Hopefully I can give that spark to the kids at Margaretta.”
Farlow spent eight years at Perkins and then was out of coaching two years before taking over the Falcons last fall. He started his coaching career as an assistant at New London, taking over as head coach in 1992 and going 35-18 with two playoff appearances over the next five years.
He moved to Perkins for the 1997 season and proceeded to go 58-31 over the next eight seasons with two league championships, and a 15-0 run to the Division IV state championship in 1999. His Pirates then went 10-0 the next year and was named the Associated Press poll champion.
“We are certainly familiar with him in those years, and I`m sure our kids know about him,” Roth said. “That championship ring and the SBC (Sandusky Bay Conference) titles brings instant credibility. But Rock is a football coach and his personality will fit in here.
“He`s a good fit, and being part of the community helps him know what to expect. We based our decision on his experience but it doesn`t hurt he is part of the community.” 

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