When Ed Stinson first became the head football coach at Hoboken High School 25 years ago, he never envisioned reaching impressive milestones, like the 200th career coaching victory he attained last week, when the Red Wings defeated Marist.
"It’s something I never thought would happen," Stinson said. "First of all, the No. 1 criteria when you reach a milestone like that would be longevity and I’ve been around for 25 years. Being around allows you the opportunity to reach the milestone, and I never thought I’d be around that long."
"Secondly, I’ve been blessed with a great coaching staff," Stinson said. "I’ve had a lot of loyal guys over the years and a lot of them have been former players, so that means they know the system and the loyalty factor with the system. Plus, they understand the time commitment and the amount of time that is put into coaching here."
Stinson also didn’t forget the amount of talent he has been blessed with over the years.
"I’ve had some great football players and that has been documented over and over," Stinson said. "You don’t win any football games without talent."
But then, Stinson recalled his family, namely his wife, Marie, and four daughters, Stacy (30), Marie (28), Kristin (27) and Erin (20).
"In the Stinson family, football isn’t a game," Stinson said. "It’s an event. My wife is always there and my four daughters are always there. It’s great to have four daughters who have such a tremendous interest in what their father does. Without them, I don’t get this opportunity."
Stinson became only the third Hudson County coach to reach the 200-win plateau, joining the legendary Joe Coviello and current North Bergen mentor Vince Ascolese.
"That’s a super-elite group to be with, I’m telling you," Stinson said.
Stinson now has an impressive career record of 200-49-5 during his two stints as coach at Hoboken, as well as Pascack Hills and Park Ridge. He’s been the head coach at Hoboken in his second stint since 1987.
"You know, what really helped the process getting to that number quickly was going 67-1 over those six years," Stinson laughed, recalling a stretch of dominance from 1994 through midway through last year, where the Red Wings lost only one game. "When I reached 100 during the 1991 season, I thought 200 was so far away."
Not that far after all.
Stinson leads his team into yet another state playoff appearance, the 10th straight time that the Red Wings are heading into the post-season. The Red Wings face a tough Indian Hills team, one that Stinson calls "undoubtedly the toughest first round opponent in the bracket."
"We’re the top seed and we’re facing a team that is one of the best in the bracket," Stinson said. "They’re going to be tough."
What also will be tough will be the Red Wings’ future after the current campaign. Last week, the HCIAA voted to abolish the current two divisional format – meaning the National and American Conferences – and go to one super conference that includes all the teams, which is what is done in baseball and basketball.
However, being the lone Group II enrollment school in the HCIAA, Hoboken has yet to commit to the realignment for the 2002 season and will perhaps look elsewhere to find more suitable accommodations.
"We still have until April to officially declare our intentions," Stinson said. "Right now, the alignment doesn’t work for us. We’re a Group II school playing seven Group IVs and two Group IIIs next year. That’s not beneficial to us. So we’re going to take a long look at the possibilities and different leagues that are out there."
Stinson mentioned the possibility of asking the Bergen County Scholastic League or the Bergen-Passaic Scholastic League for admission into either respective league.
"Those leagues may ask for an application for all sports, so we don’t know just yet," Stinson said. "We’re just exploring the opportunities."
Marist has decided to play an independent football schedule next year, but that is something that Stinson is against – and frankly, what team is going to want to schedule an independent game against a program that has lost only four times over the last seven years?
"Going independent is not a route we can take," Stinson said. "The options aren’t many. We’re very limited. If we can’t find a league that will take us, then we’ll have to gear up and play here at home."
But that’s an option Stinson is not looking forward to.
"Look, our enrollment has been in freefall since 1990, when we were Group IV," Stinson said. "Now, we’re heading toward the bottom of Group II. No one is going to cry for us, but that’s the bottom line. It’s not fair to Hoboken. It doesn’t work. So we have to look for alternatives."
It’s not going to be an easy task. In fact, winning the 200 games was probably an easier job than finding a new place for the Red Wings to call home.