Tom Mach made quite an impression on his first day on the job in 1976 as the new football coach at Novi Detroit Catholic Central.

“He was a 28-year-old version of Vince Lombardi,” said one of his former players.

The gripes of yesteryear about practices were the toughest part of playing for Mach — “Games were easy” — but that turned into volumes of praise and genuine respect for Mach on the news of his retirement after 41 years.



His record impresses, too: 370 victories, the third most among state football coaches; 17, the most appearances in a football final; 10 state championships including the first three-peat in Division 1 from 2001-02-03; and a combined 38 division and league championships in the Catholic High School League.

However, not so his football pedigree: four years of CYO ball at Our Lady of  La Salette in Berkley, touch football at Sacred Heart Seminary High School (“It was very physical,” Mach said), and three years as starting defensive back as a walk-on at Wayne State.

He followed up with five years as an assistant coach at Southgate Aquinas.

Mach loved football. “I learned a lot from Vern Gale, the coach at Wayne State, and Dick Comar, at Aquinas. They were great mentors. They taught me how to be a coach, not a yeller,” he says.

That’s it: the sum and substance of his resume when the coaching vacancy opened at Catholic Central, revered among Michigan’s prep gridiron elite.

Mach, who will turn 70 in August, still chuckles that he sent his application to only one school. “I felt confident I would get the job,” he says.

“It was a good time for the Lombardi and (Alabama legend) Bear Bryant approach — do what I tell you to do — when I came to Catholic Central,” Mach reminisced one day last week. “(Over the years), I haven’t changed my coaching philosophy one bit. It’s still blocking and tackling. Demand each player do his job.”

In his first year in the fall of 1976, Mach led the Shamrocks, coming off a 2-6 record the year before, to a 7-1 success. That sparked a streak of 28 consecutive winning seasons through 2003.

The game has changed. “There were a lot of tight formations years ago,” Mach said. “Now they’re spread out, plays are called from the sidelines, even no huddles. Defense has to be making adjustments all the time.”

As for the players, Mach said, “I’ve seen no change in the boys. The program has expanded, and the boys have responded. They are working harder than ever. We expect them to be in the weight room four days a week. We also encourage the boys to play more than one sport. If they do, they still have to get the weight workout in.”

Up to six years ago, Mach was also in the classroom teaching history and health and physical education. He has received as much adulation for the positive influence he had on the boys’ off-field lives. “He truly cared for his players,” was a common theme.

Special moments? They are many, as you can imagine. “But my biggest thrill,” Mach said, “was coaching my boys and having them coach with me.” His twin sons, Mike and Joe, were members of the 2001 and 2002 state champs. Mike was his father’s quarterbacks and offensive coach, while Joe handled the kickers and defensive line. Both are on the CC faculty, too.

Did he ever think about leaving CC? “There were times when I thought I’d like to have more money to raise my family, but then I’d look around and ask myself why. I was having a great experience at CC. I love the people, the kids, the great friendships,” Mach said.

For the last couple of years Mach admitted he was thinking about retiring. “My wife, Lynn (they’ll be married 40 years in July), always told me to do what made me happy. My internal clock told me it was time.”

I recall an interview I had with Mach in August 2015. What attracted him to CC, he said, was “its faith-based environment, and the extension of that faith to the kids.”

His faith, he continued, was based on values he was taught in his youth from his parents.

“Their message was always positive. There is much more to life than what the world has to offer. If you love God and love your neighbor, then you have the spirituality you can use for the rest of your life.”

Mach hastened to tell me about a faith example this season. On four or five occasions when the players had 45 minutes or so before the start of practice, “the captains came to me and asked if I would say the rosary with them. I was tickled pink to do it,” Mach said. “It was a great bonding moment.”

In his press release about Mach’s departure, athletic director Aaron Babicz wrote: “His shoes will be difficult to fill. We will be very careful and diligent in our search for a new coach.”

I’d suggest, Aaron, get on your knees and pray for a miracle.

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Don Horkey may be reached at [email protected].