Damascus has built a football dynasty from the ground up
Markus Vinson stood between Colby Starheim and Jordan Funk on the home field at Damascus where they have spent so many Friday nights and Saturday afternoons, and the teammates went over their game-day itineraries before Thursday's Maryland 3A state final against Franklin.
The plan, they said, is to treat it like Weeks 1 through 13, fueling up at breakfast and going to school before heading to Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis. They want to stick to their routine, and for Vinson — a standout running back and defensive back who has rushed for nearly 2,000 yards — that means eating sweets.
“I just always eat candy before the games to give me energy,” Vinson said after Monday’s practice. “I usually share it at halftime, too.”
Thursday’s game will be one of the biggest they ever will play, but the No. 3 Swarmin’ Hornets (13-0) are in familiar territory as they prepare to defend their title in a rematch against the 2014 champions. They’re comfortable not only because they were in the previous two state finals but because they have been in deep playoff runs since they strapped on their oversized Cougars helmets playing peewee football in the Damascus Sports Association.
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“It feels just about the same,” said Vinson, a Richmond commit. “If you think about it, we’re just beating the same kids as we get older.”
A small-town school with a big-time football program, Damascus is a mainstay in Maryland’s state championships. The players have been competing together for a decade, flowing through the talent pipeline and winning youth league Super Bowls.
While other Montgomery County schools are composed of athletes from multiple youth programs, nearly every Swarmin’ Hornets player went through the Damascus Sports Association. The varsity coaching staff knows the incoming players well before they arrive, while freshmen enter preseason practices already having completed years of Damascus Football prerequisites.
The players develop a mastery of the run-heavy system; they don’t memorize the Damascus playbook because such a thing doesn’t exist. “Nothing is printed,” said Vinny Colbert, a longtime Cougars coach and Damascus assistant under Coach Eric Wallich.
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The terminology and sets are ingrained from a young age, as they watch the high school players execute on Friday nights and imitate them on Saturday mornings.
“You look over at the 6-to-8 group. They’re doing the exact same thing as the 10-to-12 group,” said George Vinson Sr., a former Damascus All-Met whose sons Markus and George Jr. went through the feeder program. “It’s almost like watching dolphins swim. It’s all in unison.”
Damascus deviates from other top schools such as Quince Orchard, a Maryland 4A state finalist, which is made up of athletes from a variety of feeder programs, including the Rockville Football League, the Maplewood Athletic Association and the Montgomery Village Sports Association. Quince Orchard Coach John Kelley said youth football players have a head start regardless of which league they come from, but the transition into Quince Orchard would be simplified by having a feeder program specifically for the school. That's why Kelley, a former All-Met at Seneca Valley, is trying to implement a feeder program for next season.
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Damascus, an eight-time state champion, has sustained success despite steadily declining enrollment, dropping from Class 4A to 3A in 2007 following the opening of neighboring Clarksburg High and moving to 2A next fall. The sports association has had similar participation trends, declining from an estimated 400-500 in 2000 to 230 this past season, Colbert said. Montgomery County football participation has dropped 5 percent since 2013-14, according to Montgomery County Public Schools data.
But Damascus, located on the northernmost edge of Montgomery County, has been able to replenish its top talent consistently while remaining mostly immune to private school recruiting.
Last season, All-Met Player of the Year Jake Funk set a state record with 58 rushing touchdowns while teammates Jacob Bradshaw and Da’Quan Grimes carried a dominant defense as Damascus went undefeated and won a state title. All three moved on to Division I programs, but the team hasn’t skipped a beat this fall.
Vinson, who went to Bullis his freshman year, returned to Damascus and established himself as a versatile playmaker next to Jake Funk before taking Funk’s place this fall. Junior Jordan Funk, Jake’s younger brother, emerged as a dominant lineman alongside Mikey Bradshaw — Jacob’s brother — and Michael Jurgens. Seniors such as Starheim and linebacker Sean Jenkins have developed into leaders on defense, while Damascus lifers round out the deep and balanced roster.
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The current crop of players rose through the youth program during a golden era of Swarmin' Hornets football that included state titles in 2003, 2005 and 2007 under the late Coach Dan Makosy. Now they are on a 27-game winning streak and have a dynasty of their own, and it started well before high school.
“You got the kids that line up at the fence — the Cougars players in their jerseys, to shake your hands and all that when you walk out of the locker room,” Jordan Funk said. “It’s kind of special that you grew up in this town. You were that kid, and now you’re playing high school football here.”
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