Murphy returns to his roots

I can't help but be intrigued by Ursuline High's hiring of football coach Daniel Murphy.
When it came to replacing Jim Vivo, the Irish decided on someone from their fierce rival. Murphy just happens to be a Cardinal Mooney graduate.
As a tight end and defensive end for the Cardinals from 1987-90, Murphy never imagined he would pace the sideline as Ursuline's head coach. But that's exactly what the 28-year-old will do this fall.
"I'm from Youngstown and I know a lot of people over there already," Murphy said. "It worked out nice for me."
It was Murphy's local ties that helped pave his way to future opportunities.
After graduating from Mooney, he walked onto the football team at Youngstown State and was redshirted in '91, the same year the Penguins won the first of their four Division I-AA national championships.
Good connection: But that's also when Murphy grew closer to Rick Shepas, then-coach at Poland. Shepas made Murphy an assistant coach, a position he held for three years with the Bulldogs.
"He's the one I owe a lot to," Murphy said of Shepas. "He gave me my first break, my first chance to coach. I learned a great deal from him."
When Shepas was hired at Massillon, he gave Murphy another opportunity, this time as offensive coordinator, which, for the past four years, helped mold the student into a head football coach.
"I was responsible for a whole side of the ball," Murphy said of his position at Massillon. "That really helps you because you have half your own team. That's the confidence Rick Shepas had in me, to go forth for a head coaching position."
Now that he has his own team, Murphy is ready for the building process. It began Monday when he met with some of the players.
"One of the points I want them to understand is that this is a team," said Murphy, also a former assistant at the University of Toledo. "I preach about 'we.' We work hard and we work together. It's all about doing things together."
That's why Murphy will keep his office doors open to players who are seeking help from their coach.
"I want to have an open relationship with these players," Murphy said.
"I'm going to count on them for a lot of things, and they're going to count on me."
Rebound season: Under Vivo, Ursuline won the 2000 Division IV state title, but the team finished 3-7 last season after having to forfeit four games for use of an ineligible player.
Murphy has heard all about the Irish's returning talent, how it gives them a legitimate shot to make a playoff run, but he's not ready to join in the excitement just yet.
He wants to watch every film from last season, get to know his players, assemble his coaching staff and make decisions based on what is presented to him.
"I keep hearing 'talent, talent, talent,' " Murphy said of the Irish program. "We'll have to sit down and see. I'm more concerned with how we jell as a unit and work together."
High profile athletic programs such as Ursuline's are sometimes put under the microscope. That kind of attention is nothing new to Murphy.
Football is a top priority at Massillon, watched closely by the community and media.
"It's something I'm used to," Murphy said. "It's not necessarily a bad thing for the players to get used to the pressure. That will mold them into stronger men in the future."
Murphy and his wife, Leslie, reside in Massillon with their son, Luke Thomas.
The coach will finish the school year there before moving to the Youngstown area and reconnecting with his roots.
In the end, it might not even matter that he's from Mooney.
XBrian Richesson covers high school sports for The Vindicator. Write to him at richesson@vindy.com.