Opinion: Saying thank you to a football coach for a lifetime of lessons

Steve Pyne, the head coach of Union High School football, shares a moment with his former football coach, George Rallis, and his wife Dana, on Friday in Tumwater. George was the head coach at David Douglas in Portland, Ore., and Dana was the team’s statistician. Photo by Paul Valencia

The head coach at Union High School, the director of career and college readiness for Vancouver Public Schools, and this journalist had a special reunion with their high school football coach in Tumwater on Friday night, thanking him for a lifetime of lessons

Paul Valencia
Clark County Today

This was personal for us.

It was not just to take a trip down Memory Lane. It was a chance to say thank you to a man who means so much to us.

There were three of us with Clark County connections who made the trek to Tumwater on Friday night to say hello to our old coach, George Rallis. He is still Coach Rallis to me.

Steve Pyne is now the head coach for the Union Titans. Before joining the Titans in an effort to turn around that program, he won five Oregon state championships as the coach of Central Catholic in Portland.

Mark Wreath also prides himself with his commitment to education as the director of career and college readiness for Vancouver Public Schools.

Mark Wreath, director of career and college readiness for Vancouver Public Schools, said some of his success in life can be attributed to playing high school football for coach George Rallis. Wreath was one of three former players to make the trip to Tumwater on Friday night to catch up with Rallis and thank him for his commitment to them, all those years ago. Photo by Paul Valencia

Then there is me. I am proud of my own career path. While today I write more news than sports, I dedicated decades to sharing the stories of high school athletes.

Coach Rallis has had a significant role in all of our lives. So much so, I am writing about that impact 37 years removed from my final organized football game.

George and his wife Dana, who have been married for 67 years, recently moved to Tumwater. So they showed up Friday night in support of Pyne.

It was also a chance for us former David Douglas High School students to catch up with their old football coach, to remember our days growing up in Southeast Portland.

“He had a huge influence on how you treat people. The lessons that you learn from the game are more important than the results of the game. I may not have known that when he was telling us, but it certainly resonates with me now as a 56-year-old,” Pyne said. “I just appreciate his role in my life. I was blessed to have a great dad. He was the second one.”

Wreath remembered what it was like to be a teenager, and having such a force in his life.

“When you’re young and you know nothing but think you might know everything, to meet a man that instills honors, leadership, and dedication and what that does in your life … words can’t explain it,” Wreath said. “Even today, I got nervous. I got butterflies in my stomach to see Coach Rallis again.”

Pyne and Wreath are two years older than me, but they treated me like family as soon as I walked into that football locker room as a freshman in the summer of 1985. That is how it was back then, because of the influence of the head coach. If you played football for any of his David Douglas teams — varsity, junior varsity, freshmen — you were all teammates. The default position was family.

In his long coaching career, Rallis helped several players go on to play professional football, including a teammate of mine. But what I remember most is how much he cared about the players who were not all-league, all-state, future pros.

I ended up starting on varsity my senior year. Nothing special. Nothing like Pyne and Wreath, two-year starters, all-league performers. I was just a guy filling a role. Still, I loved every moment of my time in high school football.

Without a father present in my life, I often looked for other role models. The dads of good friends were incredible to me. On campus? I wanted to earn the respect of my football coach. He was the one man I did not want to disappoint.

I was yelled at — and I mean ripped on big time — by Coach Rallis on two occasions during my senior year. It was a bit jarring. The first time, I was in the wrong. I blew an assignment, and my mistake put a teammate in harm’s way. My reply was something to the effect of: “Yes Coach. Understand.”

The second time he yelled at me in front of the whole team, I was right. He saw something that wasn’t there. My reply: “Yes Coach. Understand.”

No way was I going to argue with him in front of others.

The next morning, I walked into weight training class and Coach Rallis apologized to me. Upon reflection, he did overreact to something he thought he saw, and he acknowledged I did not deserve the dressing down he gave me.

To have THE male authority figure in my life acknowledge that he made a mistake made quite the impression. That didn’t happen too often in high school, not to this teenager.

Pyne and Wreath’s senior year was a good one for our program. Made it to the state playoffs. Won a playoff game. Two years later, my senior year, we did the same.

No league championships. No state titles. Under Rallis, though, we learned that the football experience is so much more than the scoreboard.

After serving in the U.S. Army, I wanted to write about similar experiences. I worked at four newspapers in Oregon before moving to Vancouver. For more than 30 years now, I’ve interviewed plenty of stars, but I also believe I’ve found many stories centered on the role players, too.

It has been a successful run for Pyne in his teaching and coaching career. Those five state titles are forever.

Wreath has been instrumental in VPS’ recent commitment to teaching trades to students. College is great for some, but the trades industry is also important. Wreath has been spearheading a movement at VPS.

Me? I’ve had the greatest run imaginable for a journalist committed to sharing the high school sports experience.

I am so grateful that Coach Rallis was in my life in the late 1980s.

I am also overjoyed that I was able to say thank you to him in 2025.

Win or lose, I pray that all athletes in Clark County have similar, positive experiences with their coaches and their teammates. Those special days really can make an impact that lasts a lifetime.