October 29th, 2009
Reprinted with Permission of the Novi News


Since Novi High School began playing football in 1966, there have only been two head coaches. On Sunday, during the Wildcats' team banquet, Novi coach Tab Kellepourey announced there will be a third.

Kellepourey, who took over the reins from John Osborne in 2000, told his team that he would not be back to coach the Wildcats next year.

“This was the right time,” said Kellepourey. “It's wasn't a rash decision. I made this decision on my own. I've had a great career and these past 10 as the head coach at Novi High School have been the best. I have just known that this was going to be it, and I know it's the right time.”

Kellepourey said he shared his decision at the football banquet because of the closeness he feels with his team -- and the teams that have come before them. He made his announcement so that the juniors and the underclassmen would hear it from him first.

“I wanted them to know that I made the decision that it was time for me to move on,” he said.

Kellepourey took over the program in 2000 following Osborne's decision to retire after 33 years of coaching the Wildcats, making him the second head coach in the school's history. In his decade with the Wildcats, he compiled a 74-32 win-loss record and earned a berth into the state playoffs in all but two seasons, including the this year's campaign, which was his worst record to date at 3-5 with the Wildcats. His career-worst mark was 0-9 as the head coach for the Hartland Eagles in 1997, where he finished 27-29 over six years. Including his time as an assistant coach, Kellepourey patrolled the sidelines for three decades. He said that in no way did the wins and loss records of any team lead to his decision.

“I've coached for 30 years,” he said. “It's been a long time and a long career. I wanted this to be the time and the place that it ended. I'm proud to have been a part of this program and this tradition.”

IT'S BEEN AN INTENSE CAREER

Under his guidance, the Novi Wildcats were a single play away from the state finals, losing in 2003 to Brother Rice. The final play found the Wildcats coming up about six inches short from the goal line.

It was a scene that reminded many Novi fans of the 1988 state semi-final game when the Wildcats were two yards short of beating the eventual state champion Traverse City Trojans. Kellepourey was an assistant coach under John Osborne that year.

Osborne, who stayed on as an assistant coach after his “retirement” in 1999, helped teach Kellepourey the ins and outs of being a head coach. In 1994, when Kellepourey left his assistant position to become head coach at Hartland High School, he led his team to one of the school's four playoff appearances. Two of them came under Kellepourey's guidance.

Kellepourey has passed on his knowledge as well, grooming other coaches for potential future roles at the head of a program. Jeff Burnside, an assistant under Kellepourey for the past nine years, is one such coach.

“Tab is a great leader and after taking over from a legend like John Osborne, he not only kept the excellence of Novi but took it to new heights,” said Burnside. “There is no better game-day coach in my mind. He, as well as John O, has been my personal mentor for the past nine seasons. His work ethic and passion for the game has been an inspiration to me. It drives me to work as hard as he does and I will not let him down. His players view him the same way. They work hard because they see him work hard.”

PLAYERS' THOUGHTS

Working hard never meant becoming the best football player on the field. Many years, the Wildcats found success despite not having the most athletic players in the contest. Tyler Hoover, who now plays for Michigan State University, said working hard to the players Kellepourey coached meant being their best—no matter how good that was.

“Coach Tab was one of the biggest role models I have had,” Hoover said. “He was a great coach because how much he cared for each individual on the team and knew when to get to business on the field. Coach wanted to see each player grow in maturity, education and skill level. He and all of the players he has coached created a history for Wildcat football.”

Football was about more than just wins and losses to some of Kellepourey's players -- even those who went on to make careers for themselves at the next level. Ryan Pritchard, who turned down an offer to play football for the University of Michigan in favor of Princeton, was one of those players.

“I played four years of college football, and when I think about the most fun I ever had playing it was for Coach Kellepourey at Novi High School,” said Pritchard. “He had a year-round commitment to the program and was someone you could always turn to.”

Mike Hart, who quarterbacked the Wildcats during their 12-1 season in 2003, said that Kellepourey was always more than just a typical football coach.

“Coach Kellepourey was not only a great coach, but a great person and teacher,” said Hart, who's younger brother, Steve, also quarterbacked the Wildcats. “He was a coach that cared about his players and was always able to get the most out of them on the field and pushed them to succeed in the classroom. He was able to continue the winning tradition that Coach Osborne established, and he brought the Novi football program many wins as well as district and a regional championship during his years at Novi. It was an honor and a pleasure to be able to play for coach Tab Kellepourey.”

As much as he led them on the field, Kellepourey took great strides to lead his teams off the field. He pushed them to be the mature young men he knew they could be.

“Coach Kel was not only a good coach but a great mentor for all of his players,” said Frank Tafralian, who played for Kellepourey from 2002 through 2005. “He would always hold us to higher standards off the field. If it was bad grades in class, he was there to help find the problem, help us resolve it, and make sure we tried harder and did better. If it was behavioral problems in school or at home, again he was there to get to the root of the problem, help us resolve it, and make sure we straightened up and kept on the ‘straight and narrow.' If it was all of the above, like in my case, he was a real pain. Nonetheless, a pain I am very thankful for. Coach Kel made men out of us. The combination of all of the outstanding coaches we had when I was playing was something special. Now, with Coach Kel's resignation, I feel bad for future Novi football players. They just won't get that same irreplaceable experience I got, especially off the field.”

MEASURING GREATNESS

Kellepourey said he has had the joy of great athletes, great teams and great coaching. That, he said, is how you measure a great career -- not by wins or losses.

“Just look at the staffs I've had,” he said. “From the time I started until now, they've been all great coaches. And the players and the teams? There has been so much talent and so much dedication. That's how you can tell it's been a successful career. It's been an outstanding career because of the people that have been involved in it.”

While many of Kellepourey's top athletes went on to have college football careers -- Jarrel Woods, Brandon Carnegie, Matt Gorman and Kevin Cislo, just to name a few -- some were prompted to other careers thanks to his guidance.

Brent Pantaleo's football career ended before his senior season even started. A bruise to his leg led doctors to find the cancer that was attacking his bones. Pantaleo -- who played a single down his senior year with a catch against the Northville Mustangs in 2004 during the Baseline Jug game -- said that it's because of Kellepourey that he discovered an interest that led to his current career.

“Coach Kellepourey was a great coach and mentor off the field,” said Pantaleo. “He allowed me to keep an active role with the team editing video following my career-ending condition, which spurred my interest in football video and ultimately led to working with college football programs such as the University of Michigan, and the University of Arizona, where I work today.”

STILL A SURPRISE

The news of Kellepourey's departure came as a surprise to many people. Even Curt Ellis, Novi's athletic director since 2001, was surprised to hear the news despite indications throughout the years that Kellepourey could see the light at the end of his coaching tunnel.

“Tab has spoken to me regularly for the past few seasons about the fact that he was closer to the end of his tenure here than he was to the beginning,” Ellis said. “That being said, hearing that he was resigning at the conclusion of this season was still a bit of a surprise to me.”

Filling Kellepourey's shoes will not be an easy task. He brings attributes to the field that many coaches just do not typically possess.

“He has been a steady force on this program and has been innovative along the way,” said Burnside. “Novi may never have the biggest players but they have always played with grit and passion which is how Coach Tab coaches. He constantly has put kids in the right situation to succeed, which I think is the most important attribute of a great coach.”

Ellis said that the goal at this point it to post the position over the course of the next couple of weeks with a plan to have a new coach appointed by January 1, 2010.

“Given the fact that Novi High School has only gone through this transition once before, it is very important that we find the best combination of vision, passion, leadership, commitment, communication skills and football knowledge possible,” said Ellis. “To achieve that goal, we will look at both internal and external candidates.”

Sam Eggleston is a freelance writer and former staff sports writer for the Northville Record and Novi News.