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High school football is one of the most well-known stepping stones for players, a time when coaches help shape the athlete. In former Neumann-Goretti head coach Bill Sytsma’s case, he was the one making the big leaps from the high school arena.
Sytsma, with the school since 2004, the year St. John Neumann and St. Maria Goretti combined, spent five years teaching the Saints football and lacrosse. He’s now semi-pro with the Philadelphia Liberty Belles, a team in the Women’s Football Alliance, and Sytsma is happy with his latest head coaching duties.
"Part of the reason I stepped down from Neumann-Goretti was that I was burned out and losing energy," he said. "This was like my Waterloo for football; if it didn’t work out, I don’t know what I would do."
The Northeast resident began his gridiron career as a player for North Catholic High and, as a graduate, scouted for Frankford High. After coaching at North Catholic for two years, Sytsma made the move to Neumann-Goretti, 10th and Moore streets, where he joined the newly formed Saints.
Even though not originally from South Philly, Sytsma considers himself "adopted by the area," but saw the opportunity for growth and change.
"Toward the end of the [’07-08] season, around Thanksgiving, I got information about a new team looking for a head coach," he said. "I sent an e-mail to get more information and what they were looking for. So the general managers got back to me and I became the head coach of the Liberty Belles."
His new gig shares many of the same features of the male-dominated game he taught for so long.
"Everything is the same," Sytsma said. "Our rules are the same with three exceptions: the size of the football, we kick from the 35-yard line and one foot is in bounds. Other than that, it’s full tackle, full equipment."
Although there are slight differences, Sytsma runs his squad the same way "with film study, conditioning and a complicated offensive system. There’s no dumbing anything down."
The Liberty Belles were established eight years ago, but by ’03, the organization had disbanded. Reorganized and reintroduced this year, the Liberty Belles’ first season with Sytsma proved to be a successful one, making it all the way to the National Conference championship game in Kalamazoo, Mich. The Belles faced-off against the Western Michigan Mayhem, but could not pull out a win, losing, 28-21.
Along with winning the Northeast Division title by going 8-0 during the regular season, the players have racked up a number of awards and titles in their first year, including two First Team and two Second Team All-Americans, as well as two honorable mentions
Returning to the home field at 10th and Bigler streets and looking to the start of the season in April, Sytsma is already planning the Belles’ future moves.
"We’re obviously always looking to change, since the game is constantly evolving," he said. "We’re always looking for areas to improve. We are one of top offensives in the country but we want to improve."
