New Mac grid coach is fired up

By PEDRO VELAZCO
Tribune sportswriter

March 11, 2009 10:51 pm

— Mark Hartman’s commute to work will be trimmed radically next school year. That’s just icing on the cake, because what’s really got the Grant County resident excited is his new job as Maconaquah’s football coach.
“I’m looking so forward to it,” said Hartman, who was an assistant and teacher at Warren Central this past season and is Warren Township’s middle school alternative special education teacher. “I’m looking forward to getting back in the area. The [Mid-Indiana Conference] is a great conference with a lot of history. I’m really looking forward to digging my feet in and getting to work there.”
Hartman’s hire was approved by the Maconaquah school board Wednesday. He takes over for Bob Freije, who resigned at the end of last season. The Braves were 1-9 in 2008.
At Maconaquah, Hartman sees a world of potential.
“I’ve always seen Maconaquah as one of those schools that, it’s always been a diamond in the rough,” Hartman said. “Looking at the conference, Maconaquah basically has those same kids. There’s definitely some things that need to be addressed in the weight room, skill development. The previous staff has done a wonderful job of bringing the feeder program along and that’s definitely something I want to continue.”
Hartman, an Indiana Wesleyan graduate, holds a teaching license in physical education and is working toward a license in special education at Ball State. Prior to going to Warren Central, he was an assistant for eight years at Marion, and was an assistant for five years, then head coach for two seasons at Madison-Grant in the 1998 and 1999 seasons. His first assistant post was at Wabash.
His long résumé impressed Maconaquah athletic director John Off.
“[Hartman] stood out from a group of quality candidates that was hard to narrow down,” Off said. “But we like him from an all-around standpoint. He has great leadership skills, is an outstanding teacher and is very driven and organized. Over the last nine years, he’s coached in quality programs and had a great deal of responsibility in both.
“We’re pretty excited having him. He wants us to integrate our football program from the bottom up. He wants the same ideology and terminology and way of running practice. He plans on meeting the players Friday and spending some of his spring break up here getting more acquainted.”
At Warren Central, Hartman served as running backs coach. In discussing his preferred style, he said he likes a balanced approach to offense.
“We’re going to open it up a little bit more,” he said. “I told them in my interview, I’m not a wing-T guy and that’s what they’ve kind of stuck to [in 2008]. Not that we’re going to go out there and fling the ball all over the place, but we’re going to have a balanced attack, and we’re going to have an aggressive defense.
“I’m not looking so much into wins and losses, but skill development and doing things right. Once we do that, the other things will take care of themselves.”
He hopes to get started soon.
“I’m just very excited for this opportunity,” Hartman said. “We’re ready to start, prior to spring break, meeting with the kids and begin lifting in the weight room and seeing what we need to work on.”