On Wednesday night, at the Democratic National Convention (DNC), former players from the Mankato West High School football team highlighted their support for their ex-coach, Minnesota Gov.
Tim Walz, as he accepted the Democratic nomination for vice president. This spotlight on Walz’s coaching achievements, particularly his transformation of a struggling team into state champions, sparked a flurry of reactions on social media.
During her speech on the third night of the DNC, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., highlighted, ‘In Minnesota, we have faith in a coach who transformed a team with a 0-27 record into state champions.
Ben Ingman, a former student of Walz who was coached by him in seventh-grade basketball and track at Mankato, expressed similar feelings.
‘Coach Walz ignited our enthusiasm for what we could accomplish as a team. He had faith in us, which in turn helped us trust each other. His leadership left a lasting impact.
That track team went on to win a state championship, just like the football team did.’
Several players then took the stage in a lively pep rally style, drawing cheers from the audience as the school’s fight song played in the background.
However, some social media users were quick to note that Walz served only as an assistant coach during his time at Mankato.
One post on X questioned, ‘Amy Klobuchar introduces Timothy Walz as a coach who ‘turned’ a team ‘into state champions.’ He was NEVER a head coach and didn’t ‘turn’ anyone into state champions.’
Richard Grenell, former U.S. ambassador to Germany, tweeted, ‘He was the Assistant Coach, not the Coach.’
Another user expressed confusion, stating, ‘I’m still puzzled why they keep emphasizing ‘Coach Walz’ from years ago when he was just a volunteer assistant. Why not focus on his governorship instead? It’s odd.
Walz was on the Mankato faculty from 1996 to 2006, during which he held roles as the Scarlets’ linebackers coach and defensive coordinator until 2002. Under the leadership of head coach Rick Sutton, the school achieved its first state championship in 1999.
He was honored with an induction into the high school’s Hall of Fame in 2019.
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