Nicholas Pietrzycki is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Arcadia High School.

PHOENIX — Before walkthrough on Sept. 30, Arcadia Titans head coach Ray Brown went up into the press box with sophomore defensive lineman Khary Beehler to play the team’s favorite music. This set the tone for a fun, but work-filled walkthrough, which even included an assistant coach hitting "The Griddy" dance. The former NFL player and first-year head coach addressed his team after, all players and coaches gave Brown their full attention. 

As the Arcadia Titans prepared to travel to Tucson to take on Pueblo High School on Friday Oct. 1, players and coaches were calm and relaxed during their Thursday night walk-throughs. 

Brown replaced former head coach Vance Miller in June. Miller was relieved of his duties after one season as the Titans’ head coach, in which the Titans went 1-7.

Multiple players wanted to quit during last season, and some players even left the program altogether, according to junior defensive back Jamier Canada. One player even noting that he didn't believe Miller knew his name.

“Last year our other coach [Miller] favored players,” Canada said, “If you weren’t a senior you weren’t playing.” 

But in just three months, Brown has turned the attitude of the Arcadia football team in the right direction. After Miller's departure, Brown took over a program that had gone 15-33 since making the playoffs in 2015 and immediately began building, a word he used to describe his team and his attitude towards the program. Telling his players that they need to “build a foundation” before doing anything else in the post walkthrough huddle. 

“I’m going to be kind, I’m going to be fair and I’m going to care about you,” Brown said. 

Brown has conversations with every player on the Titans’ roster daily, and he makes them feel welcomed and safe, according to multiple players. One player that feels especially welcomed by Brown is junior wide receiver Damian Jachnik, a transfer student from Frankfurt, Germany who has been on the team for less than two months.

“He talks to every player like his own son, and that means a lot to me,” Jachnik said. 

Brown understands that football is different from when he played and wants to “effectively communicate” with his players. And Brown has done a "tremendous job" of adapting and understanding every player on the roster, according to assistant coach Grant Sanders.

“He [Brown] just understands them,” Sanders said. 

Sanders and Brown were two of three coaches who were not fired from the Titans' 2020 staff. A complete overhaul for the Titans, and a breath of fresh air for Sanders. When the team is in film sessions, no one takes their eyes off the screen or off of Brown, according to Sanders.

“He [Brown] has a way with words,” Sanders said. 

A challenge that tormented the Titans last year was academic eligibility. Multiple football players were academically ineligible to play when Brown took over in June. Brown and multiple other faculty members have tried different methods to help students in the classroom this year. Study halls during and after school, where players can help each other, have been a big factor in keeping more Titans academically eligible, according to Brown. 

“Whatever we do out here in high school football, it has to impact academics,” Brown said. “Our success is not just on the football field.”

Brown believes in winning the little battles, and winning the little battles such as getting his players academically eligible makes the macho ex-NFL player get a little ‘tickle’ inside. 

A balance of discipline and freedom has been a relief for multiple players. Many players used that freedom to play catch with each other on the field after practice, and some even got extra coaching in preparation for Friday’s game. 

“We want them to be around here,” Brown said.

Whether it is by talking or by bringing in breakfast sandwiches and doughnuts during Saturday’s tape session, or standing outside after home games and making sure his players are getting home safe, Brown’s approach to his team has been exactly what Arcadia has needed, according to multiple players. And for Brown, it is nothing more than mirroring his previous coaches. Some of Brown’s former coaches at the NFL level include George Seifert, Steve Mariucci and Hall of Famer Joe Gibbs. 

“I have been coached by some really good coaches and been influenced by some really good people," Brown said. "At the end of the day I’m just mimicking what they told me."