By Keith Dunlap
The Oakland Press of Pontiac
FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. (AP) -- The 2-6 record may indicate otherwise, but around North Farmington, or anyone else who knows the situation with head coach Todd Schultz, this year probably feels like the best coaching job in his seven seasons at the helm.
While there may not have been the amount of wins this year the Raiders would like, the players probably can't imagine a year where they'll get more life lessons in commitment, courage, perseverance, or how to stay strong in the face of adversity.
The reason? Because Schultz right now is a real-life example of all those life lessons coaches and teachers live to teach their players and students.
Everybody sees Schultz and what he's dealing with, and they see just how real and important those life virtues are.
"Just knowing that he's going through all this and still wants to be on the field for us," North Farmington senior quarterback Zach Washington said. "It's a big thing to us. He could be anywhere recovering, but he wants to be recovering with us."
As for what's ailing the 45-year-old Schultz, it all started back in August when he went in to a doctor's office to get treatment for back problems.
It was the first week of practice for high school football teams around the state back in August, and Schultz went to try and get those back issues ironed out.
Unfortunately, it became a situation where his problems extended beyond his back.
While getting a check-up, doctors found a tumor on Schultz's spine that was 16 centimeters long on the posterior side and eight centimeters long on the anterior side.
This bit of news was discovered on a Thursday, during the first week of practice.
Days later, it got worse.
On Monday of the following week, Schultz found out the tumor on his spine was malignant. He thought it was benign.
"I got that call between the first and second sessions of doubles," said Schultz, who recalled the origins of his battle in the living room of his home. "It hits you. It hits you pretty hard."
The news got worse the next day when following a CAT Scan, Schultz was informed there were three additional tumors found that were located on his sternum, his kidney and his duodenum, which is near the upper intestine.
The official diagnosis for Schultz was that he had non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Because of the amount of tumors he had, the cancer was ruled Stage IV, the highest someone can have.
"That was probably the hardest point," Schultz said. "Just hearing the news and it was all bad news."
The one solace was that the grades of the tumors were at the lowest level, Grade 1, meaning they were slow-growing.
On a Tuesday, during the second week of practice, Schultz delivered the somber news to his wife, Chris, and then sat down at dinner that evening to tell his three children, 11-year-old Jack, and 7-year-old twin girls Allison and Sydney, before being admitted to Beaumont Hospital that night.
"For my kids, we used the word lymphoma and used the word medical treatments and left it at that," Schultz said. "We didn't use the word cancer or chemo. But then my son picked up on it when he came to visit in the hospital and asked if lymphoma was a type of cancer. My girls who are 7, their biggest thing was, 'Oh, you're going to lose your hair. You're not going to have hair on my birthday or Christmas."
Once the diagnosis was given, the process of getting Schultz the treatment he needed was set in motion.
Dr. Sean Matuszak is a former player and 1998 graduate of North Farmington and current orthopedic surgeon at Beaumont, who guided Schultz through the process and arranged to meet the doctors he needed to see.
A schedule was set up where Schultz would receive chemotherapy treatments on Fridays for six to eight weeks, with the sessions lasting seven hours.
The first Friday Schultz was in the hospital was the date of North Farmington's four-way scrimmage, but Schultz obviously couldn't attend.
Instead, his assistants brought the game film of the scrimmage to him in the hospital that night.
"We were watching film as I was getting my first chemo treatment in the hospital," Schultz said. "I wanted to be as normal as possible."
Through it all, nothing was going to prevent him from doing that.
Schultz got out of the hospital in time to run a practice on Saturday morning of the second week of practice, the day following the four-way scrimmage.
Afterward, he called the entire team into his classroom to inform them of the news.
"I told them everything of what was going on," Schultz said. "I said, 'Hey, as you can see, we had a normal practice.' Everything was the same and that's the way it's going to be. Everything is just a side note of what's going on this season."
There was never any doubt to Schultz that he was going to still coach and teach. He teaches two classes at Farmington High School during the morning and two afternoon classes at North Farmington before going to coach.
Schultz said he doesn't feel his best in the morning, so he has a full-time substitute for his morning classes at Farmington.
He still has taught the afternoon classes at North Farmington and has still coached the football team with the exception of a recent eight-day stretch.
Schultz came down with meningitis and had to stay eight days in the hospital, missing the Week 7 game against Auburn Hills Avondale.
Schultz hasn't taught since contracting the meningitis, but hopes to return to the classroom soon.
Other than that, Schultz has still overseen his players and students on the field and in the classroom despite his illness.
The reasons why he wanted to stay were obvious.
It was a perfect way to illustrate the life lessons he annually tries to teach his kids, and Schultz used Matuszak as an example.
"He's a perfect example of giving back to the community and the character we try and build with people," Schultz said. "He is so busy, but he stepped up. Every free moment he had he came to the room and visited. The kids are attentive. They understand what's going on and they appreciate it. They understand that football is a great thing in life, but there are other things going on in life you have to address too. They've been great."
Continuing to coach and teach is also great medicine for his fight against cancer because it's not only a great outlet, but it allows him to keep doing what he's spent his whole life doing.
In essence, the kids keep him going.
Schultz said after his chemotherapy treatments end on Fridays, Chris picks him up and drives him to games so he can coach.
"Family, being with kids in the classroom, and football are my biggest passions," he said. "Just having that as a normal part and realizing that life goes on. You have this, but you can still continue do to do what you love to do. That's a motivating factor."
Schultz has had the usual side effects from his chemotherapy treatments, with all his hair falling out being the most noticeable.
Asked what his prognosis is and what the odds of him beating cancer are, and he doesn't hesitate to respond.
"It's 100 percent," he said. "There's no doubt in my mind that's what I'll do."
The players and North Farmington community have rallied around Schultz.
Washington said some players have shaved their heads as a tribute to their coach. On the mantle above the fireplace in Schultz's home sit two get-well cards from parents and other community members.
The cheerleading squad at the school came over and wrote inspirational messages to him on his driveway in chalk.
During water breaks at practice or when Schultz gets treatment, players are constantly asking how he's doing.
"I get a plethora of e-mails and text messages from current players or former players and phone calls," Schultz said. "It's been overwhelming and quite humbling."
The best news of all is that the recovery seems to be going as well as can be expected.
"My body is doing great and has reacted well," he said. "The tumors have shrunk quite a bit. The one behind my sternum is down 88 percent. The one behind my (duodenum) is down 47 percent. The one behind my kidney is down 37 percent. The chemo is doing its job."
Schultz said he's been fortunate to have exceptional health insurance through the process, and has praised the school district for giving him the time and tools needed to win his fight.
Schultz said there hasn't been a history of cancer in his family, but now that he's facing the disease full-throttle, he's going to use his fight to try and better the lives of others going through the same struggle.
"I'm sharing everything with everybody," he said. "I'm in a position that I can share it and I can get the word out. There's a lot of people dealing with all different types of cancers. Just to get support for all those people and for research."
People can now probably fully understand why this fall has been the best coaching job Schultz has ever done.
Published: Wed, Nov 3, 2010
