As a lifelong Aurora high school sports fan, and also as a reporter covering those sports for many years, I recall that the town had a “golden age” of sorts for school football in the 1950s and 1960s. Basketball began to steal the show in the 1970s and 1980s, but football experienced a rebirth i n the 1990s and 2000s. This was especially true in Aurora’s religious high schools. Notable coaches during these times were Paul Murphy and Dan Thorpe of Marmion Academy, Don Beebe of Aurora Christian and Mike Curry of Aurora Central Catholic. I’ve had many interviews with Murphy, Thorpe and Beebe over the years, but only recently met up with Curry to discuss his amazing career as a head coach. His many accomplishments include state championships, conference titles, many winning seasons and membership in two halls of fame. Curry initially objected to talking about himself, but I persisted and reminded him that, in my opinion, he is among the greats of Aurora’s many fine coaches. He graduated from Aquin High School in Freeport, and played football and ran track there. He then graduated from Loras College in 1974, but admitted that the idea of coaching started in his mind during the high school years. That same year, he began as a middle school teacher and lower level football coach back at Aquin, and ascended to become its head coach in 1978 at the age of 28. The Aquin Bulldogs were successful under Curry’s leadership almost immediately. During his nine years as head coach, Aquin made the state Class 1A playoffs four times, and became state champs in that class in 1981 and again in 1986. The school had a record of 68-26 during those nine years. “The kids came out and we had great talent,” Curry said of his Aquin years. “We had decent numbers for a 1A school, and we had excellent speed — a lot of speed for a small school.” Curry resigned there in 1987, and began to look for a new position, possibly in a bigger IHSA class school. Aurora Central Catholic, then a Class 3A school, hired Curry in the summer of 1987 as a teacher, head football coach and assistant track coach. His family – wife Liane and their four young children – made the move rather quickly before the start of the school year. I asked Curry for some memories of first coming to ACC. “Basketball and baseball were the big sports at ACC then, but the school supported us in football,” he said. “We had to blend in with those successful programs.” The football program blended very well and, as had happened in Freeport, successful seasons started almost right away. During the football seasons from 1988-1997, the Aurora Central Chargers made the state playoffs seven different times, advancing to the “Final Four” in 1991. Until ACC opened its new campus in 1995, the school was still in its old Root Street building with its field still on Farnsworth Avenue — a medium difficult situation. “Football became popular and exciting during those years,” Curry said. “It was fun to get up and go to work. We had good kids, good coaches and supportive parents. We had talented players, and more of them.” His successful coaching philosophy remained the same over the years. “I always believed that passing the ball was a lot easier than running it with small linemen,” Curry said. “I thought that you beat teams by using quickness, agility and speed, and adjusting your line according to your personnel.” Although ACC’s last trip to the state football playoffs was in 1997, Curry remained as its head coach until 2009, and as a teacher at the school until 2019. He served as athletic director during two different stints, and also as head of the Social Studies Department. He is a member of the ACC Hall of Fame, and was inducted into the Illinois Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2007. His career as a head coach spanned 32 years and included 169 victories, the second highest total of all head coaches in Aurora’s history. He also became an assistant coach at the University of St. Francis in Joliet from 2009 to 2016. He coached there with his son Joe, who now serves as head coach at that school. Mike Curry also spoke of his wife Liane’s support during his long career. “She was always supportive. It was hard when dad was gone a lot and got home late a lot,” he said. “My wife took care of everything and also worked. I couldn’t have done it without her loyalty. She shares in my success as a coach.” I asked Coach Curry if he had a final thought as he looked back over 45 years as an educator. “I loved my job and couldn’t wait to get to school,” he said. “I loved it and I loved teaching — I loved the kids.” Tom Strong is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News. ...read more read less