Led by Barnes, SU takes Christian presence onto field -- By Craig Juer (Daily Staff Writer)
WINCHESTER — When Shenandoah lost 30-0 to North Carolina Wesleyan two weeks ago, football coach Paul Barnes was so upset that he didn't address his players after the game.
He didn't scold them, encourage them, berate them or sympathize with them. But he did do what he always does after a game, win or lose, rain or shine: He prayed with them.
Before and after every practice and game, the Hornets kneel and say the Lord's Prayer. As soon as Barnes, in the center of the huddle, utters the words, "Our father," those who are willing add their voices, as they will before this afternoon's game at Maryville.
"They may not believe in the Lord's Prayer, but I expect them to take a knee and say a prayer to somebody," Barnes said earlier this week. "Or, if they don't say a prayer to anybody, that's their prerogative. But I will expect them to bow their head."
Barnes, who was raised Catholic but married into the Lutheran Church and now attends Lutheran services, said one of the tasks he gives himself is to expose young men to faith and let them decide whether or not to accept it.
"I will not push my beliefs — Christian beliefs — down on anybody," he said. "I just try to live that life so if anybody says, 'Hey, coach, I'd like to explore the Christian aspect,' I can talk to him about that."
Junior defensive tackle Dallas Pryor said he didn't know the university had an affiliation with the United Methodist Church until he enrolled.
"I wasn't even really familiar myself with the Lord's Prayer," he said. "And then I learned it, and now I recite it every day at practice amongst my teammates."
For Pryor, the surprise was a welcome one, offering reassurance to him as he played a dangerous sport against ruthless opponents.
"I definitely like it," he said. "It feels like there's a layer of comfort that falls over me, just praying to my savior. He's just dropping a level of comfort over me, saying that, 'I'm going to protect you and your brothers as you guys play and participate on the field of battle. You have nothing to worry about — I'm assuring you of that.'"
Many of Shenandoah's players are religiously active. Senior linebacker Mike Guerra said he and senior cornerback Justin Mosser, among others, attend church regularly. Senior safety Clive Williams hosts a Bible study session every Wednesday night; sometimes, more than a dozen players attend. Junior linebacker Wes Fry and others are members of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. The team says grace before every pregame meal.
But it's not for everyone.
"You can always see that some players aren't really comfortable with [the Lord's Prayer], or aren't used to it, because they haven't done it in high school or it hasn't really been a routine in their life," Guerra said. "If you don't have that belief, you can always keep quiet [during prayer] and say whatever you want [and] think whatever you want."
Freshman tight end Mohamed Salih is a Muslim but doesn't object to saying the Christian prayer, his teammates said.
"I talked to Mo the other day about the Quran because I had to do a project on Malcolm X," senior defensive end Terrence Powell said. "He doesn't have any problems with [the prayer] because the Quran and the Bible kind of go hand-in-hand with some of their teachings."
Barnes said he was startled a few years ago when he provided ham sandwiches for the team to eat on a road trip. Center Said Aziz, a Muslim, said he couldn't eat pork, which is prohibited by the tenants of his faith.
It wasn't the only time Aziz taught Barnes something about Islam.
"He goes, 'Coach, I'm fasting now because it's Ramadan,'" Barnes recalled. "And I had to respect that."
Aziz, now an assistant football coach at Stafford High School, said the Shenandoah staff was accommodating to his religious needs.
"Give credit to coach [Walter] Barr and coach Barnes," Aziz said. "They always went out of their way to give me a sandwich with no pork in it."
Aziz added that saying the Lord's Prayer, which his own team at Stafford recites before and after every game, appealed to him as a religious young man.
"To me, a prayer is a prayer," he said. "I think it's a great thing. God is God. Having some kind of faith is better than no kind of faith."
Senior running back Brandon Lacey recites the prayer with his teammates because he believes it keeps him safe.
"I don't want to go out there, collide with somebody and get hurt when I could have prevented that by easily just saying a prayer before my game," he said.
Powell said he owes it to his creator to express gratitude.
"I think [players in] every sport should say the Lord's Prayer, thanking God for letting you be out there and compete," he said. "Not everybody can do it."
With Shenandoah's struggles the past two years — including this season's 2-6 record this year with two games left — Barnes said it's tempting to turn to his faith for answers.
"Sometimes you look in the book and read it a little more intently when you're going through it more than if you're on the winning edge, but I think that's the wrong way to approach it," he said. "He only gives you what you can handle. And he knows I can handle this, and he'll give me the strength to handle it. And we'll find our way out of this."
Senior quarterback Blake Derby, who attended a Catholic high school and is more likely to say a Hail Mary than throw one in Shenandoah's Wing-T offense, said Barnes' faith is obvious but not aggressive.
"He's a very religious man, but that doesn't affect us as a team at all," Derby said. "He's going to tell us how he views things and everything like that, and the religious aspect is going to influence everything he says, but it's not like he's forcing anything upon us."
Barnes said he's careful to give his players ample opportunity to discover Christianity without turning them off to it.
"If you force-feed it to them, they'll go the other way," he said. "College guys go, 'Hey, maybe it's not for me right now.' Well maybe it isn't, but it will be. It wasn't for me in college — I understand that."
Barnes said his priorities are God, his family and football — in that order. Exhibiting Christian behavior and making himself available to young men who might be in need of faith are part of his mission as a football coach.
"I truly believe I was placed to be the head coach at Shenandoah University," he said. "I think the good Lord wanted me to coach here. So many things happened in my life to get here that were unpredictable.
"One of my philosophies is, I try to put a smile on everybody's face that I meet. I want to go to heaven and take as many people with me as I possibly can."
* Contact Craig Juer at cjuer@nvdaily.com
Shenandoah at Maryville
When: Today
Time: 1:30 p.m.
Where: Lloyd L. Thornton Stadium (3,000), Maryville, Tenn.
Records: Shenandoah 2-6 (1-4 USA South), Maryville 4-4 (3-2)
