Uebelhardt Gene Uebelhardt as head coach of the Simi Valley High football team? It nearly happened many years back, but more on that later.

Uebelhardt recently decided to retire from coaching the Royal football team after 21 years of service. The head coach won 106 games and two Marmonte League titles. Uebelhardt will remain at the school as a kinesiology teacher and a strength and conditioning coach.

On Monday, the Simi Valley Acorn met up with Uebelhardt to reflect on his coaching career. Here's what he said:

Q) Your first coaching job was at Santa Clara in Oxnard working with Lou Cvijanovich, a member of the National High School Hall of Fame and the owner of 1,091 career wins in football, basketball and baseball. What was it like working with him?

A) Awesome. He might be the best high school coach the country has ever seen. He taught me to always do the right thing, regardless of what other people say. He was my role model and my mentor in coaching.

Q) When you were part of the 1971 CLU football team that won an NAIA Division II national championship, your roommate on the road was Rod Marinelli, the Detroit Lions' former head coach that failed to win a game before getting fired. How difficult was it for you to see him go through what he did this season?

A) I thought (Marinelli) made a real good statement during the season when he said, "You know what, a lot of people are going through things worse than I am right now."

Knowing Rod, I know he was a man that was in the jungles of Vietnam facing death with a wife and a child back home. So, in terms of facing adversity, the season was nothing for him.

Q) Do you have a favorite team that you coached at Royal?

A) I've had 21 teams, so it's tough to answer that one. But I'll say the 1991 team that won the first Marmonte League championship for Royal High was special. From the first time they stepped on the field, you just knew they were going to win. They looked like a college football team, not a high school team.

Q) Do you have a favorite player you coached?

A) I have a lot of favorite players. John Thomas said I had a big influence on his life, and before his wedding he actually asked me to be his best man. I told him I couldn't because there was no way my wife would let me go to the bachelor party.

Jason Wendland is another one. During 9/11 he was working right across the street from the towers and called me to tell me he was okay, and for me to call his parents.

Q) How have things changed over the years in high school football with area private schools such as St. Bonaventure and Oaks Christian getting a huge portion of the local football talent?

A) Well, you have to remember, I coached at a private school at Santa Clara, so I know what it's like on the other side. I believe animosity is often brought up because you have to compete against those teams.

Q) What can be done to rectify the situation?

A) Well, there are smarter people than me working on that situation daily. My belief, however, is those teams should be playing in a league that is on an even keel with them. They should be playing those Valley Catholic schools, such as Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks and Crespi.

Q) You used to be a history teacher at Royal, and you remain a huge history buff. When motivating your team, what historical figure do you bring up.

A) I'll use certain battles like the March of Bataan, but the figure I bring up the most is actually Tiger Woods. He's the most mentally tough person I've ever seen.

I don't separate other sports from ours. I'm just a fan of people who do things well. That's why I'll often go to watch our high school plays and other sports.

Q) You live in Moorpark. Did people around the neighborhood ever bother you the week Royal played Moorpark?

A) No, there was no animosity, ever. My sons grew up playing youth leagues in the neighborhood, so I've known a lot of the Moorpark players since they were little kids. Also, Moorpark's head coach (Tim Lins) and athletic director (Rob Dearborn) both played for me at CLU, so their kids know better.

Q) After college, you nearly became a fireman. Ever wonder how your life would have turned out had you followed that path?

A) You know, I have been thinking about that lately. I was real close. I had taken the test and had been given my tower time. But I needed only a month more to finish college, and there was no way I wasn't going to finish.

Q) Now stay with me on this one. How would your life be different now if you'd coached the last 21 years at Simi Valley?

A) You know, I actually interviewed for the job in 1975. Cliff Farrar, who's now at Buena, was the offensive coordinator at the time and told me I should give the school a shot. But they didn't hire me, and I've had a grudge ever since!

It wouldn't have been any different with the players, though. Royal kids are the same as Simi kids—they're both great. I think the main difference would have been consistency. Simi Valley has had about six or seven coaches in the last 21 years; Royal's had one.

— Thomas Gase