Now this is the law of the jungle, as old and as true as the sky,
And the wolf that shall keep it may prosper, but the wolf that break it must die-
As the creeper girdles the tree trunk, the law runneth forward and back;
For the strength of the pack is the wolf and the strength of the wolf is the pack-
Because of his age and his cunning, because of his gripe and his paw,
In all that the law leaveth open the word of the head wolf is law-
"The Law for the Wolves": Rudyard Kipling, c.1890
Thirteen miles outside of Vale, in a small town in Eastern Oregon, a pair of hard-working and loving parents raised three boys and taught them to take life head-on.
Arne Ferguson, head coach of the Western football program, was the youngest of the three brothers and filled his time away from school working with his older siblings on his parents' ranch. Both his father and his mother valued hard work, perseverance, and above all, academic prowess.
Anything ranging from piano lessons to baseball, to swimming at the local aquatic center to basketball, the boys were encouraged to participate and function in society. Ferguson and his brothers worked on the farm, but were driven from event to event by their mother, who supported their involvement in numerous sports and activities. When Ferguson started high school at Vale, he was already involved in various sports, but football became a draw.
"The complexity of football wasn't like the other sports," he explained. "There was a lot more to it."
Spring ball and summer football camp in Eastern Oregon can be an arduous and daunting task: needing to wake up early so that practice can take place before the roasting midday heat takes over, then coming back in the afternoon so the sun can beat down on your head and shoulders incessantly. However, Ferguson relished the opportunity.
"Two-a-days were like a vacation, not like the work back home," he said.
Ferguson's dedication and hard work paid off, as he was successful in the three big high school sports: football, basketball and baseball. He was a teammate in the truest sense, enjoying the time spent with others-helping them, whether athletically or academically.
When high school was over, Ferguson moved on to the College of Idaho, now known as Albertson's, in Caldwell, Idaho. There he pursued a spot on the basketball team, but by his own admission, wasn't cut out for it. He transferred to Western Oregon State College, now Western Oregon University, in 1985 and played football for former two-time head coach Duke Iverson.
After his playing days ended, he became coach of Western's defensive backs and linebackers. Over the past 20 years, Ferguson has played with and worked alongside numerous men who made their way into the high school coaching ranks: Shawn Stanley, head coach at West Salem High School, Jay Minyard, head coach at McKay High School, and Shane Hendrick of Central High School in Independence.
Ferguson himself took a shot at coaching high school for a year at Silverton High in 1992; he enjoyed it, but it wasn't a career choice.
"By the time [the players] can do some of the things you ask of them, they're on their way out of the door," Ferguson explained.
Perhaps a teenage boy is not quite ready for the physiological demands that football places on his body, or he doesn't possess the level of maturity necessary to remain dedicated to football and still diligent in school. However, by the time a young man enters college, his mind and body are more developed.
This was the realization that led Ferguson back to the sidelines of McArthur Field. Ferguson made his mark by coaching the secondary, something he knew a little bit about. During his at Western, Ferguson was a behemoth of a defensive back-pounding opponents with a team-leading 65 tackles and three interceptions in 1987. In addition to his on-field tenacity, his physical presence was-and still is-imposing; standing next to him, one feels shadowed from the sun.
Equally as big is the television that dominates the northwest corner of his office; for Ferguson to stay in there to watch tape until the late hours of the night is not unheard of. The office is a meager 12-by-30-foot space, but it's adorned with enough books, binders and football paraphernalia to make it appear large and full. Additionally, if you've ever wondered what happened to all the VHS tapes in the world, evidently they're in Ferguson's office, as hundreds of them line the shelves and pile on the small conference table. A humble desk, with its back to the lone window, faces the television. Twenty or so years of blood and sweat spent pacing the halls of Old PE and the sidelines of McArthur Field are on display in this room, evidence of Ferguson's devotion to the game and to his players.
Ferguson was Western's defensive coordinator during Iverson's most recent tenure, waiting in the wings for his turn. Iverson's departure two years ago, after a heart-wrenching one-win season, left the position of head coach vacant. Ferguson stepped into the role of head coach on an interim basis in fall 2005, then took full control of the Wolves' football destiny in last spring after a 5-6 season. While he had waited nearly two decades for the chance, however, it was time well spent-teaching physical education courses at Western; helping to shape the lives of student-athletes, some of whom, in time, have come to be assistant coaches themselves; and, most importantly, caring for his family.
When Ferguson took the head coaching position, he and his wife April, along with their two sons, were living in Salem. Recently, the family has moved closer to campus.
"Working at Western is really a draw. The students here are quality individuals and the school gives students a place to expand themselves," Ferguson said, explaining that the local community is a great place to be. Following the examples he had while growing up, he notes, "My priorities are family, academics and football," certainly a sound moral compass to follow.
Within the last two years under Ferguson, the football program has undergone a profound change. This transcends the simple improvement in the wins and losses columns. Something bigger is at work. Western is known for its friendly atmosphere and small-town ways, an association that hasn't always been a draw for some potential student-athletes.
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As with any school, jocks are typified as having a particularly different set of morals than the remainder of the student body.
However, Ferguson's recruiting philosophy is based on an emphasis of looking for better-quality human beings.
"We want to find quality individuals that love football-but we're looking for athletes that make the commitment to do the right things at all times," he explained.
The idea exists that a person who is a talented athlete can be coached to be a great player, however, an athlete who lacks moral governance cannot be taught to be a decent human being.
Ferguson explained, "Not everyone can be perfect all the time, but it's something to try the best you can."
In an effort to instill camaraderie and sacrifice, Ferguson installed a program where juniors and seniors play host to freshmen during daily doubles in the summer. This two-week period of time before school starts allows the incoming freshmen to experience college life and become acclimated to the campus before the academic year begins. For the upperclassmen, this is an opportunity to influence the path of their younger brethren, showing them the hardships of responsibility coupled with the enjoyment of independence.
"The idea is to show the younger players what's going on, get them adjusted while it's easy, before school starts," Ferguson said.
Ferguson imparts his philosophy on his young charges as soon as practice begins. Daily doubles, also known as two-a-days, are likened to boot camp: they're high-stress, highly compressed periods of time in which all the athletes are put through the rigors of mid-summer heat and continuous exhaustion.
"It's a bit cliche, but a football game is best compared to war. Lives may not be at stake, but everything is on the line," Ferguson said, to strengthen the analogy.
Just like in the military, if the players aren't in the right frame of mind going into the fray, they may not come out on top. When the sun rises during two-a-days, the football players find themselves in the weight room. Every day is spent isolating a different set of muscles to make them stronger. The nights are late, filled with studying playbooks and various schemes. The daylight hours in between are filled with a gauntlet of football drills, both passive and aggressive. By the end of the experience, the team has a heightened sense of unity and community.
Ferguson's purpose for all of the hard work and diligence is multilayered.
"A lot of times people think the goal is always to win, but the real goal is to play the best we can, as a team and as an individual," he explained. "If that's good enough to win, good." Ferguson says this not to devalue wins, but with success not being measured in only in victory, it affords his athletes to search for value in greater matters: personal fortitude, self-discipline and the respect of teammates, coaches, fans and competitors.
The proof of the effectiveness of Ferguson's philosophy is on the field. Western's football players have displayed a sense of resiliency and team resolve over the past two seasons. At 5-3 this season, a level of self-respect and personal responsibility is evident.
"A lot of times conflict comes from a lack of experience, preparation and hard work," Ferguson said. "We want these guys to be excited, but they have to work for the opportunity. We want them to act like they've been there before."
Ferguson has taken Western on a whirlwind romance, improving team morale, instilling confidence in the football program, helping fill this campus with quality students who just happen to be great football players and giving the fans something to cheer about. He is the head Wolf and has laid down the law, but not put himself above his own regulations.
"This is a team, no coach or player is more important than the pack or the team," he explained. "The goal is survival and success. Football is a test of who you are. You can learn to tool a situation with a lot of hard work and perseverance."
The boy from small town Oregon, now a humble and patient man, has assembled a hard-nosed work ethic, a respectable set of values and an unmatched passion for football, all to teach his student athlete-and the rest of us-what it means to be a member of the Wolfpack.
