mike McClure’s retirement plan is that he has no retirement plan.
One day might be spent correcting the wrongs in his golf game or attempting to build something of use. Others could dedicated to long car rides with wife, Teresa, to visit one of the couple’s two daughters — both of whom live out of state.
Whatever the case, McClure, whose last day as Franklin’s assistant athletics director is June 11, can’t wait.
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“I’m looking forward to doing new things, not just doing nothing,” said McClure, 66. “Obviously, we’re going to go visit the (seven) grandkids a lot and see our daughters. I think when you retire it’s an exciting time, because I’m going to be doing different things.
“For a long time I could tell you what I’m going to do. I’m going to be here at 7:30 (a.m.), I’m going to go to this basketball game. Now I have more options.”
McClure told Franklin athletics director Bill Doty during the 2017-18 school year that this school year was likely to be his last. Teresa McClure, former director of the Franklin Boys & Girls Club, retired in January 2018.
“We have grandkids in places that are kind of far. One daughter is in Charlotte, North Carolina, and one is in Sheboygan, Wisconsin,” McClure said. “It just seemed like a good time, and it’s a good time to do something different.”
McClure’s two tenures at FCHS span a total of 20 years.
The 1971 Griffith High School graduate first worked six years (1975-81) at Franklin as a teacher and assistant football and track coach.
He used that experience as a springboard to football head coaching jobs at Morristown (1981), Franklin College (1989-97), South Bend Adams (1998-2001) and Elkhart Central (2002-04) before returning to coach the Grizzly Cubs from 2005-08.
Grizzly Cubs wrestling coach Bob Hasseman, who has worked with five different athletics directors, says he will miss having McClure around to be a sounding board when the coach needs one most.
“Mike is a guy that I go to. He hires all the officials and does the scheduling for off-season tournaments. He’s behind the scenes doing a bunch of things,” Hasseman said. “He is one of the best football guys around. We’re both kind of old-school, and Mike is a kid-motivated kind of a guy. Just a great person.”
Succeeding McClure as assistant athletic director is current Grizzly Cubs football coach Chris Coll — who was a player at Franklin College when McClure was Red Faught’s defensive coordinator and, eventually, the Grizzlies’ head coach.
The men will work together in the weeks ahead as McClure helps Coll learn about the job.
One of the requirements of the assistant AD is to mentor Grizzly Cub coaches should they have questions about how to handle a specific situation.
“Mike has experiences in different situations at different schools in different parts of the state that are hard to duplicate,” Coll said. “At this point, it’s the people Mike knows and the relationships he has to get things done.
“He’s been a part of this community two or three different times and knows so many people.”
McClure has been an assistant for four Grizzly Cubs football coaches — Larry Trueblood, Duffy Hagist, Adam Reese and Coll. He plans to again work with Franklin’s quarterbacks before and during the 2019 season.
“It kind of keeps me involved,” McClure said. “Even though it’s time-consuming, it’s not like having a real job. For me, football is very, very, very enjoyable, so I’m still not quite ready to hang up the whistle, so to speak.
“I’ve done a lot of different things. I don’t regret any of them. Some are more successful than others, but it’s really been a great adventure. I’ve never been afraid to take a chance and move, but it’s been fun.”
Unlike others his age, McClure isn’t counting down the days until retirement. He claims to be clueless as to an exact number. McClure enjoys coming to work, the autumn walks to the Franklin football stadium for practices and conversing daily with Doty, Franklin students, Grizzly Cub coaches and others.
Doty perhaps has the best grasp of what the Franklin athletic department is losing.
“Mike is good at his job, first of all. He knows what he’s doing from a logistical standpoint getting referees, scheduling event workers … I mean, he can do all that,” Doty said. “But he knows coaches, he knows how to read people and knows what’s happening in the athletic world.
“This job can get you down. It’s stressful at times and just a busy rat race, and if you can’t have fun in this job, it will eat you up. That’s one of the things Mike brings, a fun atmosphere to it.”
