Mark Placey’s military roots provide driving force for Marmion’s offensive line coach

AURORA – Before taking the field and upon leaving it, Marmion offensive linemen heed a mindset that their position coach Mark Placey ingrained in them.

Click on. Click off.

“That gets us locked in to come play the game,” said Charlie Reynolds, a senior two-way tackle and team captain. “I think you can apply that to everyday life, too. Click on every morning when you get out of bed and get ready to go hit the day as hard as you can. Then once it’s time for bed, you click off.”

Placey is a retired U.S. Marine Corps major who accumulated about 3,500 hours of flight time in F-4 and F-18 fighter jets. He received numerous awards including the Marine Corps Achievement Medal with a Gold Star.

Placey also is a strong, devout, no nonsense driving force for the young men he coaches.

It starts with clicking on and off, whatever the task ahead.

“Role model of a [human] being,” Marmion coach Dan Thorpe said. “Christian man. Tough, but [has] the ability to read situations. A tough man, yet compassionate and gets the big picture of high school football.

“The kids have the utmost respect for coach. He’s hard. He’s trying to draw every ounce of talent out of every kid. He’s not going to cheat the kids. He’s not going to blow smoke. If you’re not getting it done, he’s going to let you know. But when you do a nice job, he’s the first to [say] ‘nice job, fellas.’ He’s demanding, but he respects the kids. He loves the game of football.”

Military service heavily influenced Placey’s upbringing. His father was a World War II sailor. Two uncles served in the Army during the Korean conflict.

An Elmhurst native, Placey was a two-year varsity football player at IC Catholic. He started four years at offensive guard and tackle at Millikin University. The 1980 graduate was a two-time College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin first-team selection. In 1979, Placey was named second team All-American.

Upon graduating from Millikin, Placey wasn’t done challenging himself. The Marines presented that opportunity.

“That was right around the time the whole Iran hostage [situation] had taken place. I wasn’t ready to settle down and not challenge myself and challenge myself physically,” Placey said.

Placey served in the Marines for 20 years “and 17 days in Waco,” he said with a laugh. His deployments included Bosnia, Serbia and the Panama Canal.

Placey earned distinct honors including the Joint Services Commendation medal, Air Medal with Strike Flight Numeral 4, Single Mission Air Medal with Combat V for valor and a Marine Corps Commendation medal and Marine Corps Achievement Medal with a Gold Star.

“That numeral, for every 20 missions that I flew in Bosnia, they give you a strike flight. So I didn’t get five because I think I flew 93 to 96. I was just shy,” Placey said.

“I’m very, very proud of the friends and acquaintances that I made in the Marine Corps. Many of them – sometimes Marines are considered to be neanderthals – but I went into the Marine Corps with individuals that graduated from Ivy League schools. I knew a couple of astronauts. Gen. [John F. Kelly, former President Donald Trump’s Chief of Staff], I met him a couple of times. Just brilliant, brilliant people.”

Upon retiring from the Marines, Placey piloted commercial flights for American Airlines for close to a decade. He also juggled an assistant football coaching job at Montini, where he helped win three state titles.

Placey has coached the Marmion offensive line for the past four seasons.

“The best part for me about coaching is when they start to recognize the technique and the situation,” Placey said. “You can almost see the lightbulb coming on. It takes awhile. Both offenses and defenses that are run today are far more complicated than what I played against in college. When they start to do it, when it comes together, [they] suddenly start feeling good about themselves. They’re making their own corrections. That’s the satisfaction I get.”

“He means a lot to me. He coaches me very hard every day and he doesn’t take any excuses,” Reynolds said. “He just pushes me to be my best on and off the field.”

Placey also assists the We Defy Foundation, a program that assists combat veterans with disabilities through scholarships for Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Placey has trained for 2½ years.

Before finishing a 22-minute conversation, Placey asked the Kane County Chronicle to include the following final thoughts:

“Here’s something that I would just ask your readers to [remember],” Placey said. “The American military has come in and out of favor with American citizens throughout the history of this nation. Remember that the decisions are made by politicians and it is up to the service members to support those decisions, whether they personally agree with them or not.”

Placey paused briefly before continuing.

“You know what? If they’ve got nothing better to do, a couple of dollars in their pocket and they see a sailor coming out of bootcamp at O’Hare or a soldier or that one or two Marine, buy them a cup of coffee. Just say ‘thanks,’ ” Placey said. “They won’t realize – particularly with Marines because we tend to be a little bit distant at times – they won’t understand how much those young people appreciate that. That would be the takeaway from this.”

Upon leaving the football field at the conclusion of practice, each Marmion offensive linemen gave fist-bumps to coach Placey.

In other words, clicking off.

Until next time.