MISD Football Coach Keeps Hope as Cancer Returns

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Fear, anger and everything in between describe the feelings Daniel Maberry experienced during the past several months.

The emotional journey began in January when the Mansfield High School head football coach went to the doctor after experiencing a burning sensation in his legs and arms. He said he figured the doctor would simply prescribe him something for the pain but was stunned at the diagnosis.

“They did all sorts of tests. They did a bone marrow biopsy, and that’s when they discovered cancer,” he explained.

Maberry said it was difficult telling his family and his football team about his late-stage lymphoma, but he wanted his message to be that he will keep strong and keep on fighting.

After rounds of chemotherapy and before the start of the football season, the doctors told him that his cancer was in remission. He said the cancer was no longer in his marrow and was not visible in tests, but something didn’t feel right.

His uneasy feeling was confirmed five weeks into the football season. The coach noticed a lump on his side and checked into the emergency room. Through a CT scan, doctors found a two-inch cancer mass.

“Cancer a lot of times takes so much away from you,” he recalled about the cancer returning. “I wasn’t able to be at football games. I wasn’t able to be around the kids at school. I’m not able, necessarily, to play with my girls like I want to. So from that aspect, anger was probably the emotion that I dealt with the most; but at the same time, I’ve had a peace about it.”

Lime green and "Maberry Strong" gear popped up throughout
the community after news of Maberry's diagnosis.

The treatment for Maberry’s cancer is more aggressive this time around because doctors want to ensure that the cancer cells die. During his scheduled treatments, he carries around a backpack filled with chemotherapy medication that feeds steady doses of the medicine into his body.

The husband and father of two explained that he has good days and bad days. On the harder days, he said he tries to keep the right perspective on life and finds strength through his faith and the overwhelming community support.

“Seeing the community pep rallies, seeing the kids here and how they’ve responded—the green outs, the video that they made for me—was unbelievable,” he expressed as he fought back tears. “I’ve cried so many tears through this entire time, and it’s not for sadness. It’s for extreme joy of what these people have done for me.”

Maberry also noted that the district’s Colors for Caring initiative, in which the community is encouraged to wear cancer awareness colors to support a loved one, has also impacted his life because it lifts his spirit to see his school saturated with lime green to bring awareness to lymphoma.

The hashtag #MaberryStrong is also used on social media to highlight the different community support efforts.

“One of the biggest struggles that I had through this journey is, ‘How do I thank everybody for what they’ve done for me?’ I don’t think I can. I don’t think I could ever thank the community for what they’ve done for me mentally, spiritually, just being there for me and my family—I know I’m deeply blessed because of this community. And I’m very grateful for them.”

The coach said he doesn’t know what the future holds for him, but he is optimistic and continues to take life one day at a time.

“I know what I have is very serious. I know what I have is life-threatening, but I can’t live my life in fear every day.”

MISD Community Heads North to Support Border Brawl Football Games

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A battle over state lines kicked off the Mansfield ISD 2018-19 high school football season.

MISD football teams, bands, cheerleaders, drill teams and fans made the trip up north to celebrate the inaugural Border Brawl football competition on Aug. 31, in which five MISD teams faced five Oklahoma teams.

“This is something special for our school district and for our kids to experience,” said Legacy High School head coach Chris Melson. “It’s not just the football team. You got the bands, drill teams, cheerleaders, supporting staff… everybody gets to experience it.”

Border Brawl was brought to life by MISD Athletics Director Philip O’Neal and Superintendent Dr. Jim Vaszauskas.

Legacy High rush onto the field against Jenks.

The idea was to provide students with new opportunities while engaging in friendly competition.

“I think it’s important for us to create experiences for them,” said O’Neal. “The connections and lessons they learn from going beyond their region will help them in college and in life.”

“Our kids have never gotten to do something like this,” said Daniel Maberry, head coach at Mansfield High School. “You get to see games on T.V. all the time where teams sometimes travel to Florida or Nevada to play some of the private schools, but these are two quality programs coming together to experience something they never have before.”

The Oklahoma competition included teams from Union, Jenks, Broken Arrow, Bixby and Sand Springs.

Even though the games took place hours away, there was no shortage of MISD fans. Hundreds of people filled the stands to show their support.

“To be here at the Border Brawl is just showing that Texas and Oklahoma can come together and make something like this possible,” said Brandon Jones, junior at Summit High School.

O’Neal said that apart from the competition, Mansfield ISD being able to come together as a unit was priceless.

“This is an opportunity for Mansfield ISD to be unified in their effort to come to Oklahoma and compete against the Tulsa-area schools as one,” he said. “The benefits of that go way beyond the sports field.”

The same schools will face each other again in the Border Brawl track meet, which will take place at the start of the 2019 track season.

Walk-On NFL Player Returns to Give Message of Resiliency

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In his senior year at Mansfield High School, Lenzy Pipkins decided to quit basketball and start playing football—a move that would help define the rest of his life.

The football coach laughed at him, but allowed the 12th-grader to prove himself.

“I was like, ‘I can ball. Just trust me. Give me a chance. Give me a chance,” Pipkins recalled.

He was a natural at football. He got noticed for his talents and received an invitation to the Nike Combine. There, he ran a 40-yard dash in 4.4 seconds.

Arizona State University offered the athlete a football scholarship. After his first season at the school, his scholarship was taken away.

Pipkins said he hopes his story can inspire anyone who wants to quit.

“The current staff got fired, so the new staff ended up taking my scholarship away,” he said. “They didn’t think I was ready.”

Pipkins later went to the University of Louisiana Monroe to continue playing football. He graduated and played another year at Oklahoma State University.

He was set on becoming a professional football player and declared for the NFL draft. The cornerback didn’t get drafted, but 10 teams invited him afterward to come to try outs. He signed with the Green Bay Packers.

The 24-year-old told his story of resiliency to the students at The Phoenix Academy on Friday. He advised the high schoolers to follow their passion no matter what naysayers may think.

Principal Regenia Crane said Pipkin’s message fell in line with the district’s Vision 2020 strategic plan.

“Resiliency is one of our values, and he is a great example of what happens when you don’t give up,” said Crane. “That’s something our students always need to hear.”

It is reported that less than 2 percent of college athletes reach the NFL, making Pipkins story even more remarkable as a walk-on. He starts his second year in the professional league in September.