As Tough As they Get

What is it exactly that makes someone tough? In Richard Groth’s case, it wasn’t the grueling training that he faced as quarterback at the University of Utah that made him tough. Nor was it the frigid temperatures that he confronted when he was on the ski racing team for that same college. It wasn’t even being saved after suffering from a ventricle heart attack. It was the prospect of almost losing his leg that made this Highland Football assistant coach and special education teacher resilient.

Initially, one would never guess that Groth has faced the difficult trial of almost having an entire limb removed from him. Despite his limp, Groth carries the upbeat attitude that one can make it through anything if they have the desire and determination to do so.

Two years after graduating from Utah, Groth enjoyed playing professional football in Canada as well as competitively skiing. It was in a downhill skiing race that his life was forever altered.

As he raced down the hill, he hit a telephone pole going about 30 mph. His right leg was almost torn off and the doctors thought it best to remove it; but his father refused to let them amputate. After two trying years of rehab he was able to play continental minor pro football in the states. But the suffering of having his tibia shattered and leg nearly torn off on impact has been ongoing. While Groth never went into specifics of the severe pain that he not only tolerates but also overcomes each day, his players say that they often see him bleeding though his bandages.

“Coach isn’t a stranger to injuries. He’s blown out his knee, yet he is always jogging out at practice, walking the ball out to where we need the play to start. But overall, for physical toughness we see, it would be him after every single practice, running laps around the field after everyone goes home,” fullback David Nonu said.

Running laps around the field isn’t the only physical activity that Groth continues to participate in though. He can often be found playing in tennis tournaments and cross country skiing. He even participated in a 5k recently and often runs in 10k races as well. Instead of letting the immense pain that he faces hinder him, he instead pushes through it to become the best athlete he can be.

“It’s who I was. Who I am now is being active and not limiting myself due to pain, or lack of speed, or lack of talent. I lost the talent but I still had the desire to keep competing, to keep pushing,” Groth said.

While the pain that the skiing accident brought Groth has not and probably will not subside, he knows who his is what he loves. He deeply understands the price in pain that he pays as he refuses to give up on his passions. And while he cannot perform at the level that he once could, he will not to let his desire diminish because of the discomfort.

His brother Ray Groth, a former Head Highland Football coach said that whenever a player complains to him that he is hurt he has them go over to his brother and look at his leg. After seeing someone much older than them endure such a lasting, difficult pain, they usually want to go back out on the field.

Groth is as physically tough off the court, field, and track as he is on. Something many people do not see. As one of the teachers in charge of the Vocational Independence Program (VIP) here at Highland, he has had to employ his physical toughness more than one would anticipate. Once as he was helping out at one of the job sites that they visit- a kennel, a student had aggravated a cat to the point that it tried to attack them. Groth refused to let the student get injured and instead sheltered him and received the feline blows himself. After receiving multiple hurtful scratches, he still returned that day to football practice.

The special education department is very much apart of Groth’s life. Through this career he is able to not only use the physical toughness that he gained in order to protect his students, but also able to show tenderness as he creates strong bonds with them. Groth consistently gets to know those with whom he associates on a personal level. Even while interviewing him I was reminded of this as a janitor walked in and Groth was able to carry a conversation with him about shoe size, remembering that the person he was talking to was a size thirteen last year and now a size fourteen. Tenderness and thoughtfulness is often used to describe Groth seeing as many of his players talk about how their favorite thing about him is his love for them.

Groth, while tough on his injuries, is never tough on his players.

“He’s so caring and encouraging. He’ll correct them in a way that reassures them,” Ray Groth, said concerning both his brother’s coaching and career.

Groth, while consistently showing physical toughness also shows that there is so much more to him than that meets the eye. He is filled with a kindness and selflessness that is unparalleled by others. With this combination of tenderness and toughness, Groth has become a strong force to be reckoned with at Highland.