By Tom Nader

Publisher and Editor

“Getting to Know” is a regular Portage Sports feature created to spotlight the coaches and administrators that are guiding today’s Portage County student-athletes to be tomorrow’s leaders.

Today, we get to know Garfield High School baseball coach Mike Paes, who is in his 10th season leading the G-Men.

Q: Hometown?

A: New Middletown, Ohio.

Q: High school?

A: Springfield Local High School. Class of 2004.

Q: College?

A: Hiram College. Class of 2008. Degree in Middle School Education.

Q: Current occupation?

A: Teacher.

Q: What inspired you to become a coach?

A: I had a lot of positive influences in my life with coaches. The biggest one was Jeff Brink. He came back and is the basketball coach at Springfield again. I also just always loved sports and wanted to always be around them.

Q: What makes being a coach at Garfield special to you?

A: The players that I have coached. I have been here for 16 years, and for the most part, the players have been great and easy to coach.

Q: Who has been your biggest influence?

A: Jeff Brink inspired me more than anyone, and I used to always look back at the way he handled things to mold myself around his influence.

Q: Funny story nobody would believe from your playing days?

A: When I was in sixth grade, we had to be under 110 pounds to run the ball so after every football practice, my mom would run a mile with me and I would wear my pads. Weighed in at 108 and got to run the ball the entire year.

Q: Funny story nobody would believe from your coaching career?

A: When I had my second kid, my team was playing at Kent State’s (Dix) stadium the year they got new turf. The entire time my wife was in labor, I was texting an assistant coach and following along on GameChanger to help out any way I could. My wife doesn’t find it funny.

Q: Favorite TV show?

A: Ted Lasso and Sons of Anarchy.

Q: Favorite movie?

A: Wedding Crashers and Forgetting Sarah Marshall.

Q: Favorite musical artist?

A: Garth Brooks and Breaking Benjamin.

Q: Favorite food?

A: Gyros — and more specifically, gyros from Jay’s Famous Hot Dogs in Boardman.

Q: Best vacation?

A: Honeymoon in Riviera Maya, Mexico.

Q: Shoutout to former teammates?

A: Adam Persing, Anthony Terlecky, Anthony Warren.

Q: Favorite motto?

A: The road to success is constantly under construction.

Q: Describe your coaching philosophy?

A: Very honest and personable. Sometimes if you are too honest, it will bite you, but I tell the kids from day one that I will be honest and brutally honest — other than mixing in some fake smoke.

Q: Favorite restaurant?

A: Dos Coronas in Ravenna or Buffalo Wild Wings.

Q: Favorite teacher from high school?

A: Mrs. Umeck.

Q: Advice you would give the younger version of yourself?

A: Go for it. Don’t hold back. Don’t worry about how others view you.

Q: Favorite coach from your playing days?

A: Jeff Brink, my basketball coach. It was my worst sport out of the three I played, but love the way he presented himself and his teams.

Q: Coaching resume?

A: Sixteen years at James A. Garfield High School. Football for 15 years, JV baseball for 6 years and varsity baseball for 10 years.

Q: Favorite sports teams?

A: Browns, Buckeyes, Guardians and Cavs.

Q: Favorite athlete then?

A: Randall Cunningham, John Stockton, Kenny Lofton.

Q: Favorite athlete now?

A: Josh Allen, Nick Chubb.

Q: First job as a teenager?

A: Adams Manufacturing Assembler.

Q: Family member that always gives the best advice?

A: My mom. Everything she does, she always means well and that goes a long way.

Q: Halloween costume last year?

A: Stone Cold Steve Austin.

Q: Favorite video game?

A: NCAA 14, Madden from Segan until now, Wrestlemania 2000, Tecmo Super Bowl, WCW vs. NWO Revenge, WWE2K24. I love video games.

Q: Favorite candy?

A: Gummy bears and Sour Patch Kids.

Q: First car?

A: 1998 Ford Escort ZX2.

Q: Best friends?

A: Emily Paes and Randall Ward.

Q: Most memorable moment as a player?

A: My playoff football game against Dalton in 2002. When I was in Little League, we had a playoff game against Mill Creek and it was a tie ball game in extra innings. I hit a walk-off three-run homer that hit the lights. It shattered the lights and glass was falling down like the movie, The Natural — and I wore No. 9.

Q: Most memorable moment as a coach?

A: Last year’s baseball run was as special and memorable as I can remember, because of what people expected out of us. After that, hosting Ursuline and beating them in baseball in 2022. After that, football, beating LaBrae in 2016 and Cardinal Mooney in 2020.