Perkins retires as Marion football coach

CEDAR RAPIDS — Tony Perkins will not be Marion's all-time winningest head football coach, but he'll definitely be considered one of its best.

The 53-year-old announced his retirement from the position Monday morning after 17 years. Perkins finished with a 104-59 record at his alma mater, one win shy of the legendary Les Hipple.

'That is disappointing,' Perkins said. 'But in the same breath, I had plenty of chances over the last 17 years to get that win. To me, it was never about wins and losses anyway. It was about being able to work with kids, to try and develop them into good young men ... I'm proud of what I accomplished.'

Perkins led Marion to six district championships and nine state playoff appearances, the last in 2013, after coming back to his hometown following a stint as head coach at MOC/Floyd Valley. Passionate about his school and program to the point where he got three tattoos of the school's Indianhead logo, the 2014 and 2015 seasons affected him greatly.

Marion is on a 17-game losing streak. As well, the coach's brother, Nick, an assistant coach, was dismissed by the Marion school board early in the 2015 season after an unspecified locker-room incident.

Tony Perkins served a one-game suspension, though apparently it was more of a guilt-by-association thing. He will remain a teacher at the school.

'He did a great job. He was passionate, a tireless worker,' Marion Activities Director Corby Laube. 'I knew Tony had been thinking about (this) a little bit. Today, he made it official ... The decision was all his.'

'It's time for me to figure out what the next chapter is,' Perkins said. 'It's time for me to back away from the stress. Everybody wants the bright, shiny penny, and I'm not that bright, shiny penny. I've been doing this for 32 years.

'It'll be refreshing to be able to get away from the building a little bit. I've been tied to the building pretty much year-around. It'll be nice to be able to go fishing when I want to.'

Laube said Marion will begin a search for Perkins' replacement immediately.

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