"Nothing in the world is worth having or worth doing unless it means effort, pain, difficulty... I have never in my life envied a human being who led an easy life. I have envied a great many people who led difficult lives and led them well."
It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.
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The North Stafford Wolverines football program began to receive recognition as a program outside of the Commonwealth District in the 1999 season. Under the leadership of senior quarterback Chris Ashinhurst, the team advanced to the regional championship game for the first time in school history while rewriting much of the state football record book. Before the start of the 2004 season, 3 players had already committed to Division I-A colleges. The 2004 team finished the regular season undefeated and captured the Commonwealth District and Northwest Region championships. The team's success brought about unprecedented community support as the team continued into the state playoffs. On December 11, 2004, North Stafford played Meadowbrook High School at the University of Richmond stadium for the AAA Division 5 Championship. Despite leading 14-0 in the first half, North Stafford lost 27-35.
North Stafford struggled through the mid-2000s as the program endured multiple coaching changes and sub-par seasons. In 2008 Joe Mangano became head coach and the program began building towards the same success as previous teams. The 2009 team was the highest ranked Division 5 team in the Commonwealth District and received a bye in the first round of the playoffs before losing to Osbourne in the Region Semi-final. The program enjoyed even more success in 2010 and 2011 as both teams won the Commonwealth District and Northwest Region Division 5 titles before falling to the eventual state champions in the State Semi-final both seasons.
