First-year football program Oxbridge Academy is a coach's dream

Former American Heritage (Delray Beach, Fla.) football coach Doug Socha thought he might get back into the college football ranks or, perhaps, private enterprise.

Coaching high school football again wasn't really on his radar.

But he heard from an old coaching comrade Craig Sponsky who simply made him an offer he couldn't refuse.

Paradise. Enlightenment. Building blocks.

In two words: Oxbridge Academy.

"This is sort of a coaches' dream," Socha said.

Located in lush West Palm Beach, Fla., the third-year school is in its second year of football and first at the varsity level under Socha, who helped American Heritage to three state championships in six seasons (two as head coach and four as an assistant).

Playing an independent schedule, it's taken the 37-year-old little time to turn the ThunderWolves – that's no typo folks — into a certain small-school power.

Oxbridge Academy is 7-2, has outscored opponents 306-95 and with four seniors, 14 sophomores and 15 freshmen on a 45-man roster, the future is through the roof.

And speaking of roofs — and structures — the facilities on the pristine and plush 56-acre Oxbridge Academy campus are difficult to beat. But then school founder and billionaire energy magnate William I. Koch rarely leaves any stone or solar panel unturned.

The 1,500-seat stadium is complete with the same synthetic turf field used in Ralph Wilson Stadium, home of the Buffalo Bills, and the 1,500-square foot weight room is state of the art. And the athletic complex is expanding. All of it leaves Socha searching for words, sort of like he was searching for his future after resigning in June of 2012 from one of the state's top 3A programs.

He had reached the pinnacle at American Heritage in only his second season as head coach. The Stallions beat Madison County 30-3 in the state 3A finals to complete a 12-1 season, a year after American Heritage lost in the state title game.

Socha said he left American Heritage for personal reasons, without a clear vision of the path ahead. Considering he has a wife Carrie and four young children, it was a bold decision.

But two weeks later, while contemplating college football and business options, he heard from Sponsky, a former high school coach at Bishop Carroll (Ebensburg, Pa.).

Socha used to recruit Bishop Carroll players as an assistant coach at the University of Buffalo in the early 2000s. Sponsky had just accepted the athletic director's post at Oxbridge and laid out the vision of Koch and school President Bob Parsons.

Not long after, Socha accepted an offer to coach the ThunderWolves.

"It's amazing how things work out," he said. "This was definitely the place for me — a place with great academic vision combined that with great athletics and fine art, plus the challenge of starting from the ground up was very appealing."

So was working under the 73-year-old Koch, who earned three degrees at MIT, where he was a backup center on the basketball team. He is also a major yachtsman — he won the America's Cup in 1992 — and according to Forbes Magazine is worth $4 billion.

With four teenage children and a 7-year-old, Koch has invested a portion of his wealth in education, and thus he founded Oxbridge Academy on the grounds of a closed Jewish Community Center. All of it impressed Socha.

"He and Mr. Parsons want to set a standard, of core values, of thinking big and creating championship expectations," Socha said. "Not just champions on the field, but in the classroom. More so in the classroom frankly. We want to send kids here to college football programs. We want to win. This is a competitive environment in both the academic and athletic field."

After another Independent season, Oxbridge will apply and likely enter the Florida High School Athletic Association and compete with other 3A powers such as American Heritage, University (Fort Lauderdale) and Madison County (Madison).

The ThunderWolves will also vie for athletes, though there's no shortage in South Florida.

Besides American Heritage and University, private schools St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale),University School (Orange City) and Cardinal Newman (West Palm Beach) are within a hour's drive, and Dwyer (Palm Beach Gardens) is a local public power.

The Oxbridge school enrollment is now at 400, with 1,000 applicants for 150 spots next school year. Tuition is at $16,000 with need-based financial aid offered, Socha said. Family, academics, athletics and social life are the priorities in order at the school.

"We want our school to be one of the premier places in the state, if not the country, to attend because of its academics and our style of play," Socha said.

The ThunderWolves already have a handful of college prospects, according to their coach, including Koch's sophomore son Will Koch a rangy 6-foot-3, 170-pound receiver. "He's going to grow to 6-5 or 6-6," Socha said.

Seniors Deondre Brinson, a 6-foot, 200-pound cornerback, and dual-threat quarterback Steven Demeo are recruitable players.

The biggest – literally and figuratively – college prospect at this point is 6-5, 330-pound freshman defensive lineman Robert Holmes. He along with another freshman, 6-foot, 180-pound defensive back Raven Saunders will be attracting plenty of college recruiters in the next three years.

Saunders is the grandson of 8-time Pro Bowler Lemar Parrish, also a defensive back.

"The kids are playing hard and playing well," Socha said. "They've bought into what we're telling them."

Following a regular season-ending 52-6 win over Berean Christian, Oxbridge plays Gateway Charter (Fort Myers) (4-5) in a semifinal playoff game Friday. Gateway has scored 61 and 54 in its last two games, and at the same time Oxbridge has tallied 62 and 52. It should be high scoring.

If victorious, the ThunderWolves will play in the championship game the following week.

"We always want to be playing for championships every season," Socha said. "We're in position to play for one next week. That would be a great way to start our first varsity season."