Today’s interviewee is Osborne coach Luqman Salam, whose team is making its first state playoff appearance in history Friday night at defending Class 7A champion Mill Creek. Salam, a former longtime Hillgrove assistant coach, took the Osborne job in 2021, when the Cardinals had gone 2-46 over the previous five seasons and hadn’t had a winning season since 1994. Osborne is 7-3 this season after a 5-5 finish in 2022.
1. What has been the reaction in the community to Osborne’s history-making season? “Obviously it’s been a long time coming. The school has had some good teams [making the region playoffs in 1993 and 1994] but hasn’t been able to get to the state playoffs. That’s what makes this year special. We’ve broken through to get to that top 32 teams. It’s been some special moments for so many, especially those that have been around the program for years and decades. We’ve heard from some alumni such as Tumbo Abanikanda, who played at Southern Miss. He reached out and said he’d love to talk with the kids and encourage them. He’s working with the NFL now. Donnie English [GACA Hall of Fame baseball coach from Osborne] reached out. Just a lot of old Osborne people who’ve had some connection and knew the history of the school and the athletic program giving us their congratulations.”
2. Looking back on the regular season, what is the single most memorable moment or game? “There have been so many, but going into the Kennesaw Mountain game, I ended up sitting my quarterback. We were not going to play him, which was significant because that changes everything we do. But our kids didn’t flinch and didn’t get down. They played so hard on both sides of the ball and found a way to win the football game. To me, that was a huge statement. It was our first intra-county win since the early 2000s. Our kids really wanted that, to prove themselves in the county. How they responded was memorable.” [Osborne won 35-3 and ended a 46-game losing streak in region games that dated to 2011 and a 71-game losing streak against fellow Cobb County schools that dated to 2004.]
3. What’s the most important thing that you and your staff have done to get Osborne to this position, and how did you do it? “The most important thing was building a culture of effort and brotherhood, getting our kids to have pride in their performance on a daily basis and having consistency of effort. That’s the most special thing about this team, what they do daily and how they care about one another. That’s the most rewarding thing about where we are as a program. As for how we did it, I don’t know that there’s a singular recipe. It’s part of the character of kids that you have. You show love and concern for them, and when they see you putting forth that level of energy, over a period of time, they see results. They saw it really early. Our first game [in 2021], we beat Woodland [of Cartersville], the same team that had beaten them by 40 [42-17 the season before]. It made them realize, ‘Wow, this stuff makes sense.’ Once they saw the impact it had, it fell together.”
4. Talk about the current team. What is its identity? What would fans see if they came to watch an Osborne football game? “We’re a pro-style offense. We’re a downhill running team that uses play action and rollout to get the ball into our playmakers’ hands. On defense, we’re a 3-4 that will use pressure in key situations, but we’re very assignment-oriented. It’s ‘be where you’re supposed to be and play hard.’ We’re just a hard-nosed team. The kids show grit and toughness on both sides of football. We have a relentless, no-quit attitude. We don’t have the best players in the state, but they’re gritty and don’t quit That’s our best attribute that allows us to be successful.”
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