Synopses & Reviews
“The minute you become complacent, it’s all over.”
—Coach Rich Hansen
Saint Peter’s Preparatory School (or simply “Prep”) is New Jersey’s only Jesuit high school. A community of learners that seeks to find God in all things, Prep prides itself on molding young men of competence, conscience, and compassion. The school has created an iconic football program that is annually ranked as one of the best in America, and is the subject of Richard Corman’s Prep: The Spirit of a High School Football Team.
Corman’s photographs document the collective journey of Prep’s football team, the Marauders, through the 2007– 2008 school year. With a cinematic flair, he presents striking shots of the team in action, quiet landscapes of the fields of play, candid snaps of passionate fans, and tender portraits of individual players. Peppered throughout are quotes from their fearless leader, the remarkable Coach Rich Hansen, who holds the record for the most wins in the school’s history. It all comes together to reveal a poignant story about a group of young men playing football and experiencing adolescent life before our eyes, a story of “men for others” in the true Jesuit tradition.
As a portrait photographer, Richard Corman has worked with actors, writers, designers, painters, musicians, and a roster of athletic stars that includes Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Eli Manning, Muhammad Ali, Michael Jordan, Derek Jeter, Lance Armstrong, and Cal Ripken, Jr. Corman is the author of Glory: Photographs of Athletes (William Morrow & Company, 1999) and I Am Proud: The Athletes of the Special Olympics (Barnes & Noble, 2003). A native New Yorker, Corman graduated from Hunter College with a degree in art history and psychology. His work is represented by ArtMix Photography.
About the Author
Joe Paterno is the head coach of Pennsylvania State University’s college football team, a position he has held since 1966. An award-winning and Hall of Fame coach, Paterno has won more football games against teams currently in NCAA Division I-FBS than any other coach in history.
Yolanda Cuomo has collaborated for over two decades with artists including Richard Avedon, Paul Simon, Twyla Tharp, and Laurie Anderson. Her studio designed and produced the worldwide exhibition and book Diane Arbus Revelations, the artist’s first major retrospective since 1974. She received her BFA from The Cooper Union in New York and teaches at New York University.
Rich Hansen has been at St. Peter’s Prep for 25 seasons, the past 20 seasons as the Head Coach and Director of Athletics. As Prep’s head coach he has won 14 Hudson County Titles and 3 NJSIAA Titles, and been ranked in New Jersey’s “Top 20” 15 times.