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During his time coaching the Immokalee football team, John Weber always had a saying he repeated to his players year after year.

“We'd always say, 'We're going to knock you down, but we're also going to reach down and help pick you up,'” Weber said. “Our opponents knew they were going to get hit, but they knew it was going to be a clean football game.”

Weber's peers took notice. The former Indians coach, who retired after last season, was one of three Collier County coaches honored at the State Farm Good Neighbor Coaches' Sportsmanship award banquet Thursday at The Strand in North Naples.

Former Community School boys basketball coach Bill Carufe and Palmetto Ridge baseball coach Pete Garcia also received awards at the ceremony. Athletic directors from all 11 public and private county high schools nominated a fall, winter and spring coach from their schools, and the ADs then selected an overall winner from each season.

In the award's sixth year, Weber and Carufe are the second winners from their schools. Weber guided the Indians for 10 years, and Carufe coached the Seahawks for six years while serving as the school's athletic director. Both stepped down from their positions at the end of the 2007-08 school year.

“I always came off as a tough guy,” said Weber, who won a state championship and also led the Indians to an undefeated season, “but my kids always played the game the way it was supposed to be played.”

Carufe, who led Community School to the Class 2A state finals last winter, said he was surprised by the award.

“As a coach, you always focus on skills and wins and losses,” Carufe said, “but I also tried to teach life lessons. This award goes beyond wins and losses.”

While he no longer coaches a high school team, Carufe continues to mentor area kids as an administrator with the Sports CLUB program. The after-school program works with elementary students in academics and athletics. CLUB stands for Children Learning Ultimate Balance.

Carufe helped create the Good Neighbor Sportsmanship award more than a decade ago. He was coaching a youth basketball league, and began kicking around the idea with Buzz Hill, a parent and State Farm agent.

Hill and 11 other State Farm agents now sponsor the awards. They also provide a $1,000 grant that goes to each of the three overall winners.

In accepting his award, Garcia gave credit to the coaches who taught him sportsmanship growing up in Collier County. Garcia graduated from Lely in 1990 and has coached the Palmetto Ridge baseball team since the school opened in 2004.

“My job is easy,” the Bears coach said. “I was a product of Collier County, and my coaches taught me what I teach these kids today.”

State Farm Good Neighbor Coaches' Sportsmanship Award nominees

Fall

Barron Collier – Matt Keraus

Community School – Cassie Barone

First Baptist – Rob Kantner

Golden Gate – Kim Kaye

Gulf Coast – Frank Tudryn

Immokalee – John Weber

Lely – Mark McGarity

Naples – Mary Beth Watkins

Palmetto Ridge – Jim Barr

Seacrest – Winnie Duffy

St. John Neumann – Richie Packish

Winter

Barron Collier – Mike Hamburger

Community School – Bill Carufe

First Baptist – Scott Stewart

Golden Gate – Dwight Morgan

Gulf Coast – Mike DiGrigoli

Immokalee – Kelly Stevenson Crews

Lely – Brandon Miller

Palmetto Ridge – Mark Rosenbalm

Seacrest – Francesca Zampogna-Wilson

St. John Neumann – Tony Grasso

Spring

Barron Collier – Nancy Eberhardt

Community School – Jon Ayers

First Baptist – Kevin Carter

Golden Gate – Linda Hamernik

Gulf Coast – Mark Voorhees

Immokalee – Bernie Martinez

Lely – Jennifer Bledsoe

Naples – Rick Turner

Palmetto Ridge – Pete Garcia

Seacrest – Todd Borden

St. John Neumann – Mike Olayos