Syracuse, N.Y. -- Before he ever married a daughter of his future coach and started living in his basement, before he ever slipped near death's doorstep after a grueling practice, and before he made the decision to leave a starting position in the richest conference in the country to help rebuild Syracuse football, Koda Martin helped construct his father's dream.
Kirk Martin was the football coach and athletic director at Manvel High School, 23 miles south of Houston, tasked with helping lay the foundation for a place that in the decade since its doors opened in 2006 transformed into a force on the ultra-competitive Texas high school football landscape.