Newspaper Page Text
Barrow Journal
Chris Bridges, Sports Editor
770-867-6397, phone
678-425-1435, FAX
cbridges @ barrowj ournal.com
Pressure to
win continues
to climb higher
Heritage High School: Conyers,
Georgia has an immediate open
ing for a defensive line coach and
special education teacher. Up
and coming program, with play
ers who work their tails off to get
better. We have the pieces in place
to be good, just need some more
good coaches. Preferable experi
ence of playing college football
and or coaching in college.
• ••
With the state high school foot
ball championships upon us this
week in Georgia, I found the above
classified ad to be rather telling.
Football is big business in our
state and don’t let anyone tell you
otherwise. It's
also about win
ning and school
officials who try
to pretend it’s
not about win
ning are trying to
sell you a batch
of apples that
long ago spoiled.
They would
have an easier
time selling me
some ocean
front property in Nebraska than
to sell me on the fact high school
football isn’t about winning today.
The classified ad listed above
is an actual item. I found it on
a website dedicated to college
football coaching news. It stood
out to me immediately because
it shows how much high school
coaches need to win today.
Here we have a high school
head coach in Georgia placing
an ad for an assistant coach (not
even a coordinator mind you) and
throwing in a detail about col
lege coaching experience being a
plus. This is also a school which
competes in the same region as
Winder-Barrow and Apalachee.
“For me personally, when I inter
view a coach I look for someone
with good character,’’ said WBHS
head football coach Ben Corley.
“Experience and knowledge are
important, but it is not the end all. It
is certainly not my No. 1 priority.”
The main emphasis for Corley is
to find coaches who will treat kids
right and be loyal to the program.
“We do have two members
of our coaching staff who have
worked in college and two who
have played college football,”
Corley said. “That helps you in
the area of recruiting and getting
your players recognized. I can’t
speak for someone else, but put
ting it out there as part of a job
description for a defensive line
position does seem a little much.”
While winning these days has
perhaps become too much of a
priority, the Winder-Barrow head
coach likes to think some empha
sis is still on the right things.
“People are more interested in
the bottom line,” Corley admitted.
“In high school I still hold out hope
the emphasis is on building a better
man. Hopefully, we have not dete
riorated beyond that in high school.
Winning and losing has its place
because it helps you evaluate your
program, but it should not be the
most important thing in the end.”
Corley is a coach who has
his priorties in order. He runs a
family-type program at Winder-
Barrow High School and will
continue doing so in the future.
Does he want to win? You bet.
However, he always has football
in the proper perspective and
knows it can be a great learning
tool for life when used properly.
These are the type of coach
es we need more of in our
schools today. Coaches who
realize what’s important.
Now if we can just get all
those know-it-all coaches in the
stands to understand it as well
then the battle will be won.
Chris Bridges is sports editor
of the Barrow Journal. E-mail
comments about this column to
cbridges @ barrowjoumal. com.
chris
bridges
First & Ten
HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL
Rivalry continues: WBHS to host Monroe Area
BY CHRIS BRIDGES
In the world of sports, including
high school athletics, rivalry games
bring out the best in fans and athletes
alike.
That's what will make this Friday’s
contest between the Winder-Barrow
High School and Monroe Area High
School basketball teams such an excit
ing event to be a part of.
First, the schools have a long stand
ing rivalry dating back decades. Part
of the rivalry has to do with the close
ness in location of the two schools
separated by only a few miles of
highway.
The WBHS boys were 4-1 going
into this week's action.
“Monroe has some size,” said
Bulldogg coach Eli Connell. “They
are a big team across the boards.
They have four players over 6-0. They
are athletic, run the press and trap.
Offensively, they are going to work
it inside.”
Connell concurred that with it being
a rival game, an added element is
thrown into the boiling pot.
“It will be a wild atmosphere,” the
coach said. “Both teams will be ready.
We have to keep
our composure.”
Visiting Monroe
Area is coached
by Ron Garren,
who is attempting
to rebuild the Hurricanes. Now in
his third season, Garren is a former
WBHS head coach and knows all
about the long-time rivalry.
“The Monroe-Winder game has
always been a special evening for
both communities,” Garren said this
week. “Some of the greatest games
that I have been associated with are
from this rivalry. It is more important
now to the coaches due to it being a
region game. Winder has a very fine
team this year. It will be a challenge
for our guys on Friday. Hopefully, we
will be ready for the Bulldoggs.”
The WBHS Lady Doggs also enter
the rival game at 4-1 overall following
last week's win against Loganville,
another Walton County school.
The Monroe Area girls are coming
off a 58-48 win against Social Circle,
another rival.
See Rivalry on page 2B
At A Glance:
Monroe Area @
WBHS, Friday,
7 p.m.
ON THE MAT:
APALACHEE, WBHS COMPETE AT PANTHER INVITATIONAL
TOURNAMENT
ACTION
Both the Apalachee High
School and Winder-Barrow
High School wrestling teams
ventured to Jackson County
High School in Jefferson
this past week for the annual
Panther Invitational. The Mat
Wildcats and Mat Bulldoggs
are both under the direction
of first-year head coaches.
Jim Stoudenmire is direct
ing the AHS program while
Chad Horne is leading the
WBHS wrestling team. (Top)
Apalachee’s Chris Newman,
in yellow, competes during
a match Friday while (right)
Winder-Barrow’s Josh Carter
competes in the 171-pound
division. Approximately 25
schools competed in the
event which was held over
two days. Jefferson High
School was the overall win
ner posting a dominant
321.5 points.
Photos by
Lyn Sengupta
WBHS FOOTBALL
Players
recognized
for 2008
BY CHRIS BRIDGES
Standout players from the
Winder-Barrow High School
football team were recognized
for their contributions during
the 2008 season last week dur
ing the program’s annual awards
banquet.
Reggie Riley earned the
award for top defensive back
while Hogan Anderson and
Jody Royal took honors for
their play at linebacker. Jonah
Huggins was named the team’s
top defensive line.
Offensively, Greg Dixon was
the top back with Chris Wragg
being named best receiver. Matt
Marmon was recognized for his
work in the trenches on the
offensive line.
In addition, captains, voted
on by team members, were hon
ored. Captains for 2008 includ
ed Riley, Terrell Evans, Dixon
and Chandlor Murphy.
Bulldogg head coach Ben
Corley said this week the off
season program has begun and
there has been “good participa
tion” to this point.
“We believe we are closing
the gap between us and our
opponents,” the coach said.
“This is the time you have to
work to get better.'’
MIDDLE SCHOOL
HMMS posts
34-14 victory
The Haymon-Morris Middle
School girls basketball team
recorded a 34-14 win against
county rival Westside last
Friday.
Coach Beth Park's team led
17-7 at halftime as Morgan
Thompson helped change the
tempo with several key bas
kets in the second quarter.
Thompson finished the contest
with 12 points.
Bronwyn Wade added seven
points and was a key factor in
the post for Parks’ squad. Molly
Gregory added six points for
Haymon-Morris.
HMMS is set to play at
East Jackson Middle School
Wednesday (today).
WBMS runners compete at holiday event
During the Thanksgiving weekend,
runners from the Winder-Barrow Middle
School cross country team competed in
the Southern National Cross Country
Championships in Charlotte, N.C.
Runners taking part in the event includ
ed Skyler Lowe, Alex Martinez, Kimble
Crane, and Nelson Lofton. Thousands of
runners from the 13 southeastern states
came together at this meet where top
athletes competed for a chance to make
the All-South Foot Locker Cross Country
Team.
Coaches said it was the most difficult
race in which the runners have competed.
“The weather was very cold and rainy,
and the course conditions were muddy and
difficult,” said coach Michael Lofton. “All
of the boys did a great job handling these
conditions.”
Even though this level of competition
was new to them Lowe and Lofton crossed
the finish line with times which earned
them Bronze medals in their age groups
and secured a spot on the All-South Foot
Locker Cross Country Team.
The event capped a standout season for
WBMS.
“We had a great season where our boys
and girls team won the Best of Barrow
race,” Coach Lofton said. “We were also
second with the girls and third for the boys
in our 10-team league during the 2008
season.”
BRONZE MEDALS
Skyler Lowe and Nelson Lofton earned bronze medals at
the Southern National Cross Country Championship in
North Carolina.