Sports Ink. September 2015

A magazine focusing on all things sports in northwest Kansas

INK. September 2015

SEASON FULL OF CHANGE

Ellis one of several football programs under new leadership.

The Hays Daily News

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Tough turn

Riders battle for position at Rooks County Speedway on Aug. 10 while practicing for the flat-track motorcycle races at the Rooks County Fair in Stockton. The races are a 100-plus year tradition at the fair.

Nick Schwien, Sports Ink.

What’s up?

A look inside this issue

5 Who’s That?

Notable

performances from northwest

Kansas

15 Q&A: Delton

6

New faces

Numerous area football teams have new coaches looking to make a difference this fall.

delivering

Alex Delton is in the mix to be Kansas State’s quarterback.

16

Repeat run

After winning the Class 1A Division II state championship a year ago, the Logan volleyball team is gearing up for its title defense.

Sports Ink. contributors: Nick McQueen nmcqueen@dailynews.net Brandon Zenner bzenner@dailynews.net, Vinny Benedetto vbenedetto@dailynews.net, Jolie Green jgreen@dailynews.net.

On the cover: New Ellis head football coach Craig Amrein takes over after serving for five years as an assistant to former coach Butch Hayes. Photo by Jolie Green.

Volume 5, Issue 7 Sports Ink. is published and distributed by The Hays Daily News. Copyright © 2015 Harris Enterprises. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. Sports Ink. is a registered trademark of The Hays Daily News, 507 Main, Hays, KS 67601 (785) 628-1081.

Things to look for this fall W

ell, summer flew by in the blink of 3. What will Chris Brown’s fifth year an eye. We saw a number of athletes bring to Fort Hays? star in the Kansas Shrine Bowl and EightFort Hays’ head coach was not surprised Man All-Star Games. We saw Frank Leo when his team was picked to finish sixth and Michael Burns nearly carry a crippled earlier this month at MIAA Media Day. Larks team to the NBC World Series. We If anything, his team is motivated. even saw the Royals not only keep their best The Tigers bring back a solid linebackplayers, but acquire even better ones. (Good ing corp and a wealth of transfers in key riddance to Carlos Beltran, Johnny Damon positions on the defense. The offense has and David Cone — twice.) an up-tempo look and has looked sharp With the longest season of all for sportsand improved in the preseason behind the writers in the rearview mirror, here are five developed arm of Treveon Albert under a things to keep an eye out for this fall: new offensive coaching staff.

1. Can Victoria repeat as Eight-Man DiviEven in the daunting league that is the sion II Champs?

MIAA, this year is a year of parody. Some Victoria steamrolled through nearly everyof the upper echelon teams are looking body with the exception of a Week 1 loss to for new quarterbacks. Some are replacing Division I champ Claflin-Central Plains and running backs, wide receivers and offensive a 12-point victory against lines. Some replaced an Beloit/St. John’s/Tipton. entire coaching staff.

For starters In eight of those games, As Brown said it best, his Victoria’s opponent failed team needs to put together to eclipse 12 points. complete games to win in The killer: the Knights this league — coming tograduated just two players. gether focused on offense, Victoria dominated in all defense and special teams. facets of the game last year. Brady Dinkel reWith an expanded playoff field of 28 turns at quarterback after scoring 39 touchteams, the MIAA likely will get three teams downs last year. Playoff opponents would in the playoffs and one or two in postseason have had better chance running against a bowl games. This just might be the year Fort brick wall than Victoria’s defensive line, Hays makes a statement in the league that which allowed just 110 yards on 100 rushes they are not a pushover and are here to stay. in their final three postseason games.

4. Will Alex Smith throw a touchdown to Doug Oberle is destined to get back to the a wide receiver? playoffs for the 14th time, as his program Okay, so maybe that’s not the real quesholds the longest active playoff streak in the tion regarding the Chiefs. state.

What I really want to see from the Chiefs is Week 1 matches them up with the only a healthy season on the defensive side of the school that handed them a loss in 2014. ball (you’re not helping Dontari Poe) and This time, they want revenge. consistency from the offensive line.

2. How much playing time will Alex With weapons like the aforementioned Delton get at K-State?

Maclin, De’Anthony Thomas and Jamaal Throughout the offseason, Bill Snyder has Charles, if the offensive line — including pleaded that the Wildcats’ quarterback race you, Eric Fisher — can give Alex Smith some is an open competition, keeping former time to get them the ball in short passing Hays High standout and true freshman Alex situations, we just may see a ball thrown Delton in the race. further than 15 yards this year.

He and the staff have raved about Delton’s The defense for the Chiefs is so intriguing development, mentally and physically, since on paper. Derrick Johnson, Tamba Hali, he enrolled early in the spring.

Justin Houston, Eric Berry, Sean Smith However, Delton is battling three others, (post-suspension) and the rest of the including a junior college transfer who defense have the potential to be among the arrived in early July and is a perfect fit for best in the league. But can Dee Ford and Snyder’s offense. Whether he wins the startrookie Marcus Peters live up to hype and ing job or not, this preseason will give him expectations that come with donning the loads of experience in the playbook and red and gold? adapting to the college game.

In Andy Reid We Trust.

Page 4 September 2015

Brandon

Zenner

FILE PHOTO, SPORTS INK. Senior quarterback Brady Dinkel will look to deliver consecutive state titles to Victoria.

5. Will the Royals win the World Series?

The million-dollar question — will Ned Yost bring the first World Series pennant to left field in Kauffman Stadium since 1985.

While I will not answer the question directly, I will make an implication.

What was the Achilles heel to the Royals in last year’s World Series? An ace by the name of Madison. Sorry, James Shields, but you can’t shut down the Giants’ hitters like the Royals had done to them. K.C. had just as much of a chance hitting Bumgarner with a straw in the hands of our batters.

But fear no more, as Johnny Cueto is here to save the day. You can put money on Cueto going a minimum of six innings in nearly every outing.

I was afraid of using the cliché of, ‘Getting postseason experience will really help our younger guys mature in the postseason.’

Well, I used it, and they have absolutely matured. Eric Hosmer and Lorenzo Cain — especially Cain — are having phenomenal seasons at the dish, along with Gordon. Ben Zobrist will prove to be a key postseason piece, and his playoff beard is already in full swing.

With a true ace, a lineup with the perfect amount of aggressiveness at the plate and, the most important piece of all, the best bullpen in the majors, I would throw my life savings in on the Royals returning to the Fall Classic.

And, sorry to whatever team is in the National League, but I’m not sure if you can deflate a baseball.

SPORTS INK.

Who’s That?

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Notable performances in northwest Kansas Ed Williams

The former Fort Hays State University standout wide receiver recently signed a free agent contract with the Green Bay Packers. Williams had received tryouts from several professional teams before receiving an opportunity with Green Bay. In his final season with the Tigers, Williams was an All-MIAA first-team selection. He had 53 receptions for 946 yards and seven touchdowns, averaging 17.8 yards per catch.

He also received All-Super Region 3 honors. He finished his FHSU career with 1,617 yards and 14 touchdowns. He was the second Tiger to be signed in the NFL as defensive back Nathan Lindsey was signed, but then cut, by the Detroit Lions in May.

Trey and Teryn Teeter

Trey and Teryn Teeter, from Holcomb, both competed in the Javelin at the AAU National Track and Field Meet last week in Norfolk, Va. Both made finals and became AAU All-Americans.

Trey finished with the fourth-place medal in the boys 17 to18 age division by throwing 173 feet, 5 inches — the winning throw was 175. Teryn finished with the fifth-place medal in the girls 14-year-old division with a throw of 86 feet. The winning throw was 139-0.

Last month, they qualified by placing in the top five in at the regional meet in Joplin, Mo. Trey and Teryn are the children of Kent and Dixie Teeter, formerly of Hays and Goodland.

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McPhail, a Fort Hays State senior linebacker, was one of five Tigers named to USA College Football Preseason All-America watch list. McPhail was the leading tackler for the second straight year in 2014 with 108, which was enough to tie for third in the MIAA. McPhail also added nine tackles for loss, four sacks and two interceptions as a junior.

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Michael Cole was an All-Central Region First Team and All-MIAA First Team selection at forward as a junior for the Tigers’ soccer program, which was ranked the No. 14 team in the Preseason. Cole scored seven goals and tallied four assists in 2014.

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AMREIN HOPES TO HELP RAILERS REBUILD Ellis coach one of several new leaders in the area

F

irst-year Ellis High School head football coach Craig Amrein has a plan to get his team — and alma mater — back on a winning track after a couple of consecutive years without a winning season. It revolves around improved physical and mental preparation.

The Railroaders work on the physical aspect in a modern weight room that is one of the better facilities for schools of Ellis’ size, according to the coach.

“I implemented some rewards and some policies to get kids in the weight

Page 6

room,” Amrein said. “I want to focus on sults. Amrein said the team has had four getting stronger, mentally tougher, and guys break the program’s previously exall of those aspects are going to come isting pro-agility record, which measures from the weight room. I’m an athlete’s quickness. a big believer in that.”

Other players broke Story by Through the first sumclean records that Vinny Benedetto hang mer, most of the Railroadmeasure power. and Brandon ers have impressed their “Just from what I’ve coach with a willingness to seen this summer, we’re Zenner put in offseason work. more explosive,” Amrein “The kids that I count on are doing all said. the things I need them to do,” Amrein The mental preparation will take said. “I’ve got a good nucleus.” place in a much different setting than The work is being rewarded with rea weight room or football field. They’ll September 2015

SPORTS INK.

use an endzone camera and an upgraded Hudl account, which lets coaches and players view video analysis of game tape, to improve knowledge of the sport and weekly preparation.

“I want our players to become students of the game,” Amrein said.

“One thing we’re going to do a lot different this year, we’re going to spend a lot more time in the classroom learning the game… Breaking down film.”

The hope is that the fresh approach will create a team ready to play a physi-

cal brand of football that once produced six consecutive district titles, five of which came during Amrein’s eight years as an assistant coach.

While he is hoping to see his team control the line of scrimmage, the coach doesn’t expect the Railroaders to be too run heavy. Junior quarterback Easton Smith returns after an impressive sophomore campaign, as do two of the leading receivers — Dalton Hensley and Brendon Brenner.

“We’ve got a quarterback that threw

for 1,600 yards last year,” Amrein said.

“That’s pretty good. He was a sophomore, and he’s coming back, so we can’t abandon the pass.”

Defensively, one of his few requests was “stop the offense.” Part of that, the coach said, would be doing a better job of forcing turnovers.

“We haven’t had a lot of takeaways,” he said. “(Offensive) turnovers are going to happen at times, but I really want some takeaways. continued on page 8

“You gotta’ get after the ball.”

Most assistants turned head coaches have more experience on one side of the ball than the other, but for Amrein that’s not exactly the case.

After serving as a co-offensive coordinator in his early days as an assistant — which included two years in La Crosse — he moved over to the defensive unit and worked with different position groups.

“Absolutely I feel more prepared in all the different roles,” Amrein said. “I’ve coached a lot of different positions. I’ve coached both sides of the ball, so it has prepared me very well.”

While Amrein feels prepared, he isn’t guaranteeing immediate results.

The Railroaders finished 4-5 in 2014, including a 1-4 record in the district.

“We were competitive with some of those teams, but we probably didn’t have the experience on the field that they had,” the new Ellis coach said of his district opponents. “Maybe this year, the tides will turn.”

Because of injuries, Amrein wasn’t exact on how many starters his team will return but estimated his team returns six or seven experienced guys on each side of the ball.

The Ellis native will lead his team onto the field for first time Sept. 4 when the Railroaders open the season at Class 3A Norton.

Jolie Green, Sports Ink. Craig Amrein, new head football coach at Ellis, watches over junior Trayton Kroegor as he works in the weight room earlier this month in Ellis.

Jenner returns to prep ranks with Logan-Palco

After serving as a Western Plains coach and administrator for many years, Mike Jenner found himself in an unfamiliar position coaching junior high ball at Logan.

A year later, Jenner returns to the high school ranks as the head coach of Logan-Palco, a cooperative team in its third season.

He’ll replace Dustin Patee, who

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Jenner inherits seven returning starters on each side of the ball from a team that went 4-5 in Eight-man Division I. While he’s happy to have the cupboards stocked, he needs his top athletes to stay on the field which wasn’t the case last season.

“It’s always good to have that many returners coming back,” Jenner said.

“Our biggest problem is numbers.

We’re only going to have 14. We

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need to stay healthy.”

The Trojans’ new coach said injuries plagued the team a year ago.

“It seemed like any injury that could happen did happen,” he said. “It’s one of the years that coaches hope to only go through once.”

The experienced eight-man coach said he hopes to play a lot of power football on offensive with some options looks. Defensively, he’s looking for his team to create havoc and create turnovers.

“I like to have an attacking defense,” Jenner said. “I like to put a lot of pressure on the other team to make mistakes.”

Jenner believes he has the pieces to make it work. He cited the team’s speed as one of its strengths. Most of the Trojans’ returning starters are in skill positions, including two running backs with track backgrounds and a quarterback, Josh Van Laeys, who Jenner claimed was one of the smartest he’s coached at the position.

The Trojans, because of the recent cooperative effort, will play against teams with nearly double their roster.

“I have all the confidence in the world in these guys,” Jenner said. “The athletic ability is there.”

Yates returns to eight-man ranks with St. Francis

Rodney Yates, the new football coach at St. Francis, left his hometown of Colorado Springs, Colo. to chase something that

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eluded him at his last stop as an eightman coach.

Yates’ team advanced the to the Colorado state semifinals before being knocked out of the playoffs. That left him craving another opportunity to return to the postseason leading an eight-man squad.

“There’s a taste in my mouth still,” he said.

Through a week-long camp and early morning lifting sessions this summer, Yates believes his team is also searching to reach those heights.

“They’ve demonstrated the eagerness to be successful,” the coach said.

The Indians finished 2014 with a 5-4 record in their first year as an eight-man team, and final year under coach Kyle Buffington. After his introduction to the team, the new coach believes the Indians — once a perennial Class 2-1A contender — are capable of more.

“They finished with a winning record, but the record didn’t show the types of players they have,” Yates said.

He feels that way because of the team’s ability to run.

“Our strength is in our athletes,” he said.

“Their speed and quickness and our ability to do different things because of that

I

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strength.”

He declined to go into too much detail in terms of what he hopes to do on offense, but said he plans to get his best athletes the ball in a position to use their natural gifts.

Defensively, he said it can be hard to pressure the quarterback without allowing big plays at the eight-man level.

Yates has coached six-man, eight-man and 11-man football, and believes the transition from playing the 11-man game, which St. Francis last played two years ago, is not that much different than eight-man.

“When it comes to players, i don’t think there’s a very difficult learning curve,” he said.

Conyac steps up to lead Stockton in 2015

When Phil Conyac made the upgrade from junior high to high school coach in Stockton, there was a thought process that went through his mind. Conyac has spent seven seasons coaching the junior high program, including the last several years as the head coach.

After Otis Hendryx left Stockton to lead Kensington-Thunder Ridge after two seasons, Stockton was left looking for its fourth coach in five seasons. With a 1-17 record over the past two , Conyac felt he was the best fit for the job after working with the players in junior high. continued on page 10

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“I guess that I knew that there was a good bunch of kids up there and a couple of them had asked me,” Conyac said. “I was scared what they might end up with instead. So I decided, what’s two more games a year?”

Conyac accepted the job and held a team meeting before school released for the summer and saw the potential for an 18-man roster. He admits that seeing just 11 players report to workouts over the summer infuriated him, but he keeps a forward-thinking mindset throughout the process.

We had a meeting towards the end of school and it looked like I was gonna have 18 kids or so at summer camp and only 11 of them bothered to come — a couple of them had job conflicts but by in large, they just wanted to sleep in,” Conyac said. “It’s kinda got positive since then. … It’s gonna pan out.”

Conyac worked closely with Hendryx in 2014 but working alongside an assistant coach — Zach Mauer — who is also new to the program has made for a learning curve. He feels having worked with them during their time in junior high will shorten up the process and potentially turn the program around.

“I think it’ll go pretty smooth. … Real similar offense, just older kids gonna be able to expand on it,” Conyac said. “ It’s gonna be a pretty smooth transition I feel.

We’ll find out.”

With seven returning in both the senior and juniors classes, Conyac is reassured that a rebooted mentality can help the handful of underclassmen find a renewed

commitment to the team.

“As junior high kids, they had a lot of excitement and were ready to, you know, prove themselves. … They haven’t had a really good commitment as far as summer weights and things like that,” Conyac said.

Conyac acquires a Tigers team which allowed 46-plus points in seven games last season and has not won since Week 1 of the 2013 season.

Despite finishing as just one of two Eight-Man Division I teams to finish without a victory, he has the hopes of being in the hunt come the end of the year while focusing on building the team’s character in 2015.

“We’re gonna concentrate a lot of leadership this year, core values, and hopefully get some wins, get some trust from them and enthusiasm so that they’re not wishywashy next year,” Conyac said.

Clow gets 6-man experience at Weskan

New Weskan head coach Brett Clow has quite the adjustment to make ahead of the upcoming football season.

Clow spent last year coaching 11-man football at Sterling College where he served as the co-offensive coordinator. Now, he’s preparing to translate his offensive knowledge to the six-man game.

“You can get really creative,” Clow said. “Everybody is eligible.”

The ability to spread the field and throw to anyone has the first-year high school coach excited about the prospects of his offense, but the other side of the ball will present new challenges.

Clow doesn’t have experience coaching defense, but he said he plans to implement some of what worked last year in the Coyotes’ 2-3 campaign.

“Coaching defense and scheming — all the details of making adjustments — that will probably be my biggest challenge,” Clow said.

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Weskan will again fill its schedule with eight-man teams that have agreed to play a six-man game, which favors the Coyotes.

“Other teams put together a one-week plan to play us,” Clow said. “We’re practicing six-man all the time.”

Clow, whose wife is a Weskan native, got to town just in time to lead a summer camp to get a better idea of the tools at his disposal. The team is short on size and depth with 12 or 13 guys set to play but is stocked with strong runners.

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“I’m definitely excited to see what they can do on the field,” the first-year coach said.

Clow hopes to spread the field and get some of those athletes running in space in his first exposure to high school football. He said he took the job in part because of family ties and a familiarity with the area and also because of the opportunity to become a head coach.

“I’ll coach football wherever they have it,” Clow said.

He will replace Marc Cowles who is now the coach at Ness City.

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Plainville gives Stephenson his first head coaching gig

Grant Stephenson wasted little time hopping into his first gig as a head coach. As a 2006 graduate from Pittsburg State, Stephenson made the leap as a graduate assistant at Fort Hays State before accepting an assistant coaching position at BSJT last fall.

Stephenson, 31, now takes over Plainville’s program after Joe Simon joined longtime friend Jon Webster as an assistant at La Crosse.

With the Cardinals’ two main assistant sticking around, Stephenson is excited to take to the sidelines this fall for the first time as the man calling the shots. continued on page 12

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FILE PHOTO, Sports Ink. After 16 seasons in Oakley and one in Cimarron, Randall Rath has found his way to Hays High School to lead the Indians, their third head coach in three years.

“I’m just excited about it. It’s kinda all just falling into place,” Stephenson said.

“I’m sure there’s going to be a little bit of a learn curve but the other coaches — (Ryan) Becker, (Justin) Casey — have done a phenomenal job helping me out and helping things get organized and getting introduced in the community and getting to know the players better. They’ve made the transition and I’m glad I’ve got both of them by my side.”

As the man in charge, Stephenson looks back at his past jobs as great experiences that will help him reduce the curve of taking over.

“It’s been a good process just because I’ve got to learn a lot through all the different stages.

I’m excited to be where I’m at and hope that things go well. You finally get to implement your own ideas and you just hope they work as a first-time head coach.”

Simon left Stephenson some valuable pieces to work with. Junior Hayden Friend, one of the fastest players in the state, has racked up more than 2,000 all-purpose yards in his first two years with Plainville, while the defense returns its top four tacklers. Even with all of the talent, Stephenson isn’t throwing all of his dice into the wins column in his first year.

“I think everybody wants to win as many games as possible. I just want the kids to give 100 percent, and I don’t think that’s gonna be an issue,” Stephenson. “We have a good summer weights program going — we’ve had good numbers there — and a good camp. I just wanna continue to see that effort and that they believe what I plan to implement and hopefully we can start just taking off from there.”

Rath’s 18th season brings him to Hays High

One year after replacing one head coach, Hays High went through the process yet again in 2015 after Bo Black left for 6A Shawnee Mission Northwest following one season in charge of the Indians.

After being beat out by Black one year earlier, Randall Rath gets his shot at coaching in a community of which he was passionate about being a part.

“We like the location of it for family matters. I think that there’s potential to build a very strong football program here and build more school pride.” Rath said.

“I think that it’s a challenge and something that I’m looking forward to.”

In his 18th year as a head coach, Rath brings 16 years of experience at Oakley and one season at Cimarron to the Indian locker room. With 131 career wins, he has not seen much setback in his kids buying in to what he is implementing at Hays.

“It’s a tough situation for the staff and for the kids — the trust buy-in on the kids part,” Rath said. “We’re putting in a whole new system for the third time in a row. The coaches are having to deal with this and it’s real time consuming. On top of that, coaches gotta feel that there’s confidence in being able to trust what’s happening, and that’s a challenge, especially with the low numbers of kids. It’s even more of a challenge for the coaching staff.”

While he fights to replace three-year starting quarterback Alex Delton, Rath plans to run the ball on the way to try and defend Hays’ Western Athletic Conference championship; Hays High is the smallest school in a conference that includes two 6A programs. While picking up new schemes on both sides of the ball might determine their success, Hays High must get experience to a number of underclassmen and players who were banged up by injuries in 2014. Rath has liked what he’s seen during the offseason but is hopeful to bring more kids into the program during his time in Hays.

“I think the kids that have shown up to do the things that we’ve asked them to do in the summer are really on track and have bought in and are working hard to get better — they’re making themselves better athletes,” Rath said. “We feel very good about those kids. The thing is, we need to try to get more kids involved. The kids that are in there are most just the football kids. Hopefully we can get some more kids involved to make them better athletes as well.”

Veteran takes the reins at Thunder-Ridge

For the first time since 2009, Kensignton-Thunder Ridge felt what it was like to miss the playoffs. Jerry Voorhees gave the program nine years of consistent winning, leading the Longhorns to a 58-16 record since consolidating to form the current team.

Now, Otis Hendryx takes the reins of on of the best eight-man programs in the state during the past seven years.

Hendryx is a seasoned veteran that brings experience from a wealth of different coaching stints, including at Chase, Claflin and, most recently, at Stockton.

“I think the biggest thing is obviously there has been quite a bit of success in

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the past there,” Hendryx said of why he was desired to lead Thunder Ridge. “It’s a community that really supports the football program. It just felt like a good place with the interview, felt really comfortable and felt like it would be a good challenge.

I’m really looking forward to the opportunity, but the success that has been laid before made it somewhat attractive.”

To reign as Eight-Man Division II kings in Kansas won’t be easy, as perennial powerhouses in Victoria, the defending state champions, and Beloit/St. John’s-Tipton lay atop District 7. Despite losing its season opener, Thunder Ridge rallied off five straight wins before losing to Victoria and BSJT, ultimately leaving them out of the postseason.

Getting to compete against some of the best in the state on a regular basis has Hendryx itching to get on the sideline.

“Obviously, Victoria’s got a tremendous program over there … they’ve done a great job over at BSJT,” Hendryx said. “If we’re gonna be in this, we wanna face the best and we want to earn our spot to get to where we want to be. That’s what I like about where we’re at. The kids are gonna learn a lot about life as much as they will about football through the process.”

Despite losing top running back Trent Rietzke and all-state offensive lineman Logan Miller, Hendryx is pleased with the look of his squad, though he is in need of his underclassmen to fill in on both sides of the ball.

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“We’ve got some pretty good talent. The kids have fought hard in the offseason, they’ve really worked hard in the weight room,” Hendryx said. “We’re gonna have good size, speed’s pretty good. The biggest challenge I think that we’re facing is that we’re not gonna have experienced kids playing due to primarily over the last few years with big senior classes. This year it seems that most of those kids are gonna have to play some varsity time. On-field experience is something we see as a challenge for us.”

Construction, marriage land Osborne new coach

For quite some time, John Scarbrough has called Maryville, Mo., his home. After playing football under Division II legend Mel Tjeerdsma at Northwest Missouri State, Scarbrough graduated and coached eight-man football and track at North Nodaway in Hopkins, Mo. After two years of coaching, Scarbrough’s life changed. He got out of coaching and went into construction work. It did not change for the worse, though, as he met a girl that he would fall in love with and would lead him to his newest gig as head coach at Osborne.

Julie Jones-Scarbrough married him less than one month ago and, being from

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Osborne, the vacancy at head coach was brought up and intrigued him.

“We’re starting a new life and thinking about where we wanted to start it. We were thinking about going out there,” Scarbrough said. “I just kinda thought about it for a little while. The next thing I know, I’m applying for it, I’m getting married and I’m moving down.”

Within a matter of a few weeks, Scarbrough added a new wife and kids to his family and ‘head coach at Osborne’ to his resumé. “(The last few weeks have) been great.

Everything is good,” Scarbrough said.

“I’ve been blessed with life, a lot of good people around me and I’ve been blessed with a wonderful wife and her wonderful family and I’ve got outstanding kids to bring into the relationship and she’s got some. It’s just no complaints. It’s all been great.”

Scarbrough takes over for Steve Tiernan, who left Osborne in June to take over at Solomon.

Under Teirnan, the Bulldogs had three 10-plus win seasons, including a perfect 13-0 state title season that gave Osbrone the eight-man scoring record with 760 points. Tiernan’s son, Jake, left as well to quarterback the Solomon team one year after Osborne lost in the sub-state championship game.

With Tiernan and all-state wideout/ linebacker Brandt Wolters, who graduated, no longer in Osborne, Scarbrough inherits a young team that still returns a wealth of talent.

His approach to coaching goes far beyond wins and losses, though.

“Well I’ve always thought of coaching as more than winning and losing games. It’s investing in the kid’s lives through experiences we’ve had ourselves as we’ve grown up,” Scarbrough said. continued on page 14

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“Having the opportunity to pass those experiences off to somebody else, teaching them those lessons of life in hopes of them not making the same mistakes we’ve made growing up and just investing in their character as men, character and the personality it takes to be a team, contributing to the team to accomplish a goal or mission.

“It’s just always been kind of a part of my life and I’ve never really stepped away from that,” Scarbrough added. “I’ve always had some way of influencing children and young men, whether it’s my own kids or kids in the neighborhood or church, youth group and stuff like that. That’s more of my mission in life rather than a job.”

Longtime eight-man coach Cowles takes over at Ness

In 2014, Marc Cowles — in his 13th year as the head coach at Weskan — faced a dilemma. It was a dilemma that could become more common, though, among declining western Kansas communities.

Not having enough players to field an eight-man football team, Cowles and Weskan approached neighboring Sharon Springs-Wallace County about a cooperative agreement.

When things didn’t work out, Cowles and the Coyotes opted to play a six-man schedule with any area eight-man teams that would take them up.

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File photo, Sports Ink. Marc Cowles spent 13 seasons as the head coach at Weskan before replacing Chris Bamberger at Ness City this season.

for Lakin, Cowles is once again coaching an eight-man program, and one with the potential for a good number of players on the practice field. In 2014, Ness City was one of several Class 2A schools competing in the eight-man ranks.

Cowles brings a 63-58 coaching record to the Eagles, who finished 9-3 a season ago with a sub-state loss to eventual state champion Claflin-Central Plains.

Cowles’ teams at Weskan often produced

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big offensive numbers, and he took the Coyotes to playoff appearances in 2003, ’04, ’05, ’12 and ’13. Three of those appearances resulted in playoff victories with the longest run being a sub-state berth in 2004.

He enters Ness City while the Eagles could be in somewhat of a rebuilding process.

Along with Bamberger leaving for his first 11-man head coaching job at Lakin, the Eagles graduated the bulk of their numbers — including quarterback Tanner McMillen and running back Pedro Flores. McMillen was a 1,000-yard rusher and passer in his senior campaign.

But the Eagles do return four starters on both sides, led by senior running back/linebacker Dylan Hamilton, and a trio of linemen.

The Eagles have enjoyed a great deal of success since making the switch to eightman. Since 2010, Ness City has made playoff appearances in four of five seasons, including arguably the state’s most dominant run to an Eight-Man Division I state championship in 2012.

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AND ALEX DELTON

Interview by Brandon Zenner

K-STATE QB HOPEFUL

What’s it like working with and learning from a group of high caliber quarterbacks?

A benefit from that is you definitely expand your game. I mean mentally and physically, working out harder, just always competing.

That’s another thing cause all guys do think different and all quarterbacks have different styles so you definitely push yourself to standards you probably didn’t think you could hit. That’s probably the biggest advantage and the biggest difference.

What’s the difference between preseason camp in high school and college?

Fall camp is a grind for sure. It’s something players look forward to because it’s the start of football season. High school camp is a little more laid back, obviously. College camp is a lot of work and we just enjoy doing it because we know season is right around the corner. We’re about to get after it.

What’s it been like getting a semester of college under your belt?

Graduating a semester was definitely a huge advantage on my part. Not only on the field, but off the field. It’s definitely something, getting adjusted to college life and some of the things that come with college. Anytime you can have that opportunity is very fortunate. I’m happy with the decision. I feel like I definitely did get a head start on not just the playbook but some of the guys I’ve got good relationships built with. I’m completely happy with the decision I made.

What have you done to make the experience as normal for you as possible?

I think anytime you come into a college program, you gotta come in humble obviously just because there’s so much talent here, especially at Kansas State — there’s a lot of talent here. We come here ready to work and ready to get after it but there’s definitely a process we go through and a little of a learning curve. The spring semester helped me alot, just getting started and not leading up to fall, so it’s pretty exciting.

What has improved most about your game since arriving at K-State?

I’ve developed so much as a player, as a passer, as a runner here. It’s just the details Coach Miller and Coach Dimel go into our game. It helps us obviously to our benefit.

From all aspects of it, I’m just a better player than in high school because of the detail

Sports Ink

HNS photo True freshman quarterback Alex Delton attempts to escape Jordan Willis during the 2015 Kansas State spring game in April at Sporting Park in Kansas City. we go into here and we know it’s important and we basically dedicate our life to it.

Physically, I’m bigger, faster, stronger than I was in high school. In the mentally part of the game, I feel I know more about the game than ever.

What has the physical process been like?

Right now, I’m about 201 and it’s less body fat. Anytime you’re doing that, that’s positive and I think I’ve gotten faster and stronger.

From a physical matter, it’s basically been a huge, huge advantage, especially coming in a semester early because I’ve gotten bigger, faster, stronger, to get ready for fall camp like we are and get ready for the season.

How honored are you to be named in the conversation for starting quarterback as a freshman?

That’s a huge honor. You obviously come in here wanting to compete regardless of age and competing is something that’s very important for me and all of our quarterbacks. Just being able to compete at a high level I think is very valuable to us — competing in a sense that we get each other better and we all get better.

How has it been watching your game progress so quickly at K-State compared to small

September 2015

progressions in high school?

It’s honestly a little weird to watch. I mean, I’ve developed so much as a player since I first got here, and that’s all thanks to the coaching staff here, the weights staff. They really do get you prepared to compete at this level and it’s obviously not easy. They definitely prepare you to compete at a high level.

What would it mean to you to be named the starter?

It would be a huge honor in the fact that I don’t think it’s ever been done — a starting quarterback as a freshman. If you could ever start as freshman quarterback, that’s a huge honor. But right now, my main focus is just getting better everyday, just reaching for my full potential as much as I can leading up to game one.

How weird will it be to stand on the sidelines if you’re not a starter after starting for three years?

That definitely will be a little different.

My freshman year of high school I didn’t particularly see the field as much as I did in the other years in high school, but I mean, it is what it is. I trust Coach Miller’s and Coach Snyder’s decision that they make. That is what it is, basically.

Page 15

FILE PHOTO, Sports Ink. The Logan High School volleyball team celebrate moments after defeating Sharon Springs-Wallace County in the Class 1A Division II state championship match in 2014.

Logan, Van Laeys eye a return to glory in 2015

R

obin Van Laeys and the Logan High School volleyball had all the cards in their hand for a deep run in

“It’s one of those things that we still haven’t come down from,” Van Laeys said.

“For me, it’s something from a lifetime of 2014. volleyball and I’ve never experienced that.

The Trojans battled their way to a 35-7 It’s a big deal.” record in route to their But that was last seafirst Class 1A Division II son.

Story by state volleyball championLogan’s senior class is Brandon Zenner now a trifecta — Chrisship. Logan snagged two fourth-place finishes in ten Greving, Ireland Voss recent years and a group of six seniors had and Makayla Hilburn. After throwing out the experience to finally propel the squad four players inching near 6-foot last season, over the hump to finally hoist a first-place Greving is the lone player near the mark in trophy.

2015.

Page 16

September 2015

On top of it all, Van Laeys no longer has her daughter, Kodi, around the program, as she was one of the half-dozen seniors that delivered Logan their first state title.

“It’s been weird,” Van Laeys said of not coaching her daughter anymore. “She’s been in the gym since she was probably 3 or 4, so it’s definitely been odd as I’ve been getting ready to go to all the offseason stuff and she stayed home. The other day, we had a discussion about lineups and that’s something I never got to do with her. I always left her out of that part — she understands the game really well. We’ll miss her. I’ll miss her.”

SPORTS INK.

“We never really have talked about last year. It was awesome and I’m so glad we got to do it, but it’s not fair to these kids to live in last year.”

- Robin Van Laeys, Logan volleyball coach

Logan returns just a number of players who saw valuable playing time last season, which includes Greving. The joy of winning a state championship was fun, but she says the best part was how the team bonded like a family.

“It was definitely a really good experience to actually win a state championship. The team I was playing with was really fun because we were a big group of friends and we all liked each other — we didn’t really have any drama, so that made it good,” Greving said.

“This year will be a little bit different because we’re gonna be a lot younger since we lost six seniors from last year.

The chemistry will just have to build up throughout the year, but I think it will be OK.” Logan does have a junior class as large as the senior class of 2014, but with the large numbers it graduated, mostly everyone is stepping into new roles, and she expects it to show for a little while.

“I think anytime a team loses five starters, let alone a small school, you’re gonna have some definite growing pains,” Van Laeys said. “I worry because we don’t have many seniors coming in and that could be an issue — our junior class is pretty big and there’s some strength there — I mean in numbers, not in size. Last year, we had three girls that were right at the 6-foot range … we won’t be that way now.”

As the squad’s most experienced returner, Greving has taken everything she learned from last year’s playoff streak, and used it to step in as the voice of the team.

“I guess I’ll just have to be more of a leader since I’m a senior and didn’t have to be much of a leader last year,” Greving said. “(The state title run) gave me a lot more experience.

It helped me to talk a lot more on the court … it helped me to become more of a leader. It will definitely help me out this year with the younger girls on the court.”

A run in 2015 will not come easy for the state champs. Van Laeys said her team does not feel any extra pressure Sports Ink

File photo, Sports Ink. Logan’s head volleyball coach Robin Van Laeys and the Trojans have become a mainstay at the Class 1A Division II state volleyball tournament.

defending their title since teams have always gunned for Logan, having been one of the top team’s in 1A over the past number of years.

To be fair to this group, she has not even mentioned last year to her current squad.

“We never really have talked about last year. It was awesome and I’m so glad we got to do it but it’s not fair to these kids to live in last year,” Van Laeys said. “It’s all been about this coming year and what we need to do and learning and growing as a unit together.

“People might say it’s less meaningful because they split the 1A but you’re still winning what’s put before you, winning that division. It was an awesome moment to get to do it with the a group of great young ladies. It’s something I’ll never forget.”

September 2015

Logan’s Makayla Hilburn attempts a dig against top-ranked Sharon Springs-Wallace County last season in the Division II state championship match.

Page 17

F

On the rise?

ans of the Russell High School football program haven’t had much to cheer about in recent seasons.

At least, that is, in terms of success in the win-loss category. But, being on hand for the Broncos’ second win last season when they defeated TMP-Marian, 24-17, on their brand new turf field in Russell, you could tell there was a new aura about the program.

Russell has just six wins combined the past four seasons, but in a one-win improvement from the previous season, The closer there was a little more Nick excitement brewing for the Broncos.

I would expect nothing less than that to fester into yet another step on the ladder for a team that hasn’t enjoyed a .500 record since 2006.

Despite yet another rough schedule, I wouldn’t be shocked to see Russell a bit more competitive in 2015. Entering their second season under coach Jeff Brull — a former Russell assistant — the Broncos seem to have a bit more excitement revolving around their program.

Having the chance to see some of the team’s videos on Facebook and Twitter recently, it seems as though the Broncos’ workouts have been high energy. And given the talent shown on the field last season when the Broncos beat TMP in Week 8, a little bit of energy and enthusiasm should mean another improvement for this club.

The Broncos return eight starters on each side of the ball, including an athletic quarterback in Reshean Holloway, a 6-1, 190-pound dual threat. Another good thing Russell has going for it, however, is the bulk of their returning starters are just juniors or sophomores — sans Holloway — so a solid season in 2015 can help build things even further.

Granted, the odds are against the Broncos each season with a difficult slate, and it’s not likely playing against the likes of Norton and Beloit that Russell will be making any kind of postseason appearance. Yet, doubling last year’s two-win total — or more — isn’t entirely out of the question.

That’s just a feeling I got last season watching them pick up an elusive second win.

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