Spring is in the air. Trees are budding, birds are chirping, and it’s finally warm enough to wear those SOR t-shirts. [Promo-Plug: Get yours today in the Online Store!] But for Coach Darrell Ruffner, this time of year means one thing….get that field ready! It’s a safe bet that Midway baseball coach Darrell Ruffner, along with a few select student-athletes, have been dragging the infield, improving drainage to dry-up right field (again), and perhaps patch a few bleachers (again) in preparation for the start of the ’07 baseball season. Likewise, softball coach Amy Cawood, formerly Amy Ladd, is doing the same just one field over as her Lady Waves prepare to defend the region title.
In baseball news, the father-son coaching combination that we first witnessed during the basketball season will carry over onto the diamond as Isaiah Ruffner will ditch the coat & tie and help out as the pitching coach. There is also a surprised addition to the team roster. Wendell Pressley, better known as Cup Cake, will presumably play short-stop for the Green Waves this year. That’s right fans; it appears Butthead will have to roast his own weenie this year.
For the girls, Hannah Collier will be slinging heat once again. As a freshman, she was nearly untouchable and led the Lady Waves to a State Playoff appearance. Katie Alexander is expected to replace the big bat of Tiffany Ferr….Feraei…Ferra….I give up. You know, the girl who suddenly started cranking out home runs and later broke the record previously set by Sabrina Rucker (‘00). Tiffany is now playing softball for Crichton College in Memphis. New to the team are Haley Parks and Michelle Walden. These freshmen have strong defensive skills and could see a lot of playing time early.
SORSN.com attempted to interview both Coach Ruffner and Coach Cawood but as expected, they were working on the fields. The fields have seen major improvements over the last few years but don’t expect any changes in the seating….safe bleachers are obviously not a priority for the county. As always, better bring your lawn chairs….or find a stump free of fire ants.
The baseball/softball season is quickly getting under way. Both the Waves and Lady Waves have had games this week. The Waves lost 1-14 to Oakdale on Monday.
The Lady Waves also saw action Monday as they would beat McMinn Central 5-2 but dropped Tuesday’s game, 2-10, against Webb. They take the field again today against South Doyle.
Shifting gears to football. Though the season opener is 5 months away, Coach Moser often remarks that wins and losses are determined in the off season. With that in mind, we wanted to see what was going on with Green Wave football this spring.
There have been a lot of changes in the football staff. Coach Houston has taken a job with the rail road (begin whistling “I’ve been working on the rail road” tune now) and will no longer be coaching for Midway. It is a sad loss for the players as well as the staff. In addition, Coach Davis is MIA. There are reports that he has been sighted remodeling his tent somewhere on the Cumberland Plateau; however, no one knows if these reports are true or just simply rumors.
But with these departures come some additions, Mr. Jerry Walker and Mr. Dennis Owens. Jerry Walker is a graduate of Midway High School where he played football and basketball all four years. He played college football for UTC where he was a 3 year starter at defensive back. After college he coached at Kingston, helping with the defense until the mid-90’s, but now he’s coming back home to work with Midway’s defensive back field. Will Green Wave football interfere with Mr. Walker’s golf game? Will he persuade Coach Moser to hold practices on fairway #3 at Lakeside Golf Course? It’s been suggested that Mr. Walker’s contract agreement calls for the practice field to become his personal putting green. Coach Moser was “unavailable for comment” when asked to confirm this. SORSN welcomes Coach Walker.
Dennis Owens, originally from North Carolina, played his college ball at North Carolina State, where he was a 3 year starter at defensive tackle. He went on to the pros where he played for the New England Patriots from 1982-1987 and played in the 1985 Super Bowl vs. the Chicago Bears. Mr. Owens resides in Oak Ridge and currently works at one of the plants. He will be working with the Offensive and Defensive Line. Due to the size of Mr. Owens, the SORSN staff will reframe from any and all references to “da Bears” and the Super Bowl Shuffle.
Rumor Mill: Coach Shillings is back??? Has diaper changing taken its toll forcing Shillings to once again put the visor back on?
Coach Gordon will again be coaching the “Lindbakers” and “Runnun Baks.” Steve Stansbury will again be assisting the football team with various duties. However, according to his peers, the biggest news from the coaching staff – Coach O’Toole is still married after almost one year!
When asked about spring football, Coach Moser had this to say:
“We are again having a good off season in the weight room, getting stronger in our lifts and our speed is improving with our agility drills. We are looking forward to seeing the improvements we have made in our scrimmage against Grace Christian.
We are currently in the weight room four days a week working hard. Our spring work out session will wrap up with our annual lift-a-thon on Saturday May 26th, and this will be the only fundraiser the players will be involved in. Community supporters are much needed and greatly appreciated. All Green Wave fans are invited to attend.
Spring Drills will be from May 3rd to May 23rd, with a scrimmage against Grace Christian on Friday May 18th, with the possibility of another scrimmage on the 23rd. We will be back in the weight room starting in June and will remain there throughout the summer until Fall Camp begins. Our 3rd annual little league camp will be held July 9th, 10th, 12th, and 13th. All youth players five years of age and up are welcome.”
We also spoke with former lineman, Matt Johnson, to give us his thoughts on these current weight room topics:
SORSN: Who’s beefing up? We want to know who is slinging the weights around…………who is the Big Poppa Pump?
Matt: Tyler Stockton with his double cheese burgers from McDonalds is continuing to beef up daily, and for tickets to the gun show please log on to AssyChinnGuns.com
SORSN: Who needs to? Whose case have the coaches been on to stop playing grab tail and get in the weight room?
Matt: That’s a loaded question, THEY ALL NEED TO GET BIGGER, Grab tail #1 is T.J. Ogle and Grab Tail #2 is Matt Oliver
SORSN: Who’s slimming down? Who’s gonna be wearing smaller pants?
Matt: As far as losing weight goes: Fat Freddy and Coach Shillings
SORSN: Who’s the leading contender for starting QB? Who is his competition?
Matt: The competition for QB continues to be Eric Stansbury, Larry Risner, and Quinton Pressley. Last but not least Big Guns, arm slingin Assy.
Stay tuned to SORSN.com as we continue to bring you coverage of baseball and softball as well as summer football updates.