Coming off a winless 2010 season and losing their veteran head coach, there are a lot of questions surrounding the 2011 Green Wave football team. On August 19th, we may get some of those questions answered when the Waves open the season at Lookout Valley.
Despite the struggles last season, the 2011 football season draws near and excitement is filling the air as everyone is ready for some Friday night football.
Joe Campbell will make his debut as the new head football coach. Joining Coach Joe on the sidelines will be some familiar faces as well as some new additions.
Thomas Viar, now in his senior year, brings a wealth of experience back to the quarterback position. Joining Viar in the backfield will be Junior Jacob Miller and Freshman Jason Gaus.
There are a host of young talent at the receiver position that include Clay Clower, Logan Davidson, Christian Moore and Shandon Lyle. Dylan Davidson and Brock Dishner are senior wideouts and will be looked to help guide these young men.
The Waves have only 3 lineman returning from last year: Ralfie Gonzalez (Sr), Cameron Gains (Jr) and Brandon Lemons (Jr). Coach Joe is hoping his young guys can quickly fill these voids.
A “welcome back” addition to the program and to the community is Zach Patterson. Zach is the son of the late Steve Patterson and grandson of the late Gary Patterson. He has been living in Michigan for nearly 8 years but has moved back and is once again attending Midway. He is a welcome addition to the team, bringing size and strength.
SORSN reached out to Coach Joe Campbell for a brief Q & A as he prepares for his first season opener as the head football coach at Midway.
SORSN: Coach, it’s been five months since we first interviewed you as the new head football coach. Tell us about these last 5 months.
Coach Joe: The past five months have flown by. All of the players have seen significant gains in the weight room, and even though we still have a long way to go, we’re all chomping at the bit to play some ball.
SORSN: In March, you stated your first goal as the new football coach was to not be living with your parents come August. Update us on your living situation.
Coach Joe: Still at home and still loving the home cooked food.
SORSN: Introduce us to your staff.
Coach Joe: This off-season Coach Jean Paul Holt and Matt Campbell were a huge help in the weight room. Unfortunately Coach Matt won’t be with us this fall, but Coach Holt will continue to run the weight room and he does an excellent job.
We all know Coach O’Toole who has worked his tail off, especially recently, to make sure the field is greener than ever. He also does a very good job of letting me know what I need to be doing. He will be coaching the Hogs on both sides of the ball.
Coach Lewis Edwards on top of being our go to maintenance guy will be working with WR and assisting with DBs. He works really well with the skinny guys.
Coach Gabe Patterson is our QB and LBs Coach as well as cook for the Coaches. He cooked for the sports banquet and our fundraiser and did a heck of a job.
Coach Ryan Hill is back working with the RBs and assisting with the D-Line. He knows the game and the team respects him.
Finally, a new face to the community is Coach Ryen Minton. He will be assisting with WR, coaching DBs and calling the defense. He has hit the ground running since his arrival at the beginning of July. He knows the 4-3 inside and out and is doing a great job of getting the boys ready.
SORSN: How have summer practices gone? Have there been any surprises….someone that come mid-September we are all going to be saying, “wow, have you seen this kid…”?
Coach Joe: Summer has gone really well. The boys have worked harder and longer than in the past couple of years, and they ask for more hills every day. As far as who is going to stand out, I’ll let the boys answer that one on the field.
SORSN: What 3 things are you hoping the team can achieve before August 19th?
Coach Joe: All of us just need to focus on continuing to get a little better every day.
SORSN: Fundraising has become a standard past-time for most school programs, especially those at a small school. Recently, the basketball and football programs held the benefit “SOR Fun Run” which drew 85 participants, including you. Tell us your experience with the Fun Run and your thoughts on how the event went.
Coach Joe: I thought that the Fun Run went extremely well. I was really impressed with who participated in the running part of it. I was kind of embarrassed afterward that Pam (my girlfriend) and I chose to walk instead of run. I think that it is one of those events that will continue to get bigger every year.
SORSN: Have you given thought to future fundraising events? Mixed Martial Arts is very popular right now; have you thought about a SOR pay-per-view MMA event? Perhaps Rusty Campbell vs.a Cotton-Eyed Joe Bouncer?
Coach Joe: That’s the best idea I have heard yet, but the only way to get Dad to go for it is if they are the Main Event and Kyle Canup is the Referee.
Thanks for your time coach and GO BIG GREEN!