Sunday, August 01, 1999
HIGH SCHOOL INSIDER
Friends battle for Colerain QB
BY DAVE SCHUTTE
The Cincinnati Enquirer
No matter how hard they try, Kyle Funk and Mike Ferris will be on emotional roller coaster rides during the next three weeks.
Close friends off the field and members of the same summer baseball team, Funk and Ferris will contest for the starting quarterback position for the Colerain football team beginning Monday.
“They're both good kids and I hate to view it as competition,” Colerain coach Kerry Coombs said. “Mike was the starter last year until he suffered an injury two days before the second scrimmage.”
When Ferris went down, Funk was elevated to the starting quarterback position, leading Cardinals to a 10-0 regular season record and a Division I playoff berth.
The Cardinals beat Centerville in the first round of the post-season tournament but were eliminated by state runner up, St. Xavier, in the Division I, Region IV title game.
“We've talked a lot about it,” said Ferris, a 6-foot-2, 190-pound junior. “I feel pretty confident. But Kyle and I will encourage each other in practice and see what happens.”
After Ferris was completely recovered from the injury, he played at the defensive end position.
“Whoever plays quarterback, the other will be on the field at another position,” said Funk, a 6-2, 175-pound senior. “We don't hate each other over this and to me, it's no big deal.”
However, both Funk and Ferris prefer the quarterback position.
“It's mine to reclaim,” Ferris said. “I'm a year older and a year stronger and I feel I can do it better.”
Conditioning begins Monday. Two-a-day practices start Aug. 9.
PRECAUTIONS: Water, more water and numerous breaks.
That agenda will be adapted by most coaches when practice begins tomorrow in most sports, including football, cross country, soccer and volleyball.
“In past years, we practiced in the morning and evening,” Walnut Hills volleyball coach Tim Mersh said. “If the temperatures remain in the 90s, we'll just go with one practice a day.”
Football is restricted to conditioning during the first week with with helmets the only equipment permitted.
“We'll hold drills in the evening this year when it's cooler,” Oak Hills football coach Steve Sheehan said.
Besides the intense heat, many soccer and football coaches face another problem.
“Our practice field doesn't have a watering system and it's burnt out and hard as a rock,” Purcell Marian coach Tom Stickney said.
Due to the expansion of the playoffs, the football season begins a week earlier, which resulted in the earlier start of practice.
The boys and girls golf and girls tennis seasons begin on Aug. 16, followed by soccer on starting on Aug. 28. Cross country and volleyball start on Aug. 30.
Most football teams open the season on Aug. 27 or Aug. 28.
TOP WRESTLERS: Four Tristate wrestlers earned All-America honors as a result of top-eight finishes at the USA National Wrestling Tournament in Fargo, N.D.
The highest finisher was Aaron Keough, a 182-pounder from Clermont Northeastern, who took fifth place in Cadet Freestyle.
All-America honors were also earned in Cadet Greco-Roman by Lakota West's Matt McIntire (seventh at 132 pounds), Reading's Tim Kelly (sixth at 143 pounds) and Josh Sears from Little Miami (209 pounds).
More than 3,500 wrestlers entered the event that required 23 mats at the Fargodome, an indoor football facility.
JOB MARKET: Winton Woods is looking for a freshman boys soccer and reserve girls volleyball coach. Fax resumes to Herb Woeste (825-7990).
McNicholas is looking for an assistant girls volleyball coach. Contact Dave Boettger at 231-3500, Ext 141.
Norwood is looking for two middle school football coaches. Contact Steve Zimmerman at 396-5562.
Turpin needs a freshman girls soccer coach. Call Tony Hemmelgarn at 232-7770 or send resumes to Turpin High School, 2650 Bartles Rd., Cincinnati, OH, 45244.
Walnut Hills has the following coaching vacancies: junior varsity girls and boys soccer; junior varsity tennis and assistant varsity volleyball. Contact Tim Mersh at 569-5540.
Hamilton Badin is looking for boys varsity basketball and varsity boys tennis coaches. Contact Margaret Winkeljohn at 863-3993 before August 6.
Mount Healthy needs a middle school volleyball and football coaches. Contact Tina Tuck at 729-0130. The wrestling team needs one school for a six-team dual meet on December 29. Contact Thom Maxwell at 398-9328.
TV TIME: The state semifinal and championship football games and girls and boys basketball games will be televised this year but probably not in Cincinnati.
The Board of Control, the governing body of the Ohio High School Athletic Association, recently instructed commissioner Clair Muscaro to negotiate a contract with ONN (Ohio News Network).
Ann Dustin, a member of the Board of Control, said, “For those areas where ONN isn't available, a deal could be worked out to pick up the games.”
MONEY TALKS: The state gymnastics meet, held in Columbus, continued to show a loss in 1999, but profits generated by the girls basketball tournament were up.
The OHSAA reported a loss of $19,623.81 in gymnastics, compared to $16,026.24 in 1998. The state girls basketball tournament showed a profit of $239,252.12 compared to $163,719.96 in 1998.
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