ChiefSmoke

I played against that 1982 Rebel team. They were really good. I still see Mike Harmon around some. Excellent running back and great guy!

Was talking about this in the Interim thread.... I was an assistant at Paris HS, 1988-1991. May 27, 1992, our head coach, Roger Gruneisen, took the HFC job at Bourbon County. Our Principal, Homer Goins, loved Paris HS and he was really angry that we lost Roger. Angrily, with steam coming out of his ears, he asked me if I would be the head coach. I said yes. I could not pass up the opportunity to be the head football coach at Paris HS. But, it was NOT a happy day. I can still see him sitting at his desk in his office. I was standing in the door. Not sure I ever saw him angrier than he was in that moment. Fortunately, we had a really good sophomore and junior class. We were pretty good in 1992 and got better the next two years. I hate these late openings also. But, they also can lead to opportunity.

We love guys playing spring sports. But, the ones that have not , grades 7 thru 12, have been able to get some good work on the field. Our varsity coaches have been working with the young guys as well. Our guys are continuing to get stronger, faster and more muscle mass. The Truck Stick approach has been good for us. Monday night before our player-parent meeting, Mitch Crawford, the QB from the 1968 team, invited our staff for a fish fry. The 1968 Bearcats were very good. We had a blast.

That was an embarrassing conversation. But, I used that going forward to help us be better.

I have been very fortunate. Parents at Paris, Mason, Mercer & Anderson have been super. This is a page from the book each family received Monday night.

Normally, I would agree with you. But, some of the stuff I have seen happen the past 4 years, doesn’t make a lot of sense to me anymore.

He is the new head coach at Western Hills. Was hired this off season. I am an old guy... but I have never seen anything like this year and the head football coach openings. Crazy times.

May 28, 1992. Paris HS Library. Our head coach, Roger Gruneisen, has just taken the job at our rival, Bourbon County. They introduce me as the new head coach. Our Principal was Coach Homer Goins. He was one of Charlie Bradshaw's Thin Thirty and won a state title at Paris has HFC in 1973. Coach Goins turns to my OL coach near the doorway and says, "We did the right thing today. But, it's not like we can't make a change a year from now if we need to." ?

I see speculation on certain jobs that they may hire an interim. I don’t really understand that. In public schools, we are all on a one year contract. Why would there ever be a reason to say this Coach is an interim? I’m not trying to make a point I really just don’t understand.

From the AFCA website: The American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) has identified the length of the college football season as a critical issue that needs to be addressed. As we modernize our game to better serve student-athletes, we have fallen short in structuring a season that concludes in a timely and sustainable way. The AFCA recommends that the season be completed by the second Monday in January, and that this date serve as an organizing principle in shaping the future of college football. To achieve this, we propose the following changes: Eliminate conference championship games Reduce scheduled bye weeks from two to one Preserve a dedicated window for the Army-Navy game, while allowing flexibility for other games to be played on that day outside the window Reduce the minimum number of days between contests to no fewer than six In addition, future playoff models should maximize the number of participants while honoring the proposed completion date. Structuring the season in this way will better support student-athletes by more closely matching the academic calendar and aligning with the single transfer portal window. It also elevates the quality of play during the most meaningful stretch of the season by removing unnecessary breaks and preserving competitive rhythm.

e037b6527b3a4fb58d352fa15c8f64b2.mov Life Lessons & Wisdom from Bearcat football!

I can guarantee Coach Hauck had no problems with Parents! Some of my dad stories I’m not always sure are true. This is one of them. My dad was an assistant at Lafayette in the late 60s. He told me once that Coach Hauck was at Lafayette one spring. I think he had planned to become the head coach or he had even done spring practice. At some point, he told my dad, “John this school does not have enough discipline for me to coach here.” He left Lafayette at that point.

Yes. If it is PT…. Player meets w/ position coach. Most of the time, that addresses the problem. if it is NOT PT, the parents need to let me know what is going on… or the player. Last week… had a player unhappy about something at the school level. I told him what I would tell my sons, seek out the adult, have a polite conversation about your concern. Getting kids to address their concerns instead of Mom or Dad is a huge growth opportunity. One of my boys had not been kind to a young lady. Took him to house to apologize. The Mom starts yelling at me and wants me in on the conversation. I told her, “I am not the one that screwed up. This is HIS problem! “ I made him handle it. Yes. We did an episode on role of the parent. If you cannot find it, message me and I will send a link!

This is incredible. Thank you!!

We have a meeting every May with players and parents. Procedures, standards and schedules will be shared. Role of the parent is spelled out in one page. Every family will receive a book that will answer most of their questions through the season. For 33 seasons as a head coach, 90 - 95 % of the parents have been super at Paris, Mason, Mercer & Anderson. Most of the time, if you communicate and you are fair, it will eventually resolve issues. People still get mad, but they understand better what the coach did and why he did it. Sidenote... the past 20 years I have heard how bad the Mercer parents are. Not true. The Mercer parents were just as good as the parents at the other schools. 90-95 % of those parents raised money, supported our coaching decisions, got their kids to early morning practices and did about anything I asked them to do to benefit our program. I may be sensitive about it because it is my hometown. Mercer County gets a bad rap and I have heard about all I want to hear about it.

I am Al Bundy but fewer TDs. ?

You got me ... but CLOSE! I am trying to PROMOTE guys playing both basketball and football! That is beginning to happen at a significant level w/ baseball & football. And...we have more basketball guys playing football than when we got started in 2023. The kids at ACHS are super! But, ALL of our athletic teams will be more athletic if our best guys are playing multiple sports. Of the four schools , Paris, Mason, Mercer & Anderson... Anderson has been the toughest to get the basketball guys out. 2026.... sports specialization is an issue like no other era. I am crazy about our basketball coach, Bryan Hyatt. He was on the committee that hired me. Just a week ago, I told him he has an open invitation to come talk to our guys and ask them to tryout for the basketball team. He is going to bring me into their kids camp in June to invite those kids to football camp. There are several structural changes we are trying to get in place so that Anderson County football can be significantly better, not just in 2026.... but 5, 10 & 20 plus years from now. Of those structural changes, not sure anything would help more, for ALL SPORTS, than if we can create a culture where our best athletes are multiple sport guys going forward. I've never drawn a play or had a practice/workout that moved the needle more than having 3 Mr. Basketball guys on the football field... (Chris Lofton, Trevon Faulkner, Darius Miller). Remember what Nick Saban's HS coach told him on that play to win the state title... when the game is on the line, think PLAYERS, not PLAYS.

Biased...but high on the Bearcats. Like the Beasleys (Noah & Ace...big time TEs if they would step on a football field). Hudson DeGarmo, Henry Cooper & Coleman Boggs are more football guys, but will be older. They like to compete. Will play their guts out. Can see these guys starting or coming off the bench. Trying to get Daniel Franklin out for football. He will push to make the starting 5 next season. Tough, physical, hard nosed kid. Gabe Hyatt should be good in the post. Another kid... needs to be playing football. Good boy. Good height. Thick build. Watch out for incoming freshman, Rylan Lucas. Gonna be a good one in both football and basketball.

Well... I was losing it. Steph was sort of rolling her eyes at how stupid I am. I pull the door apart about a foot. The floor is at the level of my chest. At that point I can see Juan. But, I knew it was him as soon as I heard his voice. And, it had been at least 10 years since we had been at Paris. They start talking to me through the phone / intercom and tell me they are coming to help me. If I can get the door open, we can crawl out. I tell them, "All I need is a crow bar. Bring one!" Their response was something to the affect of , "if we give you a crow bar, you are going to tear up the door. We will be there to get you out as soon as we can get someone there." That just made me madder. Eventually, someone shows up, and they get us out. I can't remember if they moved the door or if we crawled out. As much as I hated it, it did make me feel much better that Juan was there and he was on the outside. I knew he would help us. I still hate elevators and don't trust them.

We had a good group at Ky Christian University on Saturday in Grayson. It is always fun to work with the mountain QBs. Eastern KY QB play has been special for a long time. 100 years from now, that will still be true. Tim Champlin (East Carter HFC), Daniel Barker (West Carter HFC) & Trosper (UK student assistant for QBs) also served as instructors. I don't get to do as many of these as I use to. 3 grandkids and drinking water from a fire hose on full blast in Lawrenceburg w/ Bearcat Football.... and THANKFUL for all of it! Really enjoyed Saturday! I love KY HS Football...especially the guys in the toughest places that walk through the door, everyday, and work like madmen to help their kids.

One year, Sweet 16, Steph & I got stuck on an elevator between floors in the Hyatt. I am claustrophobic & flipping out. We are between floors. I start to pull the doors apart and yell, "someone get me out of here!" I hear a voice...."Coach?" It was Juan Byars! He was a student at Paris when I was there. Wonderful young man. Go Greyhounds!

Another advantage I should have mentioned... our staff is out on Mondays and Fridays. Lots of schools with freshman and JV programs, they are out Monday, Thursday, Friday & Saturday. This league helps me keep the coaches' wives happy and keep coaches.

The only guys that can play in all 3 games is a freshman or weak sophomores. Those guys won't play much, if at all, in the Varsity game and only as a sub for the JV game. This format matches them up in games against other players most like themselves. It has worked great. Injuries have not been a problem. 6 minutes go by fast. In season, we rarely go to the ground at any level of practice. The early morning on Wednesdays are great to give our guys an extra 12 hours of recovery before the Friday night game. Before, we were playing JV games. 10 minute quarters. Freshmen against juniors. That is when injuries were a problem.

After six decades of service, the Streamland Pool has come to an end. This past week, I got to visit with the guy on the jackhammer that was digging it out in 1966, Steele Harmon. He could still remember what that felt like. I had no idea, but Streamland Pool was going to give me a chance to do a "rebuild" before I even became a head football coach. Spring of 1986, Jim Manners was selling cars with my Dad at Wade Motor Company. He was also the President of the Streamland Pool Club. They needed a pool manager and a lifeguard. They also had a problem. The teenagers would take over the pool and the little kids would have to sit on the side. He made it clear that he was hiring me to clean up that problem. This was my kind of assignment. Give me a mission. Tell me what you want done. But, don't tell me how to do it. Let me be myself and figure out the best approach. To say the problem was attacked would be an understatement. I was getting paid to protect those little kids and to make sure they got to swim. On a scale of 1 to 10, in completing my mission, I would give myself a 10. Now, in being diplomatic and kind... the WAY that I went about my mission, probably a 2. If you listen to our podcast, you would know that Chuck Smith is critical of me in that my diplomacy and tact are subpar. He is correct. Too often, just because I believe my cause is right, I don't care a whole lot about other people's feelings or how I say what I say. Now, I am really trying to do better in that department. In the summer of 1986, I was 21. And, often, young males are not real smart in how they do their business. I was certainly one of those guys. These teenagers were pretty easy to handle after some of my experiences with drunk golfers at Bright Leaf. A few "highlights".... 1-One of our adult members was a prominent teacher in the community. I got after her for having food on the pool deck, a rule violation. Man... she got MAD! She let me have it. Told me there was no way I was going to make it in public schools. Now, she was CORRECT that I handled that poorly. But, in May I will be completing my 41st year in public schools. 2-The pool board would have their meetings in the corner, near the road, down behind the pool pump. One night, the parents of the teenagers formed a long line to complain about me that stretched up to where I was sitting as the lifeguard. They blasted me and the pool board, repeatedly, during that meeting. But, the pool board was so happy that the little kids were getting to swim, they didn't say a word to me. 3- That summer, often, the teenagers would come to the pool, see me, turn around and leave. The summer of 1986 there was alot of weeping, gnashing of teeth, hostility and anger. By summer of 1987 and 1988, smooth sailing. Everyone knew what to expect and accepted the way we would do our business. I would like to think, by then, that EVERYONE enjoyed their day at Streamland Pool, the teenagers included. And, that job was a huge blessing! My hourly rate was pretty low, but I got 60 plus hours a week. I was the best bathroom / shower guy cleaner in the USA. Take a squeeze bottle of Mr. Clean. Throw it all over the walls, sinks, toilets, you name it. Get out the water hose and rinse it off. Sparkling clean! You could eat your lunch off the bathroom floors at Streamland Pool. I can't wait to walk in the doors at Anderson County HS Monday morning. Fired up about my Mission and will do my best to be diplomatic & kind while working with others. But, if I show up w/ no shirt, a whistle around my neck, and my floppy hat, you will know it is ON!