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COLUMN By STEVE HEISER 854-1575 x455 / @ydsports

The final domino has fallen.

The York-Adams League is again fully stocked with head football coaches.

The last opening was filled Monday night when the York Suburban School Board hired former West York offensive coordinator Jeremy Jones to become the new leader of the school’s gridiron program.

That capped a very busy offseason of sideline changes.

Jones became the fifth new head coach hired over the past several months in the 22-team league. The others are Eric Lam at Dover, Jon Scepanski at Northeastern, Jesse Shay at Red Lion and Matt Glennon at York Tech.

The men they replaced left for various reasons. Some were forced out. Others left of their own accord. But no matter the circumstances, the five new head coaches face a daunting task ahead of them.

That’s because high school football has changed drastically over the past few decades.

In the “olden” days, back before the district and state playoffs, high school football basically started with double sessions in the middle of August and ended by the middle of November. Just about every team played 10 regular-season games, and that was it. The only championships were for local league titles.

To be sure, there has always been pressure on high school football coaches. After all, it’s long been the single-most, high-profile coaching job at most high schools. But the pressure to succeed seems to have ratcheted up significantly since the postseason playoff era started back in the early 1980s.

Now, if a coach doesn’t consistently make the district playoffs, his job can often be in jeopardy. And at the more successful programs, the coach better win some championships, too, whether it be league, district or state crowns. Fans, administrators and school board members love to see that hardware in the trophy case and the banners on the gym wall.

In an effort to achieve those goals, coaches have been forced to develop programs that run all year long. There are weightlifting and workout sessions. There are seven-on-seven competitions. There are week-long summer camps. Some coaches even want to see spring practice, like the big-time college programs have had for years.

Back in the 1970s, before the playoffs became so important, offseason football conditioning wasn’t nearly so regimented. Coaches would open up the weight room about three days per week and hope players would show up. And at the beginning of summer, players would be given a running and conditioning program that they were encouraged to follow so that they could endure the rigors of double sessions without passing out, cramping up or losing their lunch.

That’s not the case anymore. It’s all in an effort to keep up with the Jones’s.

If you’re not doing all of the offseason work, you can be sure that your competitors are. In short order, you’ll fall behind those same competitors, you’ll start to lose more games and you’ll soon be an ex-head football coach.

Besides working hard all year long in an effort to produce a winning program, high school football coaches are also charged with making sure their players stay academically eligible, while also keeping their noses clean on and off the field. Many coaches are also strongly encouraged to get their players involved in the community, through charitable works.

Finally, coaches are also expected to be men of high character and integrity. They must be teachers and mentors and leaders of young men.

For all that, most local head football coaches earn a whopping salary between $4,000 and $10,000. When you consider the hundreds — or even thousands — of hours required to run a successful program, that works out to be well below minimum wage on an hourly basis.

That’s what the five new York-Adams League head coaches have signed up for. You don’t need to feel sorry for them. They know exactly what they’re getting into. They’re doing what they love to do. Football is in their blood.

But it’s still a daunting task.

So, if you run into any of the five in the community, you may want to wish him good luck.

He’s sure to need it.

Steve Heiser is sports editor of The York Dispatch. He can be reached at sheiser@yorkdispatch.com.

By STEVE HEISER 854-1575 x455 / @ydsports

York Suburban’s search for a new head football coach is over.

The York Suburban School Board on Monday night unanimously approved the hiring of Jeremy Jones.

Jones has been the offensive coordinator for West York High School since 2008 and has coached there for the last decade.

The Bulldogs, under Head Coach Ron Miller, have become one of the most successful programs in the York-Adams League in recent years. West York has won or shared the York-Adams Division II title for the last six years. The Bulldogs made the District 3-AAA finals a year ago and won the District 3-AAA crown in 2008.

With that experience, Jones feels ready to take over his own program.

“Any good coach strives to be a head coach,” Jones said. “You want to see if your ideas and philosophies can work.”

Jones, 34, said he plans to run offensive and defensive schemes that are similar to those used at West York — a spread-I offense and a base 4-4 defense.

The 1997 graduate of Wyalusing High School in northern Pennsylvania plans to remain a health and physical education teacher at West York High School. However, he is a resident of the York Suburban School District.

“My stepson goes to York Suburban and I live a half mile from the school,” he said. “Some of the football players are probably my neighbors and I don’t even know it.”

Suburban athletic director Chris Adams said that Jones was one of about eight applicants for the job. He said one of the things that impressed him about Jones was his willingness to accept that Suburban, which is not a big school, thrives on multi-sport athletes.

“He understands that football is not the only thing that matters,” Adams said. “He wants football to matter to the kids. But he also wants his players to pursue education past high school. He understands that academics are very important to us here.”

Jones, who will earn $5,290, will replace Brian Freed at Suburban, who resigned in early February after two consecutive 6-4 seasons with the Trojans, including back-to-back 5-4 seasons in York-Adams Division III. Freed said he was stepping down because he was looking for a career change.

“I’m hoping to make Suburban a competitive team,” Jones said. “I want to keep building on what Brian did. I want to make this a team that the school and community can be proud of. … I’m excited for the opportunity. I just want to thank everyone at West York who supported me.”

Suburban will continue to compete in Division III in 2013, but will move to Division II starting in 2014. That’s a move that Jones welcomes.

“I think it will make it easier to qualify for districts,” Jones said. “Being a AAA school and playing AA and A schools (in Division III), even if you win, it’s tough to make districts because of the power points.”

Suburban, despite its 6-4 record in 2012, finished 23rd in the District 3-AAA rankings. Only the top 16 teams made the playoffs.

Division II, in 2014, is expected to consist entirely of AAA programs.

Jones becomes Suburban’s fifth head football coach since 2006, following John Knowles (2001-2006), Bill Kerr (2007-2009), Craig Zortman (2010) and Freed (2011-2012). Adams said he hopes Jones will give the program some much-needed stability at the top.

“I hope that he plans to stay quite a number of years,” Adams said. “I hope I’m not hiring a football coach again anytime soon.”

Jones also fills the fifth and final head-coaching opening in the York-Adams League this offseason. The other new head coaches are Eric Lam at Dover, Jon Scepanski at Northeastern, Jesse Shay at Red Lion and Matt Glennon at York Tech.

Steve Heiser is sports editor of The York Dispatch. He can be reached at sheiser@yorkdispatch.com.

By STEVE HEISER 854-1575 x455 / @ydsports

Red Lion High School has hired its next head varsity football coach.

The Lions’ next boss will be Jesse Shay, whose most recent job was as the defensive coordinator at Bishop McDevitt High School in Harrisburg.

McDevitt is one of the most high-profile and most-successful football programs in District 3. The Crusaders have won the last three District 3-AAA titles, including a 21-10 victory over West York in last year’s finals. They also reached the state finals in two of the last three years. Overall, McDevitt owns 10 District 3 titles in various classes and one state championship.

“He’s very qualified. We hit the lottery in that,” Red Lion superintendent Scott Deisley said.

The Red Lion School Board approved Shay’s hiring on Thursday night by a 9-0 vote. His football salary will be $6,810.

“It’s every head coach’s dream to find an opportunity like Red Lion,” Shay said in a news release. “The community support here is second to none and the student-athletes are among the toughest, hardest-working young men in the York-Adams (League).”

Shay, a 2001 graduate of Ursinus, will also be a senior high school social studies teacher at Red Lion. He currently teaches at Northern Lebanon School District. He will bring more than 10 years of classroom and coaching experience to Red Lion.

“It had a lot to do with the teaching position and his qualifications,” board president Chris Seitz said. “It’s the best of both worlds. It’s a quality coach and will help with the football program.”

Shay and his wife Ashley currently live in Palmyra but expect to move into the Red Lion School District next school year. They are expecting their first child later this summer.

“We were fortunate to have many qualified candidates interested in our opportunity,” Red Lion athletic director Arnie Fritzius said in the news release. “Moreover, we were able to involve past coaches, members of our youth program and the administration to assist in this selection. Jesse’s experiences, references and training solidified his position as the selection committee’s choice to recommend to our school board. We are certain he will continue the proud tradition at Red Lion.”

Shay replaces Pat Conrad, who resigned in January. Conrad compiled a 45-53 overall record with the Lions during his tenure, which started in 2004. That included a 1-9 mark in 2012. His best season came in 2010, when the Lions went 10-4 and advanced to the District 3-AAAA title game.

Under Conrad, the Lions traditionally played one of the toughest non-league schedules in the area, including games against regional powers such as Cumberland Valley, Wilson, Hempfield, Lower Dauphin and Glen Mills.

– Reach Steve Heiser at sheiser@yorkdis patch.com. Lauren McLane contributed to this story.

COLUMN By STEVE HEISER 854-1575 x455 / @ydsports

The good ol’ days weren’t always so good.

Or so safe.

In fact, sometimes they were downright dangerous.

Decades ago, if you were a high school football player, the simple act of drinking water was interpreted by some coaches as a sign of weakness.

Some would even use water to reward, and to punish, their young players. Perform well, and you were allowed to quench your thirst. Play poorly, and your mouth would soon taste like the Sahara.

As a result, it was not all that unusual for players to cramp up, throw up or pass out during the blistering August days when high school training camps annually opened.

For some, however, the repercussions of this “water torture” were worse — much worse.

Some young men tragically lost their lives.

Fortunately, coaches and schools no longer allow such brutal tactics to be used. These days, players are encouraged, even forced, to drink plenty of fluids during practice to stay hydrated. Rest periods are provided periodically. And many coaches allow players to practice in helmets and shorts during the heat of the day.

Still, a few football players continue to die each summer.

The Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association is trying to do something about that sad statistic.

Last Thursday, the PIAA Board of Directors passed a heat acclimatization program for football. It starts immediately and mandates all high school football programs in the state institute a three-day heat acclimatization policy.

The goal of the new program is simple — keep our young football players safe — and alive.

“Since 1995, there have been 41 high school football heat-related deaths nationwide,” PIAA executive director Robert Lombardi recently told PennLive.com. “These deaths may be preventable. You can’t prevent everything, but from a health-and-safety standard, we want to make sure we have a heat acclimatization and hydration program in place to ensure our student-athletes are as safe as possible. It’s a national trend, and has been gaining steam over the last five years.”

Here are some of the more noteworthy requirements under the new three-day program:

—On the first two days, players can wear helmets, shoulder pads and shorts. On the third day, full equipment is permitted. Contact is not allowed on the first two days, but is allowed on the third day.

—No practice session can last more than three hours, and each practice must be followed by a break of at least two hours. A maximum of five hours of practice is allowed each day.

—Each head coach must develop a heat acclimatization proposal and submit it to the school principal for approval.

—The program can be completed during the first three days of official practice in August, or completed the week before the official start of practice.

—The new policy applies only to football, because of the intense nature of football practice, the high average temperatures when football practice begins and the large amount of heavy protective equipment that is required to participate.

Not surprisingly, the new policy did not meet with universal approval. The vote was 22-8 in favor.

Some will no doubt see this program as more evidence of the “nanny state” mentality gone wild — adding more unnecessary red tape, paperwork and bureaucracy, when a little common sense would suffice just fine.

Some coaches may also complain that the rule that bans contact drills in full pads until the third day of practice will leave players ill-prepared for the first scrimmage. However, the option to complete the program the week before practice officially begins would seem to negate that complaint.

Despite the skeptics, however, the PIAA did the right thing.

After all, as the state high school athletic organization, it is charged with protecting the welfare of its student-athletes. Visit the PIAA website and you’ll find page after page of rules and standards, regulating everything from eligibility to competition to sportsmanship.

A few more requirements to protect the health and safety of our teenage football players shouldn’t cause too much undue hardship for anyone.

After all, there are young lives at stake. If the new policy can prevent a single unnecessary heat-related death, it will be well worth the time and effort to implement it.

And maybe, decades from now, we can truly look back on August of 2013 as the good ol’ days for high school football.

Steve Heiser is sports editor of The York Dispatch. He can be reached at sheiser@yorkdispatch.com.

York Dispatch Staff Report

York Dispatch Staff Report

Eastern York High School senior Alex Cooley has committed to play football at NCAA Division II East Stroudsburg next season.

Golden Knights’ wrestling coach Dan Garner confirmed the news Monday night in a text message.

Cooley, who took first place at 195 pounds at last weekend’s District 3-AAA Section V tournament, is busy preparing for the upcoming district tournament that starts Friday at Hersheypark Arena.

Last year, Cooley placed third at districts and fifth at states at the Class AA level. Eastern moved up to Class AAA this year. Cooley enters the district tournament with a 31-0 record on the season.

Football: Cooley set a number of York-Adams League records as Eastern’s running back on the gridiron the last four seasons.

The 5-foot, 8-inch, 190-pound Cooley set new York-Adams League records in career rushing yards (6,015), career touchdowns scored (80), rushing yards in a single season (2,845) and set the state record for rushing yards in a single game (500).

He averaged 11.1 yards a carry his senior season.

Cooley will join an East Stroudsburg program that went 5-5 last season, including a 4-3 mark in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference.

Former York-Adams League athletes currently on the East Stroudsburg roster include Delone Catholic grads Dusty Reed (wide receiver) and Thomas Tippett (fullback).

York Dispatch Staff Report

Central York High School’s Andrews Dadeboe has been selected to play in the Pennsylvania State Football Coaches Association East/West All-Star Game.

The contest is set for 2 p.m. Sunday, May 5, at Downingtown High School.

Dadeboe was picked to the West Team preliminary roster.

The 5-foot, 11-inch, 180-pound Dadeboe is a defensive back who has signed a National Letter of Intent to play defensive back at NCAA Division I Buffalo University, which plays in the Mid-American Conference. Dadeboe was a York-Adams League Division I All-Star for the Panthers, helping them earn a share of the division championship this past fall.