READY OR NOT IT’S TIME FOR FOOTBALL
By Dom DiPasqua/Staff Writer
Tuesday night, July 29, 2014
BRECKSVILLE – Don’t let the sub-headline fool you. Although August first has a way of sneaking up on people (especially school teachers, wink, wink) the Bees are indeed ready for the opening of fall camp.
Two-a-days, that two-week grind that becomes forever etched in young men’s souls, if not their hearts, begin this Friday, bright and early at 8:00 am.
What to Look For
Brecksville-Broadview Heights head coach Jason Black’s truck backed into the first parking spot by the locker room gate area. No doubt Black will have opened the padlock before sunrise.
Trainer Tom Iannetta patrolling the grounds with a coaches sneer, masking the good humor that lies in his heart. A white towel will be draped over Trainer Tom’s shoulder.
Sixty-some young men, in helmets and shorts, squinting into the early morning sun. Over the next two weeks they will slowly but surely begin to morph into the men they will become.
Fans wanting to know, “How are the Bees going to do this year?” Those questions have been coming at a more rapid-fire pace the past month or so. The check out girl at Heinen’s asked. So did an old-timer in the meat department. Even friends, who now live in places like Bainbridge and Aurora, want to know.
It seems that nearly everyone in Brecksville and Broadview Heights is looking forward to this football season. And, coming off a sensational 10-2 record, it is for good reason. For Black, his battle-tested staff of assistants and the players – well, they have been looking forward to this since school was recessed in June.
Let The Hitting Begin
After several days of non-contact drills Brecksville will get down to playing real football for the first time since November 15. The only difference is that next Thursday, when the pads go on and the contenders for starting positions begin to separate themselves, it will be about 50 degrees warmer than it was that frosty night in Mentor.
The Bees will play in intra-squad scrimmage on Monday, August 11. Preseason scrimmage foes, as usual, are; Medina Highland (Friday, August 15) and Painseville Riverside (Friday, August 22). Both exhibitions are at home. And both are against teams, like Brecksville, that made the Division II playoffs last fall.
Brecksville knocked out the Beavers, 53-35, at Community Stadium on November 8th. Meanwhile the Hornets advanced to the state semi-final game where they played well for two and half quarters before succumbing to a mistake-free Cleveland Glenville team at the Byers Field ice box.
Advancing The Calendar
2014 will be Brecksville-Broadview Heights’ swan song in the Southwestern Conference. More will be written in subsequent stories about the transition to the Suburban League, which BBHHS will become an official member of on July 1, 2015.
The schedule next year will obviously change. Say good-bye to the Avon Lake’s and the Olmsted Falls’ of the world and introduce yourselves to schools like Cuyahoga Falls and Stow. The good news, in this geographic shift of conference realignment, is that the Bees will once again be in the same conference as their ancient rivals, the North Royalton Bears.
With Hudson and NORO becoming SL foes in ’15 and this being the final season of a two-year opening season non-league series with Holy Name, Brecksville’s non-conference games a year from now will take on an entirely new look.
The Bees open the 2015 slate with a home game against Padua Franciscan. In week two the Garfield Heights Bulldogs cross the bridge on their way to Mill Road. And before their maiden voyage in the SL begins the red and gold will travel to Brunswick.
As of last week it was not certain if the Brecksville-Royalton game will take place in week ten. As any dyed-in-the-wool fan of high school sports would argue the final Friday of the regular season should be reserved for rivalries such as this. Back in the old days, when the Bees and the Bears were charter members of the Pioneer Conference, they always faced off in week ten. Prior to that the two neighboring schools did so in the Cuyahoga Conference. Snow, rain, cold and a winter full of warm memories were in store if you were fortunate enough to claim the Golden Shoe.
It appears as though the Suburban League, at least in its eight-team big school cluster, has set itself up for natural week ten rival games to take place. Aside from Beeville and North Royalton, you have Nordonia and Twinsburg at the eastern end of the Route 82 corridor. Hudson and Stow have been bitter rivals since Route 91 was a wagon trail. And Cuyahoga Falls and Wadsworth, at the southern end of the loop, makes sense too.
In basketball the eight teams mentioned above pair up nicely as travel partners for the traditional home-and-home dates. But now we a getting just a little ahead of ourselves.
Old Friends Who Never Met
For at least the last four years this corner has chronicled the progress of the Joplin (MO) High School Eagles. After reading a story in USA Today of how Joplin, its high school and football stadium were destroyed by an EF-5 tornado late one May. It went on to tell how the players, townspeople and administrators rallied to get the ballpark ready for the season. The tale of how regular folks overcame a natural disaster touched this old heart. And, because of that community spirit, the Eagles were adopted as a brother team.
Chris Shields, the veteran head coach at Joplin, I’m certain, has no idea that his squad is consistently followed in this neck of the woods. But that is okay. We’ll chart the flight of the Eagles here again in 2014.
Speaking of Joplin. Athletic Director Jeff Starkweather was named the Missouri Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association “Athletic Director of The Year” for the 2013-’14 school year.
A New Corral
Much closer to home the Maple Heights Mustangs will christen a brand new stadium in a month or so. Maple, who plays in the Lake Erie League, has built in incredible ballpark right next door to its new high school, which opened two years ago. The entire landscape at the corner of Clement Drive and West Boulevard has been so drastically changed that the area now looks like a true campus. The huge Wylie Athletic Complex (gym) remains as it has stood since it opened in 1975. And the facility is still regarded as one of the best high school gyms in the area.
Maple Heights Stadium replaces venerable Stafford Stadium, which had fallen into disrepair way back in the mid-1970’s. Somehow, through patchwork construction, duct tape and super glue, Stafford withstood the test of time and served as the Mustangs home through last season. The ‘Stangs won the Division II state championship in 2012. If ever a school deserves a new yard it’s Maple.
The new stadium, which has sprouted in a densely populated residential neighborhood, gleams maroon and white. It has an artificial surface, an asphalt track, a huge press box, a dynamic looking scoreboard and is completely walled and fenced in. The entrance gate is grand. And it is adorned with a large statue of a rearing Mustang.
The sparkling new edifice is not on par with rival Bedford’s cathedral. It is not Serpentini Stadium, but it is very nice. Congratulations to Maple Heights from this aging former linebacker.
As for Stafford Stadium? It has an upcoming date with the wrecking ball.
Through The Lenses
The big guy you see on the sideline on Friday nights, the gent with the telephoto lenses that takes such great photos for this website, is Scott Warren. Scott does it for the love of the game. His hobby has turned into his passion. When you see Warren you may also want to congratulate him. His home, with its recently remodeled facade and crisp front yard landscaping on Oakes Road, has won him the annual beautification award as doled out by the City of Brecksville.
Also back this season, working hard to get the best angles and lighting for her shots, will be Jeannette Weaver. Mrs. Weaver has been taking pictures of Bees football games for as long as I can remember. She does an absolute marvelous job capturing the action on the field and excels at the off-the-field photo opportunities; the cheerleaders, the fans, the locker room scene at halftime, etc. Weaver too, does it out of the kindness of her heart.
Quote of the Off-Season:
“Tom Tupa reinvented offensive football at Brecksville.” – Jason Black.
A Darn Good Quote Leftover From The Madison Game:
“Coming into this season as a sophomore was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. To be accepted by these 19 seniors was a heart-warming thing. Playing with all of them as a sophomore and learning from them is something I’ll never forget.” – Nick Sokolowski.
The High School Nickname of The Day: The Astoria (OR) Fishermen.
See You At The Bee Hive!
To contact: Ddipa67834@aol.com.
Follow the Lady Bees volleyball team on-line at: beesvolleyball.com.
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