Vol. 3, No. 15, October 1, 2007 - Play by Play

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16 PLAY BY PLAY OCTOBER 1, 2007 FACILITIES Rural community knows how to get it done by Christian Moody WHEN SOMETHING NEEDS to be done in Craig County, people figure out if they’ve go the wherewithal to do it. Do they have the location The resources The money About 15 years ago, a track was built behind Craig County High School — in one day. All of the labor, all of the material and all of the equipment were donated. The track cost the school nothing. Craig County residents know not to ask the county government for favors. The budget is small, the tax-base smaller, and paying for the school system, landfill and the few other services takes up most of the money left in a county with no stoplights, one incorporated town of less than 300 residents, millions of trees and two-thirds of its land belonging to the U.S. Forest Service, which pays no property tax. So when residents wanted a place for their kids to play ball that was similar to sports complexes in Salem and Botetourt County, it was up to them. Thus the Craig County Recreation and Conservation Association was born. Now, the “Field of Dreams,” as it’s called, is a goal the CCRCA is trying to achieve. It will be a new complex of athletic fields that will coach Tom Coughlin is involved, calling him a tough “one-size-fitsall” coach that wouldn’t cut him any slack in practices when his body began aching more as an aging veteran. “It got played up in New York that I retired because of Tom Coughlin…or because I was tired of being beat up. It’s a confluence of a lot of things,” Barber says. But football was never going to be all that Barber was about and he turned in his uniform after the 2006 season following a 10-year NFL career. He lives in Manhattan with his wife, Ginny, his sweetheart since college, and their two young sons. Barber’s elaborate “crib” was featured on a halftime show last year. He’s now a correspondent for NBC’s Today show and a studio host on that network’s Sunday Night Football telecast. Craig County has no stoplights, millions of trees, and two-thirds of its land belongs to the U.S. Forest Service allow recreational teams from Craig to practice and host home games. The CCRCA’s complex is in the final planning stages. The last permits were expected to be approved and signed in late September. All that’s left to do is build it. Problem is, that might be the hardest part. It’s certainly the most expensive, and money is not exactly lying around. There are no large treasure chests of cash waiting for a good project. Tracy Surface, the chairwoman of the CCRCA, said the overall cost of the project, if fully funded, would be between $600,000 and $700,000. That’s if everyone who works on the project is paid. Barber From Page 10 One of his first assignments for Today was at Virginia Tech after the April 16 shootings. Even though the Barbers have no formal ties here any more — Geraldine moved out of the valley after she retired from her Roanoke County administrative job a few years ago — Barber came back in the middle of September at the behest of his friend and former UVa teammate, Walt Derey, who is part of the Valley Forward movement. That group — led by local businessman John Lugar — wants to keep more young professionals here in the valley and held a Sept. 13 forum where people could mingle with local government and civic leaders, asking questions about the valley’s future. Barber came in as keynote speaker to talk about how the Roanoke area had shaped him, how important it is to build a sense of But in Craig County, volunteerism is not only alive and well, it’s essential. Plans are in place for heavy equipment to be used to clear the site, near the campus the three county schools share about two miles east of New Castle on Virginia 615. The land is already deeded to the CCRCA, purchased from Glen Whitlow. Volunteers have agreed to clear the land, grade it and prepare it to be ball fields. Like other sports complexes, four diamonds will radiate from a central hub. One will be a regulation baseball field with 90-foot baselines and a grass infield. Another will be community here. One of those looking on at a news conference before the forum was Steve Spangler, now the principal at Cave Spring High School. He was Tiki and Ronde’s head coach at the Southwest Roanoke County school in the early ’90s. “Any time he comes home it brings back memories,” Spangler says. “Those guys have Bill Turner amazed me from when they were in high school,” he recalls of the Barber twins. “The sky was the limit. Every time you thought they got to one plateau they moved it up another notch.” Spangler remembers Barber as being “very highly motivated” in high school. “I’m just as proud as I can be of them. I knew they were Donna Earwood a regulation softball field with 300- foot fences, while the other two will be for t-ball or little leagues with 200-foot fences. A football field will be laid out in the outfield of the baseball field. Gene Hannah is heading an action committee that’s selling firewood as a fundraiser. Hannah’s group will raise money earmarked for fuel for the heavy equipment that will be donated. The CCRCA raised money the past two years raffling off a new Ford pick-up truck. The drawing this year will be at the Craig County Fall Festival on Oct. 13. The CCRCA is also looking for sponsorships and grants. The state has offered a $25,000 matching grant. Still, it’s a long way from the total amount needed to build the fields, the fences, the central tower and, ultimately, the lights that will stand over the fields. Surface said while the work of Hannah, Mac McCaleb and other volunteers is beyond value, the money trickles in. The project will be a pay-as-you-go effort that might take years to complete, but it’s going to be done with sweat, with community, with volunteerism, and without debt. Craig County residents know how to get it done, even if they have to do it themselves. special athletes.” Being considered a special athlete obviously meant something to the proud and ambitious man known simply as Tiki to many in the game. Single-name athletes like Tiger, Peyton and Michael are in a separate category from the mainstream. “I didn’t want to be the guy who not only was hearing from other people but was saying to myself, ‘I’m not Tiki Barber the same anymore.’ So I walked away while I still could, at the top of my game.” After all, whether it’s broadcasting or another profession — Barber hints in the book that politics are one future possibility — there are plenty of playing fields left to conquer.
OCTOBER 1, 2007 PLAY BY PLAY 17 Staton From Page 12 “It was late in the spring of my senior year and I got a letter from Coach, and I decided I might as well look at VMI,” she recalls. “My dad and my uncle both graduated from VMI so I knew a little about it already. I went there and I liked it the most of all the schools I had seen.” And Staton took to the lifestyle, so much in fact, that she now plans on commissioning in the Navy after she graduates. Ultimately, she would like to go to flight school, and that goal is within her reach as long as she keeps her grades up and keeps building on the foundation VMI establishes in all cadets. It’s particularly tough on women, though, with less than 100 females among the 1,300 total Keydets. A lot of the women there are athletes, too, trying to build VMI’s fledgling women’s programs against great odds at the Division I level. “We have to recruit student-athletes that are strong academically and interested in what VMI has to offer,” says Williams, who seems to be getting pretty good at finding those recruits. He has five sophomores and six freshmen among his small, 16-player roster, part of the team’s challenge going against larger programs with many more experienced players. “VMI teaches you to keep at it and never give up,” says Staton. “I’m really glad to be part of this team. We only have two seniors but I think everyone has picked up a leadership role at times to make it work.” Staton is learning about leadership, too, already an Echo Company corporal in the Corps of Cadets. Like all the cadets, she went through the Rat Line her freshman season, the baptism of fire that makes or breaks a VMI man or woman. “That’s the toughest thing I’ve ever gone through,” she says. “It was pretty hard. That and getting used to so many new things can be overwhelming. Just learning the rules like how to wear a uniform, how to march, just the military lifestyle.” Staton says being part of a team within the corps helped, but despite what outsiders might think, she says her fellow females at the Institute are tougher on each other than even the men. “Most of the girls give each other a harder time at VMI,” she says. “I guess because it’s so hard for us. If one of us messes up, then the corps kind of looks at us as one so we have to make sure that the girls remain in good standing.” But Staton’s freshman season was tougher for other reasons, too. An ankle injury kept her out of all but seven games and the competitor in her ached. She hurt more this preseason — a recurrence of the ankle injury and a chronic stomach problem sidelined her for the season-opening win over Howard, and she came off the bench against The Citadel. Ultimately, one in a long line of doctors finally figured out Staton had developed lactose intolerance. Dairy is out of her diet, the ankle is better and Staton has been back in the starting lineup ever since. With her back on the backline and with a big assist from the freshmen goalkeeping duo of Angela Redmond and Heidi Beemer, the Keydets allowed just two goals in the next four games, Williams’ plans are coming together. He loves Staton using her offensive skills from the backfield to bring the ball forward and initiate offense. Mom, becoming quite the soccer aficionado, enjoys Staton’s game, too. She rarely misses a VMI contest, and all that while she and Staton’s stepfather, Kirk Morgan, coordinate the sports schedules of Staton’s younger sister and two brothers. Key From Page 13 “I never really realized how much work they had to do getting me everywhere all the time until I got to college,” Staton says. “They come to every single one of my home games and most of the away games they can get to.” Staton has extensive future travel plans, too. She’s planning on naval flight school, and that makes sense. Her career is just starting to take off. it made sense to honor George,” says Key. Hawkins and Preas were once teammates. Unfortunately, Preas was in poor health and unable to attend. He was represented by his wife, B.J. Preas, who accepted the honor for her husband. It was by far the most touching meeting ever held by the sports club. B.J. Preas’ acceptance speech was from the heart, Key says, and she still get accolades for the words she uttered that night. Key’s son, Phillip, Jr., like his father, played football at Hampden-Sydney where he started at running back. His daughters, Rachel Boyer and Shelley Blackwell, live in Danville. Blackwell was a teen tennis star with a state ranking. He has four grandsons, all of whom have played the violin since they were 5 years old. The oldest, Delos Boyer, plays in a concert orchestra using a violin that belonged to his great-great-grandfather. Key’s granddaughter, Lucy Blackwell, “is only 4 and has her own violin,” Key says proudly. Delos, who stands 6’5”, is projected to grow another three inches and wears a size-16 shoe. He might be a major player in Division I athletics. Boyer plays on the George Washington High School junior varsity football team in Danville. He also will play basketball, probably on the varsity level. Amazingly, in this day of early recruiting, Boyer has received no attention despite making excellent grades. Though Key is beyond conventional retirement age, he’s still one of the busiest men in Roanoke. After a 36-year career working for IBM, he retired in 1992 and entered into a partnership with an associate in Florida. “We have computer software that permits large manufacturing companies to use energy more effectively,” he says. “It’s like getting better gas mileage.” With the new sports club year just getting underway, it’s going to be interesting to see what else Key comes up with for the board to consider. It’s safe to assume he’s not out of ideas. (Bob Teitlebaum is also a member of the Roanoke Valley Sports Club’s board of directors.) Deans From Page 18 two states,” he ticks off effortlessly. Deans, now 59, was once a backup guard for the Patriots, who went to the state AAA final in 1966 when he was a junior. Coming back to coach his alma mater was always a goal. “Patrick Henry’s been my life.” Deans has never looked back and says he knew when it was time to quit coaching. The only time he misses it is while he is watching a game and formulating strategy. “How I would have liked to have done things, in order to stop one great player, like a J.J. Redick.” Deans says he was the master of “junk defenses” when he was coaching. In 1988, the Patrick Henry Patriots played and beat Washington, D.C., powerhouse DeMatha at the Roanoke Civic Center, in front of the largest crowd ever to see a high school game in Virginia. The attendance was “9,632 fans,” recalls Deans. That game led to a series of basketball extravaganzas that he helped organize for years at the Salem Civic Center. In recent times, a game between Oak Hill and Redick’s Cave Spring Knights packed the arena. Now Deans has jumped back in the fray with next February’s Member One Valley Shootout, which features Hidden Valley High School boys’ and girls’ teams, Salem High School and a pair of military academies. Local amateur coach and scout Steve Myers, whom Deans knew when both worked for the Dazzle, enlisted his help. “I really wasn’t looking to get back into it, [but] he’s a basketball nut,” he says of Myers, who has contacts that helped recruit teams for the first Shootout. “I’ve known him for years,” says Myers of Deans in return. “His experience with putting on tournaments has been a big plus.” The Salem Kiwanis Club is pitching in and West Virginia attorney Scott Long is a co-sponsor. Long’s son plays for Hargrave Military, which battles Massanutten in the last game on Feb. 2. “I’m the kind of guy that likes to stay busy,” understates Deans. “I’m just loving life right now.”
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Vol. 3, No. 15, October 1, 2007 - Play by Play

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