In part one of a series examining Clarkston’s middle school and junior high sports programs, the focus is turned on changes to the eighth grade football and girls basketball programs.
For 35 years, Sashabaw and Clarkston Middle School battled one another on the football field. This fall, the eighth grade football program as well as the girls basketball program fielded the same amount of teams as in years past, but all the athletes competed under the Wolves flag.
‘The Sashabaw-Clarkston rivalry had its place, but it’s over now,? said Dan Carpenter, who coached SMS heavyweight football last year and teaches eighth grade science at CJHS as well as coaching one of the two eighth grade football teams there this year.
When the Clarkston schools realigned, housing all sixth and seventh graders at SMS and the eighth and ninth grade students at the newly expanded and rechristened Clarkston Junior High School, the time-worn rivalry was finished.
The biggest change in the seventh and eighth grade sports programs was in philosophy. With football, instead of gearing their respective players for an end of the year showdown with the crosstown rival, coaches focused on becoming a cohesive whole.
‘Originally, there was going to be an end of the year game between the blue and gold teams. We felt that would not be a positive as far as promoting unity,? said Steve Himburg, who is in his 26th season coaching football with the Clarkston schools and teaches eighth and ninth grade special education at CJHS as well as coaching the gold team.
‘A lot of people disagreed with us, but Coach Himburg and I knew what was best ? If we held a final game between the two teams, it would have ruined everything we worked so hard for,? Carpenter said.
Shortly after the final Clarkston-Sashabaw heavyweight game ended in a tie last year, Carpenter and Himburg, as well as other coaches, sat down to discuss the future of the program.
‘We got on the ball right away,? Carpenter said.
Once the 2005 season rolled around, the coaches watched players during summer camps and over a period of eight days once the season began. From what they saw in practice, Himburg and Carpenter then created two teams without knowing which of them would coach which team.
‘Once we finished distributing the players, we flipped a coin to see which team we’d coach. Both of us were real happy with the teams we got because they were so balanced,? Himburg said.
Himburg’s gold team went 4-1 on the season, while Carpenter guided the blue team to a 5-0 record.
‘The program was 9-1. I don’t think we could have done much better,? Himburg said.
Instead of playing a full six game schedule, both teams scrimmaged one another before the start of the season. Himburg and Carpenter both felt the placement of the scrimmage was important.
‘I thought we should build unity not only on the football field, but also in the school. The coaching staffs worked real well together. We had more eyes on the field and common opponents. We made sure the game films were there for the blue team. I don’t know if that would have gone on if we had that big last game,? Himburg said.
‘Unfortunately for (Himburg), he always had to play them first,? Carpenter said. ‘And we had the ability to scrimmage each other throughout the season as practice.?
The two teams also shared a locker room, warmed up together, at times trained specific positions together and would end the day’s practice together.
‘It was a competitive atmosphere in a real positive way,? Himburg said.
‘In our last game of the season, it was a real tight game, but we ended pulling it off. All of the kids from the gold team came running onto the field afterwards to celebrate with us,? Carpenter said.
Himburg feels that the doctrine of unity instilled this year will make a ‘huge difference in the years to come,? as players from both eighth grade teams become teammates on the ninth grade, junior varsity and varsity levels.
The girls basketball programs were handled in much the same way as football, as coaches viewed the collusion of the CMS and SMS as an opportunity to strengthen Clarkston’s athletes as a whole.
‘We wanted to make them feel like they were part of a bigger program. We emphasized that we were all part of the same school. It’s not like a Clarkston or Sashabaw thing anymore, just two teams working together,? said Kelly Avenall, who coaches eighth grade girls basketball at CJHS and has coached for 13 seasons in the district..
In much the same way as the eighth grade football teams, Avenall and fellow coach Chris Rogers held a two-day tryout at the end of which the two divided the players into teams of equal skill before randomly determining which coach would guide each team.
‘Our first intention was to draft kids, but we didn’t want the coaches fighting over players. We watched them for two days and then split them up talent wise,? Avenall said.
When the grade level shift originally came before the Clarkston Board of Education last winter, board members feared consolidation would shrink the number of students able to participate in sports. This sentiment was echoed by coaches as they addressed how to ensure the same opportunities as before the shift.
‘Having two teams of equal skill levels worked better than having an elite team and a ‘B? team,? Avenall said. ‘It’s hard to tell a seventh or eighth grader that they don’t have the talent to play for their school. There is a lot of growing and developing in front of them. If we were to discourage them that young, some of the kids may never try out as freshman.?
Unlike the eighth grade football teams, the girls basketball teams played one another as part of their regular season schedule.
‘During the game, both teams were very competitive. We made sure to sit them down after the game and told them ‘We did this because it is going to make you all better,?? Avenall said.
Pick up the Nov. 23 edition of The Clarkston News to see how the seventh grade sports programs faced different problems than their counterparts at CJHS. Also next week, look for photos of teams from both SMS and CJHS.