t '""t *" '''$ -??'-' %* ' * F._:&&0V hopes to defend title Winston-Salem Chronicle g PORTS WFFlT ? THURSDAY, AUGUST 15, 1996 B1 ^ Yellow Jackets A Team will be hard-pressed to live up to last season's success By SAM DAVIS Chronicle Sport Editor > Carver will have a tough act to follow after winning ? the North Piedmont 3-A Conference Junior Varsity ? championship and claiming, last year's mythical City County JV championship. " First of all the team lost its coach. Darryl Hall, who decided to step down from the junior varsity to spend fOore time coaching the Yel low Jackets' varsity defen sive backs. As of now, Keith Wilkes the varsity coach, hasn't announced a new coach and all of Carver's varsity coaches are pitching in to help get the '96 season off the ground. ; Secondly, the entire nucleus of last season's junior varsity has moved up to the varsity level. I one ?f that ot Taunc I Carver's few Rice, K be to a lot of the the Winston-Saleni Chroni- V load for the ? the tor I , ...... action at fullback this season. J left) a fresh V ?JO man fullback, the football the starting halfback on I r M|K] during a the Yellow Jackets varsity L I " team. The team's fullback in fck the Yellow jackets, uregg is battling s ground-oriented A jH Kevin Eaton for the starting fullback attack, Mike '\ ' ABi^l rently the projected starter at fullback on varsity. Photos Wilkes says the team is in a quandary, but has some talented young players who see YELLOW B3 Tiny Indians have come long way since segregated days As I passed the football practice field at Kennedy Middle School recently and saw the hundreds of African American children par ticipating in POP Warner Football. 1 couldn't help but think about my first experiences in the Northwest Midget Football League with the Indians (or Red Shield Boys Club as we were called then). It was 30 years ago when my oldest brothers. Matthew and Isiah. got a paper route in the Waughtown Street section of Winston Salem. That was in 1966. w hen everything in this area was segregated. One day, during the course of their work, they ventured onto Stadium Drive. As they proceeded north on that street they noticed a building where white boys descended in groves each day. Finally, they got the nerve up to go and find out w hat w as inside the Red Shield Boys' Club. They were surprised at what they found - a place where boys could come and play games all day once they paid membership dues, which at the time was only $1. Not onlv ihat, they were encouraged to participate alongside their white counterparts. Having been raised in the segregated commu nity of Happy Hill Gardens. the\ were taken aback bv all of this. However. Dave Riekard. the director at that time, told them they were welcome to join. So Matthew and Isiah Davis became the first African-Americans to join the Boy's Club. A few days later. I followed my brothers to check out this "Boys' Club." It was unlike anything 1 had e\er seen before. Games to pla\, ev en craft courses- wereottered, there was a swimming pool that was open year round and the\ also took trips to visit places. But more important 1\ for me. there was a see EAGLES B3 Eagles hope to get out of blocks early during '96 season A Weeks, Brayboy, Barber could help East fly high tl.r K A VI H A \/ie hi .-m y a.^v;i i. Sports EChronuiediior? ?agjes are yOUng? but talented and ... . El lender says that he wants to make sure that The overall approach has changedI at a? of hjs junior varsj , learn (he East Forsyth, where varsity Coach Joe Bill same technique that is being t a ht on the Ellender is taking a hands-on approach to Varsitv level getting his young players ready for the junior ..We-re a? coaching both the varsity and I ( j ! i J ^oQch Joe Bill Ellender, East's varsity coach, has spent extra time with the junior varsity linemen his season to make sure the young Eagles learn the intracasies of the W'ing-T offense. The Eagles will rely on fundament football, especially early in the JV season. Photo by Reginald Eamphell the jayvecs together this year." Ellender says. "We want to get them going through the same kind of practice as the varsity players. 1 think this is going to he best for our pro gram." Last year the Eagles started slowly hut gathered steam during their conference sea son and finished with a .500 record. This year. Ellender says he hopes to improve upon that record and keep the program mov ing in a positive direction. The 40 or so play ers that turned out for the start of preseason drills has the Eagles optimistic that they can get their program back to the top of,their conference. "Right now we're kind of an unknown quantity," Ellender says. "Last year we lost some early that I thought we could have won. But then late in the season we heat some real good teams." This season Ellender say s he hopes to get out of the blocks early. On offense, the Eagles have several out standing players returning. The most intrigu ing might be Courtney Weeks, who will line up at several positions. "Courtney is a young man with a lot of talent," Ellender says. "We're going to try him at several places to see where he works out the best." At the start of preseason drills Weeks wis working at both halfback and quarter back. A lot will be determined by the devel opment of Jason Bray boy. a freshman, at see EAGLES HA down the road to Wake Forest and will wear that he wore for the Demons. McCoy, 's picture day, was one of the state's top and senior seasons.