In The Huddle

Somewhere between a game-sealing fourth quarter touchdown and the obligatory post-game handshakes, things at last season’s Western Alamance win at Northeast Guilford went sideways.

On this night, the usually banal moments after the final seconds ticked off turned into its most intense point as feelings were hurt, normally cool-headed coaches began shouting at one another and shoves were exchanged. Quick thinking by a handful to team officials and security officers averted what looked as if it would turn into a riot.

I was in the middle of it, slack-jawed and searching for words. Jeff Carlton, who was covering the game for the Greensboro News & Record was there to. After witnessing the scene, he summed it up with his trademark dry humor.

“Well … that was interesting,” he quipped.

Jeff died early Thursday after a long battle with brain cancer. He was 36.

For the last few years, he worked alongside me, manning the preps beat for our closest competitor. He was a good reporter and a welcome sight whenever we ended up at the same assignment.

Anyone who has covered high school sports knows that while rewarding, the beat can present a unique set of challenges. That shared experience creates a bond among people who do it. Jeff had two stints on the preps beat, meaning he had usually dealt with whatever situation any of us was facing at the time and had come through it, often with a good story.

Covering preps can be great fun but it can also be a minefield. Jeff never seemed fazed by any of it. I guess cancer has a funny way of not letting you lose sleep over the little things.

There are many people at this paper and in the sports journalism field who knew Jeff a lot better than I did. But I do know that he will be missed by everyone.

I know its a few days old, but I have one thought on the whole Roger Clemens/Brian MacNamee deal from Wednesday.

By now you’ve heard that nobody looked good, not Clemens, not MacNamee, not Congress, nobody.

But when Indiana Republican Dan Burton started ripping into MacNamee, who is no doubt a sleazebag, I felt like things went over the line a bit and I actually started to feel bad for the drug dealer.

Burton had MacNamee’s early responses to investigators’ questions and, sure enough they didn’t add up to the final story he told in the Mitchell Report. I chalk this up to MacNamee trying to protect his clients and friends at first, before he knew the scope of the trouble he would be in if he continued lying. Eventually, he realized to save his skin he would have to tell the whole story. MacNamee admitted as much.

Instead Burton, who really came off as an obtuse bully, lit into MacNamee, essentially trying to hammer home the point that if he lied once, you can’t believe anything else he says.

At that point, a good analogy flashed into my head. Follow me on this one. Let’s say you’re cheating on your wife. She sees some signs and asks you about it. You lie and deny it.

Let’s then say, a few weeks or months go by she gets more and more evidence that you’ve been running around on her and she confronts you again, this time, there’s no way out. So you tell her everything.

Sure, you lied at first, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re not telling the truth now.

I wish MacNamee had thrown that out there to explain why his answers didn’t match. It likely would have shut Burton up.

Do a little homework on Burton and you’ll see why. He’s been in public office since 1970 and has represented Indiana’s 6th district since 1982. A born-again Christian, his website claims he is one of the leading conservative voices on issues like gun control and stopping gay marriage.

Oh yeah, he also fathered a child with a staffer in 1983. I’m sure this came as news to his longtime wife Barbara, with whom he had three other kids. Yikes.

Good to see it isn’t stopping him from claiming the moral high ground though.

But that’s enough major league baseball and politics for this blog. I’m not a fan of either.

Wrestling is a different kind of sport.

It asks so much of its competitors yet gives such humble returns.

To be good, a kid must put in hours upon hours of practice, make themselves strong but lithe, explosive but relentless. And if they don’t make weight, it can be all for naught.

It’s also a sport that exists in a level of obscurity. College scholarships are scarce. It’s biggest stars are far from household names and the most decorated high school standouts rarely ever achieve Big Man on Campus status.

There’s something about slipping into one of those revealing singlets that strips most people of all pretense.

Bottom line, everyone who competes is there for the love of the sport and little else.

Maybe that’s why it can be pretty fun to cover.

The kids, coaches and fans are real. They love their sport and respect everyone who practices it.

This sense of community makes wrestling tournaments feel less like competitions and more like social gatherings with headgear, funny shoes and the occasional blood timeout.

Cummings coach Andy Hawks is a fixture in this world. He is one of several talented area wrestling coaches that I’ve had the privilege to work with and learn about the sport from.

With his bright red hair and a mischievous glint in his eye, Hawks kept you laughing and made you feel like you were always in on the joke.

In my years on the beat, I’ve seen Hawks comfort his kids after crushing losses and rush to their aid after injuries. Heck, one Thanksgiving he had a few kids stay with him while their parents left town. They wanted to wrestle in a tournament, so Hawks made room for them in his home and at his table.

One thing was always clear with Hawks, if you competed for him, he had your back. Always.

Maybe that was why, when he collapsed in class on Wednesday morning, his students rushed to get help, help that proved to be life-saving.

They had his back too.

Right now, Hawks is in a Durham Hospital and the Cummings community is hoping for the best.

I’m sure those in wrestling, a sport who’s heart is in the right place, are doing the same.

It’s the second week of September, the heat is no longer oppressive, school’s been in for a while and there’s football on Friday, Saturday and Sunday (and Monday, Tuesday, etc.). So Friday night, fields everywhere will be filled with the pop of pads and the cheers of fans. Except at Eastern Guilford and Bartlett Yancey, that is.

All teams will face a bye week at some point during the year, and this week two of our area teams will get a break.

But both head into the week off on different tracks.

Bartlett Yancey has lost three straight after starting the season with a win. No doubt the Buccaneers’ coaching staff will be hard at work plugging holes and fixing mistakes.

Meanwhile at Eastern Guilford, the Wildcats have won two of their last three and appear to be on the way up. The bye week may not have come at the best time as the Wildcats are likely hoping to capitalize on momentum.

Now a look at the teams that are actually playing this week.

WESTERN ALAMANCE AT CUMMINGS

Ask Western Alamance coach Hal Capps. Ask a fan of either team. Ask anyone who has followed football around here for any length of time. Western Alamance may be coming in with the No. 1 ranking and the spotless record and Cummings may have lost two straight, but if anyone thinks the Warriors are going to have an easy time, don’t count on it. The Warriors are the heavy favorites, but this one could be interesting.

GRAHAM AT WILLIAMS

Both teams come in with losses in their last three outings. Whoever wins this one will feel great. The loser, not so much.

ORANGE AT EASTERN ALAMANCE

The Eagles may not have come back down from last week’s shutout of Cummings. They’ll need to at least get somewhat back to earth to take care of an Orange team that has won two of its last three.

CHAPEL HILL AT SOUTHERN ALAMANCE

Southern Alamance will be looking to channel the momentum from last week’s fourth quarter into a full game. They’ll have a shot to do just that against a Class 4-A team that has yet to find its groove.

EASTERN RANDOLPH AT SALISBURY

Eastern Randolph coach Burton Cates said he’s been drilling his team all week on defending Salisbury’s wishbone attack. When asked how the Wildcats have been picking it up, he responded “they’re young, so who knows?”

Yep, sometimes prep football fans forget that when you’re dealing with 15-18 year olds, you need to be prepared for anything.