ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, October 31, 1996 TAG: 9611010080
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: N-16 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: MONETA
SOURCE: BOB TEITLEBAUM STAFF WRITER
SUCCESS AT TRACK has given Staunton River athletes confidence on the gridiron
It might have started when Bob Gray was hired three years ago as the head football coach at Staunton River.
Or it might be traced back to last year's Group AA boys' track championship.
It might even have been a result of star running back Kevin Martin being talked into coming back out for this year's unit by his good friend, Jarrett Ferguson after quitting the football team last year.
Whatever it is that has turned perennial football doormat Staunton River into a potential state powerhouse, remember these three names. These people explain why the Golden Eagles are 8-1 with a chance to win or share in the first district football title in the school's history.
Behind Ferguson and Martin, who have rushed for nearly 2,500 yards and scored 42 touchdowns between them, is a line that is willing to work hard to produce a winning football team.
Ferguson and Martin were two of the main athletes on the boys' track team that won last spring, and they are working to reverse a losing trend at Staunton River. Indeed, Ferguson had to place fifth or higher on his last attempt in the triple jump for Staunton River to beat Christiansburg for the state title. He leapt to third place.
``Before that,'' said Staunton River Principal Jim Phares, ``people might have thought there was a deficiency [at the school] because of the athletic program. That was an inaccurate picture. Everyone in Staunton River looked at it differently.
``Track did give the nucleus of those who play football [confidence] that they can win. Staunton River had been close before that [state track title]. The girls were in the state tournament. The fact is that Jarrett Ferguson's jump changed all that, and showed other people it could be done.''
Gray came to Staunton River after he was laid off at Tultex in Martinsville. He had gone to Tultex after being fired as football coach at Fieldale-Collinsville for not winning. The Vinton native remains good friends with F-C Principal Brent Vann and still lives in Fieldale, making the 65-minute trip each way to coach and teach at Staunton River.
``For me it's been a good move,'' said Gray. ``The school wants to do well. They've made an effort to do well, to work with me and my family. I live in Fieldale because my daughter is a 10th-grader [and wants to stay in school there].
``Everybody makes a sacrifice. There are days it [the long trip] bothers me. No question, but my family is happy where it's at. My kids have grown up in Fieldale, and my wife [Mary] still works in the school system. Maybe one day we'll relocate.''
Words cannot fully express what this team means to Gray and to the Staunton River community, which has turned out in big numbers on Friday nights to follow the Golden Eagles.
``Jarrett is special as far as I'm concerned,'' said Gray. ``He's always done whatever you've asked of him to be a team player. It's never come across to me that he's had to carry the ball. He played wingback as a sophomore. Last year he moved to blocking back and was a fullback. This year he's back at wingback.
``The biggest thing for Kevin is that he has made an effort to understand what it means to be a team player and not carry all the weight on his own shoulders. He's no different than any other kid.''
Martin says the biggest mistake of his life was quitting as a junior. He walked out after five games because of an ankle injury that happened in the opening contest.
``I kept messing up. If I couldn't be 100 percent, I didn't need to be out there,'' said Martin. ``Coach Gray understood about the ankle, but the team got upset and looked down on me. I don't fault them, because they looked on me as a quitter.''
Ferguson didn't take that attitude.
``He's a good player and he needed to play football,'' said Ferguson. ``I was talking to him all the time about it. Even before track.''
Still, could anyone dream that Staunton River would win like this?
``I could see it turning,'' said Martin. ``Because everyone came to the weight room and was lifting. People who went with the team to camp [at Virginia Tech] were doing the things it takes to win.''
Ferguson says track gave him an inkling that football would turn out to be big for the Golden Eagles.
``I told my mom [Linda Ferguson] that once we got a taste of winning a state track championship, you want to keep going back. That's what I told the fellows this year,'' said Ferguson.
It is an important year for Gray. This is his third season at Staunton River, so he's not tenured as a teacher until he's rehired for next season. That's why when he was ``proud as hell of his squad'' on a television show, he worried about the remark that slipped out in an emotional moment over a victory.
``I'm one of the few people who has been discharged [as a football coach] and hired somewhere else. I got another break. It's been a good community that's treated me right,'' said Gray.
``I've worked for two good men. Robert Ashwell [the principal who hired him] is as good as they come and Dr. Phares has treated me right. The kids, the team, it's a popular thing right now. The teachers are overwhelming in supporting kids. Things are going well.
``I look in the stands,'' said Ferguson. ``I see a lot of people. It makes you feel good.''
It is this trio, with the help of a great line, that's made it a dream season for the Golden Eagles.
LENGTH: Long : 107 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: NHAT MEYER Staff. Staunton River football coach Bob Grayby CNBis flanked by Jarrett Ferguson (left) and Kevin Martin, both
17-year-old seniors. The trio has played a crucial role in the 8-1
team's recent success. color.