THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, August 28, 1994 TAG: 9408260219
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: I17 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Football Special '94
SOURCE: BY JULIE GOODRICH, CLIPPER SPORTS EDITOR
LENGTH: Medium: 86 lines
If you ask a football coach in the preseason to evaluate his team's talent or chance of winning games, the likelihood is that you'll get a vague bit of coachspeak like ``It's too early to tell'' or ``We'll just have to wait and see what happens once the season starts.''
Usually, those types of responses are simply brush-offs. But when Mickey Toll, the first-year head coach at Atlantic Shores, says that he doesn't know what he's got, he really means it.
Mystery is one thing the Seahawks certainly have going for them this year.
Atlantic Shores didn't field a varsity team in 1993, so Toll has had to assemble a squad from scratch for this season.
If nothing else, the experiment will be interesting. Especially since Micah Clymer, Atlantic Shores' starting quarterback, has never played at the position until this year.
``He's going to make some big plays for us this year,'' said Toll. ``His strength is his pure athleticism. I think he will be the surprise of the conference.''
Atlantic Shores already has lost a valuable player - during practice, a doctor said that wide receiver/defensive back Jonathan Keese had to sit out a year due to bad knees.
Toll only has 19 players - four of which have never played football before - left, so by necessity they'll play both sides of the ball.
Clymer will also see time at defensive back. Junior Stephen Hopkins, a transfer from First Colonial, is the big man on the team at 6-foot-4 and 278 pounds. He will be a two-way lineman.
Seniors Nathan and Joel Oates, transfers from Indian River, team up as middle linebackers and also take on offensive skill positions - fullback and tight end, respectively.
Toll also looks for a strong season from junior tailback D.J. Jordan.
``He's got a great ability to make the big play,'' Toll said. ``He might carry the ball for just 3-4 yards 10 times in a row, but he can break one for big yardage at any time.''
More than just teaching his players the basics of football, Toll is also focusing on instilling a team mentality.
``We're trying to get them to understand that you have to take practice seriously and sacrifice for the team, always trying to do your best,'' he said.
``We want them to believe that they always have the ability to win, no matter what the circumstances.'' ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by STEVE EARLEY
Joel, left, and Nathan Oates, senior tranfers from Indian River,
will team up at inside linebacker and, on a 19-man Seahawks squad,
go both ways.
Photos
D.J. Jordan
Micah Clymer
Stephen Hopkins
John Butts
Jonathan Keese
Head coach Mickey Toll
Chart
AT A GLANCE
Includes:
1994 Schedule
Team data
1993 Results
Year by year
For copy of chart, see microfilm
by CNB