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Coach’s Corner 06/04/20: H-V Rec. & Parks ‘Uncertain But Hopeful’ for Fall Sports

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Henderson-Vance Recreation and Parks Department’s Kendrick Vann, director, and Darius Pitt, program director, appeared on the WIZS Coach’s Corner Thursday.

Stating summer and fall sports are in a holding pattern due to COVID-19 concerns, Pitt explained the Rec. Department is following the directives of the National and North Carolina Recreation and Park Associations, as well as the CDC.

“We are watching right now, and everything is on hold,” Pitt said. “We want the kids to be involved in sports, but we are also concerned about their safety and the safety of their parents and others that come to the games.”

Pitt said the department is hopeful that activities will return for the fall, even if that takes on a different format from the norm. “Things change daily, and we are hopeful for the fall. Right now, we are looking at offering camp training programs rather than organized sports leagues. We are looking at ways to space kids out [physically] so they can stay active by doing individual workouts and conditioning.”

Vann said he is working with other area recreation departments and athletic directors to get new ideas for keeping youth and families engaged while still protecting against the spread of COVID-19.

“This is new to everyone and things change daily,” said Vann. “We don’t have a hard deadline, but we’re working with other areas so we can be consistent with our message and with our offered sports.”

To hear more from Vann and Pitt, please listen to the Coach’s Corner audio by clicking the play button above.

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Coach’s Corner 05/29/20: Crossroad Christian’s Taylor Bell Signs With Wingate University

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Friday’s edition of the WIZS Coach’s Corner featured an interview with Crossroad Christian School’s (CCS) Taylor Bell, Colts Athletic Director and Men’s Varsity Basketball Coach Scottie Richardson and Bell’s family and basketball mentors.

Bell, a recent CCS graduate and basketball player, gathered with his supporters last Friday afternoon for a belated (thanks to COVID-19) letter signing ceremony to indicate his intent to play basketball at Wingate University.

Honing his skills at Neuse Christian Academy in Raleigh during his freshman and sophomore year, Bell joined the Colts his junior year and reunited with Richardson, who also coached Bell’s older brother Maurice Wilcox.

With impressive high school stats, including averaging 21.2 points a game and scoring over 1,000 points, Richardson said Wingate will benefit from the “legacy” Bell built at CCS.

“Wingate is getting a leader both on and off the court,” Richardson said. “Taylor has certainly left a stamp not only on our program but also on our school.”

Bell will be in good company at Wingate as close friend Kurtis Taylor, who previously played at Neuse Christian Academy, as well as Andreas Wilson, a former competitor who played at Kerr-Vance Academy, have also signed with the Bulldogs.

“My friend Kurtis got an offer early from Wingate,” Bell said. “Once they showed interest in me, I knew I wanted to have the opportunity to play with my friend again, and I wanted to work with the Wingate coaches.”

To hear more from Bell and Richardson, along with commentary from Bell’s family and mentors, please listen to the Coach’s Corner audio by clicking the play button above.

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Coach’s Corner 05/26/20: Former SVHS, VGCC Basketball Coach Heading to Wake Forest

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Greg Ackles, the new head men’s basketball coach for Wake Forest High School and former coach at Southern Vance High School (SVHS) and Vance-Granville Community College (VGCC), appeared on the WIZS Coach’s Corner Tuesday.

Serving as the head men’s basketball coach at VGCC for the past two years, and at SVHS for the five years prior, Ackles now takes on a Wake Forest team with a recent 1-9 conference and 5-20 overall record.

While Ackles has his work cut out for him, he said his experience with team building and motivating players to be competitive – as witnessed in doubling the number of VGCC wins during his two-year coaching tenure – will serve him well.

“I don’t want to toot my own horn, but I know what I’m capable of and I know my ability in terms of building a program,” said Ackles. “The expectation is the same regardless of any job I take on: to get the players to be competitive.”

Ackles said he has already been in talks with the Cougar’s Junior Varsity basketball coach and has an online meeting scheduled with players this evening for a general meet-and-greet. It is expected that the majority of the players, with the exception of the four seniors who graduated, will be returning for the next season.

With the recent retiring of VCHS basketball coach Wilton Baskett leaving an open position at the combined high school, Ackles said he “heavily debated” his options, but ultimately decided to apply for the Wake Forest position and to accept the resulting job offer.

“I want to say thank you to Vance County because they treated me well the past seven years at both the high school and at VGCC. Hopefully, we can make this thing work at Wake Forest.”

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Coach’s Corner 05/21/20: Henderson Collegiate Fundraising for Championship Rings

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George Marshall, head men’s basketball coach and athletic director for Henderson Collegiate, appeared on the WIZS Coach’s Corner Thursday.

In honor of Henderson Collegiate’s recent designation as the 1-A Men’s Basketball State Co-Champions, Marshall announced the school is holding a popcorn fundraiser to purchase championship rings.

The online fundraiser that features unique popcorn flavors can be viewed by visiting www.doublegood.com and searching “HC Championship Rings” (click here for direct link). The fundraiser ends this Saturday at 10 a.m.

“This is the first state championship in our school’s history, so it’s an enormous accomplishment,” said Marshall. “What we are trying to prioritize is having something that not only honors the players but also something that can honor the managers, the coaching staff and founding administrators.”

According to Marshall, one side of the ring will honor #33 Elijah Brown, a Henderson Collegiate student and basketball player who died tragically in a car accident in May 2018.

“One of the things I’ve been most proud of isn’t the number of dollars that we’ve raised, it’s the fact that I’m getting texts from teachers saying things like ‘your players have demonstrated such great gratitude,’” Marshall said. “These are values that are going to help kids for the rest of their lives.”

Henderson Collegiate: State Co-CHAMPS 1A Basketball

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Late Wednesday afternoon, the Henderson Collegiate Pride was announced as the state co-champions in 1-A men’s basketball.  Head coach George Marshall had already appeared earlier in the day on WIZS Sports Mayhem with Kemp Collins and Ron Noel at 1 p.m. to make another big announcement.

Our Trey Snide of WIZS has the audio update…

 

Carolina Panthers – Mick Mixon Audio Interview

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The Panthers drafted seven defensive players, and the general reports indicate it was a successful plan, including those from Matt Rhule, the new head coach, and from General Manager Marty Hurney.

Mick Mixon, play by play announcer of the NFL’s Carolina Panthers, joined WIZS TownTalk on Monday to discuss the latest NFL draft.

Of the present internal disruption within the Panthers organization, with a new coach, new owner and a lot of player turnover, Mixon spoke also of the present world disruption of covid-19 and said, “You can count on me not to over dramatize athletics…It really doesn’t mean that much when set against the backdrop of nurses and doctors and scientists and healthcare workers and the really essential things in life.

“However, let’s just call this too for what it is.  In the south, football isn’t just what we do.  It’s part of who we are, and it’s part of how we come together.  So, I think we’re kind of starving for a little bit of football.  At least that’s the way it feels to me around Panther Nation, and the draft was great.  Just to be able to have some new Panthers, how about that?  Seven new draft picks, all defensive players.”

With the NFC South loaded with talented quarterbacks like Drew Brees and now Tom Brady, the Panthers’ selections being all defensive, while it was not the plan, indicates the importance of improving the defense now as expressed by the Panthers’ leadership and their draft board.

The NFL logo and the overall organization has to be top 1o in terms of global recognition and branding, but it’s not too big to fail.  Mixon said, “I think what we may need to do is be patient.  I think the NFL needs to not put a stake in the ground (after a successful draft), and say, ‘Boy, thank Goodness that’s over.  Happy days are here again.’  There’s a lot of distancing yet, a lot of work, a lot of sand that needs to sift through the hour glass so to speak, but I know conversations have been held about — What would the world be like with a shortened season?  What would the world be like with games with no fans in the stands.  These are hard pills to swallow.”

The NFL will figure it out, Mixon said, and right now time is on the side of professional football.

Full Interview Audio:

NCHSAA

NCHSAA Cancels Winter Championships, Spring Sports

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-Information courtesy NCHSAA

North Carolina High School Athletic Association Commissioner (NCHSAA) Que Tucker offered the following statement on the NCHSAA website:

In keeping with Governor Roy Cooper’s announcement today that the public schools of North Carolina will be closed to in-person learning for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year, the North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) has canceled all remaining winter championships and spring sports.

“Today’s decision is difficult for the NCHSAA Board of Directors and Staff. We empathize with the thousands of student-athletes, especially graduating seniors, coaching staff, officials and family members affected by this decision,” said NCHSAA Commissioner Que Tucker. “However, this decision reflects a commitment to keeping our student-athletes, officials and member schools’ staffs and their communities safe, while following the guidelines provided by the Governor and his team, along with the Department of Public Instruction and the State Board of Education.”

“We had maintained hope for a conclusion to our State Basketball Championships and a modified spring sports season to help return a sense of normalcy to our communities,” continued Tucker. “Now, as we continue to deal with this difficult time, we must do so by applying the lessons that education-based athletics teaches us: cooperation, patience, sacrifice, responsibility, perseverance and resilience. Together, we will be able to put a “W” in the win column!”

The NCHSAA Board of Directors, in its meeting next week, will discuss finalizing the state basketball playoffs, policies for summer activities, as well as address academic eligibility concerns for Fall 2020.

For more information, please visit the NCHSAA site at www.nchsaa.org.

Would Your Child Compete If Sports Resume Before End Of School Year?

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Would Your Child Compete If Sports Resume Before End Of School Year?

Answer on the WIZS Twitter Feed or Facebook Page

NCHSAA

NCHSAA: Basketball State Championships, Interscholastic Athletics Suspended

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-Press Release, NCHSAA

Due to the threat from COVID-19, the North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) has made the decision to postpone the 2020 Men’s and Women’s Basketball State Championships indefinitely.

“As much as we would like this opportunity for our student-athletes, coaches, and their communities, we know that ultimately any decision we make must err on the side of caution,” said Commissioner Que Tucker.

The Board of Directors also moved to suspend interscholastic athletics beginning at 11:59 p.m. on Friday, March 13, 2020, through at least Monday, April 6, 2020. The NCHSAA Board of Directors will assess this situation regularly over the next few weeks. This includes all workouts, skill development, practices and contests.

Vipers Name Campbell Head Football Coach; Meet & Greet Scheduled March 12

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-Press Release, Vance County High School

The Vance County Board of Education has approved Edwin J. Campbell, Jr. as the new head football coach at Vance County High School.

Coach Campbell comes to Vance County with an impressive football background. A Raleigh native, Campbell attended Southeast Raleigh Magnet High School, where he was a standout varsity defensive back and team captain. Campbell also played college football at Elizabeth City State University before earning his degree at Winston-Salem State University.

Campbell later returned to Southeast Raleigh as the varsity defensive coordinator, marking the beginning of his coaching career. Since then, Campbell has coached for several of North Carolina’s most elite football programs, holding positions such as interim head coach, assistant head coach, defensive coordinator, and special teams coordinator.

Most recently, Campbell was an assistant coach for 3-time state champion Wake Forest High School under Head Coach Reggie Lucas. The Cougars finished the 2019 season 12-2 overall, losing in the 4AA Eastern Regional Final. Prior to his stint at Wake Forest, Campbell helped lead Zebulon B. Vance High School of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools to two 4AA Western Regional Finals.

In 2018, as assistant head coach and defensive backs coach, Campbell was instrumental in helping Zebulon B. Vance reach its first-ever state championship game. Following the departure of Zebulon B. Vance Head Coach Aaron Brand, Coach Campbell also became the interim head coach at Zebulon B. Vance.

Campbell has also held coordinator positions with varsity football teams at East Wake and Leesville Road high schools in the Wake County Public School System.

“We took our time and did our due diligence while searching for our new head football coach,” Athletic Director Joe Sharrow said of the coaching search. “We ultimately believe that Coach Campbell is uniquely equipped with the experience and expertise that makes him the right fit for our school and what we needed at this time. I am fully confident in his ability to benefit the lives of our student-athletes and be an extremely successful coach for us.”

Campbell will replace Darry Ragland, who resigned in January after leading the Vipers to a 13-10 record over two seasons. The Vipers graduated seventeen seniors and are expecting many new contributors at key positions.

“I am excited and appreciative that Principal Rey Horner and Athletic Director Joe Sharrow have put their trust in me to lead the Vance County Vipers football program,” Campbell said in a statement. “I look forward to meeting the players and guiding them, not only to be their best on the football field but also their best in this community as great examples of how positive young men conduct themselves.” Campbell continued, “I am confident that by leading a team with the right attitude, structure, and the support of the community, we will build a football program that will make Vance County proud.”

Vance County High School will introduce Coach Campbell, wife Chernessa Campbell, and son Edwin J. Campbell III (Tre) at a community meet and greet on Thursday, March 12 at 6 p.m. in the cafeteria. All community members, current and former players, parents, fans, media, and anyone interested in Viper Football are encouraged to attend.

The Vipers will open the 2020 football season on the road at Bunn High School on August 21. They will play their first game at home the following week in the County Line Clash against Warren County High School on August 28.