DEL.ICIO.USHigh school coaches break away from gridiron and relax
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Monday, July 06, 2009
When longtime Marietta High School football coach James “Friday” Richards needs a break from the sport, he grabs his rod and reel.
“I don’t get much vacation from football. It’s pretty much a year-round sport now with all the off-season training and passing leagues,” Richards said. “But when I do get a free moment, I love to fish.”
Johnny Crawford/jcrawford@ajc.com
Marietta coach James ‘Friday’ Richards uses fishing as away to relax when he’s not coaching football. This summer he took his nephew Brandon Sanders along.
MORE GEORGIA HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS
His special fishing hole is in Bremen. “A friend of mine has a nice-size lake, and it’s one of those places you’re going to catch some fish when you go,” Richards said with a chuckle.
Richards said he usually takes his brother-in-law or one of his nephews for the day trip, and he fishes for brim, catfish and bass. His largest haul is a 9-pound bass. “It’s just a little piece of heaven when I get away from everything and relax.”
Here is how some of the metro area’s other coaches get a brief escape from football:
• Jasper Jewell, Miller Grove: Jewell takes his wife and son on the annual vacation to Destin, Fla. “My wife loves that place … it’s white sandy beaches and beautiful,” Jewell said. “This is my ‘Thank you for putting up with me for the 11 and a half months of the year for football’ gift to my wife. We do a little bit of everything, from snorkeling to hanging out at the restaurants. It’s great to spend time with my family and get refreshed for football.”
• Chad Frazier, Heritage: Frazier and his wife, Sarah, who coaches competitive cheerleading at Northgate, have a place at Lake Jackson. “It’s located 21 miles from my office door,” Frazier said. “In June and July, we jump in the car around lunchtime on Wednesday and try not to back until around dark on Sunday.”
Frazier has a boat and loves to grill. He and his wife will occasionally bring along some of their teams’ athletes or assistant coaches. “We don’t have cable TV, so we’ll either watch movies, play video games or play board games. It’s just a great way of getting away from the normal routine.”
• Chris Bennett, Forsyth Central: He planned his schedule in advance so he would have two straight weeks off in the summer, including this past week. “We went to Hilton Head, and also hung out at the house … a lot of quality time with my two girls and wife,” Bennett said. “It’s important for my mind-set toward [football] and just a lot of good times.”
• James Teter, Sequoyah: Teter is the first-year coach at Sequoyah and busy trying to makes changes in the program, but he manages to get away for short breaks. He took his family to Orlando for four to five days recently. “It was fun to go, but it’s hard to totally stop thinking about football.”
Services »
