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Show SOUTHERN UTAH NEWS Sports Coach Orton pumped about Cowboy football WEDNESDAY AUGUST 13, 2003 By Dennis Brunner Its a dream come true, re- plied new Kanab High football coach Bucky Orton, when asked what its like to come back to his roots. Its exciting. Im pumped. At the same time its a little scary with all the pressure, he added. Make no mistake, 1995 KHS grad Orton is really enthused about the chance hes been given to coach at his alma mater. He is sticking with the Wing-- offense installed last year by coach Dwaine Hatch. The returning players have a pretty good handle on the of-T position is wide open with Derek Coleman, Anthony Carlson and newcomer Nate McDonald contending for the slot. Because Monday was the first day with pads and full contact, the other side of the football is a little more unsettled. All stater Jesse Fitting will man one tackle spot, with Justin Frost at the other tackle. The are Matt Rhees and Sterling Glover. The Cowboys are in good shape at linebacker, with Kelly Brown and Evan Orton manning the two inside spots of the 4 defense. Brandon Brown will be one of the outside linebackers D-en- ds 4-- Gary Johnson returns from last year as the offensive line coach, as does strength and conditioning coach Craig Rogers. Rounding out the staff are Coby Glover as defensive line coach and James Reidhead as receivers coach. Orton thinks Juan Diego and Millard will be the teams to beat this year. In the preseason in polls the Salt Lake Tribune and Deseret News agree, pegging them 1 and 2. Kanab is listed at 3 in the Tribune and 4 in the Deseret , with Manti and Bea 2-- A CfcaikE? ver rounding out the top five. An interesting sidenote: five of the seven schools in the Southern Division have new coaches thisyear. Only Millards Marshall Sheriff and Richfields Dave Clark return, although Beavers Brandon Draper, who is away for National Guard duty, is expected to be back for their opener. One of the new coaches is Kanab High graduate Travis McAllister, who takes over the reigns at South Sevier. Orton, who coached at Altamont High School last year, 2-- A 1-- A && was recently married to the former Katie Jensen ofAltamont. He said shes getting to know more people in Kanab and really likes it here. The couple have a future Cowboy in two year old son Dawson. Ortons Cowboys face a difficult season opener when they tackle the Hurricane Tigers on August 22. Theyre a lot bigger than us and have a lot of returners coming back from last year. They will be real tough, said Orton, but I cant wait to play them. 3-- A os o u nxm New Kanab High School football coach Bucky Orton addresses his players at their first practice in full pads. fense, so were trying to main- tain and improve, said Orton. He added this years squad may throw the ball a little more, depending on what the opposing defenses do to stop the high powered Wing-- attack. He added, Well set up the pass with the T run. With their opening game approaching fast on August 22 against Hurricane, Orton is happy with his returning start- ers. He looks for leadership from seniors Cody Brunner, Kelly with probably either Lance Davis or Clinton Dowse at the other. Cody Brunner is slated for free safety, while the cornerback positions are up for grabs. Andy Heaton, Curtis Roundy, Danny Johnson and Brent Wells are battling for those two spots. I want people to expect a lot of me. I expect a lot of myself, answered Orton when asked if he thought locals would have higher coaching expectations from him, because of his own accomplishments on the football field. He was the quarterback Brown, Jesse Fitting, Matt Rhees and Justin Frost. Although were thin at some spots, andleader of thelast state chamif we can stay healthy well be all pionship football team at Kanab High, in 1994. right, he noted. The Cowboys look strong in Orton is planning on continuthe offensive backfield with Cody Brunner at quarterback, Evan Orton at fullback, Kelly Brown and Brandon Brown at the wingbacks. Sterling Glover is the number one tight end. Matt Rhees is slotted at center, with Jesse Fitting and Justin Frost two of the other linemen. Kade Glazier, David Pepper, Lance Mackelprang and Lance Davis are battling for the other two line spots. The wjde receiver - i 1 l ing Chalk Talk on Tuesday evenings where parents and community members are invited to watch film of the last game. The night was extremely popular last season. Joining Orton on his coaching staff will be defensive coordinator Arlyn Hafen, who coached football for years at KHS and is really excited to return to the gridiron. His son, Tyler Hafen, will coach the defensive backs. t V . |