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Show v, n ill ;ti-f I 1 MMMMimWIMIHMRHI i f jy j KIM CASEY We asked some local residents for their opinions on high school sports. Here are their responses: May Winkel, a Bountiful resident resi-dent and mother of three children who graduated from local high schools, said she feels "high school sports are great to a point, but sports are more important than learning sometimes and then they've gone too far." Therese Macfarlane, who is a member of the Bountiful High RICHARD E. GOURDE School drill team, said she feels that sports keep school spirit high and bring unity to the student body. "It gives the school pride and we're all proud of the guys for working so hard," she said. Richard E. Gourde's youngest son plays on the Judge Memorial football team this season. "I worry wor-ry about an injury all the time. Some of these coaches require 150 percent all the time and I've seen a lot of kids get ruined for life due to injuries." Mr. Gourde has THERESE MACFARLANE 11 children, five sons and six daughters. He said that over the years his family has been involved in nearly every sport. He added that the worst part of the game is the parents. "Have you been to a little league game recently? The way the parents yell at the coaches and their kids is terrible. You should hear the language they use. It's supposed to be a game, but they make it a life or death thing," he said. Susie Nelson, a Bountiful High SUSIE NELSON School coed, said she really enjoys en-joys high school sports. "I really look up to the players. They work really hard and they're cute," she added with a giggle. She doesn't feel the risk of injury is too great if "the coaches train the guys .they shouldn't get hurt," she said. Kim Casey, who with her husband, hus-band, Joseph, owns Baseball Cards Etc., a sports store in the 5 Points Mall, said, "I've always been impressed with sports, especially espe-cially in Davis County. They are a MAY WINKEL lot better here than in Salt Lake," said the Kaysville resident. She added that she would like her own children to be involved in sports when they get older. "I think I would like my son to be on the baseball team because I would be afraid he would be injured in any other sport." She said her own mother would not allow her brothers to play football, "at the time I thought she was crazy, but now that I have my own children I can see her point," she said. to build our own bodies, minds and character." Chuck graduated from Layton High in 1979 and played football at B YU four years, three years as a defensive tackle and the last year as a nose tackle. This is his fifth season with the Chargers. Chuck is a 6-foot 5, 270-pounder 270-pounder with a petite wife, Barb, and a tall, skinny 4-year-old son, Ryan. His father, Charles, and mother, Betty, live in Bountiful. hopefully a professional football player, so football was important to me." He noted that he began playing Little League Football (as a contact con-tact sport) at age 7 "and I was ready for anything by the time I was in high school." Playing both offensive and defensive de-fensive tackle and because of his size, Chuck was never seriously se-riously hurt. And because of his talent, he had no trouble making the team, and excelling in the sport. He was chosen all-state and ail-American in high school and made the all-WAC team as a senior at BYU. "All of the kids I knew who tried out for the football team at Layton High either made the squad or quit because they realized real-ized that individually they didn't have the talent or whatever it took to compete in high school sports. It was the same in wrestling and track, he noted. Chuck said he didn't know of any student who did not make the team because of the coach, peer pressure or for any other reason than his own desire to play. "For this reason I have to favor high school sports as an asset to the curriculum," he said. "Maybe it's different in other schools or at different times, but for me and for those I played with, high school sports helped us a lot Brandon Flint has spent most of his life, or at least his sports life, on the football field. For 17 years he tackled and blocked his way to fame. Flint, 26, serves as the Hill Air Force Base's youth athletic director, direc-tor, guiding a program that has reached the pinnacles of success. His fame started several years ago at Layton High School, where he caught the eye of collegiate scouts from Brigham Young University in Provo. His five-year stint started in 1979 as a college freshman. His career sprouted the following year, joining highly touted quarterback quar-terback Jim McMahon. His final two years on the gridiron were with signal-caller Steve Young. "One thing about playing football foot-ball with these guys was I knew scouts were looking them over and if I had a good game they saw me," said Flint. "Jim (McMahon) was a controversial person, but I liked him." The defensive tackle was making mak-ing a few heads turn his way. That was apparent when the 1983 draft took place and the Dallas Cowboys Cow-boys tabbed the star to join their organization. "I spent three days at their physical phy-sical camp. I didn't make it through," said Flint. "That was an extensive physical and they looked all of the rookies over real hard." According to Flint, the Cowboys' Cow-boys' organization took at least 50 x-rays, making sure he could withstand the rigors of professional profes-sional football. "I had bad ankles, a pinched nerve in my neck and trouble with my lower back," he said. His luck wasn't running well. During a three-week practice session, ses-sion, Flint was only able to make three practices. "It wasn't like college football. At BYU I played from Saturday to Saturday and hoped to live through it," he said. Although injuries plagued the athlete, he never missed a game during his three-year varsity career. That career was an impressive im-pressive one, with BYU playing in the Holiday Bowl each year. Flint enjoys his work with the kids, being able to put aside the glories and money of professional football. "The money definitely would have been good. The kind of money they offered me was big for a boy from Layton," said Flint. "There is some relief knowing know-ing I don't have to worry about being banged up every week." S 4,, I I , CHUCK EHIN, San Diego Charger Chuck Ehin, former Layton High School football star and now a starting nose tackle for the San Diego Chargers of the National Football League, said, "If it had not been for high school sports, I know I wouldn't have done as well as I did as a student in high school." "I wasn't an outstanding student.. .only an average student scholastically, but sports gave me the incentive to do better. I was popular because I ran with other athletes who were popular and as . a group athletes were popular," he said. "At the same time, I was priming prim-ing myself to be a collegiate, and BRANDON FLINT Injuries kept him out of the big time. |