Trojans coach says 13 years is enough

The Park Hill football program will be absent of a significant presence they’ve had on the sidelines the past 13 seasons next year. After building the program into one of the most consistent contenders in the metro, last week during a team meeting head coach Greg Reynolds announced he was stepping down.  Citing his intention to pursue other opportunities including a possible role in administration, Reynolds said the decision and timing were made on his own after considering it in recent months and discussing it with assistant coaches and Athletic Director Bill Sobbe.

“I had been thinking about it for a couple months. I decided now was a good time to do something different and pursue some other opportunities,” Reynolds said. “If it doesn’t work out, coaching is always something I can come back to in the future.”

Mindful of waiting until after his team’s annual end of the season banquet, he wanted to make sure they got the recognition they deserved without distraction.

“The banquet is about the players and recognizing their efforts, nothing else, so I wanted to wait until that happened.”

Reynolds said there were several factors that made the timing right. Since most opportunities within the district aren’t made available or decided on until later in the school year, he wanted to make sure a thorough search process could take place to find his coaching replacement well ahead of the start to next season. Another was due to several assistant coaching positions that will be open coming into next year. Having the flexibility to fill those positions with their own preference was something Reynolds said would be advantageous to a new coach.

Reynolds, who is also the varsity baseball coach, intends to coach the team through the end of this spring’s upcoming season.

During his 13 seasons, he compiled a 105-46 record (.695 winning percentage), 10 district titles, six state semifinal appearances, and a state championship in 2003. Before taking the top job in 2000, Reynolds served as an assistant coach for several years. He has been involved with the Greater Kansas City Football Coaches Association, serving as President in recent years and in 2010 was one of 100 coaches nationwide selected to attend the NFL-USA Football Summit.

The head coaching vacancy at Park Hill is now expected to be one of the most sought after football positions in the metro this offseason. Athletic Director Bill Sobbe said he will meet with Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources Dr. Bill Redinger this week to discuss how the search process will be carried out. Sobbe said he believes applications will be accepted through the middle of January and a decision will be made by the beginning of February. While Redinger will oversee the process and make the final decision, Principal Brad Kincheloe along with Sobbe will also have a say in who the selection should be.

“We will be looking for someone with high character and someone who has the ability to get us to where we’ve been in the past so we can see that kind of success in the future,” Sobbe said.

Scott wins Otis Taylor Award

Displaying some of the most sure-handed skills for a receiver in the metro area over the last two years, Park Hill South’s Craig Scott broke every school record there was for a receiver during his high school career. Not only was his athleticism appreciated by his teammates and coaches in a season where the Panthers compiled a 7-5 record and district title game berth, but he also caught the eye of the committee who hands out the Simone Awards, who recognized him as a finalist for the Otis Taylor Award for the metro’s top receiver.

Capping off his senior season two weeks ago, Scott was announced as the award’s winning selection in front of a locally televised awards show at Blue Springs High School. Full of gratitude, Scott said it was a great honor to receive.

“It was just really a blessing,” Scott said. “It felt good to know all the hard work I put in was coming back to me now.”

With 131 catches, 1937 yards, and 32 touchdowns in three years at the varsity level, in talking with Scott, he doesn’t necessarily come off as the stereotypical image of a standout wide receiver. Mild-mannered, poised, and humble, Scott says he doesn’t necessarily enjoy bragging about himself in the limelight.

“Most people think receivers are really cocky (some are), but I don’t personally think I’m like that because I don’t like talking about the attention I get and my stats,” Scott said. “I try to be just a normal kid off the football field.”

While his hands are described as some of the best by those who’ve watched him play, he says the key is concentration that starts well before the opening kickoff.

“It kind of starts in pre-game, I pray a lot,” Scott said. “That helps me focus throughout the game because when you’re able to focus before the game, it takes away how difficult a situation might be during the game.”

Scott has always been an athlete, playing basketball and running track in addition to football, but hitting a growth spurt and gaining speed made being a wide receiver became his ideal focus. Looking back at a sophomore year where he gained his first varsity experience, Scott said it was an opportunity he truly appreciates.

“At such a young age, I was just playing football for the fun of it, but when I look back I see how blessed I was to have that opportunity,” Scott said.

At 6’1” 170 pounds, Scott certainly has athletic ability, but Park Hill South coach Mark Simcox says it’s his consistency and approach to practice that makes him such a reliable target.

“As a head coach, I like him for his consistency. We didn’t have to worry about him missing a rep in practice, being hurt, or being sick,” Simcox said. “He’s always the same, so you know what you’re going to get. And that’s part of the reason he’s so good is because of the way he practices. He caught 71 balls this year, but he probably caught 10,000 balls in practice.”

Good hands are one thing, but positioning is often an intangible that is hard to find in high school receivers.

“His spatial awareness relative to defenders is a gift, not necessarily something you can teach. In three years, in all the times we’ve thrown to him, I think there was only two times where it was intercepted. He’s going to catch it most of the time, but if he doesn’t he’ll make sure a defender doesn’t.”

Having attended summer camps across the Midwest this past year where he received interest from colleges around the country, Scott knows he wants to play football next year at the next level. Still weighing his options with visits to Kansas State, North Iowa, Idaho, and Tulsa scheduled in the coming weeks, he will make a official decision in January. Like most skilled receivers, he’s looking for a school with a team that can best help him do what he does best: catch passes, lots of them.

“I’m looking for a good coaching staff, but also a place where I can fit in,” Scott said. “I don’t want to go somewhere where I’ll be blocking 3-4 plays and then maybe catch a pass occasionally. I want to go to a program where I can show what I can do on the football field.”

Simcox believes his former wide-out has a chance to contribute immediately with some of his skills already where they need to be to earn playing time.

“He is going to come in as a pretty polished receiver. He’s going to have to get stronger and faster to play at a high college level, but in terms of ball skills and route running he’s pretty good. If he goes to the right place, he could play right away. He’s an outside receiver, so he’s best on deep fades and go-routes.

Park Hill South has strong first half of season

Following Park Hill South’s 75-60 win over Lee’s Summit last Friday, head coach Rick Zych told his team that on some nights they could beat some of the best teams in the city, but on others they could also lose to the worst. With a 5-1 record so far in this early season, the high expectations Zych seeks from his battle-tested squad have fared well with some impressive play leading up to the Christmas break.

After a run through the Liberty North Tournament which included wins against Pembroke Hill and Kearney, the Panthers came up just short of bringing home the championship trophy two weeks ago with a 50-40 loss to Liberty North, their only blemish so far this season. Park Hill South will now look towards the always competitive William Jewell Holiday Tournament where they will see first round action against Ray-Pec on December 27^th at 6pm.

Leading up to Friday’s game, the Panthers had a full week of practice to make some tweaks in their game, which allowed them to come out full throttle against Lee’s Summit as they built a 12-3 lead in the opening minutes and closed the first quarter with a 31-12 advantage.

“We had a lot of practice this week, but we hit a lot of shots tonight and came out ready to play,” Zych said.

Out-sizing and out-rebounding Lee’s Summit with the help of Allan Hyatt and Robert Lane, Park Hill South felt they found themselves in mismatches at certain points, but it ended up playing to their advantage as they maintained their lead at halftime, 45-29.

“We played hard and they were a difficult team to guard because we’re so big. Some of our 6’5”-6’6” post players were playing guards,” Zych said. “We executed on offense and got the ball where we wanted it.”

Park Hill South had five players score in double digits with Hudson Welty leading the way with 17 points. Anthony Woods added 14 points while Payton Meek put up 13 with Lane and Hyatt adding 12 and 10 points respectively a piece. Welty pulled in eight rebounds along with Lane’s seven. Even with their strong start, the Panthers know they have to play better to be where they want to be at the end of the season.

“We just have to keep getting better,” Zych said. “We saw some teams at the tournament and knew we just had to get better.”