South Range's Yeagley will coach in all-star game

He was named as a North assistant for the June 19 game in Columbus.
& lt;a href=mailto:richesson@vindy.com & gt;By BRIAN RICHESSON & lt;/a & gt;
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
Consider it an appetizer. South Range High football coach Dan Yeagley does.
There is no better way to initiate a high school player into a college environment than to have him join unfamiliar teammates and unfamiliar coaches in an unfamiliar setting.
That's what the Ohio All-Star Classic will do this summer when some of the state's best senior football talent convenes for one final prep game, pitting North and South teams, before ascension to the next level.
Adjustment period
"You have to get used to playing with somebody different and also getting used to a new coach, a new system, different ways of thinking," said Yeagley, chosen as a North assistant for the June 19 game at Crew Stadium in Columbus.
"It's a good lead-in to college," he added. "It's a chance for the athletes to prepare themselves for the next level."
While players learn to adapt to their surroundings and refine their skills, coaches will do the same, as well.
"You have to coach what you know and do what you're consistent with," said Yeagley, the North's defensive coordinator and running backs coach.
"It's easy to coach with my staff at South Range," he added. "Now, all of a sudden, you don't know what the others [in the all-star game] are thinking."
That's where the learning process begins.
"It will require a lot more communication, a lot more openness and more talking," Yeagley said. "We tell our players to talk; we also require that as coaches."
Honored
This time, the small-school label didn't hurt Yeagley, who will represent the Mahoning Valley after a lengthy selection process by the Ohio High School Football Coaches Association.
"Being from a smaller school, sometimes you do get overlooked a little bit, which doesn't bother me," said Yeagley, whose Division V Raiders went unbeaten in the regular season and qualified for the playoffs.
"I have so much respect for other coaches in the area, it's such an honor to be selected by them."
Yeagley will participate in an all-star game for the second time. In 1996, he was a head coach in the Penn-Ohio game.
In addition to Yeagley, Morral Ridgedale's Doug Green, Tinora's Ken Krouse, Norton's Joe Studer and Ashland's Scott Valentine will assist North head coach Steve Trivisonno of Mentor.
Completing the roster
Once the coaching staff was formed, it met to select players, who first had to be nominated by their own coaches and other teams' coaches.
"It can be frustrating," Yeagley said. "There's a lot of players you'd like to get, but you have to spread it out from particular regions.
"Then, you call a kid and he may say 'no.' Sometimes, kids are tied up at that time."
All coaches and players will meet for the first time on Feb. 5 in Columbus, and one additional meeting is permitted before they start practice, Yeagley said.
XFor a complete listing of players and coaches, and more information on the game, visit www.ohsfca.org.