Old, new will mix on sidelines for Arvin Classic
When Southington football coach Ryan Slone was asked to coach this year’s Mahoning Valley Coaches Association’s Jack Arvin Classic sponsored by ScoutingOhio.com, he decided to make a phone call across the field.
“This is the first all-star game I’ve been a part of,” said Slone, who’s led the Wildcats for the past three seasons. “So I actually gave a call to Brian [Shaner] since he’s a veteran coach and just picked his brain a little bit.”
Seems logical, considering Shaner has seven years of head coaching experience under his belt (two with Niles and five with East).
What’s unusual is that Shaner will be across the field from Slone at Hubbard Memorial Stadium on Thursday coaching the Trumbull County all-stars against Mahoning/Columbiana County’s best. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
“This is a great chance for these kids to play one more time for their high school team,” event organizer and longtime former Hubbard coach Jeff Bayuk said.
“Now they get to play along side guys they might normally play against, which is fun.”
This is the third time Shaner will be on the sidelines for the Jack Arvin Classic. He said it’s one of his favorite things to do for a variety of reasons.
“You hear about headaches with some all-star games, but my experiences couldn’t be better,” he said. “The first day of practice is great, because these kids want to impress the coaches.
“You know, you hear the names and follow stats and stuff in the paper and online, but you don’t know how good some kids are until they’re playing in front of you.”
Shaner will have some familiar faces on his Trumbull County squad. Former Red Dragons Marcus Hill, Chris Parry and Kyle Paden are on the roster, as well as Girard’s Nick Cardiero and James Cupan.
Quarterback Brennan Wassil will be throwing in a venue he became accustomed to last season while at Hubbard.
“This is my most enjoyable all-star team I’ve been a part of yet,” Shaner said. “It’s just a great group of young men, who are excited to play one last game. And the best part is they still want to learn.”
Slone’s first experience coaching in an all-star game will come with this year’s Mahoning/Columbiana County squad. Even though Southington is in Trumbull, Slone will be able to coach his own players one last time.
“I wanted these practices to be fun,” Slone said. “I thought to myself, ‘how would I have felt if I had one last game?’
“We work hard and get things done, but there’s a lot of fun going on. Let the kids enjoy the opportunity.”
He’ll have former Canfield quarterback Kimu Kim, who will be able to throw to Jackson-Milton wideout Jeremy Fitzpatrick. They’ll be joined by Struthers stars Gary Muntean and Nick Pollifrone.
Once the ball is kicked off, both coaches agree the game will not lack intensity or energy. As Shaner put it, “There is no losing to these guys.
“They’re competitors,” he said. “They’re practicing to win and that’s the way it’s supposed to be.
“It it’s played any other way, it’s wrong.”