Wednesday, June 28, 2017
By Charles grove
You won’t be seeing double at Valley Christian football games this year. There will be not one, but two head coaches patrolling the sidelines this fall for the Eagles.
Jeff Hether, last year’s offensive coordinator, and Jomont Ware, last year’s associate head coach, will try to turn around the program that went 2-7 a year ago under Albert Jennings.
“[Athletic director Dolph] Carroll approached us about it and we said ‘Sure. Why not?’” Ware said. “Me and [Hether] are good friends. We’re kind of like brothers.”
Hether will oversee the offense while Ware will oversee the defense, along with their respective coordinators. The two believe the partnership will flourish in part because of their similar styles.
“We are exactly the same,” Hether said. “We probably talk 4-5 times a day too and see each other three times a week. We’ll be like, ‘What do you think about this?’ It’s good that we’re that close. We’ll both be on the same page.”
Ware laughed off the idea that conflicts will arise just because two coaches are in charge.
“We put ourselves in situations where we ask, ‘What’s going to happen in this situation?’” Ware said. “We’re not different in terms of demeanor and our styles are the same. I don’t think he’s going to mind if I say we need a timeout or we should think about running this play.
“My wife is always asking, ‘Who are you talking to?’ and I always say, ‘I’m talking to Jeff.”
While the Eagles took their lumps and bruises in a season that saw the team lose their final six games, nine starters from each side of the ball will return.
“That will help a lot,” Hether said. “All of our skill players are back on offense and our offensive line is big with four of the five over 250 pounds.”
And while many smaller schools are run heavy on offense, Hether believes with his skill returning, the Eagles can be quite dynamic.
“I want the offense to be the same as last year — attack and get the ball up the field quick,” Hether said. “I want to pass the ball in a spread and be fast-paced.
“I’m going to be adding some twists with some things people in this area haven’t seen before.”
Ware hopes that the product the duo puts on the field will show critics a two-headed approach is a possibility in football.
“People ask ‘How can you do that? There’s no way,’ ” Ware said. “But if you’ve got people like me and [Jeff] with respect for each other then you’re going to do it.”