Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Smith excited about 2002 Curley Wolf football season

A new year brings a new coach for the Prescott Curley Wolves  a coach filled with enthusiasm and optimism for the 2002 football season.

Greg Smith was the defensive coordinator for the Arkadelphia Badgers before taking the head coaching position at Prescott earlier this summer.

His plans for the Wolves are simple  win.

To accomplish this, Smith has designed a multiple offense and defense based on team speed, as the Wolves will be small but quick on both sides of the ball.

Lee Walker is the groundskeeper and plans to keep the turf short so the Wolves can utilize their speed.

Several members of the squad cover the 40-yard dash in 4.4 or 4.6 seconds, including a pair of tight ends.

This kind of speed at the tight end position could prove interesting when they pull down passes and opposing linebackers try to run them down.

At this point there are three Wolves trying to earn the starting quarterback position. They are Zack Martin, A.J. Lewis and Ryan Roberson.

During the summer practice sessions, all three picked up the offense well and showcased their skills.

Smith said regardless of who starts under center, the others will contribute to the team in some capacity, either on offense or defense

He readily admits size could be the team's biggest weakness this year, and said the Wolves won't line up and try to push people around.

Instead, the Wolves will use their speed and movement out of a base 4-3 defense to keep opposing offenses off guard and on the run.

"They have a great attitude," Smith said about the team as a whole. "They've been working hard, though there was a day or two we had some letup in intensity. It cost us and they knew it."

Smith's idea is to build on the proud tradition and history the Wolves have always had. "We're trying to get the kids to play with their heart and soul. With emotion. When you have emotion involved and your heart invested, you'll care more. It'll mean something and you'll play harder.

"We're trying to instill pride and reinforce the traditions of the past," he continued. "We've got to get people in the bleachers. The town's talking about the team now, and the kids feel it."

Getting community support and instilling discipline are the keys to the team's success, he said.

"When it all comes together it'll be something the community can be proud of."

The junior and senior members of the crew have taken it upon themselves to provide leadership to the younger players, talking with them when they make mistakes and showing where they went wrong and how it can be corrected.

The juniors and seniors, Smith said, have also been harping about discipline to the younger players, and this has freed the coaches up to work on other areas of the game.

The entire team, he said, has really caught on and wants discipline and structure. "We're building from the past two years on the level of discipline and are stepping to the next level.

"I predict the Wolves will go out there and play harder every game than they've ever played before. We'll compete and we're motivated."

Smith's credentials include being the junior and senior high assistant coach at Green Forest Teach, along with being the head junior high coach and senior assistant at Brinkley, where he also coached girls basketball and track.

Smith and his wife, Kathy, have three children, Nicholas, 11, Bailey 5, and Kirby, 2.

His wife will be teaching fifth grade math at MMS this year.

When not coaching or teaching, Smith enjoys spending time with his family. They like camping and going to Six Flags.