Tim Polzer's Rumors & Facts: Coach Searches Are Touchy Matters

If you caught Todd Wills’ story on VYPE.com/DFW yesterday, it appears that Duncanville athletic director Ken Ozee is looking for a coach to maintain the high standards set by retiring Phil McNeely. And he’s assembled quite an impressive short list.

In past conversations with area athletic directors, replacing a proven winning coach ranks among their most challenging tasks (right behind dealing with unreasonable school board members and influential boosters).

The process involves many potential land mines that Ozee and candidates now face:

1. Putting a new coach in charge of a nationally known program with a history of winning and competing for state titles -- and cross your fingers that the win totals will not drop off.

2. Testing the waters on which top-level coach might be interested in the job, including coaches from rival programs. In this case, sources have said that Ozee offered the job to Cedar Hill coach David Milson – whose Longhorns topped the Panthers for the district title and knocked them out of the state playoffs in the regional finals. Sources said Milson declined the offer. Sources have also said that Mansfield Timberview’s Eric McDade is a candidate, creating stress among Timberview factions.

It’s a dance Ozee and these candidates have to tiptoe around, because candidates will have to return to their schools and face a superintendent, athletic director, boosters and players who might question his dedication to their program.

3. Any coach that takes the Duncanville job will enjoy its many assets, but will also be saddled with high expectations of immediate success.

Fortunately for Ozee, he’s an experienced hand in coaching searches and will likely land the right man for Duncanville.

Schools Can’t Win With Swine Flu Decisions

I haven’t talked to one parent of a student-athlete who hasn’t questioned the University Interscholastic League’s decision to postpone academic and athletic events until May 11. They are also upset that some area districts chose to close their schools for up to a week.

I hear that the UIL was greatly influenced by Governor Rick Perry’s office and the recommendation of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It’s not unusual for a politician steer school officials one way or another on an issue, especially when the bottom-line could negatively affect the student body.

And that’s where school officials are trapped. If they leave schools open, and one child catches the flu or even dies from it, the parents, community and media would be in outrage over their negligence. And the lawsuits would fly.

School officials would agree that they’d rather not disrupt the schedules of students and athletes, but they also have to look at legal worst-case scenarios. Not because they’re scared, but because so many parents have sued for unreasonable cases in the past.

So, it’s no wonder that school districts played it safe. The telling point is their decision to re-open schools and competition when the CDC revised its recommendations.

Softball Teams To Watch Out For

As softball teams get ready to get back into playoff mode, there are a few teams on roll to watch out for:

Flower Mound Marcus: They started the season losing four out of five, but have since lost just twice in their last 26 games. The Lady Marauders will benefit from playing in a tough District 6-5A.

Forney: A 22-game winning streak has jumped Forney into the state’s top-10 4A polls.

Mesquite Horn: Horn walloped 11-5A opponents, allowing just 13 runs in a 10-0 sweep.

Cowboys Need Area Schools

The tragedy of the Dallas Cowboys indoor facility collapse has left the team looking for indoor and outdoor practice space. Local high schools have fulfilled their needs. The Cowboys used Coppell’s indoor facility on Thursday and will use Carrollton ISD’s Standridge Stadium next week and for June minicamps.

Rivals Raises Money

Flower Mound students have taken a Lewisville softball player’s plight to heart. Christina Cabrera is in need of a kidney transplant and Flower Mound students have raised nearly $15,000 through a variety of fund-raisers including a 5K run and a seniors-faculty basketball game.