Two years ago, I had no idea where Garfield High School in Akron was.
To be honest, the only thing that I really knew about the school at that time
was that Antoine Winfield hailed from there.
But ever since Chris Wells first burst upon the scene in his sophomore
campaign for the Golden Rams, Garfield has been one of the schools that I’ve
probably been to the most.
The home of the legendary Garfield head coach Babe Flossie is now the home of
the legendary-in-the-making running back who will take his game to Ohio State
after his senior football season and his first academic semester at Garfield is
in the books.
The superlatives already being thrown at Wells the running back are, quite
frankly, well deserving. At 6-2 and 230 pounds, the thickly sculpted Wells
wasn’t about to rest on his laurels over the summer. Despite being named as
one of the top prep backs in the entire country by one national publication
after another, Wells rose to the occasion and improved his stock even more by
turning in a stellar performance at a Scout.com combine at the University of
Akron and then in an encore presentation at an Ohio State senior camp.
The expectations going into his senior season couldn’t be any higher for
Wells than they currently are. Even Maurice Clarett wasn’t near this
stratosphere going into what turned out to be a tremendous senior season for him
at Warren G. Harding High School.
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Wells and Garfield open their season
tonight |
But despite all of the preseason attention being aimed at his team now,
because of Wells being on it, Garfield head coach Box Sax is trying hard to keep
everything in its proper perspective with regards to Wells and his role on the
team.
"He’s a four-year starter and he brings a lot of experience to the
table for us," Sax said. "We just want him out there on the field
doing the things that he did last year."
Last season, Wells averaged over 9 yards per carry as he rushed for 1,939
yards and scored 20 touchdowns on offense and played very well at linebacker
whenever he was on the field on defense. And the game plan for Wells going into
this season isn’t going to change a whole lot.
"He’s going to get a ton of carries, we’re going to try to
incorporate him into the passing game, spot him out there on the defensive side
of the ball and if he can just bring some of that energy and experience to the
rest of his teammates, then those guys are going to go to war with him, "
Sax said. "If they see him out there doing his thing then it’s going to
rub off on everyone."
Whether or not the gravity of having a once-in-a-lifetime player like Wells
on the team is actually understood by the players or even the coaching staff at
Garfield will become obvious with how well they perform and the success that
they have as a team as the season goes on. The bottom line is that it isn’t
very often that a team like Garfield will have a player like Wells at their
disposal, if ever again.
"Every now and then I catch myself thinking about ‘Wow, I really do
have this guy that everybody is saying is the number one running back in the
United States,’ " Sax said. "But I think about it for about five or
10 seconds and then I forget about it because it’s a team thing and it’s
going to take the other 10 guys that are out there on the field with him to make
things happen. But then I think about what he can do as well and I like his
teammates, and so I’m really anxious to see us in action come Thursday."
But if the team concept isn’t working, there may come a time that Wells
will have to put the cape on and carry his teammates on his very broad
shoulders. Tyrell Sutton, a close and personal friend of Wells, was so good at
that last season and his shoulders weren’t nearly as broad.
"I’m not thinking that way. I’m not thinking that I’m going to
have to count on this guy to actually go out there and win us football games
because he needs the other ones. I really believe in the team concept," Sax
said. "I think he can take over a game. I’ve seen it last year a lot
where he just makes the play calling so easy. I can just keep pounding this big
guy at you and he wears down the defense and he just overpowers some of the kids
that he’s playing against. So I’m not going to try to out-coach
myself."
But whether or not the mild-mannered and unassuming Wells will demand the
football or not in times of need is really the big question to be answered.
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Garfield head coach Bob Sax |
"He’s really stepped it up in that regard this year," Sax said.
"He’s been nosing around a lot about, ‘I want the ball. I want to run
the football. Give me the football.’ But in the scrimmages you’re out there
trying to see other things - I feel that I have a pretty good quarterback and a
good receiver out there - and I know he’s been a little frustrated. But he has
been a little more vocal about ‘Coach come on, give me the ball.’ "
And Sax claims that he wants Wells to demand the ball from him this season.
"I want the boy to want the ball 40 times a game. That’s what I
want," Sax said. "I would love to be able to run him that much and if
he can carry it 40 times then I’d be more than happy to give it to him 40
times."
The chances for a Garfield victory get better with each and every carry by
Wells, no question. But in Kyle Shaffer, the Rams also have a more than capable
quarterback. Shaffer is a returning starter with good size who threw for 900
yards last year. And in Cortez Jones, they have a receiver who can not only
stretch the field for the offense but he can also deliver punishing hits from
his free safety position in the secondary. Jones dominated in the first two
games last year before an ankle injury sent him to the sideline for the
remainder of the season. And finally in Adam Guilmette, they have a quality
kicker with a strong leg, who is equally adept at punting the football and
booming the kickoff into the end zone. Last year Guilmette, with a range of
about 40 yards in practice, was 42 of 44 on his PATs.
But if there’s an area of concern for Garfield going into the season it has
to be with the defense. And Wells might see more playing time on defense than
Sax would actually like him to have.
"Defense is definitely our weak spot right now," Sax said.
"We’re young and inexperienced and were going to have Chris getting some
reps over there. He’s never going to be in there for any long period of time
but he could be as good as he wants to be on that side of the ball."
But because of Wells, Garfield is going to be expected to win this year
regardless of them having an inexperienced defense or not.
"I feel a lot better after having two days of practice preparing for
Hoban and I think we’re making progress," Sax said. "I really think
we’re coming along. I was happy with the offense and I think that the defense
is making some strides."
The playoffs have been a rather elusive thing for Garfield in the past. The
Rams have made three appearances in the state playoffs. Last season was the
first time since 1989 when they lost in the second round to Massillon. In 1983,
Garfield went all the way to the state championship game with a running back by
the name of Charles Gladman when they lost to Cincinnati Princeton.
"We want to build on what we started last year. We want to make the
playoffs and we want to go further," said Sax, whose season ended abruptly
last year with a first-round loss to Copley. "We haven’t won an opener at
Garfield in about five years so we want to win our opener. And we want to be
city champs. We want to take care of business in the non-league and then we want
to take care of that city championship. If we do those things, then we feel like
we’re going to make the playoffs."
Anything short of making the playoffs would have to be considered a major
disappointment for Sax and Rams. Besides, the lost last year left an unpleasant
taste in their mouth during the off-season.
"The kids went in and played their hearts out and lost a tight game but
it kind of gives them something to shoot for now," the coach said.
"They got a taste of it, they liked being there and they liked playing that
11th week. And we got quite a few guys back so they want to make sure
that they can do the same thing and go a little farther."
But fair or not, this team at Garfield will be perceived by many around Ohio
as being Chris Wells’ team and they’ll be rooting for the Rams just because
of Chris Wells.
"I don’t look at that way. Other people may and that’s okay,"
Sax said. "But I got a good senior class, I really like the seniors out
there and I think it’s their team."
That certainly doesn’t mean that Sax isn’t excited about the opportunity
to coach Wells this season.
"For the first time in his life he’s going to be playing against kids
that are just his age and he’s done pretty well as an underclassman," Sax
said. "So I’m anxious to see what it’s going to be like for him going
against kids his same age now that he’s bigger, stronger and faster than he
was a year ago."
And for any Ohio State fan who’s never seen Wells play before, Sax offered
this advice: "Come and see him play. You’re going to see a kid that plays
with a lot of excitement and he just does some amazing things out there,"
he said. "Come see us play."
I couldn’t have said it any better. Go see Wells and the Rams play.
For the past two years now I’ve watched the eventual Mr. Football award
winner in Ohio play on Thursday in the opening week of the season. Two years ago
I watched Ray Williams run all over Howland to start the season and then I
watched Sutton have similar success against Garfield last year.
This year, I’ll be at Dowed Field once again to start the season off in
week one. And for the third year in a row, I’m confident that I’ll be
watching the state’s Mr. Football award winner get his season off to an
auspicious beginning.
Won’t you join me!
