Young Patriots have matured
Southern Sports & Travel, By Darron Thomas
On Saturday February 20th one team will win its’ last game of the season and claim the AA state championship. The road to Indianola begins in earnest this week as teams delve into district battles to determine who advances through a four week post season that includes district, regional, state and overall tournaments. Assuredly the pressure will mount for many teams as February gets closer due to the new bracket format in which only the top three seeds will advance each week during post season. Those boring consolation games with little at stake are now elimination matchups. It only takes a quick glance at a few districts to realize that some solid teams will end their seasons early with the new format but the quality of basketball will be better for it.
In the latest Southern Sports & Travel rankings the top ten is split with half the teams coming from the south and the other half from the north, a considerable shift from last season. Only six will qualify for the state tournament and of those six its possible no one team will be a clear favorite to take home the hardware.
One team that could very well be in that mix are the Marshall Patriots out of district 1AA. The Patriots, under the direction of head coach Craig Dailey, finished 22-15 last season and are off to a 13-5 start and a #5 ranking.
Coach’s corner…….
This week: Marshall head coach Craig Dailey
*Last season's squad came only a few baskets of upsetting Bowling Green in the state tournament in Brookhaven. How many starters return from last season and how much depth do the guys have?
"Everyone returns from last year including Jake Omedeo & Caleb Byrd (seniors), Chase Ferrell (started as a freshmen last year), Jordan Brock, John Tomlinson, and Taylor Maurey (juniors) who all started last year. Jordan Wyke (sophomore) (a public school transfer from Alcorn Central) has fit into the starting lineup this season and a 9th grade post player, Matt Rappa, is playing up due to eligibility rules and has played quality minutes. We have had 7 players start on and off throughout the season so far. I am as deep as I have ever been, but that’s not saying a lot since most of my championships only played about 6 deep. We have another 9th grader off our undefeated junior high team that could possibly contribute down the stretch. My greatest challenge will be to get this group of individuals to combine into a cohesive unit. I'm not used to having this many options."
*Is there one particular player who is looked upon as the team leader?
"Our two seniors, Caleb Byrd and Jake Omedeo, have come a long way leadership wise. I feel that seniors will always be in a position to lead more than others regardless of their personality because they are the closest to that "final horn" as we call it. There’s something about a senior when it gets toward the end. These two have worked extremely hard trying to build this thing and they deserve a great finish."
*As the mid-point of the season approaches how would you assess your squad's play so far?
"Up and down especially on the defensive end. We must get back to what has made our program successful....We have got to guard first and figure out the rest later. St. Benedict, Briarcrest, two other AAA or public opponents Faulkner, Myrtle, Magnolia Heights and Hickory Flat all before we try to take the lead in the district vs West Memphis on January 11th should tell the tale for us. These opponents will force us to concentrate on the basics and there will be no room for error. St. Benedict spanked us at home and I scouted Briarcrest Tuesday and don't think any of the 5 that started for St. Benedict could start for Briarcrest. It'll be fun and the boys will learn to guard one way or another."
*What's your biggest pet peeve with regards to coaching or high school basketball in general?
"Our slogan for our program is "We Believe". It goes back to the death of my mom my senior year and the lessons that I learned from dealing with that and how it has impacted our program over the years. Every kid that has come through the "We Believe" program has heard the story and has in their own way bought into the belief in something greater than themselves. My girls last year definitely did. I couldn't have been any more proud of them if that had been us drilling that 3 with 20 seconds to play. My championship teams have all found their own piece of this on their run...this group of young men will have to as well. These lessons are what I try to teach the most."
*What is the biggest challenge in preparing kids for post season play?
"For us this year it will be travel. Indianola is in the North, but it is 3 hours away from us. We had to stay the night for our Jr. High district Championship games the last time they hosted. We then will have to travel to Leake for North which almost knocks 4 hours in the head and back to Indianola for State and 3 hours to Jackson for Overall. As I told my boosters, that'll be good problems to have and ain't nothing guaranteed. Two of Brookhaven’s titles wouldn't have happened with this 3 teams advancing format. We travel during the summer and the Brookhaven Christmas tournament most years so we get a lot of practice."
*Can you point to one game that has been the toughest loss while you've been at Marshall?
"T-Boy Lynch of Brookhaven going the length of the floor dagger and then losing to Delta the next day along with the other happenings that I've tried to wipe from my memory, but the losses make it so much sweeter when you win. Never forget sitting by the pool with Coach Deuce after we won our programs first two state titles in one day. We weren't talking about the wins we were talking about the "0-24 days" (My first boy’s team at Delta)."
* Biggest win?
"We set our heights pretty high so it probably hasn't happened yet, but the girls State run: Prairie View, Oak Forest are at the top."
*Overall has the teaching of fundamentals in high school basketball progressed or regressed?
"As a whole it has fell off. You see college and pros that can't hit a free throw, but I believe that the MAIS coaches have definitely held their own. Then again we have to and we have Dale Watts on our side so that counts for at least 20 normal coaches."
*If you could change one rule in high school basketball what would it be?
"I wouldn't. I think a big part of the life lessons we teach as coaches is to learn to play the game and adjust to the way the game is called. They better be able to adjust when they are earning a paycheck and feeding a baby."
*What will it take for Marshall to make a run at a state title in February at Indianola?
"A complete sell-out of self, an evolution into my best defensive team ever, and some luck."
In the latest Southern Sports & Travel rankings the top ten is split with half the teams coming from the south and the other half from the north, a considerable shift from last season. Only six will qualify for the state tournament and of those six its possible no one team will be a clear favorite to take home the hardware.
One team that could very well be in that mix are the Marshall Patriots out of district 1AA. The Patriots, under the direction of head coach Craig Dailey, finished 22-15 last season and are off to a 13-5 start and a #5 ranking.
Coach’s corner…….
This week: Marshall head coach Craig Dailey
*Last season's squad came only a few baskets of upsetting Bowling Green in the state tournament in Brookhaven. How many starters return from last season and how much depth do the guys have?
"Everyone returns from last year including Jake Omedeo & Caleb Byrd (seniors), Chase Ferrell (started as a freshmen last year), Jordan Brock, John Tomlinson, and Taylor Maurey (juniors) who all started last year. Jordan Wyke (sophomore) (a public school transfer from Alcorn Central) has fit into the starting lineup this season and a 9th grade post player, Matt Rappa, is playing up due to eligibility rules and has played quality minutes. We have had 7 players start on and off throughout the season so far. I am as deep as I have ever been, but that’s not saying a lot since most of my championships only played about 6 deep. We have another 9th grader off our undefeated junior high team that could possibly contribute down the stretch. My greatest challenge will be to get this group of individuals to combine into a cohesive unit. I'm not used to having this many options."
*Is there one particular player who is looked upon as the team leader?
"Our two seniors, Caleb Byrd and Jake Omedeo, have come a long way leadership wise. I feel that seniors will always be in a position to lead more than others regardless of their personality because they are the closest to that "final horn" as we call it. There’s something about a senior when it gets toward the end. These two have worked extremely hard trying to build this thing and they deserve a great finish."
*As the mid-point of the season approaches how would you assess your squad's play so far?
"Up and down especially on the defensive end. We must get back to what has made our program successful....We have got to guard first and figure out the rest later. St. Benedict, Briarcrest, two other AAA or public opponents Faulkner, Myrtle, Magnolia Heights and Hickory Flat all before we try to take the lead in the district vs West Memphis on January 11th should tell the tale for us. These opponents will force us to concentrate on the basics and there will be no room for error. St. Benedict spanked us at home and I scouted Briarcrest Tuesday and don't think any of the 5 that started for St. Benedict could start for Briarcrest. It'll be fun and the boys will learn to guard one way or another."
*What's your biggest pet peeve with regards to coaching or high school basketball in general?
"Our slogan for our program is "We Believe". It goes back to the death of my mom my senior year and the lessons that I learned from dealing with that and how it has impacted our program over the years. Every kid that has come through the "We Believe" program has heard the story and has in their own way bought into the belief in something greater than themselves. My girls last year definitely did. I couldn't have been any more proud of them if that had been us drilling that 3 with 20 seconds to play. My championship teams have all found their own piece of this on their run...this group of young men will have to as well. These lessons are what I try to teach the most."
*What is the biggest challenge in preparing kids for post season play?
"For us this year it will be travel. Indianola is in the North, but it is 3 hours away from us. We had to stay the night for our Jr. High district Championship games the last time they hosted. We then will have to travel to Leake for North which almost knocks 4 hours in the head and back to Indianola for State and 3 hours to Jackson for Overall. As I told my boosters, that'll be good problems to have and ain't nothing guaranteed. Two of Brookhaven’s titles wouldn't have happened with this 3 teams advancing format. We travel during the summer and the Brookhaven Christmas tournament most years so we get a lot of practice."
*Can you point to one game that has been the toughest loss while you've been at Marshall?
"T-Boy Lynch of Brookhaven going the length of the floor dagger and then losing to Delta the next day along with the other happenings that I've tried to wipe from my memory, but the losses make it so much sweeter when you win. Never forget sitting by the pool with Coach Deuce after we won our programs first two state titles in one day. We weren't talking about the wins we were talking about the "0-24 days" (My first boy’s team at Delta)."
* Biggest win?
"We set our heights pretty high so it probably hasn't happened yet, but the girls State run: Prairie View, Oak Forest are at the top."
*Overall has the teaching of fundamentals in high school basketball progressed or regressed?
"As a whole it has fell off. You see college and pros that can't hit a free throw, but I believe that the MAIS coaches have definitely held their own. Then again we have to and we have Dale Watts on our side so that counts for at least 20 normal coaches."
*If you could change one rule in high school basketball what would it be?
"I wouldn't. I think a big part of the life lessons we teach as coaches is to learn to play the game and adjust to the way the game is called. They better be able to adjust when they are earning a paycheck and feeding a baby."
*What will it take for Marshall to make a run at a state title in February at Indianola?
"A complete sell-out of self, an evolution into my best defensive team ever, and some luck."
The Dailey resume……
*Overall coaching record: 854-289
*Assistant to Mike Reans and Frank Miller at Delta Academy for one year.
*Spent one year at New Albany High School as girls coach.
*Coached both girls and boys at Delta for 12 years. Won nine state titles and overall runners-up three times.
*Dailey is in his 5th year at Marshall.
