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Wake-Up Call: Hillborough's Garcia ready to be back on top

Competing against Armwood is a coaching matchup that is relished by Garcia.

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By JOEY JOHNSTON | The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 23, 2009

Updated: 10/23/2009 11:36 am

The Wake-Up Call greets you each weekday with news, views and a few Tampa Bay area sports offerings to anticipate for the day and night. We encourage suggestions and contributions.

Good morning!

Hillsborough High School football coach Earl Garcia figured he had seen it all during his three decades in the game.

Until last season.

There were Garcia's Terriers, losing badly in the fourth quarter. By rule, given the game's margin, officials were forced to institute a running clock, increasing the pain exponentially in Garcia's eyes.

Armwood 46, Hillsborough 7.

"I hate the running clock,'' Garcia said. "I think if Armwood puts up 75 points on us, it should be our responsibility to stop that.

"It was just one of those years. If you're in it long enough, you'll be at the top, you'll be in the middle and you'll be at the bottom.''

Being at the bottom, of course, is a relative term for the Terriers, who were 6-4 last season to end a run of 10 consecutive state playoff appearances.

"Our program was not accustomed to that,'' Garcia said. "We're working to get back.''

Is Hillsborough football back?

We might get an answer tonight.

The Terriers (5-1, 1-0) travel to Armwood (5-1, 1-0) in a game that likely will decide the Class 4A-District 9 championship. Hillsborough has lost three straight games to the Hawks.

Competing against Armwood is not only a point of pride for the Terriers, it's a coaching matchup that is relished by Garcia.

Once upon a time, when he was Boca Ciega's head coach in the early 1980s, Garcia took the recommendation of Robinson's Randy Smith and hired young Sean Callahan as his linebackers coach.

Garcia and Callahan were together just one season – but it was a memorable one.

"Sean got out of there before I had a chance to mess him up,'' Garcia said. "Then he went on to fame and fortune.''

Well, sort of.

Callahan has built one of Florida's most powerful programs at Armwood, winning the Class 4A state title in 2003 and 2004, then reaching the state final in 2005 before losing against Tim Tebow-led Ponte Vedra Beach Nease.

There's the fame.

What about the fortune?

"We make this our life for about $2,500 a year (in a coaching supplement), so Earl and I probably both need to get our heads examined,'' Callahan said. "But I think we both do it right. I know we are both passionate about the game, our coaching staffs, our kids.

"In a lot of ways, we're cut from the same cloth. But it's tough to be as close as we were that one year we coached together. We're too competitive. We both want to win so badly. So even though there's mutual respect, there's some distance.''

Garcia concurs.

Tonight, it's all business.

"I've got a little testosterone left and Sean has a lot left,'' Garcia said. "We don't play golf together anymore or go out socially. We're in the same district. The district games are the money games. So this is serious stuff.

"Right now in this county, they are talking about four or five teams as the best – Plant, Armwood, Tampa Bay Tech and we have been mentioned, too. We're glad to be in that group. We haven't been that competitive with Armwood the last few years, but now we think we've got the athletes to match up with them. So we're looking forward to it.''

It's the type of game that could be one of the biggest wins in Hillsborough's recent history.

It's also the type of game that Armwood rarely loses.

"I really don't think people give Earl enough credit,'' Callahan said. "He weathered the storm of a Blake and a Middleton (cutting into Hillsborough's enrollment). That program has maintained a high standard. When Armwood lines up against Hillsborough, believe me, it carries great meaning.

"We're doing OK, but we need to take it up a notch. We haven't really fought through any adversity – and that was the mark of the old Armwood teams. Playing Hillsborough is a good measuring stick. It's the kind of game you can get excited about.''

Dreadnaughts seek revenge

The Lakeland Dreadnaughts (6-0) are 59-1 at Bryant Stadium since 2001. Guess who comes into town tonight?

Kissimmee Osceola, which won at Lakeland 25-21 in 2007 to end the Dreadnaughts' 53-game winning streak, returns to Bryant Stadium with the Class 5A-District 4 title on the line.

Prior to Osceola's 2007 visit, Lakeland's previous home defeat was to Hillsborough, 26-7, in the 2001 state playoffs.

Terriers running back Elijah Dukes had two touchdowns, including a back-breaking 80-yard run, in that game.

Curci speaks at FAMU homecoming

Former University of Tampa football coach Fran Curci, a Tampa resident, will speak tonight at Florida A&M University's homecoming ceremonies, commemorating the 40-year anniversary of the historical 1969 meeting between the Spartans and Rattlers at Tampa Stadium.

FAMU prevailed 34-28 in a game that preceded the full integration of college football in the South.

Heintz gets managerial job

Former University of South Florida baseball player Chris Heintz (Countryside) will manage the Minnesota Twins' rookie-level Gulf Coast League team in 2010, while also coordinating the Twins' extended spring-training sessions. Heintz, 35, was the interim coach for the final two months at Class A Beloit in the Midwest League. He played in the Twins' organization from 2004-07.

Shrine Game announces coaches

Former NFL coaches Romeo Crennel and Marty Schottenheimer were announced Thursday as head coaches for the 85th annual East-West Shrine Game, a college football all-star game scheduled for Jan. 23, 2010, at Orlando's Citrus Bowl.

Crennel was head coach of the Cleveland Browns from 2005-08. Schottenheimer spent 21 seasons as head coach for four different NFL teams.

The Shrine Game serves as a showcase for players who are undergoing NFL draft preparations. The game benefits Shriners Hospitals for Children.

UT's Catanach goes for 800th win

University of Tampa volleyball coach Chris Catanach goes for his 800th career victory at home tonight at 7 against Lynn University. The No. 8-ranked Spartans are 20-2 overall, 7-1 in the Sunshine State Conference, while Lynn is 17-6, 4-4.

UT faces Nova Southeastern University at home on Saturday afternoon at 4.

This is Catanach's first attempt at the 800th win. He reached 799 after a perfect weekend at the South Region Crossover tournament, defeating West Florida, Arkansas-Monticello and West Alabama, each in a three-game sweep.

Sports Leadership Summit set for Oct. 30

The Tampa Bay Sports Leadership Summit panel discussion – entitled "The Arrival of the Young Professional'' – will be from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. Oct. 30 at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center's Jaeb Theater.

Panelists include Rays president Matt Silverman, Bucs general manager Mark Dominik, Tampa Bay Sports Commission executive director Rob Higgins, Rowdies owner Andrew Nestor and Lightning player Steven Stamkos.

Here's the idea: Each of the men reached a prominent position in their sport at a young age. How did it happen? How did they prepare for the moment? What are the advantages (and pitfalls) of being a young up-and-coming person in sports. You'll hear everyone's story.

Admission is $10 or a new or "gently used'' sporting good (all of which will be donated to Tampa Bay area youth leagues).

There is free parking for the first 40 cars at the performing arts center valet lot (it's $1.20 an hour at the nearby Poe garage).

The event is co-sponsored by the Tampa Bay Sports Commission and Emerge Tampa Bay. To R.S.V.P. for the event, go to www.emergetampabay.org.

Birthday wishes

Happy birthday to former Bucs defensive lineman Tyrone Keys, a member of the Chicago Bears' extremely formidable Super Bowl XX championship team. Keys is executive director of All Sports Community Service, a Tampa-based company he founded in 1993. All Sports gets young people involved in community service, then, in turn, helps them with college placement and athletic scholarships. Saturday, Keys turns 49.

The Answer Man

Here's the answer to Thursday's trivia question:

After joining the ACC in 1992, the Florida State Seminoles won at least a share of nine consecutive ACC football championships. The Maryland Terrapins broke FSU's string and won the outright ACC title in 2001.

Friday trivia

Here's our daily sports trivia question, featuring a Tampa Bay/Florida spin. Try your luck by commenting below.

Earl Garcia's Hillsborough Terriers reached the Class 6A state title in 1996, becoming the first Hillsborough County public-school team in 25 years (since 1971 Robinson) to play for a state football championship. Which school defeated Hillsborough in that 6A final from 1996?

Check for the answer in Monday's Wake-Up Call.

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