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September 22, 1998Aiming highFarris has Petoskey undefeated, rated 6th and thinking playoffsDave Farris spent 11 years as a college football coach. Most of his time was consumed preparing for games, dealing with alumni and media and the last two years of his career at Wayne State trying to save the football program. "I really didn't have that much contact with the players," said Farris. That changed 12 years ago when he left Wayne State to take the Petoskey High School job. "It was a big transition," said Farris, whose team is off to a 3-0 start and ranked No. 6 in Class BB by the Associated Press. "As a head college coach, you deal with the more technical aspects of the job," he said. "Your assistants deal more with the players. "College players get scholarships and pros earn money for playing," he said. "Football is more like a job. In high school, the kids are there because they want to learn. It's the perfect situation for someone who likes to teach and coach." Like Farris. He went from overseeing and delegating at the college level to a hands-on approach at high school. "One thing I've learned is that you've always got to be open to change," he said. "For instance, we've worked a new offense into our system. And you're always learning when you deal with players and parents." Early on, Farris learned he had to tone down his language from the salty talk of college football to the more mundane teaching vocabulary that comes with high school players. Like any good coach, he's used to making adjustments, however. "Dave is successful because of his work ethic, his knowledge of the game and the way he makes adjustments at halftime," said Petoskey athletic director Gary Hice. "He's also very involved in our community. He's everything you want in a coach." Since Farris has taken over, the Northmen have gone 67-36 after beating Cadillac last Friday. Petoskey has gone 8-1 four times under Farris, but only made the playoffs once. This year, with a win over nemesis Ogemaw Heights already under their belts, the Northmen are talking playoffs again. "Dave has been real persistent and real patient with his program," said Cheboygan coach Jack Coon, a man who has his team in the playoffs year after year and is one of Petoskey's archrivals. "Petoskey is starting to find out what it's like to be the red-letter date on a lot of team's schedules. You have teams gunning for you every week. It's a different kind of mindset." Farris agrees. "We realize the pressure that comes with winning, but it's what we've worked for here," he said. "The thing I like best about this school is that people can't say we're just a football school or a basketball school. Heck, we have good soccer, tennis, debate... a lot of things. That's one of the reasons I took this job. I wanted my own kids in this kind of environment." Ferris' son and daughter have graduated from Petoskey, but some of his players are "adopted children." "That's the difference between coaching college and high school," he said. "You really can't get that close to your college players because of the decisions you have to make with scholarships on the line. In high school, you want to help them in any way you can." Two of his best players are prime examples. Quarterback Kyle Swenor is the son of one of Farris' assistants, Dwayne Swenor. "Coach is more than just a coach to me because I've grown up with him around," Kyle Swenor said. "There are times in practice when he makes an example out of me. I know he's just trying to make a point, so I just let it roll off my shoulders. I understand how things work." Star running back Eric Hansen, who's averaging more than 100 yards rushing per game, has gotten the opposite treatment from Farris. "School hasn't always been easy for me and coach knows that," said Hansen. "He's been very understanding, very supportive." That doesn't mean Hansen gets any kind of special treatment. "Heck no," he said with a smile. "Coach demands a lot of us. All of us." That's because Farris has always demanded a lot of himself. He was a three-sport star at the now defunct Waterford Township High School, playing football, basketball and track. At Central Michigan, he played football for Roy Kramer in the late 1960s. He won the Chippewa Award in 1969 and tried out for the NFL's Buffalo Bills. "I lasted until the final cut, just days before the first game," said the former tight end. So he turned to physical education and teaching. He was an assistant for two years at Clio, then spent three years turning around a Muskegon Orchard View program that had gone 0-23. They were 17-10 under Farris. After that he spent two years as a position coach at Central Michigan and two years as defensive coordinator Hillsdale College. Then came an opening at Wayne State in Detroit. He was an assistant for one year, then the head coach for six years. The last two years were a constant struggle. The university wanted to shut down the football program. Farris and his supporters worked hard to keep it going. They succeeded. "It was tough, though," he said. "When the Petoskey job opened up, I applied." Right away, Farris began to make adjustments in his approach to coaching. "I learned that you can't talk to a 22-year-old kid from the inner city the same way you can a 16-year-old from Petoskey," he said. "And I learned, with help from my wife (a teacher at Pellston), that you have to choose your battles wisely." Now, Farris can focus his battles on Friday night showdowns in the fall. "I'm proud of the fact that we have 300 boys between 7 and 18 involved in football here in Petoskey," he said. "But the thing is, I'm only one person. The key is, we have good football people here - my varsity assistants (Swenor, Mike Loper and John Champion), plus all the other guys in our system. We're all on the same page." It's a page Farris hopes will be part of a new chapter in Petoskey football. |
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