10.24
University Daily Kansan. November 6, 1984 Page 7
Cougar running back Pat Newman tries to break through the Trojan line after receiving the ball from Tyrone Thompson.
Toy Bowl Sunday
Trojans John Welsh and Loyce Bell are proud of their team's victory over the Cougars. The Trojans won the Toy Bowl A team division 24.6.
Coach Barry Hughes stood on the sidelines Sunday at Haskell Stadium and yelled encouragement to his Lawrence Little League football team (the Browns), which was playing the rival Cougars in the Lawrence Little League Toy Bowl game.
Barry Hughes, head coach of the Trojans, and his team salute the American flag. Hughes was named Coach of the Year in the Lawrence Little League.
On the opposite sideline, Cougar assistant couy Wayne Ricks, his team trailing 16-6.
"You've gotta be tough out there, you've gotta be tough." Hughes yelled with his hands cupped around his mouth. "We need some blocking."
"Hit somebody out there. Don't just stand there," yelled Ricks, who was wearing a headset through which he talked with the player on each standing on the top row of the stadium.
Trojan cheerleaders, dressed in their team's colors of red and white, cheered on one side, while Cougar cheerleaders, dressed in black, cheered on the other side.
In the stands, parents, grandparents, brothers and sisters closely followed the action.
The Trojans held a slim 6-4 lead at halftime, and came on strong in the second half for a 24-6 victory. They rushed onto the field for a victory celebration before accepting the championship trophy, while the Cougars quietly looked on.
On the field the pint-sized players, ranging in size for the Cougars from 68-pound Pat Newman to 145-pound Whitney Wesley, bumped heads from one sideline to the other.
"We have three rules," Hughes said after the game. "No. 1 we don't swear. No. 2, we don't hit the kids and No. 3, we don't yell at them. We always love them."
Photos by Jackie Kelly Story by Greg Damman
Cougar head coach Chuck Newman, who is the KU athletic equipment manager, said that he was just happy that his team reached the Toy Bowl, and that he enjoyed coaching.
"The best part is the kids themselves," Newman said, "and being able to teach the kids the game and sportsmanship.
Newman has been a Lawrence Little League football coach for 14 years. He said that several of his former players, including Darren Green and Gary Coleman, went on to play for the University of Kansas. Two members of this year's KU team, Mark Henderson and Tom Quick, also played in the league.
“At that age, you've got them before they've picked up anything else,” he said. “You can start from the beginning and teach them techniques, and they'll listen to you.”
Newman said that it was easier to coach the kids at a vault age.
Admission to the game was a toy. The toys were to be donated to the Salvation Army. The game will be broadcast at 11 a.m., Nov 17 on Lawrence Cable Channel Six.
The Trojans and Cougars, teams composed of players in fifth and sixth grade played first in the "A" game. The Hillbillies and the Cougar "B" team, teams composed of third, fourth and fifth graders, played next in the "B" game.
The Cougars had played in the Toy Bowl seven of the past eight years. Before the game, the players spoke with confidence and a great ease with pregame interviews.
"If we want to win, we have to block good
tackle and tackle good," said 12-year-old tackle
Mati
Eleven-year-old Trojan fullback Sean Plumlee said, "We have to stop their option. They pass and option a lot and throw some deep passes."
Sean's sister, Heather, 9 years old, was a Trojan cheerleader.
Ten-year-old Eric Morton, a center for the Hilbillies, said, "I like Willie Pills, because their defense would be really weak without him."
Troy Anderson, also 10 years old and a member of the Hillibibles, had a favorite KU player, but couldn't remember his name. "The quarterback. I don't know his name, but I know his number is seven, isn't it?" he said.
Cougar “B” team player Zack Sanders, one of the youngest players at eight, said, “I’m on kickoff, but not always. Sometimes they kick off to us.”
Most of the players on all four teams said they liked to watch the KU Jayhawk football team, but few of them had a favorite player or former player.
Ten-year-old Tim Turner, a halback on the Hillbillies, said that he didn't care much for the cheerleaders because, "they never pay any attention during the game."
"We like to tease the boys," Heather said. Kami Logan, also 9 years old, a cheerleader for the Cougars, said, "I was the one screaming. My throat hurts now."
"I like Kerwin Bell." Turner said,
"because he's a good friend of mine. I shook his hand once after a game."
Zack said the Toy Bowl was his favorite game of the year because “this is a stadium
Trojan Kyle Jackson has his tears wiped away by Jim Woods, father of teammate Dwayne Woods, after being injured.