Dunbar Crimson Tide football never stops, it's year round. When legendary head coach Craig Jefferies talks football, a frequent term he uses is "the program." The program Jefferies is referring to is his method of bringing kids thru an organized, structured system whereby each is prepared academically, emotionally, and physically to succeed in high school, college, and life itself.
The successful results that coach Jefferies and his staff have been able to achieve year in and year out is no accident despite the fact of having to replace talented kids and having to face increasingly tough competition in the DCIAA.
Coach Jefferies has always said his primary goal is to gets kids into college and whatever professional success they enjoy is just a bonus. What has helped is Jefferies's in depth understanding of the requirements of what colleges are looking for, both academically and in sheer football playing ability. Along the way his program has built up credibility as a must stop on the annual circuit of college coaches looking for solid citizens as well as talented athletes.
For 2008, the program cranks up as the Crimson Tide have completed their winter workouts and spring practices in preparation for their upcoming passing leagues.
I had a conversation with Coach Jefferies as he talks about his team, his players and their chances of capturing another city title this fall.
Coach Jefferies what has the Tide been doing this past spring?
"Well we just completed a combine for DCIAA athletes put on by Prep Champs and our annual 10 day spring practice. We finished our off season winter workouts which I was very pleased with. This year we will field one of our strongest teams across the board.
Soon we will be taking kids to a couple combines and in a few weeks start our passing leagues."
What will be the makeup of the team this year?
"This year we will have probably our largest senior laden team, 23 in all. Five of the seniors will have been with me all four years on varsity. One of the problems in preparing for this year is we don't have a lot of time to evaluate our junior varsity players but we're looking at about 10 noteworthy kids that will move up."
What are some of the players to watch for this season?
"We feel really good about the quarterback position. Tyree White, who has been in the program only one year has opened up a lot of eyes. He will definitely be a scholarship guy. Howard University has already offered him. I believe conference USA or the MAC will grab him. For Tyree, it's just a matter of exposure and we strongly believe he has the tools to play quarterback on the college level.
Then we have Deon Long. Deon has verbally committed to West Virginia and they have recruited a talented quarterback out of Virginia and look to have a system he can fit into. Deon is taller and faster than many college coaches thought he was. Michigan State, Duke, Illinois and Maryland are schools he is scheduled to visit. Deon is one of my four year guys who I felt had the best hands on the team. Deon caught everything thrown his way. He always pushed Isiah Thomas and Arrelious Benn in practice. Isiah was ahead of him because of experience but now he (Deon) is coming in his own. As of now however, he likes West Virginia.
Kevin Burgess is talented linebacker and another four year player for us. He was Honorable Mention All Met, All League and racked up 155 total tackles for us last year. Kevin is always making plays. He's close to getting scholarship offers but is definitely a Division I player.
Watch out for Leonard Coles and Dartainian Lasane (DT). Coles is athletic, has all the physical tools and should follow the great tradition Dunbar players. DT is a tall athletic guy who poses matchup problems for opponents.''
It sounds like you guys are loaded, are you predicting another city title?
"We look to be the odds on favorite with the amount of returning players. I think teams are going to have a lot to contend with trying to contain our offense. Defensively, we're young in the secondary after a loss of talented players like Abdul Taylor. Like I was mentioning before, the DCIAA is tough, HD Woodson is talented and so is Coolidge and Ballou."
The Dunbar Crimson Tide football program sent nine players to college on athletic scholarships last year, including three Division I players. Cornerback Abdul Taylor, who will attend Cornell next fall, is the first Ivy League recruit in Dunbar's rich history, a fact Coach Jefferies is especially proud of.
We will follow the Crimson Tide and other DCIAA teams as they prepare for next season.
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