Football: Dunbar?s Lawrence Smith Named BCA?s National Coach of the Year

0

Dunbar's Lawrence Smith, who took over the Poets following the sudden death of his mentor and former head coach, Ben Eaton, and guided their progam to its second straight Class 1A state title last fall, was named National Coach of The Year by the Black Coaches and Administrators during a ceremony at their National Convention and Expo last weekend in Atlanta. <br><br>Smith said BCA officials told him that he was only the second coach from his East Region to be similarly honored, following only former Dunbar basketball and football coach Bob Wade.<br><br>"It was a great honor. Went down to Atlanta for the convention. I had never heard of the BCA until that time. When I got down there, I saw how big it was and I got to meet some of the best coaches in the country -- basketball and football," said Smith, 34, who graduated from Dunbar in 1992.<br><br>"We talked about the association, and the black coaches in America coming together for this convention. It was a great weekend, and a great honor. The banquet was lovely," said Smith, who then credited assistant coaches Travis Blackston, Anderson Powell, William Crawford, John Shearin and Bernie White.<br><br>"I couldn't be here without my staff, and the kids, and everyone around me. We all know what happened on August 27, which basically changed my life and the lives of everyone that has anything to do with an affiliation with the team," Smith said, referring to Coach Ben Eaton's sudden death.<br><br>"We just moved forward from there. The team came together. The community came together as a whole, and we knew what we had to do," said Smith, whose Poets finished at 14-0 following a victory over Allegany in the Class 1A state title game.<br><br> "The children said that that was what they wanted to do, and we did it in spectacular fashion," Smith said. "Ending the season at 14-0, shattering a number of state records and winning another state championship."<br><br>The 34-year-old Smith is a 1992 graduate of Dunbar, where he played as an offensive lineman during the fall of 1991 under then-coach Pete Pompey.<br><br>Smith and Travis Blackston were later assistants on the Northwood of Baltimore City Recreation team which won a Pop Warner National championship in 2000, a 9-to-11 year-old age group squad which featured future Gilman of Baltimore star Ben Eaton Jr.<br><br>"That's how I first met Coach Eaton, because we had coached his son since he was 8 years old," said Smith, who, with Blackston --the Poets' offensive coordinator -- was asked to join Ben Eaton Sr.'s Dunbar staff in the fall of 2001.<br><br>Three years later, in 2004, the Poets won their program's third state title, coming from behind to defeat Joppatowne of Harford County, 16-14, for the Class 1A state crown.<br><br>The effort put the Poets in an elite group as one of the few programs to win state titles over three different classifications.<br><br>In addition to the Class 1A title, Dunbar also captured Class 2A and Class 3A crowns under then-coach Stan Mitchell in 1994, and, '95, when Ben Eaton Sr. served as an assistant.<br><br>In going 14-0 last season, the Poets improved their winning streak to 24 consecutive games, covering their fourth and fifth state titles, consecutively, in 2006, and, last fall, respectively, over Allegany County teams Fort Hill and Allegany.<br> <br>Led by two-time Offensive Player of The Year, Tavon Austin, the 2007 Poets scored a state-record 196 points in four playoff games, eclipsing the old mark (141) held by state champion Urbana in 1999.<br><br>The Poets 58 point tied the record established by Valley High in 1977, when they routed Snow Hill, 58-16, for a state title. The combined 74 points by Dunbar and Allegany is also a state record.<br><br>Smith said the Poets' wide receiver Sean Farr, a 6-foot-4, 190-pounder who can run a 4.6-second 40-yard dash, was offered a full football scholarship to the University of Akron on Wednesday.<br><br>Farr caught 49 passes for 1,408 yards and 18 touchdowns from quarterback Jonathan Perry, who threw for 2,290 yards and 23 touchdowns.<br><br>The Poets also return defensive end-linebacker prospect Horace Miller, who made 17 sacks last season, as well as linebacker Tevin Brown, two-way lineman Antonio Brown, linebacker-defensive end prospect Gary Oneukwusi and running back-receiver-return specialist Davon Muse.

Comments? Questions? Email Here

© HowtoAdvice.com

How to Advice .com