SORSN: Coach, the 2015 season is upon us and your first of what we hope is many as the Greenwave head coach. Please introduce us to your coaching staff this season.
Coach Minton: I am excited about this season and with the men I will be working with.
Gabe Patterson is going to be working on the Offensive play calls. He will also be pulling duties as my master of motivation.
Lewis Edwards is the team’s skill position coach as well as the CEO of Edwards Moving Specialists.
Jean-Paul Holt is the Monday/Tuesday Defensive Ends coach and does a great job as master of the weightroom.
Daniel Matherly is the team’s Friday Night eyes in the sky.
And our new addition to staff this season is Tommy Defoe. Tommy has been the head coach at Union County High School and is working with our offensive and defensive lines. He is also going to be my sideline bodyguard if things get out of hand.
SORSN: Looking ahead to Thursday, August 20th. You’ve been preparing all summer and now here you are standing on the visitor side sidelines at Rockwood. How do you expect this will compare to your first game as a player?
Coach Minton: If I remember correctly I had no clue what I was doing in my first game as a player. I remember my coach looking at me and telling me not to screw the play up. I’m pretty sure I did. I feel a bit more confident about going to Rockwood, but I’m sure my old coach is going to call me and tell me not to screw it up.
SORSN: Many are not able to handle the attention and pressure of being thrown into the media spotlight of SORSN.com. In wake of the Cloudland comments that garnered national attention in 2005, the administration often asks coaches and high-profile players to take a media relations class at Roane State to learn how to conduct oneself in front of the media and provide vanilla, coach-talk answers to questions. Rumormill has it that you not only took this class, but you aced it. To demonstrate what you have learned, please answer this question: Coach, how do you plan on winning the opener at Rockwood?
Coach Minton: The team has really worked hard in the off-season. I like the effort our guys are putting in during practice. I just want our guys to give 110% and do the best they can. (I think that covers everything the professors taught)
SORSN: Sorry, coach, nice try. But we were looking for “score more points than them.” Roane State Professors grade on a large curve.
SORSN: Being the head coach also means that you are in front of the lens of sorsn.com cameras. Being in front of the camera may also lead to a complex about one’s appearance. That said, how is the new rabbit diet working for you?
Coach Minton: I have been preparing by eating as much fast food as possible. I realized when I took the job that I would need help from everyone with experience so I hired Justin O’Toole as my personal nutrition and exercise coach. His plan is really working wonders for me.
SORSN: What were some of the positives that you saw from team #61 at last week’s scrimmage? What are some of the key areas that you will be focusing on between now and August 20th?
Coach Minton: I liked that with all of the youth that we had on the field there were really not that many missed plays or tackles.
I feel like our mental toughness is going to be an issue. Most of the guys on the field are going to be very young so they will have to learn how to bounce back when negative things happen.
SORSN: Thank you for your time coach and good luck this season.