Lambuth Hires Two New Football Coaches
1/25/2010
Lambuth SID
Jackson, TN—Coach Ron Dickerson has added two new faces and announced coaching duties of his Lambuth Football staff.
Coach Josh Gehring and Coach Jorge Baez will join the staff immediately.
Coach Gehring will be the new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. He comes to Lambuth from Morningside College where he was named the American Football Coaches Association’s 2009 NAIA Assistant Coach of the Year. The Mustangs were the fourth highest scoring team in the nation in 2009 when they averaged 45.1 points per game. Prior to Morningside, Gehring was the defensive coordinator at Concordia University. He has also served as an assistant at Missouri State, Western Kentucky, Manchester College, Ottawa University and Rock Bridge High School in Missouri. He is a native of Mounds, OK, and a 1999 graduate of Ottawa University. He received a master’s degree in sports administration from Ball State.
Coach Jorge Baez comes to Lambuth from Ole Miss where he served as a Wide Receiver’s intern on the staff of Houston Nutt. He mentored a Rebel receiving corps, which was recognized as one of the best in the nation. A native of Miami, Baez served on the staff of the Miami Hurricanes coached by Larry Coker. Baez coached one season at the prep level before his tenure at Ole Miss. As a player, Baez competed for Upper Iowa University 1998-2000 and later earned a bachelor’s degree in 2003 from Florida International University, where he also worked one season with the football staff as a student assistant. Baez will serve as wide receivers and recruiting coach.
Coach Dickerson also announced Tom Allen, Lambuth defensive coordinator for the past two seasons, has also been named Assistant Head Coach.
Dickerson announced John Thompson, Lambuth’s strength and conditioning coach would also assume the role of defensive line coach. Lee Wilbanks will remain as recruiting coordinator and defensive backs coach. Don Pitt will return as offensive line coach. Tim Doggett will be in charge of Football Operations.
Coach Dickerson commented on the staff.” I believe having the right fit is very important in formulating a staff. The two coordinators, Tom Allen and Josh Gehring could be two of the finest in the country at any level.”
Coach Dickerson added, “ Our staff will work hard recruiting and with less than two months before the start of spring practice they will be spending many hours on the road and in the office.”
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» The Dickerson Era Begins
The Dickerson Era Begins
1/7/10
LambuthFootball.com Staff
Lambuth University has chosen Ron Dickerson as the next head coach of the Lambuth University football team. Lambuth Athletic Director Ken Brown only interviewed two candidates for the position and both were coaches already on staff. Coach Dickerson takes over for Hugh Freeze who accepted a job with San Jose State University.
It was an interesting twist of fate last year when Coach Hugh Freeze spoke with Houston Nutt, the Ole Miss head coach, about a former head coach that wanted to get back into coaching. Coach Nutt stated that the individual was interested in getting back into coaching at a small college and helped Coaches Freeze and Dickerson get in contact with one another. After a few conversations, Coach Dickerson committed to coach the Lambuth secondary without having visited the campus. Six short months later, Coach Dickerson has been named the head coach of the Lambuth University Eagles football team.
Coach Dickerson takes over as the 5th head coach at Lambuth since football was reinstated in 1985. He is the first African-American head coach to coach at Lambuth and was the first ever African-American head coach for an NCAA Division IA football team when he was named the head coach at Temple University. Coach Dickerson was also the head coach at Alabama State, defensive coordinator at Clemson, and was the president and founder of the Black Coaches Association. Dickerson is a graduate of Kansas State University and was a member of the undefeated 1972 Miami Dolphins team.
LambuthFootball.com praises the hire of Coach Dickerson and believes that the Eagles football team can continue to flourish under his leadership. He is a man of high moral character and has extensive coaching experience. It is rare to find a man with Coach Dickerson's coaching credentials at a school the size of LU and we are all grateful for his commitment and for the vision of AD Ken Brown and Dr. Bill Seymour. This is truly a monumental decision for the Lambuth football program.
We welcome Coach Ron Dickerson and his wife, Jeannie, into the Lambuth football family as our newest head coach.
For many close followers of college football teams, the recruiting season rivals the regular season in terms of importance. After all, recruiting classes produce the future of the team. The recruiting season is now upon us as we countdown the days until February 3rd, 2010 which is National Signing Day.
It will be interesting to see how the recruiting season unfolds for the Lambuth University Eagles. Coach Hugh Freeze, the Eagles former head coach, has departed for NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision's San Jose State Spartans. Ron Dickerson takes over as the Eagles new head coach and brings a wealth of Division I experience as a head coach (Temple, Alabama State) and defensive coordinator (Clemson). His recruiting experience at the FBS and FCS level should pay high dividends for the Lambuth football team. Even with Coach Dickerson at the helm, the spotlight is now squarely pointed towards LU's recruiting coordinator, Coach Lee Wilbanks. Coach Wilbanks has done a magnificent job in his two years on the Eagles coaching staff and has produced two outstanding recruiting classes. If the last two recruiting classes are a preview of what’s to come, then Eagles fans can expect Lambuth’s winning ways to continue.
However, Athletics Director Ken Brown will evaluate the applications of external candidates in making his decision which has left a degree of uncertainty regarding the process. Regardless of the outcome, the returning Lambuth team is stocked full of talent. The spotlight is now squarely pointed towards LU's recruiting coordinator, Coach Lee Wilbanks. Coach Wilbanks has done a magnificent job in his two years on the Eagles coaching staff and has produced two outstanding recruiting classes. If the last two recruiting classes are a preview of what’s to come, then Eagles fans can expect Lambuth’s winning ways to continue.
Official LambuthFootball.com Statement Regarding Coach Hugh Freeze's Departure to San Jose State
LambuthFootball.com would like to express its heartfelt appreciation for the effort and exposure Coach Hugh Freeze brought to Lambuth University and its football team. The players and staff Coach Freeze assembled are of impeccable character and quality and have endured through an unprecedented amount of adversity over the course of the last year. We thank Coach Freeze for taking a chance on Lambuth and for prospering as our head football coach. Coach Freeze upheld the high standards the Lambuth football community has come to expect through the years as the successor of Vic Wallace and we wish him well in all future endeavors.
The departure of Coach Freeze, while disappointing, is not unexpected due to the incredible amount of success the Lambuth football team experienced under his watch. Coach Mike MacIntyre and San Jose State University have hired a brilliant recruiter and offensive mind and can expect to rise among the ranks in the Football Bowl Subdivsion's Western Athletic Conference (WAC) offensive standings in the years to come. We would not be surprised if the SJSU Spartans rise to the top of all NCAA Division I offensive rankings in the near future.
Good luck to Coach Hugh Freeze and the San Jose State University Spartans. Thank you for being a positive influence to Lambuth University.
The 2009 season is behind us and what a season it was! The Lambuth University Eagles completed a record-breaking regular season by winning all 11 games and hosted a home playoff game for the first time since 1996.
LambuthFootball.com takes a look back at the historic season in this all-encompassing review and gives a preview of 2010 recruiting and the 2010 season.
The Lambuth football community is probably still emotionally hung over from Saturday's 52-10 loss to St. Xavier in the NAIA quarterfinals.
But while people probably remember the 2008 season for the 65-48 loss to Lindenwood in the first round of the playoffs, the 2009 season shouldn't be dwarfed by its disappointing ending.
Lambuth's 12 wins is a school record, and the Eagles' undefeated record heading into Saturday is more impressive considering Lambuth's adversities and the Eagles' schedule that included two NCAA Division II members.
The Eagles held off Gulf South Conference opponents West Georgia and West Alabama in the fourth quarter. West Alabama won a playoff game and handed then-No. 1 North Alabama its only loss of the season to date.
The schedule, including seven of 11 games on the road, provided enough obstacles to an undefeated regular season, but off-field troubles seemed to be just as imposing.
The school's financial situation, coach Hugh Freeze's search for other jobs and the near-forfeit of the Bethel win have been well-publicized, but the most impressive aspect of this season has been the players' and coaches' ability to excel amid personal strife.
Ben Aigamaua and "Sunday" Meaole played without their homes and Jason Ware played without his mother.
Ware said he stayed motivated because God blessed him and his teammates with abundance.
"We were blessed with gifts and talents, and that is motivation enough just to use them," Ware said. "No matter what I was going through, there is always somebody who has it worse. Thousands wished they had our opportunity to play football, and so many more just want food on their tables."
Even though Dayne Mullins and Fletcher Cleaves were only freshmen, Lambuth and the Jackson community rallied around them and their families after a Sept. 10 car wreck that paralyzed Cleaves and severely injured Mullins' arm.
LaSandra Cleaves, Fletcher's mother, compared Jackson to the fictitious community of Andy Griffith's Mayberry.
That incident influenced Bethel, a rival only on the field, to raise money for Cleaves and develop a relationship with him. Cleaves father, Fletcher Cleaves Sr., said Bethel recruited his son, but the school reached out after the accident even though Fletcher never visited the campus.
Without considering the on-field success, the Lambuth football team demonstrated how to properly handle adversity with grace.
That extends to the Lambuth women's basketball team, which appeared in the national title game despite a coaching change right before the season.
But more importantly, that extends to Lambuth's faculty and their families as they probably answered numerous questions about the school's future.
Ware thanked me in a recent conversation for writing about Lambuth football, but that's just my job.
Ware, his teammates and the Lambuth community deserve thanks for giving Jackson an example of exemplary behavior.
Several hundred Lambuth fans dotted L.L. Fonville Field on Saturday to watch the Eagles' final scrimmage of fall camp.
Players met with fans for pictures and conversation before the scrimmage. The starters participated in mostly non-contact, seven-on-seven drills, but didn't play in the scrimmage to rest for the season-opener Thursday against Kentucky Christian.
Senior safety Dominique Bowman enjoyed a break from the action but said he is ready to hit somebody not wearing Lambuth blue. "Our locker room is really intense, and we are ready to roll," Bowman said. "We face the best offense in the country everyday, so we are ready to play anybody.
"But I am tired of hearing (quarterback) Adam Wiese making checks at the line. I am ready for another team."
Bowman said Wiese has greatly matured this offseason, but Bowman also has improved in making... [Read More]
Although Lambuth loses key elements from its 2008 playoff run, the Eagles' peers picked Lambuth as the favorite in the Mid-South West and No. 14 in the NAIA preseason poll. The Eagles are picked as high as No. 9 in The Sporting News preseason poll. That's because coach Hugh Freeze is in his second year, allowing him his first full offseason to install his philosophies.
The offense loses skill players in leading quarterback Josh Garza (nearly 2,700 total yards), running back Ed Robinson (1,000 yards) and Landon Talley (nation-leading 20 touchdowns receiving).
But quarterback Adam Wiese, who shared time with Garza, said Lambuth's incoming class is full of athletes. Wiese isn't quite the Garza scrambler, but his shotgun expertise could mean the offense opens up even more from a squad that averaged 43.5 points per game this past season. Senior wide receivers... [Read More]
Lambuth will be having Meet the Eagles, Media Day and Picture Day on Saturday, August 22nd. Fans are invited to come out to L.L. Fonville field to meet the players at noon with a scrimmage to follow.
Hot weather arrived in Jackson about the same time the Lambuth Eagles hit the practice turf last week. With over 150 players the coaching staff has a challenge in being able to give everyone that opportunity to excel.
Coach Hugh Freeze and his staff are up to the challenge as the excitement can be sensed when one visits the intense practice sessions.
The coaching staff is taking special notice of athletic ability, focus and concentration, particularly in the newcomers.
" The summer workouts really helped a lot of our kids. The heat has not been as much of a factor as it could have been because they are used to it., " Freeze said. " We believe the first two weeks need to be as physical as we can be to set the tone."
" We had a couple of scary injuries last week but received good news early this week as they were not as serious as we... [Read More]
By MATT VINES mvines1@jacksonsun.com
This is the eighth in a series of 18 where The Jackson Sun is looking at different football teams and leagues of interest in West Tennessee at the college and high school level and ask and answer five questions each day that fans have going into the season.
Q: Who will QB Adam Wiese throw to after losing Landon Talley and Shane Smith?
A: Talley (led the nation with 20 touchdown catches) and Smith (819 yards, nine touchdowns) accounted for about 75 percent of the passing offense last season. But other targets have experience, led by seniors Jesse Ferrell (334 yards) and Brandon Okechukwu (233 yards). Transfer Rod Jefferson... [Read More]
College Fanz Sports Network announced their 2009 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Football Pre-Season Top 25 poll today.
The Lambuth Eagles were picked # 13 in the poll. Lambuth is one of five Mid-South Conference squads to be picked in the Top 20.
Cumberlands (Ky.) is # 5 while Shorter was picked # 8. Union ( Ky.) came in # 11 while Virginia-Wise was picked # 14.
The Eagles were ranked earlier # 15 in the NAIA National Pre-Season poll and # 9 in the Sporting News' Pre-Season poll.
After winning the NAIA National Championship last season, the University of Sioux Falls was selected as the Pre-Season favorite for 2009.
Rank School 2008 Record
1 Sioux Falls (S.D.) 14-0
2 Carroll (Mont.) 13-1
3 Lindenwood (Mo.) 11-2
4 St. Francis (Ind.) 12-1
5 Cumberlands (Ky.)... [Read More]
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