VHS Hopes Thurman Can Lead Them To Salem


New Virginia High coach Chris Thurman wants to get one thing straight.

No matter how many yards and points his Gretna teams racked up in winning consecutive Group A Division 2 championships, defense was the foundation on which that dynasty was built.

"It sounds like a clich?," he said during the Bearcats' recent media day at Malcolm Stadium, "but you win championships with defense.

"Watching last year's team, that's the biggest thing I noticed. We have to become a better tackling team."

If Thurman's past is a guide to what lies ahead, VHS will turn things around -- sooner rather than later.

In his four seasons at Gretna, the 39-year old Thurman went 47-4. In the two state title seasons, the Hawks recorded 11 shutouts.

Sure, Gretna averaged nearly 42 points per game and more than 400 yards per contest. But not every score came as the result of a crisp 10-play, 80-yard drive.

"The defense was getting the ball back for the offense and giving them short fields," Thurman said. "You don't score that many points without help from the defense."

So Thurman and new defensive coordinator Chris Marshall have built from the ground up defensively. Installing the same 3-3 stack defense which Rich Rodriguez put in at West Virginia, the Bearcats hope to use their speed and improved tackling to better stop the opposition.

Marshall is encouraged at what he's seen so far.

"We keep throwing new things at these kids and they're soaking it up," he said. "Then they ask for more."

Linebackers Chris Doss and Dakota Dougherty should enjoy good seasons if linemen like junior Justin Lopez (6-foot-3, 270 pounds) and senior Josh Locklear (6-foot-1, 250 pounds) can win enough battles at the scrimmage line.

The most experienced unit is the secondary, where Charlie O'Bradley and Damon Dock are back. Fellow senior Antwone Hunt also figures into the mix.

Offensively, Thurman has put his stamp on what used to be a run-first, throw-only-when-necessary squad. Out is the Wing-T and in is the spread with four receivers.

Hunt, Bradley, Josh Jordan and Anthony McCoy give VHS what should be a speedy receiving corps.

"I like our receivers," Thurman said. "We're going to have some speed out there."

Andy Bowers returns at quarterback and should lead the Clinch Mountain District in passing, barring injury or some other circumstance.

Thurman takes over for Terry Smith, who went 21-33 in five years and never had a winning record. In fact, the Bearcats haven't finished on the sunny side of .500 since going 6-4 in 2002.

Conditioned to accept nothing but winning, Thurman's answer to a reporter's final question about a best-case scenario for his first VHS team was straight and to the point.

"We'll see you in Salem," he said.

That's the site of December's Group A football title game, where if Thurman's prediction comes true, he could run into the school he just left.