Mighty, Mighty Miners

Sports

March 18, 2010

By JAYSON KNIGHT The McAlester News-Capital Thu Mar 18, 2010, 09:59 AM CDT

Head Coach Bill E. Williams of the Hartshorne Miners’ football and powerlifting teams has made the weight room available to his guys enough to allow them to rack up some pretty big numbers. The third biggest numbers in the state at 2A as a matter of fact.

Garrett Grivett is now your 198-pound state champion and with lifting season wrapping up, his urge to lift will be with a football state championship as one of his goals.

Coming in second in the state at 198 is the injured-during-football-season Blake Ardese. In football practice before the injury, Ardese ran like a fictional beast granting his own freedom. His ability to charge through the will of opponents will be heightened after placing second in the state at 198.

Kenny Simpson came in third for the 220-pound weight division, giving the Miners an even more explosive and destructive linebacker that enjoyed many tackles last season, emphasis on enjoyed.

For those that wonder why a football coach would be so determined to win a powerlifting tournament, I’ll let Coach Williams explain it to you.

“Football is a physical game and every time the ball is snapped, people are getting hit.

The weight room is the only tool we have to prepare kids for such a physical game,” Coach Williams said of the gridiron game.

You may wonder why football coaches are always the ones who coach these powerlifting programs when other coaches may be available. Take it from the coach, “Football is unlike other sports that may have the luxury of fielding a kid who has never seen the inside of a weight room.

Our kids have to be tough. Our kids live at the gym. And it’s paying off.

Winning football games at the level we are committed to winning them at does not happen without a commitment to the weight room.”

That 2A level is going to be at the peak next season as the Miners prepare to face Vian and Talihina, a pair of teams that don’t just win, but embarass most schools.

Talihina will join the 2A ranks next season after plowing a path for their Golden Tigers through the Class A competition.

The Talihina Tigers weren’t scored on for their first four games last year. When a team finally did score on them, the Golden Tigers still won out 27-8.

The Tigers shut out nine different opponents last season. They had 60 points scored on them in 13 games this last season and scored 480 points in those games.

Every real Miner knows the score with Vian. They put out star runner Blake Ardese and hot shot quarterback Ross Rose in the first game of the season, Sept. 4, 2009.

A win over the team that cost the Miners a great deal of talent right out of the gate will be a dream for the Hartshorne faithful.

Wins will not come easy in the 2A bracket next season and Coach Williams and his Miners are ready to work for some wins.

“Trying to win without work is like trying to harvest something you haven’t planted. We’re harvesting champions and our seeds are planted in the weight room,” Coach Williams said.

Text Only

Sports

Globetrotters stop into McAlester for World Championship game
On Monday, the Harlem Globetrotters chose McAlester as a stop on their World Championship Tour.

February 7, 2012 23 Photos 1 Story
NFL works to protect copyright, as Brady admits illegal viewing
NFL Super Bowl officials were hoping to score some major media attention with the arrest of a "web pirate" accused of illegally streaming sporting events over the Internet. They ended up with news stories that led with Super Bowl-bound quarterback Tom Brady admitting he watched last year’s NFL championship game on an illegal website.

February 3, 2012 1 Photo
POTAC: Is the Ada rivalry over?
Opportunities to watch the tradition of POTAC, or Pounce On The Ada Cougars, will be more scarce for McAlester fans for at least the next two years, but current interest in the rivalry didn’t seem overwhelming this week.

February 3, 2012 2 Stories
Buff gridiron standouts sign for college play
Three McAlester High School seniors took steps Wednesday to take their football playing days past high school and on the collegiate level.

February 3, 2012 3 Photos 2 Stories
NFL Play 60 Kids Day gets them moving
It was kids, kids and more kids Wednesday at the Indiana Convention Center, as 38 classrooms of fifth- and sixth-graders enjoyed a morning at the NFL Experience, courtesy of the NFL’s Play 60 Challenge.

February 2, 2012 4 Photos
Giants' Manning emerging from brother's shadow
Giants quarterback Eli Manning has a chance to outshine his more famous brother in Sunday's Super Bowl.

January 31, 2012 1 Photo
SLIDESHOW: Giants arrive in Indianapolis The New York Giants arrived in Indianapolis Monday to begin preparations for their matchup with the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI.
January 31, 2012
SLIDESHOW: Patriots best Ravens in AFC Championship The Patriots defeat the Baltimore Ravens 23-20 in the AFC Championship game, securing a spot in Super Bowl XLVI against the New York Giants.
January 25, 2012
Viral video: Announcer goes nuts after full-court shot wins game
One college basketball play-by-play radio host likely needed some throat lozenges when he woke up Sunday morning, a day after his shocked, screaming reaction to a game-winning basket.

January 18, 2012 1 Photo
Kiowa ropes in pair of wins
The Pittsburg County Expo Center will be the stage for the Pittsburg Eight Conference Tournament Monday through Saturday in McAlester. The small-school conference will feature boys and girls teams from 2A schools Savanna, Canadian and Crowder, Class A schools Stuart, Indianola and Haileyville and Class B Kiowa and Pittsburg.

January 14, 2012 1 Photo
More Sports Headlines

It's awards season? Which 85th Academy Award nominated movie for Best Picture is your fave?

Sports

Search Results

Mighty, Mighty Miners

It's awards season? Which 85th Academy Award nominated movie for Best Picture is your fave?

Site Map

Contact Us