KFDM COOP Posted June 1, 2009 Report Posted June 1, 2009 New Lee coach ready for some football By Dave Rogers Published May 31, 2009 Marvin Sedberry, Jr., says he’s accomplished much in his three-plus months as the new head football coach at Baytown Lee, not the least of which involves his own head. “I’ve got more gray hair than I had. Maybe they’ll quit calling me young,†said the coach who turns 31 this weekend. After 17 years with white-haired Dick Olin occupying the head coach’s office at Lee, anyone this side of Green Acres was bound to look young by comparison. But the north Texas native has been running hard trying to play catch-up since he arrived with two seasons of high school head coaching experience on his ledger. Olin, who led the Ganders to 11 playoff seasons in a tenure that ended with last year’s 2-6 campaign, is only part of a long and strong Baytown football tradition Sedberry will be measured against. Two weeks ago, the Ganders took part in a 7-on-7 tournament at Cy Falls. Although they were without four key players because of track and went 0-3, Sedberry came away enthused. “We only had two guys who played on the varsity last year,†he said. “But a lot of kids got to play, get on the field and get experience against varsity guys, see how things move faster. “And I think we got better as the day moved on. “We’re going to throw the ball some next fall and this was my first time to see our kids get out and compete, just see if we can throw it and catch it. And we got to compete against somebody besides ourselves.†Sedberry still hasn’t seen any of the Ganders in pads, except on videotape. He said he wanted to hold spring training, but the statewide swine flu scare was among reasons he backed off. “I was really wanting to have spring ball and then when that panic came out, I didn’t want to get into a situation where I’d start, the state would stop me and I’d lose days.†Instead, Sedberry opted to take the extra week of two-a-days in the summer, meaning Lee will open preseason practice Aug. 3 and suit up for the first time Aug. 6. The Lee coaching staff for 2009 still isn’t complete. The new coach said he had hired old friends to work as offensive and defensive coordinators but they won’t be coming to town for good until the summer. “I definitely want my whole staff here,†he said, revealing that also helped him decide to pass on spring drills. “I felt like we were able to get a bunch done in the (daily in-school athletic) period. “Plus, with construction going on around here, we only had one field to practice on this spring.†As the school year neared its end, Sedberry said he had only three coaching vacancies that he’d needed to fill, with two of those going to his new coordinators. “I’ve worked with each one for eight years,†said the man who coached Fort Worth Poly to a 7-12 record the past two seasons. “When I was offensive coordinator (at Dallas Lake Highlands), my receivers coach was the guy who’s coming to be my offensive coordinator here. My defensive coach, we’ve worked together since my first year in coaching.†Some folks Sedberry is looking forward to working with this summer and fall are seniors Xavier Ruben, Tim Smith, Trey Murray and Dandrick Jackson. The first two are linemen, the second two linebackers. Sedberry calls them “The Big Four†because they have garnered plenty of interest from college recruiters. Murray has already been offered a scholarship by Kansas State, according to Rivals.com. Others who have impressed the new coach are two-year varsity players Trent Warren and C.J. Mixon, both juniors, senior defensive end Mac Havel and junior slot back William Brewer. “The guys have really impressed me in the weight room,†Sedberry said. “The thing that impressed me from Day One is they work hard. “Look at their increase from their first weightlifting cycle. They’ve done just about everything they can do.†Now it’s up to Sedberry and his new coaching staff being sure they do all they can do for the players. Part of that is getting them help in the form of more players. The new coach impressed others with his ability to increase student participation at Fort Worth Poly and he’s up to his old tricks here. “We’ve gotten quite a few (new players) out,†he said. “It hurt us not having spring football, but I told them to come on out and start lifting and get to know me. “I’ve got a list of 20 guys. If we can find a player out of that 20, it’ll help us out.â€
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