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Football Coach Fields Compliments

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By DAREK SHARP

The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 20, 2008

PLANT CITY - New Plant City High Raider football leader Jason Strunk is loving his assistant coaching staff, but Gardner Box has a special place in his heart.

Box is the offensive line coach by title, but for now, is known more as the field guru.

Raider Stadium is being resurfaced, and when it's all done, will have the same Bermuda grass turf as the one the Tampa Bay Buccaneers play on at Raymond James Stadium. That surface is regarded as one of the best in the National Football League.

"Coach Box has single-handedly taken over that field," Strunk said. "He knows a lot of people."

When Strunk met with members of the Raiders Athletics Boosters Club recently, they offered to help mend the football team's practice field. It has never been much more than a big patch of grass with old goal posts at both ends.

It could stand an upgrade, Strunk agreed, but he had other ideas.

"I looked at our game field Raider Stadium, and it was in such bad shape, I told athletic director Trent Hobbs if we had to play a game on it tomorrow, I'd cancel it," Strunk said. "It was uneven, there's no crown, it's got little ditches in it. So I said, the practice field as long as it's even, I'm fine ... let's see what we can do about the main field."

And with the full support of Hobbs and Plant City High Principal Colleen Richardson, and with Box's connections, the complete resodding of Raider Stadium at the school off Alexander Street is under way.

Strunk said that local farmer Richard Sapp has volunteered all of the equipment being used to do the work.

"You should see these tractors Mr. Sapp brought in," Hobbs said. "They have their own GPS global positioning system devices. These tractors can drive themselves if you tell them what to do."

The field won't be ready for the preseason game against Tampa Bay Tech, so that Aug. 29 tilt has been switched to the Tampa school.

Box was at Brandon High last year and is a veteran coach.

Elsewhere on Strunk's staff, his right-hand man is Wayne Ward. The former star running back for Plant City High will coach that position and serve as the offensive coordinator. He has the title of assistant head coach.

"What stands out in my mind about him is the tape I saw of him playing at Virginia Tech," Strunk said. "He played at a high level, and that's what we're striving for here."

Ward basically ran the ship in Plant City while Strunk was still in Pennsylvania finishing his work there. Strunk was linebackers coach at Muhlenberg College in Allentown when he was hired to replace Kevin Kelley, who resigned as Plant City coach after last season.

The team recently appointed Andy Knotts as quarterback coach, replacing Kenny Kelly, a former University of Miamia quarterback who was arrested last month on drug charges.

Kelly, 29, was released from jail July 28 after posting $15,000 bail on charges that included conspiracy to traffic and possession of marijuana. He was fired from his unpaid position at Plant City High after his arrest.

Hasani Jackson, a Raider receiver in the late 1990s, will coach that position here. Gerold Dickens, a former Raider great in his own right, is the linebackers coach, and Brian Brubaker will coach the defensive backs and coordinate special teams.

Strunk is handling the defensive coordinator role as well.

The only thing that has slowed Strunk down is a couple of Florida High School Athletic Association rules. The two-a-day practices he was planning are not allowed by the state.

"He's a fireball," Hobbs said. "He's so excited. He just had to learn a couple of ... athletic association guidelines of what's allowed."

Reporter Darek Sharp can be reached at dsharp@tampa

trib.com.

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