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35 °F Forecast | Road Cams Wednesday, April 13, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Health Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley SHOP OUR VALLEY AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Classified Place an ad TOP JOBS EXTRA Ashland News NIE Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Moving here? eSouthernOregon CUSTOMER SERVICE FAQ's Advertise with us Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend April 10, 2005 North excited to have Olson on board At SOU, McClure takes over in interim and has the backing of Raider players By TIM TROWER Mail Tribune At North Medford High, they’re celebrating a new arrival. At Southern Oregon University, they’re picking up the pieces over a recent departure. A day after Jeff Olson, SOU’s successful nine-year head football coach, announced he was stepping down and would become an assistant head coach and defensive coordinator at North, plans were being made Saturday to move forward. "That was huge," said Rod Rumrey, the Black Tornado head coach, about bringing in Olson. "I think it’s going to be great for our football program and our coaching staff having him on board." Advertisement In Ashland, Shay McClure, the Raider assistant head coach and defensive coordinator designated to run the program in the interim, was working in his office after the first spring practice. His players, meanwhile, talked of their support for him. Olson, citing the demands of college coaching and his desire for more time with his family, made official Friday a move he had considered for some time. He will finish out his contract this summer. Olson has been with the school for 24 years, first as a player, then as he moved through the coaching ranks. He was 50-36 as a head coach. With spring practice at hand, he told his players of his decision Friday. About 15 players met a day later to discuss the coaching change. "Everybody’s real happy every other coach decided to stay on," said Justin Despotakis, who will be a senior quarterback. "For me, personally, and most of the team, we’d really like coach Mac to be allowed to step in and be the head coach for the next few years. He really brings the discipline involved that would help the program." Despotakis said players were encouraged to make their feelings known to the administration. Several have done so, he said, and a petition will be drafted next week supporting McClure. McClure declined Saturday to speak about personnel matters. Dan Speasl, SOU interim athletic director, said the administration would meet in the near future to determine its course. Until that happens, it’s unclear what will be required of Olson’s replacement. "What we do want is continuity for the players," said Speasl. "We understand it’s a tough time for them to go through. Student athletes are as adaptive and resilient as anybody, probably more so than adults. We do want to hear their voice, but that has to be taken with other factors of what the job might entail." Quarterback Boomer Marshall, who will be a sophomore next season, said McClure is a young, knowledgeable coach who would fit in well at the top. However, the former South Medford High standout added, Olson left big shoes to fill. "It’s always tough when you lose somebody who’s a key part of the program," said Marshall. "Granted, he’s not a player, but coach Olson did a great job of getting us motivated and organizing things. He’s the ultimate part of Southern Oregon football." SOU’s players understood the difficulty Olson faced balancing family life with his job. "It’ll be rewarding for him," said Marshall, "to be able to go to his son’s Pop Warner games on Saturdays instead of taking a 30-hour bus ride to Montana." With Olson in the fold, Rumrey appears to have bolstered North’s program. After three years in retirement, Rumrey returned to the Tornado last year after John Beck left to take over at Crater. Rumrey has often been asked how long he’ll remain as coach. "The answer has always been, I’ll be in it as long as it takes to get things right," said Rumrey, "and this is a big step in that direction." There has been speculation Olson would be the obvious successor. "That would be an administrative decision," said Rumrey, "and Jeff and I both know that. But the bottom line is, there’s no doubt he’s a guy who could take over this program in the near future and run with it." In addition to defensive coordinator, a position formerly held by Dave Jacobs, Olson will coach the secondary. Jacobs will coach the linebackers, and his son, Tim, will coach the defensive line. "That’s a lot of experience, a lot of knowledge," said Rumrey. "We could be very sound there. It’s a real good situation." Olson also has ties to former players who are now coaches who might fit into the picture as Rumrey fills out his staff. Rumrey spoke glowingly of Olson. "The thing that always really impressed me about coach Olson," said Rumrey, "is how much he cares about kids. You take a look at the graduation rate and where the SOU football program has been the last several years under his direction. I think their players have taken a lot of pride in doing things right, and I think that has a lot to do with Jeff’s leadership. "It’s not going to take our players very long to figure out coach Olson really cares about them and will be there for them. He’s a great addition, and that’s besides all these football ideas." Reach sports editor Tim Trower at 776-4479, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback Student Loan Consolidation Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers home equity loans helzberg Distance Education Diamonds Slippers Student Loans afsa teleconferencing Memory Foam Mattress w2 forms Tatoo Fasa Advertisement s