A year ago Wallace, who attended classes at Patterson Career Academy, played football at Dunbar for the second straight season. He was allowed to do that since Patterson — the buffer between the old Patterson Co-Op and Ponitz — did not have athletic teams.
For the first time this fall, Ponitz will have athletic teams, and students had to make a choice. They could attend other schools and play there, or attend Ponitz and play for the newly-minted Golden Panthers.
“It’s going to come out better than you think,” Wallace said. “A lot of people say we’ll go 0-10. I think we’ll have more wins than losses.”
Lynn didn’t play last season, working to get his grades in order at Patterson after playing sparingly at Dunbar for two years as a wide receiver.
“People will look at us,” Lynn said. “They’ll look at our first game at Piqua to see how we do.”
John Wortham, the Ponitz coach, a former record-setting quarterback himself at Meadowdale High School and Earlham College in Richmond, Ind., is currently head of security for the Dayton Public Schools. He has also been an assistant coach at just about every other Dayton public high school over the past 15-plus years — Dunbar, Belmont, Meadowdale, Patterson, Colonel White (now Thurgood Marshall).
“He is an offensive guru,” said Ponitz athletics director Tim Crouse. “He’s pretty much been with all the schools. The kids know him and wanted him.”
Wortham was happy just helping out as an assistant, but when the Ponitz job materialized, he applied, and was awarded the job.
“This is the most exciting thing I’ve ever done,” Wortham said. “I’m more tired than I’ve ever been, but this is a labor of love. It’s a lot more paperwork and a lot more public relations. There are a lot of little road blocks, but I’m ready.
“The YMCA opened doors to us because we didn’t have a gym (which just opened). We don’t have a field yet, so Fairview Middle School helped, and then we moved to Gracie Greene.
“Some of our kids have to miss practice for various reasons, but we’re right at 25-30 for every practice. We had as many as 37 at one. And Craig Wallace? He’s the real deal. He’s the best-kept secret in Dayton.”
A daunting schedule awaits, beginning with Piqua, which has played football for well more than 100 years, and will line its sideline with plenty of players.
“Only 11 can play at once,” Wallace said. “I don’t care if they have 1,100 kids. Only 11 can play.”
On his side, Wallace will be one of them.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2157 or mkatz@DaytonDailyNews.com.
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