By John Raffel
MaxPreps.com
The highlight of the summer for Michigan sports comes to Spartan Stadium at Michigan State University this Saturday for the annual high school East-West All-Star game.
The event is sponsored by the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association (MHSFCA) and features two teams each with 44 players that graduated from high school this year. The East team consists mainly of players from the greater Detroit area and the state's Thumb area.
Head coaches are Brad Bush of Chelsea for the West and Paul Verska of Warren De La Salle for the East.
“It's a great honor since you've been elected by your peers,” Bush said. “To work with kids that are top notch and some of the best in the state has been a lot of fun.”
“I'm looking forward to the game,” Verska said. “I'm humbled by it. It's an awesome experience.”
The six-man coaching staff from each team, along with the MHSFCA Board of Directors and the All-Star committee, selects the 44 players from the nominations submitted by the high school coaches.
“We're trying to get our timing on offense and our responsibilities on defense so that we're on the same page,” Verska said. “The main emphasis for me is to get everyone playing time. I want everyone to enjoy being in this and have memories for the rest of their lives.”
The players have been practicing for seven days leading into the All-Star game.
“Both squads are going at it hard but we have to keep it simple,” Bush said. “You only have a week to get ready. Football teams will do everything they can do to win. We want to keep it safe since most will be going to college.”
The East All-Stars have a 14-13 series lead over the West. The East has won five of the last seven games.
As far as the key for winning is concerned, both coaches say it will be a typical game in that respect.
“Always in an All-Star game, you try to find ways to make plays,” Bush said. “Turnovers have a big part in it. You never know what will happen. I've come to a number of games for the last few years. It's like any other game, only you've had (just) a week to prepare.”
“If you win the turnover battle, then you usually have a chance to win,” Verska said. “It's who can overcome the big plays.”
MHSFCA Members
Many present and former coaches are involved in All-Star activities as active members of the MHSFCA. That includes 77-year-old Pete Coll, who was a teacher for 38 years and coached football 48 overall, including 29 as a varsity head coach with 25 years at Center Line. He's been retired from coaching for five years.
His best seasons were toward the end of his career. But Coll admits he didn't expect to coach as long as he did.
“It's something I loved to do,” Coll said. “I don't fish or golf. I got into teaching because of that, with an opportunity to coach if I would become a teacher. I never would have thought I would go that long.”
He retired as a teacher in 1994. He taught physical education and history.
Born and raised in Brooklyn, N.Y., Coll moved to Detroit after his father died and attended school and later coached in the Motor City. He ran track and and was a swimmer at the University of Detroit but didn't play college football.
“I was just a skinny little kid,” he laughed.
He's presently on the MHSFCA Board of Directors.
Volleyball
Practices for girls volleyball start on Aug. 11 but high school teams aren't wasting any time getting ready. Most teams across the state are participating in various camps this month.
That includes state Class B power Belding, which has been participating this week on the freshman, junior varsity and varsity levels in camps at Ferris State University, located north of Grand Rapids. Belding coach Mikayla Linebaugh said it's a major advantage to have summer practices followed by the regular season in the fall.
Volleyball was played during the winter in Michigan rather than the summer until the 2007-08 prep sports season.
“The biggest thing for me is if I do have a question, especially when we go to team camp at Ferris, and I'm looking at a girl to maybe be a hitter or maybe a defensive specialist, it gives me a chance to see her in some game situations,” Linebaugh said. “Tryouts are great but it's not always game situations. When we go to Ferris a lot of times, we can get some of these questions answered.”