Point’s been made

It would be easy for Post Falls High football coach Jerry Lee to wear a smug smile, with a dollop of I-told-ya-so added on for good measure.

That would be out of character for Lee, however. Blue collar to the core, he believes in packing a lunch box and putting in a hard day’s work – and letting that work speak for itself. That attitude is seen through his team, which is a natural extension of the coach.

The grin on Lee’s face these days, however, has everything to do with the Trojans’ 6-0 start – the best in modern school history. Especially considering the off-season “meltdown” involving a faction of parents/boosters last year following Post Falls’ 2-7 season.

He declined to talk specifically on the record about what he called the “parent uprising.” Lee did say that he met with parents during the off-season, giving a PowerPoint presentation on the direction of the program.

Senior linebacker/tight end Adam Shamion, who has given the University of Idaho an oral commitment, remembers going to a meeting and standing up to defend his coaches. He also recalled making a bold prediction.

“Somebody asked how good we’d be this year. So I stood up and said ‘We’re going to go 9-0’,” Shamion said. “I just based it on our work ethic, natural talent and ability. We’re kind of proving it right now.”

Shamion knows there’s a hurdle or two for the Trojans to conquer before fulfilling his prophecy, namely games with Lakeland, Moscow and a regular-season finale at Sandpoint to decide the Inland Empire League’s two 4A state playoff berths.

“I knew we’d be a lot better,” Lee said. “Looking at it back in August, I thought if we won three of our first five, any combination of three wins, we’d be sitting pretty good going into league (4A games).”

With 5A Lake City’s 21-9 win over 4A Sandpoint last week, the Trojans are the lone undefeated IEL team. No 5A teams are undefeated statewide, and Post Falls is one of three 4A teams unbeaten in the state (Bishop Kelly and Caldwell also are 6-0).

The Trojans are the lone 4A IEL team to post wins over the league’s three 5A teams – Lake City (35-19), Lewiston (45-27) and Coeur d’Alene (22-20). Post Falls’ win over CdA two weeks ago guaranteed the Trojans their first winning season since 1996 – not, coincidentally, Lee’s final season in his first stint as head coach at PF.

“The best thing about this team is they don’t care who starts – they just care about winning,” Lee said.

The Trojans’ fast start is all the more impressive considering they didn’t field their projected starting lineup for the first time until last week when they manhandled 3A Timberlake 47-0. Through the season’s first month, Post Falls overcame the loss of two starters because of disciplinary reasons and three others because of injuries.

“It almost seems surreal that we’re 6-0,” said senior Nick Canger, the Trojans’ flyback in their “Fly” offense. “I’m kind of surprised but I kind of expected it, too. We’re all trying to pull together and keep each other out of trouble and be accountable to each other.

“I tried to stay out of the politics,” Canger said of the conflict between the boosters and coaches. “The coaching staff is incredible. I admire them for staying the course.”

Twelve of the Trojans’ 21 seniors start. Four of the other nine see playing time as backups or on special teams. Seven juniors also start.

The cycle of athletes among the seniors, juniors and the other underclassmen reminds Lee of the one he was blessed with in the mid-1990s when his 1994, ‘95 and ‘96 teams posted 9-2, 9-2 and 8-2 records and qualified for the state playoffs.

Lee, who turns 55 next week, is in his third year of his second tour as head coach. He plans to retire from teaching and coaching in four years. At this point, he would like to coach out the string and hand the reins over to an assistant.

His lone goal when he came back as head coach was to return the Trojans to the winning ways of a decade ago.

“I wouldn’t have wanted to play if there’d been a (coaching) change,” Shamion said. “This is the closest team I’ve been on.

“We’ve been in some close games. It’s like this team pulls together and knows how to win in those situations. We didn’t know how to win last year.”

Senior quarterback K.C. Billetz agreed.

“We’re not playing for statistics; we’re playing to win,” Billetz said. “We have good camaraderie. We have a good blend of seniors and juniors. The seniors know that we wouldn’t be successful without the juniors.”

Senior offensive lineman Greg Borders, a two-way starter, said the substitutes are just as important as the starters.

“They’re making our practices better because everybody on the team is important,” Borders said.

Senior linebacker/fullback Marshall Childers said he saw the success coming last year.

“We were better than 2-7 last year,” Childers said. “We’ve molded together as a team this year. This team is more than just one guy.”