Central promotes assistant to coach

By DAVID MURPHY
Published April 22, 2006

BROOKSVILLE - Since graduating from the University of South Florida in 2000, Cliff Lohrey has made attaining a job as a head high school football coach his No. 1 priority. He has worked at three high schools. He has spent a year at a community college in Kansas. He has applied and interviewed and applied again.

And now, he has succeeded.

Central hired Lohrey, an assistant with the Bears the past three years, to fill the vacancy created when Greg Bigham left after a year to take a job in Arkansas. The move keeps a man who has lived most of his life on the North Suncoast in the area he says he loves, and it gives a program that finished 5-5 last year hope of developing some continuity.

"We've been through some different changes in the football program in the past few years," said Central principal Dennis McGeehan, who hired Bigham last year to replace coach John Wilkinson. "One of the goals of the hiring committee was stability, someone that would come in here and develop some continuity."

In fact, Lohrey said his first objective is to restore some of the morale he feels some of his players lost when Bigham decided to leave after only 10 months on the job. The Crystal River graduate, who last year served as Central's defensive coordinator, will meet with the team for the first time as coach on Monday. He had been serving as the de facto interim coach during the hiring process.

"They've got to get excited about football again," Lohrey said.

Springstead assistant Keith Tincknell also was a finalist for the job.

Central finished 8-3 in its last year under Wilkinson before falling to 5-5 under Bigham. Lohrey said he believes the team can improve its record next year, particularly with the presence of tailback DuJuan Harris, a rising senior.

Central starts spring practice May 1. Its spring game is May 19 against Dunedin.

[Last modified April 22, 2006, 01:39:14]