Matt Garber may only have five years under his belt as a Kansas high school head coach, but he’s already a young veteran when it comes to the Kansas Shrine Bowl.
The 38-year-old coach of the Sabetha Bluejays has more than just last year’s experience as an East assistant coach to fall back on as he prepares for the July 26th game against the West in Emporia. He’s also had the benefit of experiencing the game as a player in 1988, and perhaps just as important, being the son of a three-time Shrine Bowl coach. His dad, long-time Sabetha head coach John Garber, coached the Kansas Shrine Bowl in 1987, 1988, and 1994, serving as head coach for the 1988 East squad, which beat the West 31-27 at Washburn’s Moore Bowl.
Garber is 27-23 as Sabetha’s head coach, with 18 of those wins coming in the past two years. He assumed the head coaching responsibilities in 2003 after having served as an assistant for his dad for several years. Before that, he was an assistant coach at Seaman High School in Topeka under former Shrine Bowl coach Bill Lowe, who is now at Emporia.
Garber says last year’s experience as an assistant coach taught him how to set up a schedule for the week of practice before the game. “If you went into this game without that experience, you might try to put too many things in (the game plan),” he says. He also wants to help his players understand why this game is organized and played every year. “I’m looking forward to getting to know the players, and helping them understand how they can use football for something as important as supporting the Shrine Hospitals.”
Garber says he’s pleased with the way his roster is shaping up. “One thing I’ve learned from previous Shrine Bowls is how to set up the roster, and to break up the players in terms of positions. The selections were good, and we should have enough depth, which is always a concern for an All-Star game.”
The assistant coaches for the East team will bring new coaching to the Kansas Shrine Bowl. None of the five assistants, one from each Kansas football class, has coached in the Shrine Bowl before, and only Garber has experience as a player. Nevertheless, Garber is excited about the coaching talent that has been assembled for this year’s East squad. It includes four coaches who garnered eight or more wins in 2007, and one well-known name from the ranks of the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs.
East assistant coaches for 2008 include Rod Stallbaumer, 2A Lyndon (10-2); Cory White, 3A Riverton (8-4); Gary Griffin, 4A Louisburg (13-1); Tim Grunhard, 5A Bishop Meige, and Rod Hasenbank, 6A Topeka High (4-6). Griffin’s Louisburg Wildcats were the class 4A runners-up in 2007. Grunhard was a long-time offensive line standout for the Chiefs, playing in 169 games in an 11-year career that spanned the 1990-2000 seasons.
“It will be interesting to work with coaches from different classes,” say Garber. “You read about their teams, and it’s not like you’re in the same league or the same class. It will be interesting to learn about how they approach the game, and the ideas each one brings to our team.”
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