High School Football Spotlight: Corey Dye Head Coach Paint Valley

1-Last year was your first at Paint Valley just to let the readers know that. What was the most surprising thing to you about being there?

The most surprising thing was how well we started the season. We went toe to toe with Adena one of the best teams in our region and state. With 6 mins to go, we were only down 8pts and had a TD called back. With only having 1 scrimmage, I thought we started the season off very well even though we lost. We won the rest of our regular-season games and a playoff game until Mechanicsburg in round 3 of the playoffs.

2- You were one of many coaches who scheduled games after the playoffs. Taking away the end result of those games, what was the thing you were able to learn about your team in those games.

We debated on playing any more games after the playoffs. Our kids were heartbroken from the loss that we suffered against Mechanicsburg. After meeting with the seniors they expressed an interest in wanting to play one final game together. We scheduled a game that later got canceled that week so I had to scramble around and find a game last minute. After about 20 phone calls I finally found a game against a really good Brookville team which is located west of Dayton 2 hours away! We made the trip and played them at their place.  We didn’t have the greatest game, but that didn’t matter to our seniors. What mattered most was getting that last game on the football field together.

3- Without giving anything special away, will we see anything different as far as offense and defense go besides players replacing those who graduated?

As a coach, you always take a hard look at ways in which you can improve and get better. So to answer your question yes. I really like what we did on offense and defense this past season, but there are things that we would like to improve. That’s why we watch so many online clinics and talk to so many other coaches so we can continue to learn and grow. Our focus last season was to get really good at our base plays. I feel like we were able to do that. This season I feel like now that our kids are comfortable with what we are doing we can grow and expand and have more in our playbook this season.

4- Paint Valley is one of the best places for a man (Me) to take in a game. Will, there be any changes as the stadium itself goes?

We are looking into adding stands so that we can have more seating for our fans. There isn’t much more that we need. We are very blessed to have such a beautiful place to play football!

5-How many of the seniors from last season have signed/committed to play college ball? Can you tell us who and where?

As of now, we have one that is playing football. Dev Spradlin has been accepted to a few schools. He will probably be making his decision very soon. Tramel Byrd is still undecided between military and college. Shawn Stewart and Caden Smith are both going to serve our country.  Nicholas Mills and Issac Alley are still deciding on which college that they would like to attend. We have a lot of Bearcats doing a lot of great things! I am very proud of this group.

6- What are you looking forward to the most for the 2021 season?

Getting started! We have a lot of talent on our football team coming back. I’m excited to watch our kids compete for starting spots. We have already been working hard in the weight room and competing in other sports getting better. This season will depend on how hard our kids are willing to work in the offseason. Playing football is not an easy sport. It requires a lot of hard work and sacrifices. You don’t just wake up being good at football. You have to work at it. I feel like we have great leadership in my Jr and Sr classes so that helps.

7-Paint Valley has a good history of scheduling really tough non-league games. If you could who is the one team you would like to get on the schedule? Being I go to so many Bearcats games I will also ask any chance of Mogodore or Trimble?

Our schedule this season is going to be super tough. This season we will play Blanchester week 1, West Jefferson week 2, and Washington Court House week 3. Our league will be super competitive this season so it’s going to be a grind. I haven’t been in contact with Glouster, but I think it would be a fun game. Who knows if we move to D7 then we may end up playing them sometimes?

8- As a coach what are your thoughts on your players playing multiple sports?

Multiple Sports are a must! Kids need to compete in as much as they can when they’re in high school athletics. A school like Paint Valley relies heavily on kids playing multiple sports since we are such a small school. I love watching our kids compete in everything!

9- Thursday Night Lights has grown into a big thing in some areas do you think it could work in your neck of the woods?

I would love to play on a Thursday. We are not scheduled for this season but would love to in the future. I think it would be fun to do a home Thursday night game.

10- To date what is the sweetest victory you ever had as a coach?

The sweetest victory I have ever been a part of as a head coach was when I was at Washington Court House. We were playing Miami Trace in 2010 and it was the first time Washington had beat them in 21 years. That night was pretty sweet. I hope to make many more sweet victories at Paint Valley.