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ATHLETE OF THE WEEK Blaine Rowland pitches a perfect game with All- Star dreams. 16 SPONSORED BY COURTNEY PAAT | STATE FARM
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SIDELINES Do you have a good sports scoop for us? Email Justin Kline at jkline@ plantcityobserver.com, or Tweet us at @PCTOSports.
BASEBALL
+ Durant alums win championship The University of Tampa Spartans are, as of Saturday, May 30, riding high as the NCAA Division II National Champions. Over the weekend, the Spartans picked up a 3-1 win over Catawba College (North Carolina) to seal the deal. Three of the players are Durant High graduates: Brett Jones (’11), Dylan Barrow (’11) and former Plant City Times & Observer Athlete of the Week Paxton Sims (’14). In the national championship game, Jones tacked on the final run of the game after being scored by Casey Scoggins’ twoout single. Most impressively, Tampa went on an 8-0 postseason streak en route to the school’s seventh D-II national championship.
FRIDAY, JUNE 5, 2015
basketball by Justin Kline | Staff Writer
Plant City Vipers wrap up second season The team recently completed their second season of existence, coming out stronger through the ups and downs of the travel basketball grind. Every new organization goes through its fair share of growing pains, and the Plant City Vipers have been no different. The team completed its second season, and its first fielding two teams. The administration is pleased with the way things went. The Vipers didn’t win any of the four tournaments they
competed in this season, but coaches Wade Rogers and Terry Thompson Jr. say that they’ve seen their players make great strides developmentally and look forward to working with them over the summer. “Even though we didn’t have the season success we were hoping for, we fought hard
and the kids stayed positive throughout,” Rogers says. “Because we played such talented teams, I feel we met our main goal, which was to make our kids better basketball players.” The high school team posted a 2-2 record in its most recent tournament and made it to the championship game. But it lost to the Polk Coun-
ty Pride, 72-62. The middle school team did get to end its season with a win: a 55-51 grinder over the U’Nec Ballers. There was also a chance that the team could have finished the season under a different name. The Vipers, a non-profit organization, rely heavily on donations for the players’ equipment and
travel costs. But earlier in the season, when there wasn’t as much money coming in, the Lakeland Xpress made an offer to acquire the Vipers. The Xpress have all of the resources a travel team could want: access to indoor practice facilities, an established internal structure and the resources to field many squads. While the idea was intriguing, it wasn’t something the Vipers’
SEE VIPERS / PAGE 15
FOOTBALL by Justin Kline | Staff Writer
FISHING
+ Strawberry Crest teams win big Strawberry Crest’s fishing teams put on a show at Sunday’s state championships on Lake Okeechobee, and both are packing their bags for Tennessee. To advance to the 2015 Costa Bassmaster High School National Championship, which will be held near Nashville, teams had to have place in the top three. The Chargers teams took first and third place, and will get to compete on Kentucky Lake from July 22 to 25.
BASEBALL
+ Brewington’s finishes unbeaten Plant City Little League has an undefeated city champion this season. The Brewington’s Towing 9-10 minors baseball squad captured the championship Thursday, May 28, with a 14-4 victory. Starter Blaine Rowland went 3 2/3 innings to get the win, and the boys are now awaiting selection to the Plant City Little League All-Star team. The team finished with a 20-0 record, a 17-0 mark in the regular season, and only three games were decided by less than five runs: 5-4 over Chemical Dynamics March 30; 6-5 over Rollyson Fearnow Insurance April 23; and 12-10 over B&G Tire Service April 30.
NEW LIFE, NEW BROTHERHOOD An accident changed SCHS student Jake Meachum’s life June 3, 2012. The school’s football team has since adopted Meachum as one of its own and motivated the junior more than ever.
S
trawberry Crest fans packed the school’s home section May 21. They were as hyped for the team as if they were under Friday night lights in late August. A small sea of black-and-redclad Charger fans rose for every positive play and filled the evening air with their own brand of thunder. Just outside the wall, junior Jake Meachum was cheering from his spot on the Crest sideline. He stands.
Doctors had told him he would never do that after June 3, 2012. Three years ago, Meachum was hit by a drunk driver and airlifted to Tampa General Hospital with life-threatening injuries. After waking from a fourmonth coma, his motor skills were so damaged that he was confined to a motorized chair. A tracheotomy damaged his vocal chords. He does much of his speaking through a program on his iPad.
But this chapter of Meachum’s life has been defined not by what he can’t do, but by what he’s been able to accomplish with the support of family, friends and Chargers football.
A THIRD CHANCE
Just over three years ago, Meachum, his brother, Bailey, and some friends were hanging out as they normally would, near the Meachums’ grand-
SEE MEACHUM / PAGE 15
Jake Meachum is considered a part of Crest’s football team and is always on the sideline with the players. Top: Coach Will Terry and running back Theo Williams are Jake Meachum’s closest friends in the program.
WHAT’S ON KLINE’S MIND?
Nothing is as contagious as a strong human spirit Most journalists can tell you why they first got into the business, and they can also tell you exactly when they realized they made the right choice. I’m sure our managing editor, Amber Jurgensen, could tell you JUSTIN KLINE her story off the top of her head. Now that I’ve found my go-to example, let me share it with you. The day after the spring football games, Strawberry Crest coach John Kelly called to tell me about junior Jake Meachum. I had the interviews set up just a few days later. I knew it was going to be
SEE KLINE / PAGE 15
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MEACHUM / PAGE 11 mother’s home. After playing basketball, the boys decided to take the 2011 Kawasaki Mule out for a ride and cruise around the property. They rode west on Futch Loop. Bailey was driving, and friend Trent Toler also had a seat. The stop sign at Wiggins Road got closer. Bailey applied the brakes. “But something was going on — nothing was happening with the brakes,” Bailey says. “By the time I had any time to react, I heard (Jake) say, ‘Whoa,’ and when I looked over my left shoulder all I saw was the grille. I don’t remember much after that.” A drunk driver on the same road slammed into them. Toler was strapped in and went into the ditch with the Mule. Bailey and Meachum flew off into a field. It was the exact spot where their mother’s current home was later built on. There weren’t many places in Meachum’s brain that weren’t bleeding. He was airlifted to Tampa General to fight for his life. Meachum died twice as doctors rushed to relieve the pressure put on his brain. They performed a tracheotomy to help him breathe. He had around 72 hours to live — if things went well. The driver blew a .248 four hours after the accident. “You see people at .11, and they can’t even say their ABCs and walk,” Joie Shell, Meachum’s mother, says. Meachum sunk into a coma. His blood pressure and heart rate were uncontrollable. His stroke levels were at 220 over 180. His heart rate at 108 beats per minute. “We struggled for those four months he was in a coma,” Shell says. “The injury was called a severe diffuse axonal injury with sharing.” That meant that the force of the impact detached the neuron connections in his brain and caused bleeding all over his brain that threatened to leak down into the brain stem and spinal cord. But he pushed through. His recovery went better than the doctors thought. Somehow, the brain trauma Meachum suffered did not reach so far as to affect his cognition. He may have been as banged up as one could be, but the boy never lost his sharpness, quick wit or mo-
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“HOT WHEELS” When coach Will Terry was getting to know Jake Meachum, he noticed Meachum moved around a lot — and as quickly as possible. He’s a speed demon in the chair. Terry gave him a nickname to reflect that. “We hooked him up with some helmet stickers, and I gave him the nickname, ‘Hot Wheels,’” Terry says. “He tools around on campus like he owns the place. He’s got a couple gears on there.” The name has stuck with everyone, including Meachum’s family. tivation. He’d need all three traits to get through the tough times ahead.
MAJOR ADJUSTMENTS
The road to recovery presented a slew of new challenges for Meachum, as he had to work to gain control over many functions people take for granted. Eating, drinking and general movement were difficult. The accident weakened his left hip greater than the right one. The family had to bring in a full-time nurse to help care for him. It took several tries to find one who could match his strong personality. Meachum did, and still does, have a strong support system in family and friends. But another thing he had to adjust to was switching schools from Plant City to Strawberry Crest this past year. Shell describes it as a “fresh start.” Switching schools is always a challenge, especially for high schoolers. Adding in the drive time from the eastern edge of Plant City to Dover, Meachum knew it wouldn’t be easy. Shell planned to get her son any extra support she could. She turned to his love of football. Fortunately for her, one of Meachum’s new teachers was already one step ahead.
PART OF THE TEAM
Chargers assistant football coach Will Terry works with special needs students at the school. As soon as he met Meachum, the two struck up an immediate friendship. “He came in, and every day he always had on a new pair of shoes,” Terry says. “I’m a sports guy, and I know whose shoes he’s rocking. And that’s
SEE FOR YOURSELF
Meachum’s big moment from the spring game was captured on video, which Terry has since shared on Facebook for all to see. To watch, visit Facebook.com/sunceray.dean/ videos/1610817499194898/?pnref=story
KLINE / PAGE 14 an emotional story, but I didn’t know the full extent of it. As longtime readers may know, I’ve been in the business in some form or another since my sophomore year of college. Having worked four different beats, I can tell you I’ve seen and written a ton of prep sports stories, and spoke with kids from all walks of life. But until last week, I’ve never encountered anyone like Jake. This kid had the biggest smile on his face the entire time I was at the family home. He was surrounded by his family, his nurse, Chargers coach Will Terry and running back Theo Williams. He’s got a ton of charisma, is quick with a joke and can’t stop moving around. He got a few stern warnings for trying to move too fast while on his walker and has probably gotten several more since I left the house. But that’s awesome because his doctors will probably tell you he shouldn’t be walking or leaving his chair during football games. Jake wants to prove them wrong and prove to himself that he can one day leave the chair for good. We went through his entire story over the hour I was there, with his mother leading the way in the conversation while we all sat quietly and soaked it in. Every injury, every detail of Jake’s accident was covered, and I watched him as he heard everything. Not once did he break down or lament about what could have been had the driver not been on the road that day. Toward the end of my time there — right after I stopped recording — his mother
showed me a photograph taken the day of the accident: Jake stood in black and white, positioned to take a free throw in a game of basketball. For once, his typical grin was replaced by a look of pure concentration as he squared up to get a quick bucket. The picture sits in a small frame in the family living room, and I have no doubt that Jake sees it every single day. But I also know that it must be inspiring him to keep working his tail off in physical therapy to be able to shoot a ball, swing a golf club and do anything else a young athlete would do, without assistance. I really believe that he’ll achieve his goals one day. This is one of those rare stories that comes around. For a journalist, it seems to justify everything in more ways than one could explain verbally, off the cuff. This is the kind of story that makes me proud to attach my name to because I truly feel like I must be doing something right for this family to invite a total stranger into their home and share such an
how we struck up a conversation, over sports.” Meachum’s involvement with the team started with a set of helmet stickers for his chair. But as Terry got to know Meachum better, he became so impressed that he wanted to do something special to help with the transition between schools. He spoke with Chargers head coach John Kelly about getting Meachum involved with the team. “I said, ‘Listen, there’s this kid named Jacob Meachum, and I want to make him part of the football team,’” Terry says. Kelly agreed, and the Chargers have done everything short of giving Meachum pads and a playbook. He was given his own white jersey: no. 7. “God’s number,” Meachum says, referring to the number of days it took for God to create man and the world. He shares the number with linebacker/running back hybrid Chase Blackmon. He didn’t just gain teammates. He gained friends. Running back Theo Williams attended Tomlin Middle School with Meachum in seventh grade, and Williams says that they quickly rekindled a solid friendship. “We had P.E. together,” Williams says. “He liked clowning around a lot, and I do, too, so that’s how we became friends.” Now that the two are reunited, Williams played a big part in helping Meachum go beyond friendship with the team and feel more like part of a brotherhood — exactly what Meachum, Terry and Shell were hoping for. “Theo is my best friend on the whole team,” Meachum says. Meachum gets the full team treatment at Crest’s games, attends practices and is held to the same standards in the classroom as the football players. “For us, and guys like Theo, to see what Jake has been through, you think doing sprints out in the summer heat is hell,” Terry says. “No. That’s easy. This, right here, is tough. … Now, we have a model of what hard work is. Now, we have a model of what perseverance is.” The extra support has given Meachum more motivation to get out of the chair for good. He uses a walker whenever he can and often pushes himself to see how quickly he can move with it. His goal is to one day walk independently. Should he reach that goal, he and Terry want the same thing: to be able to coach football together. Meachum has a long way to go to reach that point. But if he’s already defied his doctors’ predictions, then maybe — just maybe — he will.
emotionally wrenching story knowing it’s my job to re-tell it for the public. Being able to write about Jake’s personal triumph is one of those instances that’s made me proud to call myself a journalist, even if I don’t get big-time exposure or make Scrooge McDuck money. Walking out of an interview feeling lifted by a story like Jake’s is a fine reward. We enjoy sports because we’re captivated by the triumph of the human spirit, though it’s true that some victories are far more meaningful than others. In instances like this, I don’t think there’s a soul alive who can hear Jake’s story and not come away with even a hint of inspiration, whether it’s a sports fanatic or a sports hater. If he can get put through the wringer like he did, survive and come out of it all with a burning work ethic and a persistently positive attitude, who’s to say that you or I can’t overcome a challenge that we think is holding us back right now?
Justin Kline
The Plant City Vipers had their end-of-season party at Off the Wall Paintball Sunday, May 31.
VIPERS / PAGE 14 administration had an inclination to agree to. “It just didn’t work with our vision,” Reggie Rivers, the Vipers vice president, says. Plant City chose to remain independent and locally based. The decision appears to have paid off. The vision Rivers and the board often spoke of was to have a competitive, well-run team in the Winter Strawberry Capital of the World to keep talent from slipping away to Lakeland or Brandon — where players have typically gone in the past. The team is now working on
GET READY FOR NEXT YEAR
Anyone interested in playing or coaching for the Vipers next season, or becoming a team sponsor, can get started by contacting Lili Armatrout at
[email protected].
further expansions, including adding a girls’ team. Over the rest of the summer, Rogers and Thompson will continue working with their players, honing fundamentals and building strength to prepare them for high school tryouts. They’re hoping to see the kids grow through their high
school programs, and should they come back to the Vipers next summer, get the program its first-ever tournament win. “I’m sure all of the players are capable of this because I have seen their work ethic, as well as their will to want to improve and win,” Thompson says.
