John Flournoy remembered at Midland Trail

GUN LAP: By Steve Keenan

A man who toiled with both love and purpose for countless hours was remembered on Dec. 27 at Hico.

Prior to the John Flournoy Memorial Tournament, Midland Trail High School renamed its gymnasium in memory of the late coach, who enjoyed a successful 16-year run at the school.

It was a bittersweet time for all involved.

The cruel, life’s-not-fair twist to the Flournoy story, as you know, was that John was getting ready to really begin following the burgeoning hoops career of his son, Jack, when the coach died last fall. Jack, now a promising freshman at Oak Hill High, was there at Saturday’s ceremony, saying a few words about what his dad meant to him. He remembered his dad going to the gym on countless days and “I’d be right there tagging along with him.”

Coach Flournoy’s former assistant, Greg Crist, was also there. Crist said the thing he’ll always remember about Flournoy, besides his friendship, was his interaction with his athletes.

“One of the things I cherish most is John’s friendship,” he said, later adding, “He had the ability to get more out of people. He could get so much out of kids it was unbelievable.”

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On the subject of coaches and their sons, there have been many, many fathers (or mothers) coaching their sons or daughters, in Fayette County and beyond. It’s not a new story, but it’s usually a good story when you get to see a parent interact with his or her offspring on the athletic fields.

One of the latest locally was Midland Trail coach Joe Dean, whose son, Joey, finished his senior football campaign in the Patriots’ playoff loss to Wheeling Central in mid-November.

I can remember the younger Dean being on the football sidelines when he wasn’t old enough to grip a football. I can recall Joey — still in middle school — lacing up football practice cleats as his dad’s Patriots prepared for the 2001 football playoffs.

Joey and his senior teammates wound up with some playoff experience of their own, advancing to the postseason three times and very narrowly missing the fourth year. At season’s end, he said, “I think any time you can be that consistent, it’s a great thing. (When we were freshmen) we had strong leaders who showed us how to lead, and it paid off. I sure hope we’ve done the same.”

Dean, who was relied on more for his defensive play, said he was glad to be able to play for his dad. “Right now, I don’t really understand the importance of it. When I look back, I’ll realize it was a special time, just how special an opportunity it was.”

In addition to playing several sports at the school, Dean has also been solid in the classroom, which no doubt has made his parents proud. A 4.0 student, he attended the Governor’s Honors Academy last summer, and he was the male athlete winner in the WVSSAC-State Farm Insurance Academic Achievement Award program, for which he was recognized at the Super Six playoffs in Wheeling in early December.

“Dad always tells us we’re student-athletes, with the student coming first,” he said. “Obviously with time constraints, sometimes it’s very difficult (to juggle both).

“You just have to get your homework done. You’ve got to be persistent and to prioritize.”

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If the injury bug doesn’t visit often and team chemistry stays on an even keel, Flournoy and his Oak Hill mates should make some major noise this winter in the Class AA basketball ranks. He’s got mad skills, as they like to say, talent that’s apparently already drawing interest from big-time college coaches. But he’s far from the only weapon in coach Fred Ferri’s arsenal.

And, Jack’s a freshman. Like all other rookies, he’ll make mistakes. But he’s got a lot of talented support around him, beginning with senior leader Chris Lawson. Lawson, who’s enjoyed a fine career for Oak Hill in both basketball and football, should be the glue that holds the Red Devils together as they attempt to challenge defending champ Wyoming East (set for a Jan. 13 showdown at the Lilly Center), perennial powers Ravenswood (which they faced this past weekend) and Bluefield (up tomorrow at Oak Hill), and other double-A units for supremacy in their classification.

In addition to enjoying Flournoy’s shot-blocking and shooting skills in his first game recently, the OHHS faithful got to see Kalif Wright’s solid and active interior play, DeAndré Leonard’s play-making skills, Rob Stephens’ three-point shooting touch and steadiness, and Marcus McFarland’s quickness, among others.

What I recall the most from an 87-48 trouncing of Greenbrier West on Dec. 23 was a play in which Flournoy the defender was beaten badly to the baseline by the Cavaliers’ Cameron McQuain. But, Lawson had his teammate’s back, stepping over and taking a charge. The play didn’t mean much to the outcome of a 40-point blowout, but as March rolls around that type of play might be just what makes the difference for the Devils.

— E-mail: skeenan@register-herald.com