St. Cloud Times from Saint Cloud, Minnesota • Page 13

Emmerich Narrowing His Options Foley football standout will attend either Northwestern or Michigan State 3B Business, Page 6B Questions or comments about our sports coverage? Call Dave DeLand, sports editor, 255-8771 SECTION TjFT Tuesday, Nov. 21, 1995 Sppirte Family ties prompt Lucia to resign Lucia's Apollo Reccs Prep football an 18-20 overall mark. "That's a long time. I started playing for my dad in Grand Rapids. I played at North Dakota, and I coached at Toledo, Ohio University and St.

Cloud State before becoming a head football coach here. I've got two daughters, ages 6 and 4, and I wasn't Year Wins Losses Pet 1992 3 6 .333 1993 0 8 .000 1994 6 4 .600 1995 9 2 .818 Totals 18 20 .473 After best football season in Eagles' history, coach steps down By Kevin Allenspach TIMES SPORTS WRITER Since August, St. Cloud Apollo football coach Mick Lucia has confided to his assistants that he planned to resign his job after the season. They listened, but perhaps none of them really thought he would go through with it, especially after he guided the Eagles to their first Central Lakes Conference championship in the 26-year history of the school. But there was Lucia on Monday night, introducing his seniors from the podium at the team banquet at American Legion Post 428.

When he'd finished, he publicly announced that he would not be in charge of the team next year. Tve been involved in football for the last 27 years," said Lucia, who coached the last four seasons at Apollo, posting "He told me before the season started that he wasn't coming back," said Bryan Backes, who graduated from Apollo and has been an assistant there for 10 years. "I didn't know whether to take him seriously or not because at the time we were feeling pressure. We all had high expectations coming off that 64 year (in 1994). But he was being kept away from his family a lot and he's a competitive person.

He didn't want to expire before his time." Backes was also caught off guard when Lucia made an adendum to his remarks, saying "if you people want to continue the success that this program has seen this year, there's a man in this room who is capable of doing it." Lucia went on to recommend Backes as his replacement, which brought an ovation from players and parents. "Mick always threatens to do stuff like that," Backes said of the nomination. "Throughout the year he kept saying you need to be tWnking about what you want to And I kept trying to talk him out of his decision, for obvious reasons. I think he's a great man and a great coach. If I get the chance to take over, I hope to knows our system and we won't have to change our approach very much." If Backes is the heir apparent, the coaching approach may stay the same, but the style is certain to be different.

Lucia is a Type A personality, a man driven to start practice at 3 p.m. and not go home until devouring that last bit of game film by 10 p.m. Backes is stern and disciplined, but probably doesn't have Lucia's bark. "(Lucia) disciplined us a lot, but that's' what helped us to win," said sophomore quarterback-safety Jeff Schneider. "If we'd have had a coach that just lolly-gagged around, we might not have won half our games.

But he pushed us, and that's the main reason we won." Lucia, who is in his early 40s, didn't close the door on a possible return, however. "I am not retiring," Lucia said, "Maybe someday Fll go back to coach; ing. I don't have to be a head coach either. Right now I just want to work on being a better husband and a better dad." haps this trend can continue." That process will start not next August but now, according to Backes, who urged all of the returning players to channel their dedication into the weight room. "We're in a position personnel-wise where we'll be starting from scratch," Backes said.

"If they're going to put themselves in a position to defend (the CLC title), they're going to have to work very hard in the off-season." It will take some very strong players to overcome that just 19 players return next year. Of those, only sophomore safety Nick Hansgen started. Underclassmen accounted for seven receptions for 60 yards (all by junior Jeremy Forsell), one touchdown (by junior John Loehlein), and 11 rushes for 37 yards (by four players). "I was surprised (at Lucia's decision)," said junior running back-safety Jake Gohl. "I didn't think he'd be leaving because it seemed like he loved the game so much.

I thought he'd stick around for awhile. Now I just hope Coach Backes gets the job because he spending enough time with my family. So I'm not going to be the coach next year." While the announcement was publicly a surprise, Lucia informed Ann In athlfaf-if continue on the things he's started." While Backes has been a fixture in the program for many years, he'll have to patiently go through the proper channels to execute his next step. Michaud said that the position has been posted and that he has until January to consider applicants. "We brought Mick in and he was given the job of turning the program around," Michaud said.

"The last couple of years, I feel he has really done that. I'm very disappointed he'll be leaving, but I know he's left an excellent staff behind so per- Mick Lucia dfrector Jim going out on top Michaud of his decision on Wednesday, and told the team in a special meeting on Friday. It means the fiery coach will go out in a blaze of glory with a 9-2 record after the Eagles lost at Wayzata in the Section 8AA championship. College football (Daoofeira fa mis Vikings Backfield injuries mounting Stewart's broken leg leaves Vikings thin at running back position By Ron Lesko ASSOCIATED PRESS SPORTS WRITER 7 Kevin Allenspach Af I fV, i 1 jS TIMES SPORTS WRITER EDEN PRAIRIE It just wouldn't seem right for the Minnesota Vikings to go a week without an injury to a key offensive player. Not this year, anyway.

Rookie James Stewart is expected to miss four weeks with a fractured fibula, an injury sustained in Sunday's 43-24 win over New Orleans. He joins starter Despite efforts of Sartell linebacker, Gophers stumble to the finish line There have been some sleepless Friday nights this fall for Craig Sauer. Not that it's that easy for him to relax after the games the Gophers have been playing on Saturday, either, but Friday nights have been tough. "I always want to win but it's been harder and harder to find that fire," said Sauer, whose team will take a six-game losing streak to Iowa on Saturday for the final game of his career. "There have been a lot of Friday nights where I don't rest too well because I won't go to sleep until I've found that desire, that will to go out and perform at my best the next day." This Friday, as he attempts to doze off in his Cedar Rapids hotel room where the Gophers will stay before shuttling to Iowa City, there will be more emotions running through the senior linebacker's head than for per Robert Smith on the injured list and becomes the ninth offensive player to miss time with an ailment.

"If we can keep a running back healthy after a game, we're going to be haven't finished higher than an eighth-place tie. Throw out his first year as a redshirt and those records are 12-31 and 9-25. Only twice this season (against Ball State and Arkansas State) has the defense held its opponents to less than 27 points. Since he's been on defense, the Gophers have held exactly one Big Ten foe to less than three touchdowns in a game (Wisconsin in a 17-14 win in 1994). Those are hard numbers to swal' low for a captain who was voted the squad's best defensive player last yearC "Some people think that I think this is the biggest thing that I could have in great shape," offensive coordinator Bnan Bulick said.

"That's the challenge for us right now. It comes at a good time. The Vikings (6- accomplished haps any game he's played. just making it Up Next: 5) will face the NFL's ninth-worst run defense Thurs First will be The Thursday: day when they face Vikings (6-5) Detroit (5-6) at 11:30 travel to Detroit, how Minnesota opened the season 3-1, with actual talk of a bowl bid, only to skid to a 1- a.m. at the Silverdome inPontiac.Mich.

defense is the TV! Fny(Rt ninnri leagues third- matter what I've done I haven't felt proud of myself and cable Channel 12). worst overall 6 Big Ten mark, just ahead of last-place Indiana. Second will be the i here and playing Division I football," Sauer said. "But Tve done nothing that I didn't expect to do. The way I look at, it, I didn't accomplish what I wanted to.

When I leave, the program wont have gone anywhere from -where it was when I got here. Maybe, earlier when I was thinking about winning seasons for Stewart's career-best 77-yard performance Sunday including a 51-yard run after his injury helped Minnesota to 146 rushing yards, its second-best performance of wish to go out on a winning note, although Sauer TIMES PHOTO BY JASON WACHTER the season. I don't even like talking about it. It hurts too bad. Craig Sauer GOPHER SENIOR LINEBACKER Its best game was a 155-yard effort in a 20-10 victory over the Lions (5-6) in Melrose's Tom Linnemann dribbles the ball ing the Dutchmen's first practice session of the upcourt against defensive pressure Monday dur- boys basketball season.

says that will not change his disappointment. The game will be critical to head coach Week 2. But with Stewart out and Smith expected to join him with his slow-healing ankle sprain, Amp Lee, Scottie Gra Melrose runs to new season JimWacker's future and will give the Gophers a chance to win back Floyd of Rosedale, who has been in ham, Charles Evans and rookie Bobby Iowa since 1992 Sauer's freshman year. After long football Inside Oja favors ditching Sweet 16 2B Probably not last among his thoughts camDaim. Dutchmen bounce to basketball will be his biggest fan, his father, Curt Sauer, who will be among perhaps a dozen family and friends that will make the trip to Kinnick Stadium to see his son's college career come to a close.

By John Holler We're concerned that we may hit the wall in January and boom have no emotion left. 9 Daryl Oja MELROSE BASKETBALL, FOOTBALL COACH TIMES SPORTS WRITER "To be honest, rll be glad it's over," Curt Sauer said. "I just feel so bad for MELROSE Almost every high school boys basketball team in the state has been champing at the bit for the last couple of weeks to get practices started. bowl games I was just in denial. But no matter what Tve done I haven't felt proud of myself and I don't even like talking about it.

It hurts too bad." And that's not just talk. Losing has taken a toll. The 1972 group of seniors are the only other Gophers in die 113-year history of the program that didn't experience at least one winning season. And that group had a better overall record. Sauer, the product of a winning high school program, will come home, like he did most recently on Sunday, and talk with his dad about what has gone wrong.

"Someday maybe this will seem minute, and Til be lucky if this is the hardest thing I have to deal with," Sauer said. "But when you come home and cry this is the worst thing Tve ever been through." Sauer, who will be 23 on Dec. 13, has been contacted by more than half the teams in the National Football League, so Saturday may not be the last day he dons a helmet. But, regardless of this week's final score against the Hawkeyes, he should be able to hold his head high. He leads the Gophers in tackles this year with 50 solos and 18 assists.

Football is a team game. He's 'v held up his end. those kids because the sportswriters and the public downgrade them so much. They might be losing, but it's not because of a lack of desire. Craig pours his heart out there on the field.

I just Players have been breaking in new hope and pray that he gets through the Iowa game healthy." shoes, working on their dribbling and rebounding techniques and shooting the ball in anticipation of Monday when practices officially opened throughout Phillips are all that left. The four have combined for 351 yards this season, while Smith and Stewart have 743. "It used to seem like we had too many running backs, but it turns out that now we don't have enough," Lee said. "But Bobby Phillips is going to have to step up, and Scottie, Chuck and I are going to have to do more." That's fine with Lee. He has been one of Warren Moon's favorite receivers during Minnesota's three-game winning streak, but he is averaging fewer than five carries a game.

"The more you handle the ball, the more chance you have to get into a rhythm," Lee said. Til be happy to handle the ball much more." If Moon continues playing as well as he has the past month, it might not matter how well Minnesota runs the ball Thursday. He has 11 touchdown passes in the last three games, and hasn't thrown an interception in the last four. The Vikings have averaged more than 33 points and 418 yards in their last three games, and they have 19 plays of 20 yards or more in that span, compared to 24 in the first eight games. "That's what we dreamed of in the beginning of the season, that the offense would have production like that," cor-nerback Dewayne Washington said.

"I think it's coming at the right time of the season." It would be easy for Sauer to throw a Minnesota. But in Melrose, it's a vastly different familiarity will carry them through the tough times. "We've played together so long, we know what the other guys are going to do," said Sieben, an All-West Central North first teamer last year. "Having so many guys back makes it a lot easier than having to replace three of four guys. We've been playing together since we were sophomores, so that experience makes it easier." Oja said he plans to get his rest wherever he can.

He's "locking the kids out for a week at Christmas" and plans to give them off-days on Wednesday's in January, so they will be physically and emotionally ready once playoff season begins. "My concern is that we're emotionally ready in February," Oja said. "If we are and we're healthy, we can play with anyone." And his players have adopted that philosophy. If teams are going to beat Melrose, it had better be early, because they intend to be back in the section final, and this time, they want to get their faces in another state tournament program. "It doesn't matter how we start the season, what matters is how we finish," Linnemann said.

In all likelihood, that will entail worries for the baseball coach, who may have to delay the start of indoor practice until his basketballers finish up. pity party. After all, he's done his job. He'll be among the best Gophers linebackers of all time, ranking among the top 10 in tackles for losses and sacks. And all this after he took one snap in two years as a quarterback.

story. If anything, they'd like a week off to regroup. The Dutchmen advanced to the state But mstead of taking solace in per Class A football tournament, and, prior to a controversial 36-35 overtime loss to St. Peter Nov. 10, basketball was an afterthought for the players most of Oja's trials are exacerbated by a brutal early schedule for the Dutchmen rated No.

7 in the preseason by Minnesota Basketball News. Four of Melrose's first five games are on the road. Before Christmas, the Dutchmen will play at Rocori, at Hold-ingford, at Fergus Falls, St. Cloud Cathedral and at Albany a slate that has made the players forget football ASAR "We're kind of forcing ourselves to be into (basketball)," said senior Tom Linnemann, the West Central North Conference MVP last season. "We've got a bunch of seniors and we got together, saying we're going to be into it whether we are or not." The Dutchmen return four starters from last year's section finalist squad Linnemann, guard Ben Sieben and 6-6 post players Eric Schmeising and Ross Rademacher.

They are the glue that are expected to hold the team together early and they're hoping that their sonal glory, he wears his heart on his sleeve with the team's won-loss record. Overall, that's been 14-40. In the Big Ten, the Gophers have gone 10-32 and whom are two-sport athletes. This has posed a problem for coach Darryl Oja, who doubles as football and basketball coach. Sauer's Gopker Statistics "One of our concerns is that emotion ally we were at such a peak the last four weeks of the football season," Oja said.

Year Solo Assist Total TFL Int Sack; 1993 11 46 22 68 1 1254 2 3201 1994 11 66 29 95 1145 0 332 1995 10 50 18 68 414 0 18 Totals 32 162 69 231 27113 2 76Qi We re concerned that we may hit the Inside Chris Hinton out for the season 1 3B wall in January and boom have no emotion left.".