(PHOTO PROVIDED / THE VILLAGE REPORTER)
NEW HELMET DESIGN … Archbold football coach Dave Dominique previewed the upcoming football season for Archbold Rotarians at their August 9 meeting. Coach Dominique showed Rotarians, including Artie Short (right), the Guardian helmet cover that some of the Bluestreaks are wearing this fall to provide increased protection to the head. He also demonstrated how the hard plastic helmet has also been redesigned to be more flexible to better absorb contact.
Dave Dominique begins his tenth season as the Archbold Bluestreaks head football coach this fall with the task of replacing 22 seniors from last year’s squad.
He told Archbold Rotarians recently that last year’s team earned Academic All-Ohio honors for the fourth consecutive year, placing among the top 25 football teams in the state.
Once again, Coach Dominique stressed leadership development for the team during the off-season through weekly leadership breakfasts during the winter and spring for any players who wanted to participate.
He invited community leaders to the breakfasts to explain what leadership means in their profession and at their business as well as explain the attributes of effective leaders and how that can be applied to any team or group of people working toward a common goal. He said about 25 players attended each breakfast.
Also, during winter and spring, football players who didn’t participate in any other sports were welcome to lift in the weight room.
Although the team lost a lot of experience to graduation, some 59 players came out for this year’s team, including five starters and 19 who were letter winners last year. Consequently, there has been a lot of competition for all of the open spots.