Afternoon Update 4-27

PV alumnus signs with NFL's Chargers
Charly Martin, a 2003 graduate of Piedra Vista and wide receiver for Division II school West Texas A&M, signed with the San Diego Chargers as a priority free agent on Sunday. Martin, projected as high as a sixth round pick, was not drafted.

Helton to Become 11th Greyhound Basketball Coach
Steven Gamble, Eastern New Mexico University president, has announced the selection of Andrew Helton as the new Greyhound men’s basketball coach. With his selection, Helton becomes the 11th coach in the 73 year history of the program.

Helton will be introduced at a press conference at 9 a.m. (Mountain Time) on Tuesday, April 28, in Greyhound Arena.

“Eastern is fortunate to employ a coach the caliber of Andrew Helton,” said Gamble. “In addition to a very strong basketball background, he had enthusiastic references. He emerged as our top choice from a strong pool of candidates, and I am certain he will be successful.”

For the past two seasons, Helton has served under University of South Alabama head coach Ronnie Arrow.


Hounds defense dominates at Green-Silver scrimmage
As the saying goes, defense wins championships. For Eastern New Mexico University, it was more than enough to win a scrimmage.

A veteran Greyhound defense showed experience mattered as it ran up a 42-3 halftime lead, and settled for a 57-51 win in the team’s Green-Silver Scrimmage after a second half that was extremely favorable to a young ENMU offense.

With the university’s athletic department more tasked on the baseball team’s playoff fortunes this weekend, no yards or tackles were tracked for the game, the ending point of ENMU’s spring football season.

Instead, a scoring system gave the offense a point for each first down plus all of its offensive points, and the defense got points for stops (1) three-and-outs (2), turnovers (6) and defensive touchdowns (8).


North Pole seniors to test football skills at West Texas A&M
FAIRBANKS — So how do three Interior Alaskans end up signing national letters of intent to play football for a nationally ranked school in faraway Texas?

It went something like this: Jon Rogers, a graduate of Eielson High School, was a cornerback last season for Central Washington, which competed in the NCAA Division II playoffs against West Texas A&M University. Rogers was impressed enough by the Buffaloes that he let his friend Steve Wright of North Pole High School know about them.

Then Wright passed the word on to fellow Patriots defensive stalwarts Jackson Collins and Philip Warwick and North Pole coach Richard Henert sent film of his stars to WTAMU head coach Don Carthel.

“The coach was kind enough to take a look at the tape and see that these kids are for real,” Henert said. “It’s a hard thing for Alaskan athletes to get a look, you know. Most of the tapes probably get thrown in the garbage.”

But not this one. On Friday afternoon at their high school, Collins, a 6-foot, 245-pound defensive lineman, Warwick, a 6-2, 230-pound outside linebacker and Wright, a 5-9, 170-pound cornerback, all signed their NLI’s and will begin attending WTAMU in Canyon, Texas, this fall.