November 28, 2001
Gary Degenhardt is thankful
By TOM WILLIAMS
Sports Columnist
Even though this is the first time in four years that he hasn’t had a South Jersey final coming up this
weekend, Gary Degenhardt is thankful.
It’s not just for the 85 victories he has racked up, the most by any Cape May County coach. Or the four
South Jersey finals in five years. Or the three South Jersey championships. Or the fourth conference
championship in six years.
“I feel blessed,” said Degenhardt. “We had coaches sent from heaven this season. Who ever would have
believed we’d win nine games.”
Ocean City lost a number of experienced seniors from the 2000 conference champions. That happens
pretty much every year. But Degenhardt faced this year without the four assistants – Skip Angello, Mark
Impagliazzo, Mike Williscroft and Kevin Smith – who had joined him on the sidelines during the greatest
stretch in OCHS football history. Each moved on for a different reason.
Enter John Oberg.
The winningest coach in South Jersey history at Delsea, Oberg came out of retirement to join the staff and
climb onto the roof of press box after press box to become Ocean City’s eye in the sky.
The big reason Oberg came out of retirement was to coach with his son, John, who also signed on as an
assistant.
“They have great rapport with the kids,” said Degenhardt. “It happened almost immediately. The kids could
feel it. They knew these guys knew what they were doing. You have to know Obie and John to understand
the impact they have.”
And they also had an impact on two other new members of the coaching staff.
“We have two young guys – Alex Brigden and Chris Clark,” said Degenhardt, “who were great this year and
will be better and better as they gain experience. Getting the opportunity to work with a guy like Obie is
like attending a clinic every day.”
During the summer, as word drifted around town that all four varsity assistants were leaving the football
program, fans were worried. Would it take two, three years until they all got together?
“We were worried, too,” said Degenhardt. “We spent the first couple of weeks getting onto the same page
and starting to feel comfortable with each other.”
But this staff didn’t need years to get it together. All season, they made the right adjustments and brought
this team to a conference championship and within one tackle of a return to the South Jersey final.
“It was a great season,” Degenhardt said. “It was long and we worked hard, but it was great. And it wasn’t
just because of the coaches. We had a dedicated, strong group of seniors and the kids who are returning
next season will need to work hard to reach their level of maturity and leadership.”
There are, however, other reasons why Degenhardt is thankful.
“My good friend, Paul Chila, is getting better,” he said. Chila, father of former OCHS football player Matt
Chila, was in a serious automobile accident earlier this year. “He’s got a lot of therapy ahead but he is
better every week. It could have been a lot worse.”
And then there are the Colmans. Father Wayne, a longtime coach at OCHS, suffered a serious knee injury
in a lifeboat accident on the Ventnor beach. He is working his way back toward recovery. But, with his
father on the injured list, NFL veteran Doug Colman stepped in and joined Paul Baruffi as the coaches of
the Ocean City freshmen.
“Bless both of them,” Degenhardt said. “With all the things that happened this year, it could have been
disastrous. But we were lucky enough to find some great people that made a big difference.”
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