Name: Tim Owens
School: Thomas Jefferson Spartans, ranked No. 10 in The Denver Post/9News Class 5A poll, Denver Prep League/Southwest League
Record: 2-0 overall
Coaching résumé: Two-year assistant at George Washington High School (1991-92), one year at Montbello (1993); didn’t coach for four years; returned for two years in Aurora Youth League; three as a flag coach at city’s middle schools; in fifth year at Thomas Jefferson, second as head coach.
Life lines: Age 41. Native of Denver, graduated from Montbello in 1984. Attended Adams State for a year, finished in 1990 at Metro State with a degree in mathematics. Teaches algebra, geometry and pre-calculus at TJ.
Back in his day: Center at Montbello from 1981-83. Played one year at Adams State.
Last week: In the Class 5A struggle that is the city versus the suburbs, only the city has struggled – Denver has been without a big-school state champion since 1989 and had only two semifinalists after 1990.
No one may know it better than TJ, which made the final four in 2002 and has been the city’s best bet for more than a decade only to be turned away in nonleague meetings and preliminary rounds of the state playoffs.
So believe Owens when he said his Spartans, who downed previous 5A No. 6 Grandview (Aurora) 34-33 in two overtimes Friday night at All-City Stadium, “wanted that game bad.”
“You would have thought we won a state championship. These kids just went haywire. We had to get them lined up to shake hands,” Owens said.
After a missed conversion kick – one of four in overtime – that would have sent the game to a third extra session, Grandview was penalized for being offside. Ryan Allen made the kick and the Spartans, who were sturdy up front behind Matthew Mankoff and able to weather superlative Wolves running back Bo Bolen, are eager for their next go-round.
“We absolutely can build off this,” Owens said.
Note: The Denver Broncos high school coach of the week award, in its 12th year, will have 10 honorees during the regular season. NFL Charities will present a check for $1,000 to the school’s program. Tim Owens is the first winner in 2007. A coach of the year will be announced at the Broncos’ Dec. 30 game against the Minnesota Vikings at Invesco Field at Mile High and receive $2,000. Coaches are selected by a panel consisting of Neil H. Devlin, The Denver Post; Billy Thompson, the Broncos; and Andy Lindahl, KOA 850 AM.
