Moeller Product Can't Gel Enough Of Football
Michigan recruit Paul Barry (77) clears there way for Moeller· High School running back carlos Collins. Moeller coach. Steve Klonne believes that Barry may have been the finest lineman to ever suit up for Moeller. . ·
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Photo courtesy of Press Community NOW8fiapers. Cincinnati
South's roster for Ohio's annual North-South All-Star game on July 13. Barry's tools - size, enough strength to bench press 370 pounds and win GCL championships in the discus and shot put, in addition to a 4,0-yard-dash time of 5.0 secondsand the way he ptit them to use - increased the interest of college recruiters. He was ranked among the nation's top I00 recruits by G&W RECRUITING REPORT. In addition, SCARLET & GRAY ILLUSTRATED and the BUCKEYE SPORTS BULLETIN, two newspapers that focus on Ohio State athleiics. both ranked Barry among the top potential Buckeye recruits. SGI pointed out that Barry is good friends with Jack Thrush, a Moeller product who plays center for Ohio State. Barry visited Ohio State. He also travelled to Notre Dame, Vi{ginia, Penn State and, of course, Michigan. His host in Ann Arbor was red-shirt freshman linebacker Jason Kendrick. Zenkcwicz was one of his fellow visitors. "Trent aild I a~c pretty good friends," Barry said. "We talked a .couple of times about where we were going to school, but we never said, 'If you're going there, I'm going there, ioo.' I guess we both just decided that it was a pretty good school." Barry said that, in his mind, it was "all the other schools vs. Michigan." "I chose Michigan because of the family atmosphere. and the players arc down to earth," he said. "They're not conceited. They also have great coaches and facilities, but most of all, .I'll be able to get a great education." Barry plans to ,major in busi-
ness. By Mark Schmet7.er hen Paul Barry was in the eighth grade at St. Columbine Catholic grade school in the Cincinnati suburb of Loveland, he weighed too much to piay <ln the school football team. But that dido 't stop Barry from participating in the sport he had already grown to· Jove. "I went to practice anyway, just for i~e fun of it," be said. "I don't know what I would do without football." The 6--4, 285-pound Barry ·will spend "the next four years playing football for Michigan- probably offensive guard. He is one of 21 players who make up a recruiting clmss considered by many experts to be the ' best in the nation. Barry, 17, is one- literally- big reason fo1 the respect accorded to Michigan's recruiting class. As a tackle at perennial powerhouse Moeller High School in. Cincinnati, he was considered to be among the nation's top high school offensive_ line-
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"He's tlu:•best fundamental blocker in Ohi<!,'; said John McCallister of PREP FOOTBALL PROSPECTS OF OHIO. "I ' like hini because he's strong, he moves well, and he plays hard and aggressive." . "Paul showed good feet and great driveblocking ability this season," said Tom Lemming, who publishes the PREP FOOTBALL REPORT. "He is a fiery player who · comes off the b~ll with speed and power. He is both a standout run-. and pass-blocker." "He's a powerful run blocker who pulls well. and he's an excellent pass-blocker," said Moeller head coach Steve Klonne. "He's one of the rare two~year starters we've had here at MoeUer, and in two years, Paul's man has never pressured the quarterback. He's one of the best, if not the best~ offensive lineman we've had here at Moeller." Klonnc went on to describe Barry as "tough." "tenacious" and "smart" enough to pull a 3.1 grade-point average and make the Spanisll Honor Society. "He's a very hard worker,'' Klonne added. Barry has lo be a hard worker in order ·to work part-time jobs bussing lables at a local "'-<llnlraatl nnd dclivt>rlnlt ninAL He o.lm nar-
ticipates in a pastoral.min_istry, student government and the local Big "Brother program. Barry says he has always loved football. He recalls watching Notre Dame on television •s a youngste• and later adding Big Ten footboll to his viewing pauerns. He loved the sport enough to lose about 20 pounds in order to qualify for the seventh-grade team, playing nose guard and offensive line, The , next year, howeve~, the weight barrier became too much for him to even consider trying to meet the limit, so he satisfied him-· self by just going to practice. · He doesn't know where he gets his size. His father, Jack. was captain of the football. basketllall and baseball teams at McNicholas High School in Cinc.innati in the early 1960s. "He played h>ilfb;c·k on offen$e and defense," Barry says of his father, whom.he also describes as the person he mosi admires. "He's just a little guy." . ·. Barry also has an uncle, Joe, who resigned from his job as an assistant basketball coach at Miami <!f Ohio in November to take an administralive position at the school. Wherever Paul gets his size, it came in handy once he got to Moeller,, which is about as close to a college football program as a high school team can get. Moeller has won several Ohio big-school state championships over the past 20 years, and the school is an automatic entry on every college recruiters' itinerary. Among the players sent on to play
~~~~;~r!o~b~~';~~~t!ya~~e ~-~:;~n~s~~ Notre Dame; quarterbacks Mark Kamphaus at Boston College and Scott Schaffner at Minnesota-; plus _Michigan free safety Vada Murray, who just wrapped up his collegiate career. Moeller also prOduced the Larkin brothers: Mike, a Notre Dame football star, Barry, an all-state defensive back in high school who played college baseball at Michigan before going on to become an all-star shortstop. with the Cincinnati Reds; and Byron, the all-time leading basketball scorer at Xavier Unive111ity. Barry had no problem fitting Into Moeller·~ football ltadltion. Hla freshman football tMm: went 1,0 to win lite Ore&tcr
Cincinnati League freshman champiZenkewicz was subjected to some harsh onship. As a sophomore splitting time criticism from Ohio State supporters after he announced that he was going to Michigan. between the varsity and junior varsity, he Barry's announcement did not generate the helped the junior varsity to a 9-1 record (second place in lhc- GCL) and the varsity same response, however. "I think people in Cincinnati like to a 9-2 mark. Michigan more than Ohio Stale," he said. , He became a varsity starter as a junior, Long-time Michigan assistant coach Jerry but .saffered a torn cartilage in his knee ·Hanlon, a native of the Cincinnati area and during the season which required arthroscopic surgery after the campaign. Despite ·.the coach who is primarily responsible for· recruiting Barry, also was a ·:pretty big influthe injury, he helped Moeller to an 11-3 , · overall record and to the Division I State- 'ence in my decision," Barry SJ.id. . '· ·Even though Barry's favorite pro footChampionship game/where the CrusaderA ·Josi to Clev·erand St. Ignatius. The . ball player is an offensive tackle, Anthony Munoz of the Cincinnati Bengals, and his champion Wildcats were led by senior favorite college player is an offensive tight end John Jaeckin and junior defentackle, Michigan's Greg Skrepenak, he sive tackle Trent Zenkewicz, both of says he has no problems with a shift to whom .will be Barry's ieammates at guard. Michigan. ·"The coaches said they would put me Barry was_ named Moeller's Most where they need me," he said. "I don't care Improved Junior thai year and earned honorif it's offensive line, defensive line, defenable mention on the all-city team. sive backfield or offensive backfield. I just Even though Barry was slowed by off-seawant to contribule." son surgery on his ;,jured knee, he was still regarded highly enough let be considered one of the nation's top players going into his
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"He's a defi11ite major-college player,"_ · Klcinne said early in the season. "He's slowly getting it all back. He's playing with some . pain righi how and he's a little slow by our standards, but that's because of the surgery." "It's fine," Barry reported in mid-April. "There's no problem at all." . Barry's inlury certainly didn't hamper him on the field. After Moeller lost to MI. Carmel, Ill., 21-7, in the second game of the season, the Crusaders launched an eight· game win streak that produced a 9; I regularseason record, plus another in· a long line of G~L- championships and the mythical city title as determined in a weekly poll of coaches .. Moeller's record earned the Crusaders a berth in the state playoffs, where they suffered a 21-17 first-round loss to Middletown. That loss did little to dull the luster of Barry's season. Among the honors he earned were Player of the Year from the CINCINNATI ENQUIRER, first-team all-state from the Assocl1ted Press, All-America from . PARA DB muaz.lne and I IDOl on thl
The Barry File
Position: Offensive Tackle Helght:6-4 Welght:285 High School: Moener (Cincinnati, Ohio) Blrthdate: July 20, 1973 Best 40-Yard Dash Time: 5.0 Best (one rep) Bench Press: 370 Other Schools Considered: Ohio State, VIrginia, Noire Dame and Penn State. Selected Honors: ; PARADE magazine All-America • USA TODAY honorable mention AnUSA team • SUPERPREP pre- and post-season AH-Midwes~ he was listed 23rd nalionally amo119 offensive linemen • TOM LEMMING PREP FOOTBALL REPORT pre- and post-season AllMidwest • $TREET & SMITH pre-season Senior to WalCh • Associated Press firslleam An-Ohio • CINCINNATI ENQUIRER Player ol the Year