Inductees

When the architect who built Camdenton High School football’s state-wide profile looks back on how it all came to be, coach Bob Shore cannot help but beam. After all, Shore is quick to say that he didn’t go it alone, that it has been a community effort.

Just look at the stadium. Yes, the stadium is named after Shore, but the booster club raised $100,000, Coca-Cola $150,000 and the band $50,000 for the artificial turf. And the press box runs 40 yards long.

“For our first home playoff game (in 1977), we had an overflow crowd around the track,” said Shore, a 2004 Missouri Sports Hall of Fame inductee. “They liked what they saw, and they wanted more of it.”

What the community received was a big-time winner, and the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame is proud to induct the Camdenton High School Football Program with the Class of 2016.

Since first fielding a team in 1959, the Lakers are 468-139-7, having enjoyed 54 winning seasons. They have won five state championships (a co-state title in 1986 and outright titles 1987, 1995, 1999, 2005) along with state runner-up finishes in 1977 and 1996.

The Lakers also have reached the state semifinals three other times (1978, 1980, 1988) and the state quarterfinals 10 other times (1982, 1983, 1984, 2000, 2001, 2004, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013). Camdenton has won 26 district championships.

All of which came through blood, sweat and tears – and consistency. The first head coaches were Jim Johnson, Everett Mason, Randal Lambert, Ray Scott and Bob Powell before Shore arrived from East Newton in 1975.

At that point, Shore executed quite a plan: Recruit the hallways, establish offseason weightlifting and schedule two-a-day preseason practices.

Only 39 players were on the roster that first year, including 26 from sophomores to seniors. In 1977, those numbers grew to 80 and 50, and the team went undefeated until a 7-6 loss to Columbia Rock Bridge in the Class 3 state championship game. That team featured quarterback Chuck Blair, Chuck Miller, Jack Freeman, Jimmy Lewis and place kicker Jimmy Jackson, whose field goal won the state semifinal.

“It came to fruition that year that we could compete for a state championship every year,” Shore said.

Named the Coach of the Century by the News-Leader in 2000, Shore was 368-98-7 overall, including 328-75-2 at Camdenton before retiring after the 2010 season. He credits success to two assistants, line coach Jim Pirch and defensive coordinator Mike Silverwood for staying more than 30 years. Plus, 11 former Lakers have returned to coach, including Jeff Shore, Bob’s son and the head coach since 2011.

Community support built, too. In the past decade-plus, a local businessman donated a team bus that looks more like something for a music entertainer — painted in purple and emblazoned with the Lakers logo.

This for a program that made the playoffs every year in the 1980s and, overall, has 114 All-State selections, including 111 since 1975. Among them was Jason Whittle, who played nine seasons in the NFL, and Mickey Turner, a four-year letterman at Wisconsin.

The 1986 team (12-0-1) included QB Jeff Shore, Rod Brownell, Shawn Maschino, Travis Ezard, Lance Dye, Par Pitts and Tim McDuffy. The Lakers shared the Class 4 title with Marshall after a 20-20 tie.

The 1987 team (12-0) returned many of the same players and beat Sumner 23-14 to win Class 4. In the semifinal against Chillicothe, the Lakers rallied from 21-10 with seven minutes to play. A long Shore-to-Ezard TD pass pulled the Lakers close, and Brownwell’s goal-line run won it. The team included Brad Boles, Marty McGuire, Cory Craig and Lance Foulk.

The 1995 team (13-1) won Class 4 by rallying to beat Jackson 20-19. The team’s key cogs included Zack Franklin, Griff Creed, J.W. Sweatt, Chris McGuire and Neil Box, whose 60-yard TD run won the game.

The 1999 team (14-0) won Class 4 by beating Jefferson City Helias 15-14. A 55-yard halfback option pass from Ryan Brodecker to Roger Kure won the game for a team that also included Nick Bruck, J.R. Skola, Jeff Weaver, Matt Brock and Ryan McGuire.

The 2005 team (14-0) won Class 4, beating Afton 36-19. Daniel Eidson, Dennis Chairs, Cole Walker, Jake Wackerman, Forrest Shock and Luke Shaw were key players.

“Like all coaches, you’d like to do it all over again,” Bob Shore said. “Championships are nice, but it’s a journey getting there, it’s the relationships you make. That’s the prize at the end.”