New coach works to restore struggling Eagle program 

In the next few weeks, Western Wayne News will preview the upcoming football season for Wayne County teams. Last season was a tumultuous time for Lincoln football. Roster numbers were extremely low. In 2018, Lincoln had a roster of 32 players; last season, five years later, they started the season with 19 roster players and ended the season with 15. 

Cambridge City Lincoln joined the Tri-Eastern Conference in 1965. Last year, for the first time in program history, the Golden Eagles were forced to cancel two conference road games on short notice because of low numbers and injuries. 

By season’s end, the program’s future was in doubt. Head coach Danny Capps resigned and speculation ran rampant about whether Lincoln would continue to field a football team. 

Community support to continue the program was overwhelming. People stepped forward to offer help; many reached into their wallets for money to donate for uniform and equipment upgrades. It was apparent that Eagle pride was alive and well. A move was underway to help rebuild the proud program. 

To use a baseball phrase, the first move the Lincoln administration made was a “home run” move. They hired Jeremy Bane as their new head coach. Bane was uniquely qualified. He has substantial coaching experience at both small and large schools, so he knows what it takes to be competitive at all levels.

He shared his background and his decision to pursue the job of head coach in a recent interview with Western Wayne News.

“I had never served as a head football coach, but I have been coaching high school football since 1995,” Bane said. “I have been at big schools and small schools in a lot of successful programs and worked with several successful coaches; I have been in programs that have struggled as well. I was here the last two years with coach Capps as the offensive coordinator, so I knew that we have a great group of seniors this year who have persevered for the last three years. I had support from several community members, so I felt that everything was in the right position in my life for me to throw my hat in the ring to be the head coach. I also wanted to reward the 2024 senior players who have persevered the last three years with the best possible experience I could.”

Bane does have head coaching experience and a track record of success from his time as the head wrestling coach at Richmond High School.

“When I took over the program had kind of faltered. There were only nine high school wrestlers and no youth program,” he said. “When I left after seven years we consistently had 24 to 26 high school wrestlers, 28 middle schoolers and between 40 and 50 kids in the youth program. I try to leave any situation I am involved in better than I found it.”    

Bane was already on the Lincoln teaching staff and football staff, so he knew the program, the kids and the community. He is passionate about seeing his kids succeed on the field, in the classroom and in life.

Bane talked about how the summer has gone and his expectations for the future of the program. One of his early steps was to work with the other Lincoln coaches to have a school-wide weight training program.

“All of the Lincoln coaches agreed that we needed to combine our weight training programs to include all athletes from all sports, and I am running that program,” Bane said. “I am qualified and experienced in all aspects of strength training and speed development. Now, coaches don’t have to compete for time in the weight room. There is no question that combining the workouts to cover all athletes from all teams has helped and has been well received. Of course I want Lincoln football to be successful, but I want all Lincoln programs to be successful.” 

Bane went on to share some numbers. “We have 53 kids in the weight training program that is held three days per week. Well over half have an attendance rate of 80% or higher. We have also invited middle schoolers to come in. We have not played a middle school football game in seven years, and we have plans to play games this season.”

Bane acknowledged that he will not be doing the job alone. “I have had tremendous support from Mr. Stover, Mrs. Lakes and Mr. Klein, and the coaches of all other sports,” he said. “With the money we have through fundraising efforts and donations, we can easily provide high-quality, safe equipment for 36 varsity players. With Mr. Klein’s assistance we were able to acquire new Hudl camera equipment that we can use as a teaching tool with our players that will also allow us to report game statistics to media outlets in a timely manner, and we still have funds on hand for other improvements. I will also have a strong coaching staff who are dedicated to helping our kids succeed. Joe Lightfield, Jimmy Bogue, Bryan Ervin and Chris Trent are all coming back. Chad Bowman, who coached here in the past, is also coming back to join the staff.”

“We have 21 players now who have been committed all summer and we expect to have a few more when practice starts,” Bane said. “The difference between the 15 that we ended last season with and our numbers now is huge. We can move kids around and allow kids to get a break for a few plays. Looking further down the road, we will have decent numbers for a small 1A school. We have a large eighth grade class, and I am hearing that the elementary enrollment will be increased.”

There are only nine schools in Indiana with football programs who have a lower enrollment than Lincoln. So Bane wants to establish realistic goals. Last year Lincoln played with a running clock in the second half of most of its games, losing one game 68-8 and another 81-6. “There are some much larger enrollment teams in the TEC, like Centerville, Northeastern and Winchester, that we struggle to compete with just based on sheer numbers,” Bane said. “But, we have to close the gap with those teams. One of our goals is to avoid a running clock in our games this season, and I think that is achievable. I also think it is a realistic goal to win four games this year.” 

It is a lofty goal. The last time a Lincoln football team won four or more games was during the 2015 season when the Golden Eagles compiled a record of 5-7.

The Eagles will open regular season play on Friday, Aug. 23, with a short road trip to Centerville to face the defending TEC champion Bulldogs. The kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.