Central twins add an extra boom to Central season

"Schermann -- Twin sons to Paul and Sarah Schermann, 1277 Kingsway, Southeast Missouri Hospital. Nov. 7. Name, Clayton Schmuke. Weight 6 pounds, 14.5 ounces. Born 1:28 a.m. Name, Colin Reid. Weight 7 pounds, 1 ounce. Born 1:32 a.m. Second and third child, first and second son."

-- Birth announcement from the Southeast Missourian, 1985

By Jeff Breer ~ Southeast Missourian

Talk about a birth announcement capable of inducing sweaty palms.

Two of the palms may have belonged to former Central football star Paul Schermann -- he became the proud father of twin boys.

The rest belonged to area football coaches.

Schermann, a 1973 Central graduate, terrorized Tiger opponents for three years with an elusive running style that landed him in the Central Hall of Fame and took him to the University of Missouri on a football scholarship. He rushed for 1,300 yards and scored 26 touchdowns as a senior for a Central team that went 10-0 during the regular season. He usually played only half a game, like a 260-yard, four-touchdown first-half performance against Jackson.

"He was the best running back I've ever seen in high school," Central athletic director Terry Kitchen said. "He could do it all."

It's been nearly 17 years since the birth of Clay and Colin. Predictably, the Schermann twins, now juniors, have found a spot in the Tiger arsenal, but with a slight mutation of their father's genes.

The twins, Clay and Colin, appear to have struck a deal in the womb -- each possesses one lively leg that helps the Tigers kick aside opponents.

Colin is a reliable, booming place-kicker.

Clay is a reliable, booming punter.

"His kids kick the fire out of the football," said Jackson coach Carl Gross, Paul Schermann's a former teammate at Central. "They're as good as their old man, just at a different position."

And on a team with state championship ambitions and off to its best start in five years, the pair are an invaluable commodity.

"I'm glad to have them on our team," Central junior quarterback Mitch Craft said. "I feel the combination, they're the best in the area, and they could be the best in the state."Mass production

"I guess we're on one of those rare runs with kickers," Central coach Lawrence Brookins said.

Central's last two varsity place-kickers were kicking specialists who now play in college. Brian Emmendorfer is kicking at Southeast Missouri State University, while his successor, Chris Jones, is at Lindenwood College.

"We've had kids that not only have strong legs, but have a little soccer background and a great interest in becoming better kickers," said Central coach Steve Williams, who works with the place-kickers.

The Schermanns fit that description to a kicking tee.

While Clay and Colin are both capable of playing at safety, a deep Tiger squad has the luxury of allowing the twins to focus on their kicking.

Next year they likely will play expanded roles. For now, whenever they enter a game it's to apply shoe leather to pigskin, and they do it with amazing ease and efficiency.

"Not everybody can just go out and kick," Colin said. "There's a lot pressure in line with it. You mess up kicking, you either lose the game, lose some points or just give up field position. It's kind of fun."

Colin has connected on two field goals over 40 yards this year, including one from 48. He's hit on three of four field goal attempts and was successful on his first 17 extra-point attempts.

He's kicked a 60-yard field goal in practice.

"If we get to the 35-yard line, we've got a realistic chance to get points," Williams said.

As a sophomore, Colin booted a 51-yard field goal in a junior-varsity game and hit from 42 and 47 yards in another contest.

"As a sophomore he was our backup and was real slow to the ball," Williams said. "Now he's cut his steps down and his technique has become much more consistent."Learning from the best

Colin and Clay credit a Rob Pelfrey camp in St. Louis over the summer for marked improvements.

"It's amazing what he taught me," Colin said. "I'm much more accurate. I do have a pretty good leg so I don't worry about that so much."

"I learned a bunch of stuff and worked really hard the whole summer, kicking three to four days a week," Clay said.

Clay punted for the varsity as a sophomore and averaged 34 yards. He's upped that to over 40 yards a punt this season.

Both have been cool under pressure. In Central's lone loss to North County, Colin connected on a pressure-packed extra point in the final two minutes to send the game into overtime. Earlier in the game, Clay pulled down a high snap and got off a kick while being decked by a Raider who was ruled to have gotten a piece of the ball. The kick still traveled 45 yards.

"His leg is just amazing," Craft said. "'The Boomer' is what I call him."

With the twins in the mix, the Tigers have enjoyed good field position all season. After Colin's kickoffs, opponents regularly find themselves starting at their own 20 or worse. He's boomed seven kickoffs for touchbacks and, with high kicks and good coverage, had opponents starting inside their 20 at least seven times.

"Coaches talk about how special teams are a third of the game," Williams said. "Boy it's important, and you can really take advantage of it when you've got kids that can kick and punt like we've got."We did it our way

Clay and Colin both have been allowed to follow their own path in sports. Their father is supportive while refraining from reliving every carry of his career.

"He doesn't talk much at all," Colin said. "I only hear the tapes that we have and even when we listen to those he doesn't say anything."

The tapes are from live radio broadcasts, but neither has seen game footage.

"There is some out there, because a friend's dad who played with him has seen it," Colin said. "I do want to see it, because I think it would be fun to watch."

Having played organized soccer growing up, the pair gravitated toward kicking.

Lucky for the Tigers, the twins are not identical.

" He'd end up punting it and I'd just end up kicking it," Colin said.

"It's kind of neat I guess, brothers doing punting and kicking," Clay said. "I've actually never tried to kick. He's never tried to punt. We just figured we'd stick with our own things."

jbreer@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 124