Note: Here's an interesting story from the Franklin County (Indiana) Observer website. It's about Denny Dorrel, Bluffton University football coach, and the Bluffton team, when they played at Hanover recently. The story and photos are by Sara Duffy.

Homecoming for Denny Dorrel

Last week was the Franklin County High School (FCHS) homecoming game and parade. This week was a very special homecoming for 1997 FCHS graduate Denny Dorrel. It was complete with balloons, cheering fans and a football team.

Denny Dorrel is in his second season as head coach of the Bluffton University football team. When their schedule brought them to Indiana to play his other alma mater, Hanover College, Denny arranged a side trip. He wanted his players to see his "home place" and experience Hoosier hospitality.

Denny is the son of Danny and Arlene Dorrel. His sisters are Jodi Amrhein and Angie Kroll. His wife is Sarah Mueller Dorrel and they have three children, Kate, Dex and Dylan. Denny said, "I love my family. My players are my second family and I want to introduce them to each other along with my church family."

 After arriving at Dorrel Farm on Golden Road, the Bluffton team prepared for the upcoming game. The defense had a "walk through" practice in the front yard and the quarterback threw a few passes in the back yard next to the cornfield.

Denny talked about high school and why it was helpful to his career. He played both football and basketball for four years at Franklin County High School under coaches Kent Grider and Brad Stacey. He added that speech class and drama club gave him a good foundation as a communicator, which he needs with his players and the media today. He went on to play football at Hanover College where he majored in Communications. 

Farm life also taught him lessons useful to coaching - to persevere and finish tasks. He reminisced about working with the farm's pigs, which he liked, and baling hay, which he did not.  

After the farm visit, the team bus took them to Whitcomb United Methodist Church. Denny's church family served the 100+ players a home cooked meal of grilled pork chops, green beans, potatoes and applesauce, plus 20 pies, 9 cakes, 280 rolls and 8 loaves of bread.

Whitcomb Church has been in existence for over 150 years and has a long history of preparing community meals. Joyce Bourne remembers the 1940s when they served "thresher" dinners to workers who harvested wheat on the surrounding farms by means of steam engine, horse and tractor. Currently, Whitcomb provides meals during the county fair and their motto is "Nobody goes away from Whitcomb Church hungry."

The evening ended with the team giving a standing ovation to their hosts and shouts of "Go Bluffton." The next day the Bluffton Beavers beat the Hanover Panthers 56-10.

PHOTO IDS:

Danny, Arlene and Denny Dorrel.

The entire Bluffton football team players and coaches at the Dorrel Farm.

Family and friends gathered to watch the practices. They laughed about the pet goat painted purple for Bluffton and the WPA-era outhouse humorously decorated with the team's opponent.