Luann Grybowski had established New Castle as one of the premier girls' basketball programs in the WPIAL in recent years. But she recently walked away from the job and became the girls' coach at Neshannock, a less-successful program that plays at a much smaller level than New Castle.

It is a move that might make you scratch your head, but the reason for Grybowski's decision was her daughter. She wants to spend more time with -- and coach -- her only child.

While the start of football season is always big news in the Western Pennsylvania high school landscape, Grybowski's recent decision to go from New Castle to Neshannock was one of the most interesting high school stories of the summer.

"If I gave my [coaching] expertise to probably 600 girls over the past 29 years of coaching, why not give it to my own girl now?" Grybowski said. "This gives me a chance to be around her more."

In 29 seasons of coaching at New Castle, Shenango and Aliquippa, Grybowski won 474 games. She and her daughter, Tayler, live in the Neshannock school district, which borders New Castle's district. Tayler is in the seventh grade and has been playing basketball for years. Many coaches with a child playing at a different school would either retire as coach, move or try to do something to get the child eligible at the coach's school. Not Grybowski.

"We talked about me taking her to New Castle, but she has made friends at Neshannock. That's where she wants to be," said Grybowski, who will continue to teach health and physical education at New Castle High School.

At New Castle, Grybowski won three WPIAL titles in the past six years -- two at the Class AAAA level and one in Class AAA. Her record since the 2003 season was 137-31. Neshannock plays in Class AA and the Lancers' record in the past six years was 98-72.

Grybowski will start coaching her daughter this season on Neshannock's junior high team, which plays in the fall.

"I'll get to coach her for the next six years," Grybowski said. "Guys like John Miller and Tim McConnell have coached their kids and been successful at it. It can definitely be a positive for my daughter, and a good situation for me.

"It was a tough decision. It's a definite change to go down to Class AA. There is no doubt there will be some adjustment. But I'm not going to bring my expectations down. Neshannock is going to have to step up."

Jason Rankin, Grybowski's former assistant coach, is New Castle's new head coach.

The recruiting saga of Sto-Rox senior quarterback Paul Jones is starting to take on Brett Favre tendencies. As Jones' story goes: He committed to Penn State in January, then he decided to look elsewhere, then he recommitted -- and now he is unsure again.

Jones said this week, "Before I make a for-sure, concrete answer, I'm just going to take a look at all my options."

One of those options will be Pitt, which Jones plans to visit in the near future.

"I'm still committed to Penn State, but if some other schools still want to recruit me, I'm all right with that," Jones said.

In other words, he still might sign with Penn State in February. Then again, he might not.

Tired of this story? Well, this is the way it sometimes goes when players make verbal, non-binding commitments to colleges in their junior year.

Jones sustained a broken ankle in a July pickup basketball game and will not play in the season opener tonight. He insists he might play next Friday, although he was still limping noticeably while walking at practice this week. He has been throwing during practices but is not running yet. He is still going through rehabilitation.

Jones, though, said he has made great progress in just the past week.

Canon-McMillan running back/defensive back Chad Hagan, an Ohio State recruit, has not been cleared by doctors to play yet because of a heart condition. Hagan has Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome, a heart disorder that can sometimes cause an irregular heartbeat. Hagan had a catheter ablation procedure in August and had hoped to be cleared for the start of the season.

"I'm getting healthier every day, but the doctor says he's afraid to clear me now," Hagan said. "There is a definite chance I will get cleared to play this year. I think it's going to happen. ... This is hard to deal with, but like I tell people: I'm one of those guys who loves the sport of football; I feel like it's my life. But I'm not just Chad Hagan the athlete. I'm trying to be a role model for kids to look up, too. I'll be all right, but the most important thing is that I get healthy. And I'm getting healthier every day."

It's obvious Mark Perry likes coaching soccer. In fact, he likes it so much that he is coaching two teams this season. Perry is coaching the boys' and girls' teams at Center High.

Greensburg Salem basketball player Jake Matthews has made a verbal commitment to Cornell University, the two-time defending Ivy League champions. Matthews, a 6-foot-2 senior shooting guard who also drew interest from Princeton, averaged 15 points a game last season and was a key in Greensburg Salem's run to the PIAA Class AAA championship game, averaging 18 points in the PIAA games.

"Cornell saw him play AAU, they saw him on tape and I think they saw him during our state playoff run last year," Greensburg Salem coach Paul Sapotichne said. "He was terrific in those games. If [senior guard] Chris Klimchock wouldn't have kept making buzzer-beaters, everyone would've been talking about Jake."