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WHEELING -- Rick Jones and Chris Daugherty have been a part of the Super Six -- West Virginia's state high school football championships -- since the games first were played in Wheeling in 1994.
In the early years, the two were young teachers working as team hosts. Their roles with the Super Six have evolved as their roles in sports and education have grown. Jones is now assistant superintendent of Ohio County Schools. Daugherty is Wheeling Park High's football coach and athletic director.
After the Super Six is held for its 30th year in Wheeling this December, Jones and Daugherty will assume the mantle of co-directors of the event. And the current co-directors -- retired WPHS AD Dwaine Rodgers and former Ohio County Administrator Greg Stewart -- feel the duo is more than ready to take the mantle.
Jones and Daugherty will become co-directors at a crucial time in the history of the Super Six in Wheeling. The event is up for bid again with the West Virginia Secondary Schools Activities Commission, and it will be their job to present a bid that will keep the Super Six in Wheeling for another four years.
Stewart said crafting such a bid won't be difficult if the new co-directors stay true to the committee's mission, which has been the same from the years of Sam Mumley and Eric Carder, Bernie Dolan, Dick Cameron and Howard Corcoran to now -- provide the best experience possible for the players who participate each year.
"Sam and Eric taught us from day one, this is all about the kids," Stewart said. "And as long as we kept that at the forefront of our planning, it got easy."
Daugherty agreed that the students' experience is top priority. The memories those players take from the weekend live on for years. Daugherty coached Wheeling Park to a Class AAA state title in 2015, and he said players from that team still talk about those days.
"It really is about the kids ... how important that night is or that day is for high school kids, and just to their communities," he said. "(The Super Six committee has) done an unbelievable job of making it more than a game."
Stewart and Rodgers have spearheaded the committee for the last 15 years, though both have been part of putting the event together since 1994. The two just felt that, after 30 years, it was time to pass the torch to the next generation.
Daugherty's role is baked into his job. The athletic director of Wheeling Park has been a co-director since 1994, from Carder to Dolan to Rodgers to, now, Daugherty. Jones has been an administrator both in Marshall County, as principal at John Marshall High School, and Ohio County. He has always said to the committee that he was willing to help in any capacity they ask.
Then they asked him to help take the lead.
"I've said from the beginning that I'll do as little or as much as you need me to do in the transition, whether it's just to help or help be in charge," Jones said. "I'll do whatever out of my respect for all these guys have done."
What is done each year for the Wheeling Super Six is a long list that goes well beyond the games themselves. Events include a Thursday kickoff dinner that features guest speakers and the ability for coaches to introduce their teams, as well as a Saturday morning academic achievement breakfast.
When teams arrive in Wheeling, they drop off their equipment at Wheeling Island Stadium with equipment manager William "Sarge" Cordery. Shoes and helmets are shined, jerseys and pants are hung in lockers with player nameplates over each one in numerical order.
The Super Six weekend includes much more - feeding officials, workers and media, manning the press box, making sure hospitality and hotels are in order, along with other responsibilities.
Rodgers said that the work of the entire Super Six committee is what has kept the event rolling in Wheeling for three decades.
"Our committee that we have, there are quite a number of them who have been there since the first year, since 1994," Rodgers said, "which is amazing. That's what it takes, too, and I hope that anyone else who bids on it understands that. We're blessed."
Jones and Daugherty want those blessings to continue in the Friendly City for years to come, so they're already brainstorming about the upcoming bid. Jones said he wants to canvas the community to gauge the interest in the Super Six returning. He doesn't figure he'll have anyone who wants it to go. They'll also approach potential sponsors to bolster the event's funding. The group said that, in the past, it has cost around $70,000 to put on the Super Six and that amount could creep close to six figures in the future.
They'll also look at ways to make their bid even stronger. Some are already in the pipeline, like the new $400,000 video scoreboard that will be installed that will stand more than 25 feet tall and 36 feet wide. Jones said they're also considering bringing in a prominent motivational speaker for the players and increasing the event's social media presence, while bringing students into the mix to help there.
Jones and Daugherty understand what this event means to Wheeling and Ohio County as a whole. Stewart said putting an exact dollar figure on the Super Six's economic impact is hard, but so many corners of the county see benefits, from restaurants to hotels to recreation.
The duo, who also are stepbrothers, also figure they're in for some competition in January. Mercer County has put in bids in the past, and they're hearing that Morgantown and possibly Huntington are interested, too.
"These guys have done such a great job," Daugherty said of the co-directors before him and Jones. "It's like taking over a coaching position and they've won a bunch of state playoffs and championships. You want to make sure you at least maintain the excellence they have created."
Rodgers said he and Stewart want to see Wheeling continue to host the Super Six, so they'll be available for advice whenever it's requested.
"Whenever you need, I'm a phone call away," Rodgers said. "I'm always willing to help."