KANNAPOLIS — When Ron Massey talks, people listen.

One of the first things Massey did when he was hired as A.L. Brown’s third head football coach in a quarter century was to call Todd Hagler.

When he answered the phone, Hagler was in his second year as an assistant strength and conditioning coach at UNC, which seems like a dream job for a guy in his early 30s. But he didn’t hang up when Massey asked him to join his new staff in Kannapolis.

“When Coach (Massey) called I got excited about it,” said Hagler. “I’ve missed coaching football.”

The rest is history. Hagler hasn’t sold his house in Durham yet, but these days he’s commuting four hours each day on I-85 to participate in Wonder practices. Hagler is intense, organized and is going to make an impact on the Wonders’ offensive line play. The troops performing for Hagler and 23-year coaching veteran Bob Jacobs on Wednesday looked like they were ready to swim the English Channel in full pads if they’re coaches demanded it.

Hagler has experienced both ends of the football spectrum before coming to Kannapolis. He grew up in Monroe and played for Piedmont High, which has been on the receiving end of some ugly Wonder steamrollings in recent years.

But Hagler also put in five years on the staff at Richmond County, the undisputed heavyweight champs of the high school gridiron. Richmond was 52-11 during Hagler’s tenure. He coached the offensive line and was strength coordinator when the Raiders won the 1997 state 4A championship on the same weekend that the Wonders took their last 3A title.

Hagler has also coached at Wilkes Central High. He played college ball at Lenoir-Rhyne, where he was a three-year starter at defensive end. He made the All-SAC team in 1989.

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WIDEAWAKE: Hagler is one of twooutside coaches that Massey brought in.

The other is hulking defensive line coach Aubrey Hollifield, who played for Wake Forest in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s, the glory days of coach Bill Dooley and future Super Bowl pass-catching hero Ricky Proehl.

Hollifield is a native of Kings Mountain and had been on Massey’s staff at Kings Mountain High. He’s also a world-class commuter right now, driving in each day from Kings Mountain.

Hollifield will handle the Wonder defensive line, following in the footsteps of retired legend Bill Wightman.

Hollifield, who looks like he could bench press a small herd of beef cattle, is fast becoming a practice legend in his own right.

“Hollifield had his guys running in the mud the other day,” whispered one observer. “And he got in there and got as muddy as any of them.”

The sun is out — at least most of the time on Wednesday — but Hollifield, hat on backwards and down on all fours, shows no signs of letting up regardless of the conditions.

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FAMILIARFACE: Empsy Thompson, the Wonders’ popular baseball coach, is also helping out this year. He’s been entrusted with the task of finding receivers to replace graduated stars Ryan Craft and Blair Hardin.

“I coached football when I was in Lexington,” said Thompson. “Last year (his first at A.L. Brown) was really the first time I haven’t coached it.”

The diminutive coach hasn’t grown any though, and often disappears completely when he’s surrounded by the Wonders’ angular receivers.

Thompson, of course, has been involved all summer with the Kannapolis Legion baseball team, which made a remarkable run to the state tournament. That run finally ended Tuesday.

“It’s been a short summer for sure,” he says with a grin. It’s hard to believe the kids will be here for class on Monday.”

Rest assured, Thompson, who’s engaged to be married next June, will greet his World Cultures classes with his perpetual smile. He’ll pretend that he’s had the whole summer to goof off.

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PROUDDAD:Veteran defensive backs coach Buddy Amerson has been challenging Hagler and Hollifield for mileage records lately, since he made frequent trips to Granite Falls to watch son, Nate, the Kannapolis Legion team’s third baseman.

“The Kannapolis kids got some respect this year,” he said, “but the best thing of all was the way they got to know and be really good friends with the Rowan players up in Lenoir. We’re driving back the other day and Nate’s fighting me for the radio so he can listen to Rowan’s game with Cherryville.”

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FINALLY:Kannapolis Legion players Chad Tuttle and Drew Maher are football players again.

Tuttle, a returning starter on the offensive line, was amazed that his return to the gridiron coincided with the return of heat and humidity.

“It’s been fun but tiring out here today,” he said. “You know, sort of like one of those long Legion games that ends at 1 a.m.

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HOTTIMES: All Wonder coaches say the team is way ahead of where it usually is thanks to two four-day mini-camps, but Massey was a hard man to please on Wednesday.

“The effort’s not bad, but the kids have got to get tougher,” he said. “We’ve had four fall out today, because they’re just not in shape yet.”

The heat was a factor on a weird day in which the Wonders got wet from hard rain at times, then melted at other times, as the sun returned.

“This is really the first day it’s been hot and it’s also the first day we’ve been in equipment,” said Massey. “You can tell it. There’s been a lot of mental mistakes. We’ll get there, but we’ve got a long way to go.”

NEWWORDORDER:Massey has brought in colorful new terminologies that not only the players, but the holdover coaches, have to learn. Touring a Wonder practice, you’ll hear strange calls like “Peter Pan,” “Rooster,” “Ranger” and “Snake.”

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SINGALONGWITHRON: Massey is intense at practice from his Virginia Tech cap right down to his toes, but there is also comic relief. Each day, one class is expected to sing a ditty of their choice.

Wednesday, it’s the freshmen’s turn. On cue, they break into a stirring rendition of “My Girl” as an amused Massey gyrates like one of Gladys Knight’s Pips and linebacker coach Scott Rodgers offers an enthusiastic thumbs up. But the Temptations don’t have anything to worry about. Hands are covering the ears of groaning seniors, juniors and sophs even before the freshmen can belt out “I’ve got sunshine on a cloudy day.”

The scary thing: “So far, the freshmen have been the best,” says running back coach Glenn Cook, between belly laughs.

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NODOUBLEDUTY:Wonders can expect two hours of practice daily at one position this year rather than splitting time on offense and defense. Massey believes in two-platooning.

The most likely exceptions to that rule are veterans Lee Basinger, Duran Lipscomb and Jason Brown, who may see spot duty on both sides of the ball.

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WHERE’DTHEYGO? You have to feel a little sorry for Wonder inside backers coach Jeremy Ryan. Three of his top guys from last year are back, but all have changed positions.

Josh Lee has become a full-time quarterback. Brown has moved to safety and muscular Prince McCoy, a dead ringer for former star Paul Allen, has shifted to the defensive line, after pushing his extraordinary bench press to the 400 range.

“The new guys I’ve got now are going 100 miles an hour and giving me 100 percent,” said Ryan. “But they just don’t know nothing yet.”

But Ryan is far from discouraged.

“Hey, it’s Kannapolis,” he said. “That means you’ve got the best kids to work with.”

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NOENDINSIGHT:And those Kannapolis kids keep coming.

Like kid fullback Rock Johnson. Johnson drew the biggest cheers of the day from a crowd of 60 or so onlookers when he pancaked a defender on a carry. And Johnson’s just a jayvee — at least for now.

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NAMETOREMEMBER:The Wonders still have running back Eric Caldwell, who had some tremendous games last season, but remember the name Chris Carter. He’s a junior back who is likely the fastest guy on the squad. Carter should give the Wonders a dynamic 1-2 punch to rival last year’s Caldwell-Marcello Stanback combination.