THE FRONT ROW with Mark Nelke June 2, 2011

Chad Chalich threw 342 passes last fall in leading the Coeur d'Alene High football team to its first state championship in 25 years.

If that seems like a lot of passes, his arm figures to get a real workout this month.

Chalich, a rising junior, and the state 5A player of the year last fall, plans to spend much of June on the road, showcasing his quarterbacking skills to a number of colleges in the west who are interested in him - and hopefully also be seen by recruiters from schools all over the country.

The tour starts this weekend at a Nike football training camp at Oregon State in Corvallis. A strong showing there could earn him a ticket to the ESPN Rise Elite 11 competition in July in southern California, where coaches from all over are expected to attend.

After the OSU stop, it's off to the Jason Gesser Nike Northwest Elite football camp June 10 in Seattle.

Then there's a trip to the University of Nevada on June 12-13 for the quarterback portion of the Wolf Pack's football camp. After that, it's up to Boise for Boise State's camp on June 15-16.

He's expected to throw at the University of Utah's camp on June 20, and at Washington State the following day. While in Utah, he plans to also stop by Logan and talk to Utah State, which has also shown interest.

Last on his schedule is June 27 at Portland State.

He's also heard from San Diego State, and may try to make a visit there. Due to conflicts with other camps, he'll miss throwing at camps at Idaho and Montana.

None of those schools have offered him a scholarship - yet - though that figures to change as the month rolls on.

All this while Chalich fits in some basketball with the Vikings' summer-league team - they were third at state last year - playing with another rising junior, Deon Watson, a second-team all-state basketball player who is also a standout wide receiver and attracting interest from college football teams.

Chalich passed for 2,844 yards and 32 touchdowns for Coeur d'Alene last fall. Running the Vikings' spread offense, he also rushed for 541 yards and 6 TDs.

Also, Chalich is one of 400 players nominated to play in the 2012 U.S. Army All-American Bowl, a high school all-star football game scheduled for Jan. 7, 2012 in San Antonio, Texas. A total of 90 players will ultimately be selected to play in the game.

CATCHING UP on a few recent coaching comings and goings ...

Dave Stockwell is back coaching a basketball team in Idaho.

The former Post Falls High coach, who spent the last four years as a boys assistant at University High in Spokane, is the new boys basketball coach at Lakeland High.

He replaces Trent Derrick, who resigned after 15 seasons to concentrate on his duties as athletic director - a job he accepted one year ago.

"The committee was very impressed and we believe his experience and knowledge of the game will be a tremendous asset to the basketball program, our school, and community," Derrick said. "He has a track record of working very hard and has proven over the years that he has a great love for the game."

Derrick said there were 20 applicants and three finalists. At the request of the other finalists, he did not disclose their names.

Stockwell coached Post Falls for seven seasons, compiling a 90-85 record. He took two Trojan teams to the state 4A tournament, including a fourth-place finish in 2005. Before that, he coached Lake City's girls for three seasons, going 61-14, including a runner-up finish at state in 1997. He has also been a girls assistant at Coeur d'Alene and Lake City, and a women's basketball assistant at Gonzaga.

Tony Hanna has been hired as boys basketball coach at Timberlake.

He replaces Jim Simpson, the former Cascade High coach, who resigned after four seasons as Timberlake coach.

Post Falls is looking for a new girls soccer coach after Becky Thompson, a former Trojan player, resigned after one season as coach. Post Falls athletic director Craig Christensen said he believed Thompson, a former North Idaho College player and assistant coach, wanted to get back into college coaching.

Post Falls went 6-5-6 in Thompson's lone season as head coach.

Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 664-8176, Ext. 2019, or via e-mail at [email protected].