Battle of unbeatens a family matter for Coghlin, Toland

Updated: September 22, 2011 7:48PM

Bruce Green has a long history of moving around the football field, dating to his days as an all-state tight end at Bloom in 1961.

But Friday at Lincoln-Way East, he might pile up a career-high yardage total. Not that the 67-year-old plans on taking the field when the No. 1 Griffins meet No. 9 Sandburg in a battle of SouthWest Suburban Blue unbeatens.

“I’ll be on both sides,” he said. “One grandstand in the first half, the other one in the second half.”

Why?

“My son is playing my grandson.”

Yes, you read that correctly. When they married in 2000, Green adopted his second wife’s children, among them Ryan Coghlin. Coghlin is a junior linebacker at Sandburg.

Meanwhile, Green’s grandson, Frank Toland Jr., is a senior right guard at Lincoln-Way East.

“Ryan will line up right over him,” Green said.

And Green will straddle the line.

“I’m rooting for both teams,” he said. “I hope it’s a tie. I’ll be wearing a Sandburg sweatshirt and a Lincoln-Way hat.”

Smaller, at 6 feet, 190 pounds, and younger than his nephew, who goes 6-3 and 265, Ryan might have a tough time against Frank. And everybody has had a tough time with East, which has won its four games by an average of 43-14.

Of course, Sandburg has been pretty good, too, winning by an average of 30-17.

Perhaps that’s why the smack talk has been kept to a minimum.

“They’re leaving each other alone,” said Green, who played collegiately at Midland (Neb.) before becoming a 12th-round draft pick of the Bears in 1967.

And grandpa is doing the same.

“I just told them I want a picture with them on the field,” he said. “After the game.”

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