tornado99

I think this is a fair point. Baseball is certainly favored in this area per tradition and some personal preferences, but I certainly concede that soccer skills and conditioning are certainly more transferable to not only football, but other areas of health and every day life. Just my opinion, but I think my RB and WRs benefit from the sprints and cutting while playing soccer more than running the bases 3-4 times per game and/or tracking down a handful of fly balls in the outfield.

I think a deterrent in some places are the facilities. The turf fields are designed for multiple sports. Richlands and Honaker for example play soccer on the football fields. Scheduling both during the same season would be a nightmare. Assuming soccer is relegated to a different location, the costs rise again to maintain the field in a separate location. It’s not impossible, but certainly the money is a factor when making those decisions.

Call me sentimental, but I miss the grass field. Now, I wouldn’t want to be responsible for upkeep, but I wholeheartedly believe that natural grass results in fewer injuries. I occasionally miss the dealing with the elements when a team that relies on power suddenly has an advantage when it comes to rain, snow, and mud.

This sums it up nicely and gives my post greater context. Sometimes, timing is everything. No matter the past, reclassification is huge. Look no further than Riverheads. They are still successful with similar enrollments, but are unlikely to dominate as they did in Class 1/1A.The state finals appearance last season was something to be proud of, but not a foregone conclusion of a title as it became in 1A. Princeton SHOULD compete annually, especially not facing juggernauts such as Martinsburg.

I don’t know the specifics, but reclassification really makes Princeton an attractive destination. Now, it becomes significantly easier to win a state title at Princeton than even Graham. Under the new realignment, Princeton becomes the 5th largest of 30 schools to compete for a state title. Graham is one of the smallest schools out of nearly 50 to win a title in Virginia. Graham has likely benefited from their neighbors’ misfortunes, partly due to Princeton’s enrollment and lack of success. Princeton has recently enjoyed an impressive record in recent years, but just couldn’t overcome much larger schools. Now, Princeton is sort of a big fish in a small pond now with some good talent to draw in the greater Mercer/McDowell/Tazewell County areas. See the Honaker location in another thread for a good comparison. Richlands and Lebanon misfortune (both record and Lebanon’s move up in classification) helps contribute to this other group of Tigers success in Class 1.

I think most in that age range are more wary of the required time commitment, combined with unrealistic expectations, and lack of security nowadays. If you want to raise a family, it’s much tougher now than in yesteryear. The stress and sacrifices are much greater with little increase in pay.

I agree. That’s a great example of how things have changed. I guess a more appropriate response would be, they didn’t have to for a variety of reasons. It’s now a year-round commitment where job security is more closely related to results. Generally, unless results were terrible, you could retire from those positions. Now, the individual athlete has more power than authority and the collective. A scenario that seems to compromise both sides of the fence is creating all-star teams.

These are great examples on how things and people have changed. My best guess to this would be “depends upon how good” and “yes”. I don’t believe they would have caved as easily, but primarily because they were mostly good coaches in good situations. There may be an outlier or two, but for the most part, I believe they generally had the talent already there on successful teams. For example, if I already have a Thomas and/or Julius Jones on winning teams, I don’t have to work too hard to keep them or add talent. The coaches deserve credit for building the successful programs, though. I do believe they were already sought out for their success. Willis White had a reputation for getting the best talent in the Roanoke area, not simply what was within the Salem city limits. Just my two cents, based on an incomplete perception.

There are too many points on both sides that are hard to address. “Daddy ball” and travel sports can be both good and bad for all the reasons listed. With an excellent daddy-coach that cares about the team, the ceiling becomes close to the genetic limit. As one poster pointed out the population loss plus the need or want to specialize is a killer for the sport not chosen by the individual or school. The three-sport athlete is an endangered species. Success is no longer limited to athleticism or hard work, but how you focus that hard work. So now, we simply play sports to win a championship or earn a scholarship. The love of the game and lessons learned as a byproduct have been supplanted by winning at all costs. I’m not saying this is right or wrong, it just is. We transfer, holdback, and spend more time and money for those ends than in the past for one or two sports. In most schools the dominant sport eats up the others for those goals. Let’s use Lebanon for example. It is a “baseball” school. But sheer numbers of players should rightfully dictate greater support and attendance for football and basketball. Instead, we shouldn’t only play and support baseball because that is our best chance to win. Gate City has become a “basketball” school some because of the Mac influence, but how many players have given up playing football for the limited time they are able to play it in life to focus on basketball? This isn’t an indictment on people’s choices. Just pointing out how that population loss and pressure to commit early has made us sell out in some sports and neglect others.

Are there any updates on staff approvals?

I remember he played for them, and maybe Duck Riley?

This reminds me of the Northfork, WV dynamic in WV before consolidation with their basketball dynasty. They even had a football state title during that era.

Spot on. I agree in that it takes both coaching and talent. That’s why it’s so difficult to separate the two, even in football. Softball is definitely the sport where you can ride a talented pitcher all the way to a title, but a lot still must go right. It’s likely more common the most successful teams are the most talented and not just well coached. That’s why I have such a hard time as an outsider judging how good of a coach many of the local legends are comparatively. Many are probably good program builders or managers that generate excitement and support. I think many are simply at a point to “not mess it up.” As far as coaching is concerned for reference, I believe that the Mance staff’s best coaching jobs were probably 2008 or the River Michael’s/Zeke Vance led teams. They certainly were not as talented as the state title or runner up teams, but probably maximized the talent available. I believe Ronnie Davis was present on both staffs.

I think that’s because it started with speculation of who the head coach will be, and now that it’s decided, the speculation is about staff since Ronnie Davis is a done deal. I think earlier, I touted on his experience and knowledge sharing with his peers at both Richlands and Graham are certainly assets. He’s had success as a softball coach in the past, and while blessed with talent, a state title is still very difficult. I believe he is eager and kids will like him and respect him. I’m confident he knows his stuff, but not being in his position group very early, I can’t vouch specifically. He really wanted this job, and I believe he certainly gives it his all.

The post that started this (Saban) was certainly an old-school coach who has had to adapt to doing things new ways for a new generation to continue success. In the NFL, Belichick could not adapt to life after Tom Brady and new ways of doing things, but it would be tough to argue against the man really knowing defense. For the current crop of high school coaches, how have they had to adapt from the prior group of legacy coaches? In my suggestions for comparison, Carlock vs Palmer, Travis Turner vs Tom Turner/Phil Robbins, etc. I imagine the old formula of the past no longer works without tweaks in the absence of amazing talent.