Leaderboard

I said over on Preps that Richlands didn't look what they "should have" in many fans view, and GC is improved, certainly beyond what I thought they were.

As a Richlands fan, I wasn't upset with the caliber of play by the Blue Tornado. They stuffed the Gate City running game, and both major drives by Gate City were sustained by long passes on 3rd and forever ... passes on which the defensive backs either had position to make a play or the ball just happened to be placed in the perfect spot. Credit should go to the Gate City receivers for making better plays on the ball than the defensive backs. Regarding the offense, they were able to run the ball well and they hit on big passes when they did go over the top. The dedication to run by both teams shortened the clock.

My gut tells me that this game is not added to the list of classic games between these two. I'm thinking Union by 14. Not sure why you Richlands guys are talking about needing to greatly improve your secondary. Against GC I only remember one time where we had a guy get wide open behind the secondary.....we overthrew him. We had a WR make two great catches in the secondary that got us some yardage. Coverage was not bad at all. Heck....you guys had three INTs in the game. Two inside your 10-yard line that may have stopped scores, and one that was returned for a TD. That translates to 30 regular season interceptions with 10 of them being returned for TDs. How many teams would not take that? :)

The worst thing for Graham is playing Tazewell this week. It will give a false sense of security when the QB takes the snap, drops back, gets rattled with the reads, then tucks and runs and unlike Bluefield, when he runs on Tazewell, nobody will be home and it's 6 points because the Tazewell defense will be that bad. Look for the Graham QB to have huge yards on called pass plays and to have a huge game in rushing giving the Graham faithful a false sense of security at QB. The problem for Graham is when they play a defense like Bluefield's, and Richlands and Giles will have a defense in the realm of Bluefields, and this is where the problems occur. The same thing will happen in round 2, and definitely by round 3 of the playoffs. Without a QB change at Graham, there is no way they get past round 3. They literally are no threat to throwing the football and you can not win like that in 2017. The 1980s are long gone, and I hate to say it, but ask Gate City fans. We have had to learn the hard way the past few years, but even with this year, our QB can get the ball 7 yards in the air to a receiver accurately. I have never really seen hardly anything like that at the High School level regarding the QB at Graham's inability to throw the ball what literally seems like is 7 yards. The sad part about that situation is that it's hurting the kid at QB more than the kid who is currently not at QB because the kid currently at QB seems like he may be a D1/FBS type player at flanker or WR, and he is not being played at his best position. The Graham coach should have made the change in the Gate City scrimmage, and definitely by the start of the Bluefield game, and if not that, by the 2nd half of the Bluefield game. <------you can see the pattern here which is why I questioned the decision making of the Graham coach after seeing them in the second half of the Bluefield game.

fans are already at the park.....naaa,but come early friday!!!!!!

Ridgeview at Shelby Valley has been moved up to Thursday night! That means I can be at Bullitt Park Friday night now! Woohoo!

I don't think any Richlands supporters were disrespecting Gate City at all. I sure don't disrespect GC. I don't know anyone who does. The fact that it was game 1, and both teams have work to do doesn't reflect any disrespect in any fashion. I believe it has more to do with the fact that Union is game #2 for Richlands, and for the past few years that game has decided the champion.

All I can do is speak for myself, but when I talked about the upcoming game against Union and /or looked back on the GC game, I mean no disrespect to the GC fans or team, I am simply looking at what my team needs to do to get better to be able beat a team like Union with receivers like they have. Richlands needs to get better at coverage. They are already pretty good against the run, ( of course they can get better at that also it's still VERY early ) and again I mean no disresect to the GC team, but the skill level ( this year ) at WR is not at the level that Union has, and if the Blues expect to beat a team like Union,Graham, Bburg then the coverage has to be better. One blown coverage is a TD against a team like we are about to play and a couple of times the DB's seemed to be a little lost, but it was the 1st game and it will get better. This year the Blues do not have as big a margin for error as some of our teams in the past so I think that is why you see at least some of these comments from us. We have always respected the GC program and have stated it many times on here, but I know how the Devils fans feel when you feel like the other team is not giving your team any respect. But trust me, we do have a lot of respect for your program !

We as fan bases seem to base things on recent history. Richlands the last four plus years has been superior to Gate City in talent so Richlands expectations are higher based on the recent history. I did not see the game but did listen to it on WGTH and Ben was complimentary of the way GC played. This is a message board and games have winners and losers and the winner, as in real life, gets to control the narrative. All that being said Richlands won and I am glad that GC has improved to the point to where the game wasn't just another scrimmage for Richlands before their game with Union. I wish the game was later in the season, but it seems to work out well for both teams. I respect the Richlands fans on here but to come looking for compliments on a message board is naïve, Gate City has to start beating people again and then the compliments or hate will come pouring in.

I doubt there is a younger team in the area. The team, coaches and community need to be patient.

I can picture it now... Ryan, GMan, UVAO and whoever else... with Thomas Jones as the SWVA celebrity picker and UVAO playing the part of Corso and putting on the Union bear head as the show comes to an end... MAKE IT HAPPEN! :D

GW has 10-11 seniors that are very good players, something that EVERY 1A school in the west doesn't have. You have a couple more seniors that I'm not sure about. The other schools in the west don't have those 10-11 seniors. There are some schools that have 14-17 seniors but only 2-3 could compete with those 10-11 you have athletically. Just the way it is. Coaching has to make a difference.

this will be the biggest match-up to begin the month of September. be nice if we had our version of college gameday, "SWVA GAMEDAY'', at Bullitt Park. that being said, im gonna go with Richlands in this contest by a FG. 24-21.

I also didn't see any "trash talk" at the Beaver game. I believe this whole thing about Graham trash talking has been blown way out of proportion. Last year, before they would come out on to the field, they would be in a huddle and would chant a few times "come get some" then they would make their entrance. The only game I thought it got out of hand was the Richlands playoff game. With this being said, I am not a fan of this, but to classify it as trash talk and disrespect, and for it to be made such a big deal to some people blows my mind. This is football, there is going to be "trash talking" and I would bet my bottom dollar if Graham would have been losing last year instead of winning, not a word would have been said about there little pre game chant. No disrespect meant to you stu_bean, but if you are worried about Graham trash talking and being disrespectful, you are in for a surprise when yall play the Beavers this year.

With tropical systems, you never know. Both teams are kind of finesse teams who depend on the passing game, it may be good to see a game slogged out in the muddy confines of Bullitt Park just like the old school PV/Appy games. I have no clue who to pick and I literally flipped a coin and it came up Richlands....So Richlands 30 Union 27.

I really didn't see any trash talking at the graham-beaver game. First one of those games I've watched without a personal foul as well

What I want to see and continue to see every week is for Tazewell to be able to control the line on offense more. Give time to setup the pass instead of the QB running for his life. Defensively Keep things sharp work on QB containment. Also some points score would be nice. Also on another note I would like to see Graham come out and be respectful and limit their trash talking although that may be asking for to much...

2004 was the weakest year in the 23-year history of R4D3. Richlands was still in R4D4 (losing a state semifinal to Salem). Graham was dealing with a rebuilding season post-Bradshaw. Virginia High won the pitiful Highlands District with a 4-6 season. Grundy was the only team in R4D3 that could be considered "above-average" (actually, that Grundy team was stellar, at 9-1). Who comes out of R4D3? A thoroughly mediocre Tazewell team that was the benefactor of one of the biggest screw jobs in VHSL history. Grundy lost the 1st round playoff game to Virginia High 7-0 in OT, despite approximately 47 Grundy TDs being called back for some phantom penalty or other. Tazewell beat Graham in some 17-15 sort of game that set the sport back 40 years, and unbeknownst to the world Glynn Carlock would be dead 9 months later. Not the way he should've gone out. Tazewell took advantage of their gift from God the following week and won to advance to the state semifinals. Tazewell traveled to Gretna to face a team that obviously had their minds set on the following week. Gretna scored 56 in a game where they really let up off the throttle very early. Tazewell did score 28, most of which were points well after the competitive phase of that game had ended. Tazewell's 2008 team was far superior.

That's part or most of what the problem is there now, the boys need some stability and consistency in the program, not looking for new coaches after 1 game. They are young and a new system and small numbers. Whats needed is patience and support ! It may very well be a long season and tough to watch at times, but give them some time and let the coaches do their job. I know you may not want to hear that from a Richlands fan, but I do care about their program and kids because my daughter went to school there and was a cheerleader there back in the early 2000's and I use to go to all of their games back then and still try to keep up with what is going on there, so I would love to see them get the program back to where it once was and should be.

I will have the SWVASPORTS.COM scoreboard up later...hopefully...