Leaderboard

Good read here! Appo fan and dad of two boys on the team. Want to take a second to shout out a thanks for all the support thrown Appomattox's way. The program has flourished over the past three-four years under Coach Smith. What a great Richalnds team we played in 15 and the Union and Richlands teams of 16 were good too. That Raiders team of 16 was jjsut something special. One the likes Union knows from back in their split days. LOTS of respect up here for both of those programs! You don't make the deep run they both have without good athletes, feeder programs, and coaching. Also thanks for the respect given to Coach Smith. Not in the matter of what he has done football wise for Appomattox but for what he has done "character" wise for the young men in Appomattox. He goes so far beyond being a football coach to these boys! I feel very blessed to have him coaching my boys and experiencing the love of Christ he exudes. Don't think we are all the "axis powers" over here. :) GO RAIDERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

http://www.thecoalfieldprogress.com/coalfield_progress/sports/central-s-dalton-mullins-wins-wendy-s-virginia-heisman/article_a435690c-d46b-11e7-8250-a7d965f7b588.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=user-share

Lighten up. I'm sorry to hear about the kid that got injured, and hope him the best, but on this board we all joke and jab at each other, and as a Richlands fan I have heard about anything you can hear about recruiting, but when our team is out, we pull for the team from our area that is still playing, even if it is the team that just beat ours, whose fans may have posted about recruiting. IMO if you are coming to this board, bring a tough skin, take everything lightly, be a good sport, and know that if Appo wins over Union, we will be pulling for them in the State final. That's just the way it works, no need to get all huffy and out of shape about it, just learn to enjoy the atmosphere. A Richlands Fan that says GO BEARS!!!!!

APPOMATTOX has seen more than it fair share of heartbreak in the last few years loosing its young people to accidents and death at every turn, last year in the early morning hours on game day they lost a beloved teammate on the baseball team to a car accident but they still played on and beat UNION .within just a few hours the UNION family lost the mother of one of our cheerleaders JANINIA JEFFERSON (JONES)to a murder by ERIC MONROE JONES(WHO IS STILL ON THE RUN).APPOMATTOX WAS CONTACTED AND ASKED TO PRAY FOR THE FAMILY, THEY DID, AND ALSO LOWERED THE FLAG TO HALF MASS AT THEIR NEXT HOME GAME.This shows the true heart of the real football families from APPOMATTOX and it speaks of real class of the fine people that the football team represent.They also carry the PO1 slogan on their backs into every game and have their prayer circle before each home game, so regaurdless of the score they are winners,they have inspired me and even though I am pulling for the BEARS , I already know these young men on both sides will make us proud

Great show, Ryan. Good luck to Brady on the LSAT.

You gotta learn to take a joke lil buddy. I don't honestly believe you recruited a kicker out of a private school but you yourself have accused Richlands of recruiting so I had to get a jab in. Also.. why would anyone get a memo about your kicker?

Too bad Gate City isn't in this tourny... I'd love to see Mac dunk over a full-size China Cabinet or maybe a stacked up Living Room suit.

This article proves that Union is more than just James. I guess it must me hard to on an island thinking that Union only has 1 good player when literally everybody else knows that Union has a monster backfield made up of different young men who can and has made more plays than Mitchell. Prime example, Marion game. Union put up 49 points in which 0 were scored by Mitchell. Im proud as can be of James. Not many young men would have been willing to sacrifice their position just to help the team. James not only sacrificed being a fulltime wide out/tight end to be a playmaker in the backfield, but he done it knowing that it could hurt his recruiting. Don't get me wrong, James is still going D1 at a wide out/Tight end, but he was not able to pad those position specific stats this season due to injury. Instead, James stepped up as a team player and has lead the Bears to an undefeated number 1 seed team that every single coach that has faced them fears. No couch out there that has stepped on the turf against Union would say that the Bears are a one man show that can't win without that one man. IMO, Owens is by far a better back than James. Qualls is right there at James' level on as a defensive back. and Zirkel is tougher than James between the tackles. With that said, James has the magic touch that makes him special. Hes not the fastest. He cant jump the highest. Hes not the shiftiest. Hes not the strongest. But he is head and shoulders above most because he embodies all of these attributes at a high level. Those that can out jump him may not be able to catch as good as him, or may not be as strong as him. Those who are stronger may not be able to out run him or be as football smart as him. those who are better in coverage on defense may not be able to out jump him or out catch him. James brings a high level, maybe not the highest but high level of everything it takes to be a good ball player. Now you combine James' high level of everything mixed with the other young men's high level in specific areas and you have an offense that cant be stopped. James makes the other player better. He brings competitiveness and drive that all the other players feed off of. You can hate on the bears all you want but I promise you that both Big Stone Gap and Appalachia are proud as can be of James and the Bears. Not many small towns like we have in our area can boast like region d on the number of athletes we have sent on to the next level. Not many 2A schools can brag about the athletes they have like region d can. We have put people in the pros out of 700 student schools multiple times and placed numerous young men and women into college level sports. Im proud to say that these old dirty abandoned forgotten coalfield towns can make some of the best well rounded athletes in Virginia.

SATs have historically been in the mornings of the first weekend in December as far back as I can remember. Good on Galax scheduling around them, and shame to the parents causing disturbance over it.

When you've seen as many state championship caliber teams as we have seen in the Martinsville and Henry Co area you pretty much know what teams have it and which ones don't. Mhsalum and I will not blindly say the Dogs are great when they're not. This year's team has talent but they have some shortcomings also. This team will be a work in progress all year, hopefully they will get better and peak at the right time. Tough schedule will show the weak spots to be corrected. EH, don't get caught up in Ants post on the other board, he's a great fan, always at the games, just a little over zealous at times. Good luck to all the swva teams this year.

Just talked to Unions AD Mr. Goforth and asked him about the Giles train horn he said if they want to bring it. Tell then to come on with it. Just had to be on Unions side he will be getting Lee Highs train horn as well all we need now is the 1 from Gate City.

I tell ya what I would like to see for 2A. Each region has a nice field that can be played on so why don't we rotate every 4 years? Region D could use UVA Wise, C could keep Salem if they so choose to, Im sure one of the colleges in A and B would rent out there fields for VHSL playoffs. Either that or go back to power points host all the way through.

Seems odd that the VHSL would have made this change.

Counting me, there is 4 of us now lol

Good to have ya on here with us! Im glad you're enjoying what you've read so far. I personally want to say this, Yall have built a very nice program in a short time and that is awesome. I know the feeling of being the program that others are gunning for. Its an amazing feeling. As for Saturday, Bullitt Park will be an experience yall should never forget. Its a loud and proud place full of supportive people that truly love and care for the young men on the field. We hold so much community spirit and pride but are respectful and hospitable. Hope to see ya at Bullitt Park Saturday!

Welcome to the sight and hope you have a safe trip to SWVA. It's going to be a great atmosphere at Bullit Park and I think you'll find the majority of the Union fans very respectful. We are thankful that you guys have such a great coach with that Christ like attitude that so many of our youth never see, and we wish all your players a safe game, should be a barn burner. This is going to be a game the players will remember a lifetime.

I pull for every single Region D team except J I Burton. Well I guess I can pull for Burton but I would have to really think about it first. Im kidding, to me and what I gather about most of southwest Virginia, we pull for our young men no matter what team it is. As long as the forgotten about coal fields are represented that team will have my support.

I'm even pulling for Bluefield, WV to win the WV state title Friday night! Go Beavers!!!

Coach Smith is a class act no doubt. I have nothing but respect for him and the Appo community for how they handled the tragedies.

Was just gonna point out the Union game is at 3 Ryan. I know you said 2 the first time and I'm not sure if you said 3 before the podcast ended. Either way, didn't want any confusion.

I didn't get the email newsletter that said you guys started recruiting from private schools ?

I hope we stay out of the T unless absolutely necessary. I feel like Unions better off with Mitchell touching the ball every snap and using the motions to slow down the defense.

I don't think too many on the board have stated that Appo is an easy out, and I can tell you that all Richlands fans respect the heck out of Appo and their program, but I for one think that the ""BEARS"" have a good formula for beating Appo. Yes, we are all pulling for Union, or SWVA remaining team, but we're not saying its going to be a cake walk. We know it will be a big task to take Appo down, but we also know how determined Union is and feel that this is their year, that's why we're still posting on this board even after our team is out, to support our end of the State. GO BEARS!!!!!

Unfortunately, records don't transfer when schools consolidate. So currently.........Yep

Galax is getting some push-back for scheduling this game around SAT's. Some people have such a lack of perspective, it's both confusing and infuriating. Not one kid in this game is likely to ever make a dime from playing the game of football. Every single kid in this game can benefit from a quality education.

I think this question has been answered in other threads, but the gist of it is the almighty dollar, casinos and boobs. Lol

Taymon looked pretty fast when he had to run down 17 on that real long run ?

I just found out that if Union wins they will play at Salem. If Appomattox wins, they will play at William and Mary to help with travel cost. If Staunton River beats Heritage, they will play at Salem on Friday night. I find this kind of strange.