Bearcat Dad

I have been. Have put them in my top 10 the last 2 weeks. They are very capable of winning 7 games and climbing into the 4 seed for the playoffs. I'm giving home field advantage being the difference in this one. It will be a good game between 2 good football teams. JSB 34 RV 24

The Bearcats got just the dogfight out of Abingdon they needed before heading to Graham. This is the first time since 2002 that VHS has started 5-1. The Cats are enjoying being questioned/doubted by most on a weekly basis. With that said, this will be, without a doubt, the Cats' toughest opponent of the regular season to date. I may be thinking with my heart, instead of my head, but I believe VHS pulls the upset for the 2nd week in a row in a very physical, close game. VHS 24 Graham 21

Just like I expected, a hard fought game that was close at the end. Hats off to Abingdon, they are very one dimensional on Offense, but that one dimension is very solid! If they are able to develop any kind of passing game, their offense would be extremely tough to defend. Bearcats hurt themselves with offensive penalties all night long, but got the drives when they needed them. Good luck the rest of the way, Falcons!

Is it 2 billion or 2 million? I see billion on my screen. Either way, even in the negative, it's pretty impressive! Lol

This Fall marks the first ever season where VHS has their own "Bearcat Radio" where their FB games are broadcast live, and every Wednesday, they have "Bearcat Sports Chat" at Buffalo Wild Wings at The Falls. The Play-by-Play announcer is the "Voice of the BriBucs" for the radio broadcasts of the Bristol Pirates. He is a student at E&H and he is very thorough in his statistical research and radio calls. I borrowed this from his Twitter.

Heather has gotten better since she arrived. That is pretty bad about the Star, though! Lol Hopefully this game will live up to what I think it will be. Hard fought, and close at the end. Here are some numbers about the last 18 games in this rivalry. Abingdon has won 3 in row....

Good deal! If you're sitting on the visitor side, look for the guy shaped like a D-Tackle, with a very long Salt and Peppered beard, with a Bearcat Bucket hat, sitting up top around the 50 yd line. Come on over and say hello. I'd like to hear more about the Pack, than what little I can get with our local media.

Galax Giles Floyd JSB Marion Union Grayson Graham Richlands Rural Retreat Narrows Grundy JI Burton East Ridge Hancock Patrick Henry NC State VT Duke TCU Miami Michigan NY Jets Tennessee NY Giants Green Bay Houston VHS - 58

I agree that it's a little closer in 2A. As one of the few teams last year, who had to play both Appomattox and Richlands, I got to see that no one in either region was close to Appo. Appo has taken about a 1/4 step back this year, but are still the kings of the mountaintop until someone else changes that. From what I'm hearing, both Goochland and Poquoson are better this year and could possibly give Appo fits come playoff time. As far as comparing them to the West, it's gonna take some very special play from the big boys upfront, to compete with those schools from the East. I've seen Union's lines play. They are stellar(especially defensively). I see Graham's in 2 Fridays, and I won't get to see Giles' unless it's in the playoffs. I will see Richlands', come week 11, but do they have the Skill Players to compete with the East's big dogs, even if their lines are keeping them in the game? I can't answer that one yet. As far as 1A goes, I'm in complete agreement. I've heard/read about Riverheads. They seem to have a very impressive program at the moment.

I agree with you, I was just kidding around. The power schools in 1A and 2A have come from the East recently, for sure.?

The safest bet of all time is that JSB and Ridgeview won't sniff the 1A State Title game ?

After seeing Chilhowie, it wouldn't be crazy to consider them as well. They're a pretty tough 1A team. They lost by a combined 8 points to Marion and GW. From what I can tell, they are on par with GW. They had GW down 14-0 at one point and GW had to block a game tying FG at the end to escape with the win. Their blowout loss to VHS came only when the Bearcats' offense finally woke up at the end of the 3rd, and looked like normal thru the 4th.

1. Union 2. Bluefield 3. Graham 4. Giles 5. Abingdon 6. Marion 7. Richlands 8. VHS 9. Ridgeview 10. JSB

I will put my 2 cents in on this WITHOUT my Orange and Black glasses, as best I can. If you search my post history, I've stayed VERY consistent with my analysis of the Bearcats, dating back to the first "Top 10 poll" when I explained why I put VHS at number 10. I know these kids very well, and there's nothing I would post here that I wouldn't say to them, their families, or the coaches for that matter. They would all tell you the same about me. If I think a kid can't cut it, I say it. If I think a kid has potential, I say it, regardless of team. Right now, VHS has the potential to be legit. They have a number of things the VHS football teams don't generally have. I can speak on this, as I have nearly a 30 year relationship with this program, as a fan, a former player, and now a father to 2 Bearcats. They have size, speed, athleticism, and depth. They have experience and at least on the field, they have a very tight brotherhood. They have contributors from their Sophomore thru Senior classes, but have a very talented Junior class. #s 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 10, 14, 16, 21, and 28 have been their top non-linemen so far this year. The lines are deep on both sides of the ball. Their offense scores a lot with a first year QB who is getting better every game, a RB by committee who all bring something different to the table, and a very deep WR core. Their defense has lot of speed that has; been responsible for Tazewell's only shutout, been the last team to keep (my dark horse) JSB under 50 pts scored, shutdown one of the top 1A offenses in the region, and held a full-strength Wise Central to 14 pts, and they have a ton of room to grow. Oneof the secrets to their success so far, has been their stellar Special Teams play. They have multiple returns for scores, multiple blocked FGs, EPs, and Punts. The two biggest knocks on VHS is that they are a highly penalized team and their schedule is much tougher in the second half of the season, than it has been so far. Time will truly tell where they are. To me, the biggest reason for their potential turn-around has been stability at the coaching position. Wanna know a big reason why VHS is a contender year-in and year-out in baseball? 2 head coaches in the last 4 decades. VHS has had a revolving door at FB coach, for the most part, for the last 3 decades. Coach Crist has done a great job of getting kids to buy in to his program. He has coached higher level high school FB in VA, coming from Amherst. His dad is one of the winningest high school FB coaches in the history of the state. He has football in his blood. He also gets the kids involved in a great weightlifting program, and we are starting to see the results. I don't believe that they are the most complete team or the "top team" in the region, but I also believe that they are capable of beating anyone in the region, if they're playing their best ball. That is NEVER said about a VHS FB team. They could finish 9-1, or they could finish 5-5. I believe it's in between those at 7-3 or 8-2.

It's definitely a clash of different offensive styles. When both teams execute in a game like this, they are generally fun to watch. Good luck to the Falcons.

I've been saying it since my post on the Benefit Game. The defensive front 7 is the key to Union's success. Of course Mitchell is important in all 3 phases, but their D's front 7 is what will decide how far they go this year. I know that their offense has run the ball extremely well, but from what I can tell, their D is so dominate, the O has a plethora of opportunities. If the BHC was correct, Union had 62 carries last night! That's a crazy high number, that was possible mainly because of the performance of their D. This game may be close for a quarter. No disrespect to Lee, but Union is on an impressive roll right now. Union 49 Lee 7

I'm guessing Battle hits 50 again. They are my sleeper pick to surprise some people come playoff time. I put them in my top 10 earlier this week.

It seems that the Dawgs have improved a ton, since I got to see them. That's great. I can always respect a team who progresses and never gives up, especially one as young as the Dawgs are. Congrats!

Come on over and take a hike up the big hill on the visitor side. I have some extra orange and black shirts, if you're interested ?

An intense rivalry between two baseball schools, spills over to the gridiron for one of SWVA's marquee matchups in week 7. I expect a hard fought game, with a ton of yards. I feel that the Cats are a tad bit forgotten by most in the area, which may be warranted with the fact that they still have the toughest part of their schedule still in front of them. I'm feeling that the Cats pull the upset in a back and forth game. VHS - 31 Abingdon - 27 Thoughts?

VHS hosts Marion on the 27th on Senior Night. Should be a heck of a game. They will have a couple of tough ones before Marion, though. @ Abingdon and @ Graham over the next two weeks.

Congrats on a great win, Bears!

Tonight was definitely the Bearcats' sloppiest game of the year. Came out flat after the bye. Had to be around 100 yards in penalties, two of which negated TDs. They muffed a punt and lost another fumble on top of the muff. With that said, I'll take a 3 score win, in their sloppiest game of the year, against one of the tougher local 1A teams.

1. Union 2. Bluefield 3. Graham 4. Giles 5. Abingdon 6. Richlands 7. Marion 8. VHS 9. Ridgeview 10. John Battle