Real Sasquatch

Only need 11. Tazewell had 21 on the roster a couple of years back and finished with about 15 healthy kids. Suck it up buttercups.

Throwing a freshman in to that situation is a bit much to ask, in my opinion. 10,000-12,000 fans and one of America's top rivalry game is a lot of pressure on a freshman qb. Lester has been there, done that and has nerves of steel, I would go with Lester at qb in that first matchup and have the ball in his hands as much as possible. I guess we will see. It will be interesting to see how things play out. May be that neither one of them is starting qb in that first game.

I agree. Lester should start and Meadows can get plenty of practice throughout the season to try to keep Lester healthy and fresh in contests that may not be close. Lineplay for Graham will be huge in that first game.

I think Graham could win 9 with you (or me-and that would not be a good thing) as the QB. They will have to play awesome and have a little luck to have a chance in that first one, I think. The defense will need to play outstanding in that first one as well, but the defense should be much better than what we saw in that first game against Bluefield last year.

Fixed it for you.

Blevins back to Bluefield is not a surprise, Mullins is a good QB and a smart kid and should handle the position just fine. I think Tazewell would be better off with Mullins at QB and Jordan getting the ball as much as possible. Tazewell probably won't lose a step, there was inconsistency at qb last year with Blevins and Jordan splitting time, it seemed hard for them to get into a rhythm. Hopefully the Bulldogs will find some consistency at qb with Mullins and Jordan can run the wildcat on occasion, he can also pass the ball well. Tazewell has some very talented backs and receivers coming back. Harris, Jordan and Jones will be 3 of the most athletic players in the area. If they have good blocking, that offense could be special this year. I am interested to see how Tazewell does. They are not young anymore, time for them to shine. Blevins is a good fit for the Beavers as well. Will he be the starter? Not sure, but he would fit in to their offense well. I am hearing that Meadows has performed well at Graham during 7 on 7's and he is not your average freshman QB. May be in Graham's best interest if Lester is not the the QB this season. They could put him behind center and use him in the wild-cat or have plays designed just for him at QB some, lots of potential with Meadows stepping up. I don't think Lester would mind, he will get the ball in his hands a LOT this year. Having a very solid backfield will help,Booker, Reed, Turner and Ray can all run the ball. The line will be the big question for Graham. There were rumblings of a very talented football and basketball player (QB) moving to Bluefield, VA from NC. His dad had entertained moving back to the area, I heard, but I don't think his employment search was very successful. That would have been huge for Graham. As for Richlands, I don't know much about either QB or what's happening on that end of the county. I'm sure Mance will have them ready, whoever the QB is.

Where?

Whitney Saunders has been named the new A.D. at Tazewell High School. Great Hire!! Wish her the best.

So. When it was thought that the kid was going to Graham, folks were saying recruitment. It is obvious that this kid has looked at other schools as well. To insinuate they would do something like that is insulting to the hard work and effort they have put into to their program. To say that a kid slipped another kid a coaches phone number at a track meet is either a flat out lie by somebody or somebody is extremely gullible to believe it. Thats just my opinion on that matter. As for Giles players leaving the program? I have only heard of this one kid leaving and I do believe it is just like every other kid that transfers. Somebody (usually a parent)- not saying this is the case here- but somebody close to the kid usually convinces them that they need to be somewhere else to get exposure they need or to have a better chance at a title. That is their decision to make and if they are willing to move their lives around that, it is certainly their prerogative and it doesnt matter what anybodys opinion is except their own. Can we quit insinuating that High School coaches go out and recruit kids?? Whether its Richlands, Graham, Bluefield, Giles or Radford or anybody else, just STOP!! These coaches dont get paid enough to put up with this nonsense!!

I heard the same.

Not sure where you get your information, but I don't see the Graham QB going anywhere. https://appalachiaprepcombine.com/va-2020-wr-champion-devin-lester-talks-first-offer/

They could possibly lose the first one. Graham returns 8 players off of a defense that got tremendously better as the season went along last year. Hopefully will be a better ball game than last season. I would expect it to be.

I asked why they didn't recruit locally a couple of years ago when Lusk took over (direct message). I got a reply from the coaching staff that they were going to ramp up local recruiting. I'm still waiting.

I like Grundy putting the 1st week of the playoffs on the schedule.

Graham had a great season. Not sure many expected them to get this far. Fun team to watch. The seniors will be missed. A lot of young talent coming up through the program. I look forward to watching them again next season. Thanks to all of the coaches and players for the tremendous effort this season.

What time is the game tomorrow?

True. I just remember early on, free throw was ugly. But you are right, it did get better. Tonight just reminded me of the struggles early on. On a side note. I thought that when Meadows was in the game, Battle had a harder time getting to the basket. They certainly weren't afraid to attack the rim.

Worst game I saw Graham play was the 2nd game against Princeton. That was hard to watch. They have been sort of a Jeckyll and Hyde this year.

Graham's free throw shooting has been consistently bad all season. The missed layups is what killed them(10-12 points squandered at least) and playing the 2-3 zone too much. They got beat on the press a couple of times, but when they pressed they forced some turnovers. Problem was they settled in and tried to play a half court game when they should have pressed more and tried to get into transition. Battle came to play and out-hustled Graham all night long. I think Graham seriously under-estimated that team and were not prepared for it. Battle played aggressively and with a sense of urgency, Graham did not. If they play like that again, their season will be over in the next round. If the team that played against PH-Roanoke shows up, they move on. Battle played well however and deserve credit for pushing Graham to their limits.

Akers did a fine job a Rural Retreat. He may do a great job at Fort. GC may not have been the right fit for him. Wrong place, wrong time perhaps? Not sure, he sure did get the blame for all of GC's problems. I guess we shall see if he was a big part of the blame, or just a small part of the overall problem.

Not sure why anybody would use a fake name when signing up.

They are moderators. They know who everybody is on here.

Graham has lost to Bluefield Twice, Princeton Twice , Radford once and Oak Hill Red in double OT. (who they should have beaten, blew a double digit lead in the 4th quarter with poor foul shooting, given that Oak Hill stepped it up a notch in the 4th, however). They played Bluefield close in the first contest. Radford beat them convincingly, so did Bluefield and Princeton the 2nd time around. They had a VERY good road win against PH Roanoke a couple of weeks back in which they put 4 quarters together against a very good team. Meadows is coming along nicely and the G-Men seem to finally be learning Baker's half court sets, they struggled a LOT early in the season trying to run the half court offense. It looks much smoother now. Graham has improved a lot, but not enough to beat Radford, IMO. Region D however, it wouldn't surprise me to see them win the Region or be the runner up.

GC without Ervin, is not that much better than Graham. Should be a good one, if it comes down to it. Couple of teams in the M7 that could knock both of them out, if they have an off night. In the SWD however, it's Graham and then... well, it's just Graham, no offense to the other teams, but none of them have come close to beating Graham this season and after watching all of them play, I don't think any of them can come close to knocking Graham, GC or perhaps any of the M7 teams playing.