Marion wasn’t supposed to be here John Battle is. The pressure is 100% on Battle if they are looking ahead at all it could be a dog fight. I’m not saying they are but that is why you play the game
Marion played a hell of a game yesterday! And made the state tournament for the first time in who knows how long! Now I think they can play loose because they weren’t supposed to be here. All the pressure is on Battle
Can someone please explain to me how Twin Valley at 0-16 made the region tournament?! There are 17 teams in 1D how a team that hasn’t won a game in baseball basketball or football makes the region tournament! I do disagree that there are to many teams in the tournament it’s the same as every other sport I’m okay with that
Is Chilhowie going to be any good this year? They were winless last year
They got to be improved right? I know they return a lot. They are really high on the young QB they have he has a pretty good arm but had 18 INTS last year. New coach but I would say the old coach will have a lot of input as to what they do. As far as the first game of the year, it is at Chilhowie so that usually gives them an advantage but I think Marion is much better up front but that’s just based on last year and Marion didn’t graduate much in the trenches
That kid is pretty good. He has the ability to make people miss in space is better than anyone playing class 2 ball in SWVA IMO. I am sure Graham people will throw Clements out there and he is probably a close second. He made quite a few contested catches as well.
Then I saw his rushing highlights and wow. He hits the hole fast and you are not catching him once he gets to the second level.
Put this kid on any roster in the coverage area and they become region contenders. The fact that he makes plays receiving rushing and returning kicks makes him a lot to deal with
Difference is Chilhowie had a young man that was heir apparent. I do think it was wrong if I heard correctly about bringing couple people in without a teaching job and wasting their time. money and effort. Especially that the experience level and success.
What does Auburn's guy bring to the table? I wonder if they just interviewed local coaches not to repeat what CHilhowie did?
I agree 100% I heard Chilhowie interviewed 10 people which is a massive waste of time if they didnt have a teaching job or if they just going to give it to a candidate based on his last name. Time will tell if the good ole boy system pays off or if they set their program back 5 years.
With that being said I do not know what Auburns situation is but if I were looking for a head coach I will looking for either someone who loves Auburn and is going to bust their tail to get that program back on its feet OR a coach that has a proven track record of starting/building a program from the ground up
I agree 11 vs 11 might be a good match up for a half. All I am saying is once you get to the second half and Unions 11 has played 60 snaps and Science Hills 11 has played 30 (and it may be less than that if they are subbing) it makes a huge difference. Good job to Union for challenging themselves with a tough test but I wouldnt go into it expecting a win
As far as i can tell, they only interviewed one day. 6 interviews held last tuesday. That's pretty poor if 19 applied. From what I'm hearing, they had their guy all along, and just went through whatever procedure needed to be followed. If I were in charge of the procedure, given the state of the football program, I'd of interviewed all 19, to see who had what to bring to the advancement of the program.
Sounds a lot like the Chilhowie job. They know who was getting that job well before Robinson stepped down. They just interviewed to act like there was no nepotism involved
I’m looking forward to Science Hill at Big Stone. That’s a game I’d definitely go watch. I’ve always wondered how M7 top teams could fare against some of the Tri-Cities schools.
I hate to say it but even if Science Hill is just way down I dont see this game being close at all just off of pure numbers. Science Hill has 2,424 students compared to Unions 697. They are for sure playing one side of the ball and probably are 2 deep on both sides with no crossover. Even if Union could 2 platoon they would have zero depth. Union is going to be worn down by the end of the game even if they can keep it close in the first half. I will say this though play Science Hill will help them prepare better than playing some of the smaller class 1 schools they have in the past. You just have to have the right expectations going into a game like this.
Gate City and Daniel Boone had that home and home a few years ago and the average score was 42-7 and Boone is half the size of Science Hill
If Richlands hasn't improved a lot over last year, this will be a brutal schedule. Hope they have something for these teams, but it's going to be tough to have a winning season with this schedule. Big Blue fans might as well get ready for a long season, IMO, still love the Blues, just being realistic.
With Brown gone they are going to have to find Offense from somewhere. I did see a guy on the field last year that could make something happen anytime he touched the ball. Their JV squad seemed to be dead set on throwing the ball around the field like Tazewell does but they didnt have near the athletes or the QB to be successful that way. I am a big believer in the spread and it hurts me to say this but unless Richlands has a dude that can make something happen in space that they had squirreled away in the corner last season they may want to go to a ground and pound milk the clock offense
Just out of curiosity I went back and looked at all the current coaches in 2D to see how long they have been there. The average time at their current school is just under 4 years out of those 13 coaches (that includes Lebanon because they are coming back to 2D. Turner at Union has the most years at 12 followed by Palmer with 8 and Harris with 6. 7 out of that 13 have yet to see a class all the way through yet from freshman to seniors. Amburgy (Abingdon), Houseright (Gate City), and Ricker (John Battle) just now completed their 4th year. Since coaches do not get fired for poor performance on field in this area I really do not see anything in 2D coming open anytime soon.
I just watched some of his film. Good grief man. Kid is explosive. I'm surprised there wasn't more talk of him throughout the past year. I know Marion has struggled, but this kid seems to just make nearly every tackle for Marion, and he often does it against 2 blockers. He's a stud for sure.
He is a stud however it’s hard to get recruited when your team wins 3 games your first 3 years of high school. I’m glad he is going to have a shot to play to play big college football. He is a great kid and works hard he deserves every bit of it
He is a DE/TE. Air Force also runs the flex bone so I could see him being on the offensive side of the ball if he cant put the weight on to play DE at that level
Lebanon is hungry this season, and that makes them scary. The end of last season left them with a bad taste in their mouths. They knew they dropped the ball. They could be the best team in 1A this season. They definitely are going to contend for a state title.
Lebanon is a baseball factory and seems like they havnt missed beat without Doc leading the way. Should compete for the 2D crown next year as well
Richlands is way down this year I am not sure of there record but they did lose to Graham last night who has been a bottom feeder in the SWD for a while
Lebanon is still as dominant as they have been in recent years even with the coaching change. Should be the 1D favorite at this point in the season.
Tazewell is undefeated against WV teams but lost to Lebanon. Good news for them they may repeat as Coppenger tournament champs but does not do them much good as far as the district in concerned
Chilhowie is the most hot and cold team in the area IMO. They beat Richlands, Grayson, and came back from 5 runs down to beat Union. They have also given up a total of 39 runs in their losses this season. The only class one team they have played is Grayson and Chilhowie won the Region last year after a similar start. My prediction is they will square off with Lebanon again for the region title and make it to the state playoffs again
VA High has had a rough start to the season but picked up their first win last night against Radford. Just like Chilhowie though they schedule tough to start the season and will most likely be in the mix when May comes around. I havnt seen Brody Jones' name in the paper so I am assuming he decided not to play which is a big blow to their post season hopes but VA high is still VA high. I am going to have to see them not win the district to believe it.
Marion has had an interesting start to the season. The first two games were lack luster performances to say the least losing the Fort Chiswell and Rural Retreat. They have seemed to find their line up the past 3 games though beating the other Smyth County teams a combined 40-13 with another game against northwood to play. They are treading in the right direction right now as long as they can keep improving it will be interesting come district time. Tazewell Marion and VA high should have a pretty good battle to see who comes out on top
It depends on who you ask. For one of the lowest paying school systems in the state to be paying two coaches in excess of $80k per year, it's driven a wedge in the community. I'm not sure how sustainable it's going to be long-term. The Grayson school system already has one of the highest rates of turnover in Virginia. This can't be helping solve that problem.
You beat me to it. I was going to say the know because they are paying for it. I dont know how much they are pay Doss but I knew James is make admin pay to run the weight room and coach football which is a nice deal if you can get it
I know some guys around the golf course in Riner. I'm not sure that community will ever be fully on-board with what it takes to develop a winning football program. They have been dominant in Class 1 across the region and state in everything but football. Those kids participate year-round in track, cross country, volleyball, baseball, softball, basketball, soccer, swim, tennis, and golf. Not a lot left for football.
When I say dominant, VHSL Book Of Records shows 91 state championships in various sports (team and individual) since 2012!!!
That is impressive!! IMO its hard to attract good coaching when football is the #2 sport and even harder when football in #3 (look at Fort Chiswell). But it seems like at Auburn its #8 good luck
I know some guys around the golf course in Riner. I'm not sure that community will ever be fully on-board with what it takes to develop a winning football program. They have been dominant in Class 1 across the region and state in everything but football. Those kids participate year-round in track, cross country, volleyball, baseball, softball, basketball, soccer, swim, tennis, and golf. Not a lot left for football.
When I say dominant, VHSL Book Of Records shows 91 state championships in various sports (team and individual) since 2012!!!
That is impressive!! IMO its hard to attract good coaching when football is the #2 sport and even harder when football in #3 (look at Fort Chiswell). But it seems like at Auburn its #8 good luck
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Region Finals Predictions
in SWVA Baseball & Softball
Posted
Marion wasn’t supposed to be here John Battle is. The pressure is 100% on Battle if they are looking ahead at all it could be a dog fight. I’m not saying they are but that is why you play the game