PCLR32

Also from Region B, Strasburg 17, Page County 0 The Region A Title Game will be Amelia at Poquoson The Region B Title Game will be Strasburg at Stuarts Draft

From Region B, Draft 45, Buffalo Gap 20

Final score in Region A, Poquoson ends Nottoways season 16-12. Poquoson will now host Amelia for the region title as the 1 and 2 seeds are now out of the playoffs in that region.

I've heard the same. My nephew does travel ball, so I've been able to get out and see some of the local talent and having conversations with many parents. Gate City is setting on a wicked hotbed of talent from 6th grade up in Hoops. They will be a problem for the rest of Region D after next year (Union the heavy favs for next season, 2021-22). Not to change the subject about GC's coach, but speaking of young talent coming up, Giles has plenty of it from 6th grade and up in football. We won't be down for long.

Giles County Spartans. I've heard this one a time or two.

Agree with you, but in order to do that, you have to call running plays instead of pass plays when a situation is kind of a 50/50 down, pass or run. Graham in those 50/50 type run or pass situations often chooses pass over run and that almost cost them big time at Tazewell.

Fritz is a tough kid and solid High School Running back, but when we are talking about Lucas, this is a kid with major D1 offers including 1 BCS school offer. Hard to compete with those credentials.

Bluefield Daily Telegraph Article on Graham vs Union https://www.bdtonline.com/sports/vhsl-spring-football-playoffs-begin-this-weekend/article_7e73eb0e-9686-11eb-b6c8-83fd1c7d15a6.html

Look for Nottoway to represent that region (Region A.) I'm not sure King William would have beat Nottoway regardless of Covid. Do not be surprised if Nottoway plays with Stuarts Draft in the state semi finals game.

150 miles and 3 hours by car. By bus, add another 20 minutes or so.

Kid has a fantastic arm and learning a new offense isn't easy, especially for a first time starter. I wish him all the best and hope he plays at the next level.

Central looks very good to me when watching online. I see the game with the Dogs as a coin flip. I see a game between Graham and Central (if both were to win) as a coin flip. Central is well coached and fundamentally sound.

I think Narrows will play for the state championship this year against Riverheads. I would be surprised if Holston/Galax/George Wythe were to beat em

I think it depends completely on the individual team and their circumstances. Before their were playoffs, games mattered exactly for the reasons you described, but those reasons can be accomplished today due to the changing of the times, technology, interconnectivity that doesn't require an additional game. If we are going to value one additional game, then why not 2 games? Lets play 3...... Nothing wrong with that for some programs, but some, like the one I support needs time in the weight room before they step on the field again, and they need to learn the game more/maturity as in watching film. That time can be better served off the field at this point in time for my specific school.

So with Lebanon dropping, in Region D, that leaves 11 teams in 2A and 8 teams make the playoffs.

Pointless game. We need to pack it in, get our you men who actually have some talent, and get em in the gym, and prepare for next yr.

Yep. Maybe a stretch on the height, Looked 6-6ish to me, but being a junior the young man is still growing and may well have been 6-8 by the time Richlands season is over or near over (Ridgeview game).

If it's Tazewell for Appo or the Region C winner, it's a given they are coming from Wytheville up 81, and if Tazewell, it's actually 8 minutes faster getting off at Rocky Gap on Route 61, and you miss the state of WV and Bluefield all together. The problem, dangerous road, even in 2021, and nothing other than Cove Creek and Grafton which there is no where to eat until you get to Tazewell. Bluefield has more options, so even if Tazewell, it's safer and better to do the extra 8 minutes and go into the Bluefields. In 1986, the year we (Giles played at Tazewell), we had a bus driver either crazy or insane or not smart enough that got off at Narrows from Pearisburg, and took 61 from Narrows all the way to Tazewell. We went back on 460 after the driver had evidently discussed how we got there with some of the parents. How the Coach Rags didn't pick up on it or not say anything, I don't know. I can't remember that. I just remember one he^^ of a ride getting there. If you think the road from Rocky Gap to Tazewell is windy and narrow on 61, try going from Rocky Gap to Narrows on 61. Back then, and I'm sure it's still probably like that, there were spots were it was tricky getting one vehicle through, much less 2. Back then, before GPS, internet, etc, it was kind of word of mouth and Giles had few trips back further west in our schools history before 86, so contrary to one might think, there wasn't as much to go on. VT wasn't good in football, so the classic 460 trip out of SWVA through Pearisburg wasn't as common back then because people didn't travel to droves for VT games.

I wonder why Richlands never tried to play Union? If you are knowing you are going to appeal, and if you win the appeal, you know the team that will be left out is Union, then why not try to play? Not saying Richlands didn't. I have no idea. I wonder if that maybe,,,,,,,pure speculation, but maybe that had something to do with Richlands appealing. Did they try to get Union to play? Of course, Union didn't have to play, but Union did book a game pretty quickly that absolutely or little significance with Eastside, and they seemed to book it quickly. When all of this comes out, if it ever does, I am beginning to wonder if Union wasn't the sly fox in this Region D show. If Richlands calls, it's easy to say, sorry guys, we already booked with Eastside and can't do this to them. Certainly, Union could have dropped Eastside, ask Radford and Carroll County. At the same token, pure message board gumbo and for all we know, Union may have tried to play the Blues. Know way to tell, but Richlands appeared to bite off far more than they could chew early today. That thing escalated quickly.

That's my point. He should not be outside of the pocket and that's on the Richlands Coaches, the adults, not the kid and equally important, the WR's. Ever notice when Graham plays Richlands the last 4 or so years the WR's aren't open as much as they are against Marion? No offense to Marion, but Graham has had better athletes in the secondary to cover those 4 guys for Richlands on a pass route, so it's equally the WR's fault as it is the QB's fault but in all truth, it's on the coaches for placing these kids in this situation. Richlands should have been gashing teams off tackle with the size they have. I still think Thad Wells will adjust that offense over time. He had great athletes at Blacksburg and they were still mostly run first. I suspect next year, and even after that, you will see Richlands offense revert back to what you would see in the early 90's, or at least pre 2000. I think that's a good thing for the Blues because that school has indeed had enough talent out of their 22 starters over the years to win some titles, and that's largely based on their lineplay/line talent that has been very impressive for a long time. Ask Salem in 92, it wasn't about any cleats. That's a joke. I was there. The punched Salem in the face from tackle to tackle all game, and would have done so on concrete, dirt, or asphalt. Richlands needs to get back to that. Look at Gate City when they were good over the years when they would go east and incredibly, a team like Gretna would touch the ball about 4 to 5 times per game! That's how you win titles at the 2A level. Not to get off subject of Richlands and their QB or offense, etc, but that's going to catch Graham in my opinion if they don't stick with the run. Appomattox, as Graham saw last year, you are not going to out athlete them and beat them in a passing game. You beat them like Radford did a few years ago by running and controlling the clock and great defense. Union, if they would have not given the freeby special teams plays, would have got Appo down in Big Stone as well. Not that it's a cakewalk to beat an Appo because they are incredible, but if you do, it's not going to be by passing first. It's simply not going to happen.

Richlands has/had the perfect QB this year for the system they should be running based on the athletes they have. That QB should have had 6-7 carries per game and used as a lead blocker in an eye formation and have lead blockers for him when the ball is directly snapped to him in an eye variation. See my point? Richlands better learn something (referring to the coaches, not the teenagers) that you do not win 2A state championships in Virginia with wide open passing attacks. Does it happen? Rarely. With all of the success from 2004 to present, Richlands has one state title. Why? They passed to get W's in a gimmicky type offense that local schools don't see much and they did it well, but come game 3, 4, or 5 of the playoffs, those WR's were BLANKETED and you could see, you could feel it, you could sense the jitters from the Richlands sidelines on what to do. Richlands has had the athletes up front since 2004 to literally gash people on the ground, and they refused to become a run first offense. The were a pass first offense, and then run when the pass doesn't work and we panic when athletes are blanketing our WR's in the late playoffs. The kid at QB this year for Richlands could have been a bruising runner and blocker, yet they had him dropping back to pass 20 or so times a game against a Graham team and Tazewell team that left few people to throw to. The current kid at Richlands, the athlete is one heck of a player and athlete, but he's only one guy on a pass route. The pass happy offenses are fun, they get you lots of W in the regular season, but when you play against the teams that have the athletes to cover you, and those teams play against teams in regular season in which they see pass first offenses, it becomes a problem. If Richlands would have been a run first offense from 2004 to present, I think the Blues would have 2 more state titles, but they also would have a lot less wins in regular season in close type games because running first shortens the game. But shortening the game matters when you play a team like Appomattox that has equal or better athletes. Speaking of Appo the last half of a decade or so, they are run, run, and run first. They aren't a drop back passing team. They throw as a second option. When 70 percent or more of your practice reps as an offensive line is pass protection and not run blocking at the 2A level like Richlands, it can spell trouble late in the playoffs. It's why Giles has so many state titles, yet they have seasons sometimes with 4, 5 losses, but over the long haul, you will have more state titles.

I agree with you. Union belongs in the playoffs going by the rules that were agreed upon and set forth. I'm just pointing out that the teams that should be in the playoffs by the rules agreed upon and the actual 4 best teams are not the same. Also, if we start trying (Richland's) to change the rules that were agreed upon, then certainly Ridgeview should speak up.

The Region D playoffs have been decided and voted on. It's done. There is no appeal to the VHSL. It's Graham hosting Union and Tazewell at Central. The only thing that could change that is a Covid test. I think Union will play the perfect game and Graham will play its worst game. This seems to be the usual when the two play at Graham. I think Graham wins by 7 points and that the game is within reach for Union in the 4th qtr. For Union, it's their SuperBowl. This is their season. Graham is a much better team this year, but the untimely luck for Graham has already started as they will only have a few practices coming off the protocol to prepare. Expect 5 To's for the GMen to Union's none. If I were a betting man, I'm taking Union within 10 pts all day long.

No disrespect to the Blues, but Richlands wasn't going to beat Graham. Graham won the first contest by 20 points and I believe Graham would have won the second game. It may have been closer, but there is nothing to indicate Richlands would have actually won the game.

Final- Nottoway 28, Amelia 0. Nottoway overtakes King William for the 1 seed in Region A as King William vs Poquoson was cancelled due to Covid issues with Poquoson. For Region A, the playoff picture is set and the exact teams that were supposed to play tonight will meet again in the Region A playoffs. The 1 seed is Nottoway who will host Amelia (4 seed), and the 2 seed is King William who will host Poquoson (3 seed).