SwvaOG

New offense and talent are currently downloading. Could hear some names within the week. Alumni are stepping up in support….getting creative.

No, I said this earlier in the year when everyone was predicting a Riverheads run through 2A. When they made the finals, someone clipped it and send it back out with a laughing emoji.

Yes. I still think Graham and Ridgeview would have beat Riverheads last year. Union would have given them a tough game as well.

I stand on my previous statement: Riverheads is what you get if Central 2019-2021 played 1A. Guess who knocked off Central???? A team with speed and skill and could throw the ball and strike quickly. And I stand on my previous statement that last Riverheads wouldn't have got past Graham or Ridgeview. Welcome to 2A, great showing for their first year.

Ok, Ok, I'll spill the beans. I've accepted the position as the next HC of Richlands football. We are in the process of ironing out a few of my requests, which are: Grant me one year of playing eligibility since I didn't play my junior year. This is an unprecedented request, I'll grant that, but I think we can work it out. A weekly wad of "walking around money". We are still determining the amount. I'm not looking for a super large sum...just want to look like a baller and be able to "appreciate" my players when they perform well. We will not refer to the other Tazewell county schools by their names...simply "That Team Out East" and "That Team Further Out East". We have our graphics department on this now. The other Tazewell county teams have to provide (1) player of my choosing from each of their varsity and JV squads. The first Friday home game will always be "Hawaiian Shirt Night" perpetually. The Richlands High School Blue Tornado Marching Band will allow alumni to play every home game.....perpetually. Guest player approval. I have an extensive network of out-of-state friends whose kids are very good football players. We are looking into allowing them to come visit and play one game a year. So far, I've got a killer DT from Florida and an 6', 210lb RB/LB from Georgia scheduled for next year. Exclusive Veto rights for three plays every game. If I throw my veto flag, the play is wiped out like it never happened. You ain't breaking no big plays on me, fool! A "Leave Me The Hell Alone" card that I can present when the TCSB wants to suggest something stupid. I get to use it once a month. If, for some reason, we lose a game, I get to challenge the opposing HC to a fight on the 50 yard line. If I win, I take the win and he takes the lose. When I beat Union at BSG, their town council has to present the train horn to me, in formal fashion, the following day. I will immediately have it smelted. Make It, Take It scheduling: When I beat you, you have to come to Ernie Hicks every year until you beat me. Now, I'm realistic.....I probably won't get all of those concessions...probably about 80%. I don't promise a first year complete turn-around....probably take me 2-3 years to win our next state title. But, I promise you, We Comin'!

Except for Central. Its not all kumbaya. 😂

Old throw back ball control offense designed to get 4 yards a carry. If you watched Central during that time period and Riverheads tape, you'd see the similarities.

🤷‍♂️

I think we see a familiar name for HC (with Blues ties) and some "new blood" at the coordinator positions. By new blood I mean they don't have Richlands ties. If it goes the way I think it might, they'll be just fine and I might just have to get over there to visit more. Full disclosure: I do not have an inside connection in the hiring process. Just reading the tea leaves.

I wonder if Galax DBs show press? I think they should…it will disrupt timing and Honaker hasn’t really seen it or prepared for it. I noticed Graham came up and pressed the Union WRs on occasion. It affected them.

I know Union fans love the idea of keeping all of those WRs but hear me out. If #2 is faster and a better athlete than the JV QB, I'd go with #2. A running threat at QB just stresses the defense so much....you saw that with Anderson and you see it with O'Quin. Besides, Union just isn't going to fully commit to a 3-4 WR set. If you aren't committed to throwing it 40% of the time, you are wasting talent by having 3 or 4 good wide receivers. I still consider RV's 2021 season as the best use of a WR trio as each of those "big 3" caught over 50 balls. Unless Turner turns into Andy Reid, I just don't see it. Now, if the JV kid has good wheels and can throw it, that's a different story. But, the QB should be the most important position and #2 used to be a QB and has two years as a varsity starter. Makes sense to me.

Youth is a challenge. I remember my senior year playing my last game and just lighting into a Jr. defensive player because he wasn't going hard and said something like "season's over, we'll get them next year". I said, "We don't have next year....this is it for us." It happens a lot with kids that start as underclassmen....they don't truly appreciate it until there is no "next year".

I mentioned earlier in the season that I thought Union's window was this year specifically because they had Reyshawn. This will not please the Union folks on here but go look at the game film against Graham. I saw repeated lack of effort and lazy plays defensively by the Union secondary. A Graham friend posted about 10 single play videos and I noticed it right away in every single video. What I did see was Reyshawn hustling hard even when he didn't have a shot at the play. On Clements long run, #4 gave a horrible effort and could have stopped that run early...missed the tackle. On a screen pass he missed a tackle badly that resulted in a TD. On another long Clements run, #4 and #7 missed tackles and both appeared to just not want to make the tackle. On another pass #4 made a poor effort and just missed the ball. On a long pass play #7 was beat cleanly by Graham's #16 and had to interfere to make the tackle (penalty wasn't called but should have been). ON a Clements 15 yard TD run it looks like #4 and #2 could have had a shot to make a tackle at the one yard line but they didn't even try. If Union wants to challenge Graham the next two years, that sophomore group needs to get more physical and dedicated to defense. I could easily tell when it was a Union pass play because #4, 2 and 7 would fire off the line. If it was a run....not so much. That seems more and more common will all players these days. But what really stuck out to me was their lack of effort and "dog" mentality on defense. Turner will no doubt see it on film. They have to realize that playing DB is more than picking off lazy deep balls across the middle....it also involves firing upfield and giving your inside shoulder up to blow up a lead blocking FB or pulling OG and turning a sweep back inside. Hopefully they'll take this game as a learning experience. They won't beat Graham going forward with efforts like that.

Total guess here but I think Davis takes HC, keeps a current assistant as DC and looks outside of current staff for OC. I don't things truly settle until Honaker's season is over. I'm not sold Snake wants to start all over again back at RIchlands in a complete rebuild, although, he may see it as a full circle finish to his career.

Yep. The question was direct and the response was as well. That was one year ago and we didn’t discuss it further.

Non-zero but not good. Someone would have to mend some serious fences.

I think the Union side overvalued their team speed and undervalued Graham’s. Graham doesn’t have a lot of their football players run track and I asked their HC why last year. He said “We train 365 and work on speed all season”. I’ve watched a lot of track the past five years or so. Union’s Bostic has around an 11.7 100meters. I think he’s probably a bit faster than the other two Union kids. I’m willing to bet Clements is a 11.4 kid. And Graham has other kids out there that are high 11 type kids. Really good speed is sub 11.4. But if you are sub 11, D-1 is looking at you and if you are sub 10.7 you have “play with anyone” speed.

Only if: 1) Tazewell commits to defense as much as offense, coaches and athletes 2) RV gets a new coaching staff, specifically on offensive side and defensive secondary. RV returns a lot of talent, but they haven’t lacked talent the last 5-7 years. They lack the will and drive to work year round. Tazewell has skill but they need to get those skill players to bring it on defense as swell. And they need to keep developing that DL and OL….they made improvements in the DL

Graham is gonna out Union, Union.

I played with Chris and Scott. Chris was a BVT as well. It was the same five teams when I played in the early-mid '80's. The battle with Raven almost always decided the championship. Huge battles...usually a 12-6 or 6-0 type game. I remember my sixth grade year, which was supposed to be our last year as 7th graders played middle school, we finished second to Raven and we were crushed. We lost the first game and then tied them the second. But after the season, they opened the league back up to 7th graders and middle school was only 8th graders. We went 10-0 and beat Raven 12-8 last game of the season to win it. That team evidently produced quite a few starters for Richlands and Tazewell at the varsity level. Great times.

Baptist Valley Tiger til I die. We'll see you sumbitches the 5th and 10th game of the season!

Ummm….,what did he think about ending the season with three straight blowout loses? And the kids visibly showing disinterest?

He made some tough kids and fielded some great football teams for sure. Not one kid spoke when he was addressing us, the respect we had for that man. You had to be tough, we played in that field after it had been cut and I remember the stalks would cut you wide open if you hit them right. Every practice started with “To the fence”. Man, I wonder how many miles I ran down to the fence and back. Then you’d do six inches and you’d better be “beatin’ your belly” the whole time. Lol. What a privilege to be coached and taught by that man. Some serious talent played in the valley….Larry Perry, Mike Compton, Bryian Beavers, and Gary Ward to name a few. It was a unique blend of Tazewell and Richlands kids. I wouldn’t have traded that experience for playing for anyone else, including my own family.

Folks, when I say that I haven't seen one open competition in Dickinson County, I'm not exaggerating. This is part of the reason kids leave the sport. It sounds like Richlands has the same daddy ball habits. I was fortunate enough to play for Ansil Salyers growing up. He was a lifelong miner and tobacco farmer and coached the Baptist Valley Tigers for decades. You wanted to be QB? You had to beat out the 6 other kids who wanted it, too. No favorites, no dads/uncles getting in the way. The leagues have to get back to this. I'll say it again. The varsity HC has to take more control over the youth league and middle school programs. Prime example, my middle school team was coached by four coaches who were all teachers, were all part of the greater varsity program and had zero kids playing on the team. We ran the same offense as varsity. Two of those coaches were D. Palmer (current Graham DC) and Jeff Tarter. Fast forward to RV middle school, coached by dads whose kids are the starting WRs and assisted by the starting QB's dad. 75% of the team were hold-backs and the coaches only coached this year and won't be back next year. The offense was designed and centered around their kids. Meanwhile the 6th and 7th grade kids just lost a year in development because the majority of the team should have been FR this year. It looks like this is now the new norm.

Graham needs to play action fake off their run game. I don't like the go four wide, in a shot-gun on obvious passing downs look. It limits screens, mis-direction and running options. If the G-men do that, Union plays an outside leverage stance with the CB where they can look at the QB and just bail deep. This is why they get picks....easy picks. Offenses don't stress them with well-designed plays. Flood their zone....run a tight end or slot straight down the seam, run a 7 yard out and then have Clements release in the flats under the out all on the same side. Make the CB pick who he will cover.....get his eyes and thoughts on Clements and then see how disciplined he is. If I were Graham, I'd pull up tape from the RV @ Union game from 2021 and watch RV destroy Union with tunnel screens for 120 yards and two TDs (Tony Palmer, if you are reading this, shoot me a message if you need more film on that. Lol).