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The VHSL gets the revenue from the state semifinals as well. 12 games > 10 games. I'm not certain about the league's cut (if any) for the Group A quarterfinals after the change in format. As Lance and Thundercloud said, a pretty small percentage of fans stay for both games. I've been to ten state final doubleheaders at three different sites, staying for both all but once and can verify that maybe a few hundred stay for both. It's also possible a small number even leave and pay to reenter (I still don't know why Salem makes people do this whereas Liberty and JMU didn't, at least in the past). At $10 per ticket, the Salem games probably took in around $130k. Given a hometown team (Brookville) was playing in one of the AA games, I would guess the attendance at Liberty was strong as well.

What's the point of even going to a 4A or 5A setup when we have divisional play in football as well as several other sports? All a 4A and 5A system does is spread out schools, make districts smaller (generally) and increase travel. Equal fourths/fifths also hurts the smallest schools (i.e. Division 1) because they'll get grouped in with a lot of current Division 2 schools. The current system is fine with a few tweaks IMO: 1) As a couple others have mentioned, do divisions at the state level as in Group A football. It's not that difficult to carve up each division into four "regions" for playoff purposes to cut down on travel, which would be needed for sports like basketball and baseball/softball. 2) Get rid of that asinine sub-state quarterfinal round in non-football sports that allows region runners up to advance and just let the region champions go on to the Final Four. I could see (to an extent) having it before divisional play spread to other sports, but now it just allows too many mediocre teams to make the quarterfinals. I know it'll probably never go away, though, because it generates too much money. Ironically, another drawback (from the VHSL's standpoint) to the 4A/5A setup is it decreases the number of state tournaments/championship games and therefore the cash into the league's pockets.

Good pics... You can tell from pic #418 that the WR's left foot is starting to slip before any contact is made by the defender behind him. In #417, the foot is already out from under him before #11 comes in with the big hit. There was obviously contact on the play but the contact did not prevent the receiver from catching the ball. He was falling before the ball even got there and had no chance of catching it.

That's what I was thinking, that it was intentional grounding. Is there an automatic clock runoff in high school on an offensive penalty like in the NFL?

When you say Richlands will be playing Group A, do you mean actually playing down, or just playing in a district with Group A schools (i.e. combination district) while remaining in AA? Given Abingdon's similar predicament, what are the chances of the Clinch Mountain absorbing those two and becoming a combo district? Even if the Blue Ridge moves to Region IV, that stills leave just three total districts (SWD dissolves and the Piedmont and River Ridge remain). That would still make it feasible to come up with a plan to allow Richlands and/or Abingdon to qualify for Region IV play while playing in the CMD (or elsewhere) in the regular season.

I'm wondering if this was the VHSL's best gate ever for a Group A state final. I know it's difficult to tell how many people stayed for both games, but given the stadium officially holds 7,200, they had to have sold 10k to 11k tickets between the two games.

Did anyone else find it odd that Clintwood called a sweep on that 4th and inches play from the Galax 6 in the 4th quarter that got stuffed? I was certain they'd just give it to Dotson, or at the very least run a sneak. I'm sure CW was thinking Galax would be looking for that, hence the sweep, but given CW's bulk, I thought they'd play it safe and go up the gut anyway. At that point CW was up 33-21 and another TD would have certainly put it away (I think there was around 7 min left at that point). Even if CW had only gotten a first down and not scored later, a first and goal would have at least let them run another 1:30 off the clock. During that last Galax drive, I kept thinking Clintwood might have blown it with that one 4th and goal call. Luckily for them it didn't.

They don't need to go anywhere. They already have divisional play in the major sports and enough schools make the playoffs in each to where only the least deserving are eliminated from post-season play. The smallest schools in any state are always going to be at a disadvantage no matter what kind of classification system you come up with. If you put all schools with 300 students and below in one group, inevitably a school with 150 kids can complain about playing schools double their size.

Do schools have to provide the VHSL with some sort of list of their "approved" or "eligible" coaches prior to a game (or season)? If not, then I can't see how the HSC coach being on the sideline is an issue--regardless of whether he was coaching, advising, or simply watching. However if they DO have to provide the VHSL a list, then IMO it is a violation. It sounds to me like he was helping in some capacity, particularly given that Woody admitted his Brookville team runs the same offense.

Got this in 2009 and it was OK (a little slow). The best thing is the $14.99 will let you watch any of the six games live and you can flip back and forth between games. http://mvp.gamedaymagazine.com/members/signup.php

I went to the Galax-LC game today. On offense Galax ran mainly out of two base formations-- a one-back set with two TEs and what looks like an offset I-form but the FB/H-Back is close to the LOS. They will use a fair amount of motion with the TEs and the WRs. In the run game, they called a lot of slow-developing stuff like delayed handoffs and stretch plays. Galax's big WR Deion George killed LC in the first half. He scored their first three TDs--the first two on deep balls down the sideline, then caught a fade in the red zone for the third. Why LC kept trying to cover him one-on-one with a small DB I have no clue. The QB has a decent arm. LC's offense was double wing (i.e. the wing-T with both WBs on the line) with mostly two TEs, occasionally with one wideout. When LC used two TEs, Galax put all 11 defenders within 5 yards of the ball---basically a 7-4 front--and blew up a lot of their plays at the line of scrimmage. LC had some receivers open off play action and their QB often made the right read but didn't have much velocity on his throws, allowing Galax's defenders to recover and break up passes. I'd bet Galax will use something similar vs. Clintwood's power run game. I haven't seen Clintwood but they should be able to hold their own against Galax's run game. Their RBs Vaughn and Peoples were not as quick or fast as I thought they would be. The key will be whether the Greenwave can stop the pass, as Galax has a 2nd big WR in addition to George.

The veer, at least in the form Sussex runs, is pretty uncommon nowadays. Generally, it's a two RB set with the backs split behind the QB--more or less it looks like an old-school straight-T formation without the fullback. It features a lot of quick-hitting plays like straight dives to either RB, traps, and triple or speed option. With the exception of the infamous cleatgate game vs Salem, Richlands used it as their base offense back in their 1992 state championship season.

It's too bad they couldn't play it somewhere in between--like Bristol or E&H.

I think you would see the combined district involving Richlands and Abingdon with Group A schools before either ends up in the River Ridge, particularly if a combo league is allowed in the Roanoke/Martinsville area. The New River District actually operated with three schools (Carroll Co, BBurg and CBurg) for the first two years following Radford's drop to Group A (I'm thinking 1994-96), but I agree the VHSL would want to avoid that again if possible.

IMO the most informative piece on the subject so far. It does mention that Halifax is projected to have AA numbers soon...... *** Realignment proposal places Franklin County in a new combination district Monday, November 28, 2011 By STEVEN MARSH - Sports Editor CHARLOTTESVILLE -- If a proposal passed by the Virginia High School League's (VHSL) Realignment and Reclassification committee is approved this spring, Franklin County will be placed in a new athletic district starting with the 2013-14 academic year. Under the proposal, FCHS, a charter member of the Group AAA Western Valley District, would be placed in a as-yet-to-be-named combination district with WVD members Patrick Henry and William Fleming and Group AA Piedmont District schools Bassett and Magna Vista. The committee, which is in charge of realigning Virginia's public high schools into one of three classifications (Group AAA, AA and A) every two years, has placed current WVD schools George Washington-Danville and Halifax County in a new Group AA Piedmont District with Patrick County, Martinsville and Tunstall. FCHS Athletic Director T.J. Shepardson, who was in attendance at Tuesday's meeting, said a first proposal presented by the R&R committee's Northwest Region representative had William Fleming moving to the Group AA Blue Ridge District with FCHS and PH joining a combination district with current Group AA River Ridge District members (Cave Spring, Hidden Valley, Salem etc.) But proposal never got a second and no vote was taken on it, Shephardson said. "Cave Spring's principal who represents Region IV on the committee, was not in favor of that,' Shephardson said. "The Group AA representatives said a combination district was fine, but they put us, PH and Fleming in with Bassett and Magna Vista.' Based on the enrollment numbers projected for the 2013-14, Halifax County would meet the VHSL's requirements for Group AA, Shephardson said, who added that Martinsville could drop to Group A because its projected enrollment would put the school in that classification. Should Martinsville drop to Group A, a likely home would be the Dogwood District, one in which Chatham, Dan River, Gretna, William Campbell and Altavista reside. Based on current enrollment, Danville meets the requirements for Group AA, while William Fleming is just above the dividing line. Halifax County, PH and FCHS are Group AAA size. Modifications and appeals to the realignment plan are the next steps in late winter/early spring The VHSL's Executive Committee has the final say. "If Martinsville goes down to Group A and if Halifax's numbers are accurate, things could be different. If Bassett and Magna Vista chose to appeal -- and I think they will -- things could be different,' Shephardson said. "The premise behind putting Magna Vista and Bassett with us is the U.S. 220 corridor. In the proposed combination district, FCHS, PH, William Fleming, Bassett and Magna Vista would play during the regular season. Once regional postseason begins, FCHS, PH and William Fleming would return to the Northwest Region, while Bassett and Magna Vista would most likely play in Region IV. "There are a lot of question marks out on the table. It didn't hurt us, things could have been worse,' Shephardson said. "It didn't affect the scheduling that much. It may end up that we won't play Halifax and GW in some sports after we've had relationships with them for years.' A combination district should alleviate multiple-hour travel for regular-season games which is a problem that each of the WVD schools has faced for years. Combination districts involving Group A and AA schools have been formed in the past. Oddly enough, the WVD was created by the R&R committee because of the break-up of the old Group AAA Western and Roanoke Valley districts. Charter members of the WVD were FCHS, PH, Cave Spring, E.C. Glass, GW Danville and Halifax County. Cave Spring dropped to Group AA when Hidden Valley High School opened. Later, William Fleming moved from Group AA to Group AAA, while Glass dropped from Group AAA to Group AA. "For now, this is what it is. We'll see how the appeals go through,' Shephardson said. "We didn't lose, but we didn't gain anything either. If it stays this way, we haven't got into how you advance in the playoffs or how (our athletes) will get individual recognitions. That's way ahead of us.'

This is beyond stupid. I can halfway understand moving two larger AA schools Magna Vista and Bassett into a district with Fleming, FC and PH. Even though all you're really doing is alleviating travel for Fleming and PH while adding travel for MV and Bassett. But then, lets follow that up with moving two large schools--GW Danville and Halifax (still AAA)--into a district with three small schools--Martinsville, Tunstall and Patrick County??? You're taking two schools out of a district that are a half-hour from the other league members--and replacing them with two much larger schools that are further away? I'll bet all the current Piedmont members are going to fight this tooth and nail. There's nothing they can really do if GW has AA numbers and simply wants to move to the Piedmont, but this new proposal is a different issue. In the end, it's not giving the Roanoke City schools what they really want--to be in a district with the Roanoke County schools. If the VHSL is going to allow combo districts, then why not put all Roanoke area teams in the same league. Especially considering that we may end up with a River Ridge with Blacksburg, Cburg, Pulaski, Carroll and possibly Abingdon. Which brings up another issue...if the VHSL allows a combo district in the Roanoke Valley, Abingdon has a case for them allowing the same in SWVA.

Bluefield football, anyone?

Agreed....even with a four-class system you end up with a lot of schools on an island, so to speak.

Looks like it's going to be a combination AA/AAA district. If Halifax and GW aren't thrown into this district, pretty much the only other option is the Seminole. http://www.wdbj7.com/news/wdbj7-district-shakeup-20111129,0,7496304.story

Ask Sean Glennon....or Grant Noel

Let me preface this by saying I have nothing against Tebow at all. The whole story this year has been entertaining to say the least. The question I keep asking myself about him, however, is "are the Broncos winning because of him or in spite of him?" With the way the Broncos' defense is playing and with the less-than-stellar teams they've played against, you have to wonder how many mediocre or worse QBs would have the same record as Tebow. They've scored more than 20 points just once since he became the starter. As a Titans fan, it reminds me of 2006 when they came out 0-5 but then started winning once Vince Young took over as QB. Everyone was talking about what a winner he was when it was really the defense that was carrying them. Then in 2008 the retread Kerry Collins replaces him as starter and guess what...they go 13-3. OTOH, I have to agree that Tebow's the only QB in the NFL (with the possible exception of Cam Newton) who could run a zone read scheme effectively and not get killed.

I think a lot of that goes back to the lack of competition in the area. Because Richlands dominates nearly every team it plays in the regular season, the fans (not just those of RHS, but many in SWVa in general) expect them to challenge for the state title every single year, which isn't necessarily realistic. Anything less seems to be a huge disappointment.

Sussex Central stats: QB Tyquan Johnson (37 of 72 passing, 878 yards, 11 TDs, 6 INTs, 5 two-point passes, 52 for 234 rushing, 6 TDs), RB Darian Curley (82-825, 13 TDs, 3 two-point runs), RB Jeronte Langford (35-605, 7 TDs), RB Dequan Turner (47-468, 10 TDs), RB Brian Crockett (41-343, 3 TDs), WR John Jones (9-306, 5 TDs). Scouting report: Covington has a long trip to Sussex County to face a program that has enjoyed immense success. ... Sussex defeated Bath County for the 2003 Division 1 state title under Jefferson after losing to the Chargers in the final in 2001. ... The Tigers won eight straight regional championships from 1987 to 1994, defeating Lebanon 56-6 in the Division 2 final. ... Sussex runs a multiple offense, including some spread passing and even the wishbone. ... The Tigers' lone loss was 12-8 to Group AA Brunswick. ... Sussex scored a season-high 68 points against Northumberland. ... Covington faces a five-hour trip, thus the Saturday game. ... The Cougars are looking for their first state semifinal berth since losing to J.I. Burton in 1998. ... Covington won the full Group A championship in 1984. ... The winner will play one of the two survivors in the Division 1 West Section. ---- Although they run some spread, make no mistake, Sussex has generally relied on a run-first, power-based offense -- a lot like Franklin, which Clintwood fans should be familiar with. The only time I've ever seen Sussex play was in that 2003 title game vs Bath. It sounds like from the write-up above, they still play a very similar style and they still have the same coach. I found it interesting that the QB and one of the RBs had combined for eight two-point conversions prior to the Covington game. One thing I recall from that game vs Bath was that they had NO kicking game. They even went for it on 4th and long from their own 20 or so because they kept screwing up punts.

You may know something that I don't, but why wouldn't Christiansburg be willing to play Richlands? They used to play each other in the 1990s, albeit back when CHS was in the New River and needed 7 non-district games each year. They also scrimmaged each other a few years ago (not in a jamboree). Christiansburg already plays Bassett, which is about a 90-minute trip by car. Richlands isn't much further. Did Richlands try to get them on the schedule but get turned down?

I love how every year UVa is above .500 they think it's the year they finally beat Tech.