FBDevotee

I predict the Ridgeview at Union game will be entertaining; and likely to be a tight ballgame. Coach Mullins does a good job designing defense to stop Coach Turner. Union's injuries will limit them as well and make their offense more predictable. I'll guess the score as Union 27 and Ridgeview 17.

Richlands' turnovers & missed opportunities did ultimately decide the outcome of the game; but in support of my analyses, most of those critical errors occurred later in the game & could have been precipitated by players being worn down. Players on both sides were getting winded. I think Union's depth was, & will continue to be, an important attribute.

The Richlands at Union game was another Bullitt Park classic and I am glad that I was present. It looked to me like the Bears had a slight advantage in depth and that was a factor in the final outcome. Union was able to distribute the ball fairly successfully to a surprising number of players; where as Blankenship, who had a great game, had to carry a heavy load for Richlands. If I counted correctly, Union had positive gains from Mitchell, Barnett, Gavin, Bishop, Summers, Fannon, Spears, Zirkle, and Stidham. I think that distribution helped Union hang in through a physical contest plus overtime. Also Union was without Noaks (who scored three touchdowns against Burton). Again I think Union is a very deep team and I hope that helps them survive a long season and go deep into the post season.

The Bears have a very deep team this season and, just like last year, will play a lot of kids during the course of a game; losing players for health, grades, or disciplinary reasons will be a part of every week's preparation. Doing without a key senior against the Blues may become an adverse factor for the Bears but I actually think some of the young talent that is waiting on the bench may surprise the Union fans in a very positive way. If the kid I think should take the senior's place gets the opportunity, it might be the visiting fans bemoaning his absence. I really do think the Bears have a good football team this year, but my favorite part of this squad is the amazing young depth - I hope several get a chance sooner than later to show off their potential!

I mean no disrespect to the Richlands and Gate City or Honaker and Lebanon fans, but I think this will be the best game for fans to watch week one VHSL 2015. I suspect that Burton is the most likely team in SWVA to go 10-0 this season (in part due to their schedule); and will definitely be most improved. And we all know that Union will be very strong. I think because the game is on Thursday night the stands will be packed with a college game atmosphere and the game itself will be an exciting high scoring affair. It is a great way for southwestern Virginia HS football to begin!

It appears that Union will use the spread offensive often this season. When they line up in the spread, the dimensions of their receiving corps will be very impressive. Barnett 6'4" 240, Mitchell 6'4" 210, Gavin 6'5" 185, & Noaks 6'1" 190 are the likely targets but IMO the bench includes at least a couple more very good WRs; Fannon & Collier.

It sounds like the Bears scrimmage highlighted both the strengths and weaknesses of the Union team. When you have 60 + players then organizing, managing, doctoring, and disciplining can keep the coaching staff busy. Last season due to injury I'm not sure the Bears ever put the same team on the field two weeks in a row. But the depth is there to make the adjustments as needed. As a Bear fan I sure was excited about reading how well the freshmen quarterback and sophomore receiver did in the Stone Castle. I'm looking for a lot of exciting plays from those two over the next several seasons. Also I heard good comments about the Bears defense. It does seam like a solid beginning for the team.

The Bears did use some players both ways last season; but they had several defense only guys as well. Of course the two main both way players this season will likely be the ends Mitchell and Barnett. Both played TE and LB last year. Both are 6'4" and 200 lb+. Another potential two position Bear is Devin Summers. He played at both the FB position and the LB spot last year. Union will be very deep again and that will likely limit the number of players going both ways.

Offense wins games - defense wins championships. I believe the ultimate success of the Bears will depend on the play of the defense. Eight starters return. If the defense plays as well as they did toward the end of last season, Union High will be a contender. Reminder that Union's offensive unit had seven turnovers against a very good Glenvar team during the playoff game; yet the Bears D hung in there and made a game of it. The score was 13-9 late in the 4th quarter (The defensive unit scored a safety and recovered a fumble that set up the Bears only TD). I do think the Bears will have an exciting offense but success will be governed by defense.

The game will be played at Bullitt Park in Big Stone Gap. I give a slight advantage to Union in this contest. The Bears have had more quality opponents than Lee and that rehearsal/practice against good teams will certainly help. I think Union will be the best team that Lee has faced so far this season. Like so many local teams this year, injuries have been a big factor in the matchups. Although Gate City won easily when they played Union, the Bears played most of that game without 4 of their starting offensive linemen. All but one of those will be back for the Lee game. I think it may be a fairly high scoring game - my prediction is Union 30 and Lee 27.

My predicitions are: Union 35 Burton 13 Lee 48 Eastside 6 Bluefield 28 Gate City 7

This Friday night, Bullitt Park in Big Stone Gap will host the Union vs Burton football game and will also host a celebration for the 1989 VHSL division 2 football champion Powell Valley Vikings. Last Friday during the Union vs North game, Riggs Stadium hosted a similar celebration for the 1989 VHSL division 1 football champion Appalachia Bulldogs. It's nice to see those teams appreciated by today's fans - and the early success of this season's Union Bears certainly honors that football heritage.

I feel very strongly that Union is a better team this year than last - for several reasons but most importantly the extra year for the coaches to work through the consolidation issues. The Bears have the raw materials to be very good - but they are fairly young with only three seniors starting on offense. Things to look for are the balance of the Bears running attack - not only the three backs but the Bears can run well behind both sides of the o-line. Even though they do not pass much, the balance of the running attack has kept all their opponents playing honest defenses. The play of the young linemen has really been my favorite part of the season so far - of course the Bears like to run behind the two seniors; Tackle Morelock (310lbs) and Guard Cole (225lbs) but Soph Tackle Falin (250lbs) and Jr Tight End Barker (235lbs) have gotten the Bears many hard fought first downs. All the backs block really well. I've seen Gavin Meade play several times already and he has a powerful and effective running style that is really unstoppable for most area highschool teams plus the experienced QB helps the Wave's chances for a title repeat - I think the key for any team will be to contain Meade. Last year the Bears were unable to contain him in the second half and that is why the Wave won the game. Union has seen quality competition this year and so I don't think the Green Wave will shock them but I also agree with a previous poster that Clintwood is much more sure of themselves this year than they were at this time last season & I think they are also a better team. It makes this game very difficult to predict. I suspect turnovers and penalities will ultimately decide the outcome but I think the Bears will have to wait until next year to beat the Wave. Clintwood 28 Union 14

Union had a 20 point lead in last year's game against Clintwood. The Green Wave never gave up and played really hard in the second half - but without the three big Bear turnovers, the Wave would not have pulled off the come back. At all levels - pro, college, and highschool - most big come backs in football are fueled by turnovers. The final score was Clintwood 30 and Union 26. As with all Bear Games last season, it was exciting right till the end!

The Bears rushed for 430 yards last Friday night while defeating Lee High but I suspect it says more about the Generals being young and weak than it does about the Bears chances to move the ball against Richlands. But as a Union fan it was certainly nice to see two different running backs go over 100 yards rushing in the same game (Davis and McCray) - that did not include senior back Ben Baugh, who @ 6'1" 200 lbs is the Bears' most dependable blue collar runner. (I think Ben had 80+ yards.) I'm hopeful that Union can get a few first downs by using a mixture of backs and a combination of mis-direction running plays to keep the ball away from Richlands - so that the game will at least be close. Union did outplay Gate City during the pre-season scrimmage so maybe they can do a bit better than the Blue Devils - I'm going to predict that Richlands wins the game 31 to 14. Like last year, the Bears don't have a lot of speed but they have a depth. If they avoid turnovers they will probably be in most games.

I think the new QB, Tanner Hall, for Union is going to be a really good player - he's 5'10" 180 lbs, left handed, and a much better runner than football fans in the Gap have seen at QB in a long time. His passing game is limited at present but will develop!

The Bears performed much as might be expected in the scrimmage against Tennessee High. Vikings outplayed Bears but the veteren running backs did fine and the linebackers played well for Union. Young line struggled to protect sophmore QB. Tennessee ran the hurry up spread offense effectively during the scrimmage on the artificial turf at UVA WISE and scored several times on pass plays - but after first two exchanges of plays, the score would have been 1 touchdown to 1 touchdown. The final score was probably 4 TDs to 1 TD Tennessee High favor but it's hard to say just when first teams were in and out. Tennesse High much more together with extra week of practice. Union fans can expect a similar season as last year - with a good ground game and probably some close contests.

Union has adequated, but not exceptional, team speed. Certainly nothing like the speed that the Powell Valley and Appalachia teams of the 1990s contained. Lack of speed was really the weakness for last year's team. I don't see any young speedsters on the roster for the fall - and that will again limit success. But I do agree that they'll likely find replacement linemen from a really deep squad. Looking at last year's roster of lettermen, they may have several inexperienced, but big, tackles they can choose from to beef up the line. I will not list names but - here are some impressive dimensions; 6'3" 310 lbs, 6'3" 275 lbs, 6'1" 300 lbs, 6'0" 280 lbs, and 6'3" 250 lbs. The center returns from last year and it appears that the Bears have a long list of players in that typical guard size - 200 lbs to 230 lbs. Because of consolidation, raw materials are plentiful for Coach Turner. I think the team may be one more year away from a championship type unit.

Union finished last regular season 5-5 but every game, win or lose, was very exciting and close; record could have just as easily been 8-2 or 2-8. The Bears units that suited up at the end of last year for rookie head coach Travis Turner returns 6 on defense and 5 on offense - so they'll have some continuity. Strong point: the two running backs return, a year older and stronger, and the entire linebacking corps returns, a year wiser and bigger. Weak points: only one starting offensive lineman returns. I think players fun to watch this season for the Bears could be underclassmen including Mekyah Davis (5'10" 190 lbs), Zack Barker (6' 4" 220 lbs), and Austin Falin (6' 1" 240 lbs).

It was another great highschool football season here in SWVA's coalfields! Clintwood's state championship was the highlight - and I'm very happy for the Green Wave players and fans. I feel fortunate to have watched the Wave play during the season. Like Gate City last season, and all the Single A state champions from our region in the past, Clintwood has proven that football in the coalfields is as good as it gets in Virginia. It does all of our area teams proud when one brings back a title trophy. Way to go Green Wave!

TO UNIONFAN - I don't agree with, nor understand, your assessment of the Bears' game by game performances, but I do hope the Bears can win some more games before this season comes to a close. I think the play of the Bears has been amazingly consistent throughout the year; and they may have played their hardest & best in two games that they lost - to Richlands and Sullivan North. All games, win or lose, have been very very tight. When Union hosted JIB, the Bears' record was 3-5 & the Raiders' record was 7-1. I believe had the two teams swapped schedules at the beginning of the season, the records prior to their match-up would have been exactly reversed. Who you play is always 50% of the factors that decide the games' outcomes and your team's record. I like to give credit to opponents when they play a great game - sometimes both teams play great but one has to lose. If coach Turner keeps the Bears playing the way they've played this regular season, they'll make most Union fans proud during the playoffs - 1 game or 5 games!

I have watched Gate City play twice this year and I have watched Clintwood play once. Both teams are solid. Gate City does rely more on mis-direction & execution in their running game while Clintwood has two powerful running backs. Both defensive units are good. It is a hard game to pick but I'll say Clintwood 20 Gate City 14.

I hope the Bears can close out the season with a win against Thomas Walker and I do think the Bears will present a threat to a higher seeded host in the new playoff format.

The Raiders & Bears treated the fans at Bullitt Park to another hard fought & exciting game last Friday night. Keeping an amazing streak of close games for Union going, the contest entered the 4th quarter with JIB ahead 20 to 14 (I think the 4th quarters of the previous five Bear games have started with scores 14 to 7, 21 to 20, 22 to 21, 13 to 12, and 21 to 14!) The Bears prevailed by scoring two TDs in the final period for the victory; 26 to 20. I thought Union's size and depth wore JIB down, and much like the Lee High game earlier in the season for the Bears, the Raiders and Generals appeared to be faster & more athletic but the Bears were big, strong, and, most importantly, deep. I've questioned Coach Turner's playing two platoons and so many different kids - and I'm not sure that at any point in the season he's put his eleven best football players on the turf at one time - but his approach did work out against Burton. I think the Raiders, like the Generals, just ran out of gas. This is no comment on effort, because JIB and Lee never quit trying they just seemed exhausted. I'll add that last week I saw a little of that in Gate City as the Bears spotted the Devils three TDs also - only to catch up and push them to their limit as well. Just a note of interest - the Bears won without three seniors who have played key roles for the team and I think that was also possible because of team depth. For the first time this year, the offensive unit had more underclassmen than seniors.

I really think, with a few exceptions, that once the VHSL football playoffs wind down to the final 2, 3, or 4 teams in a classification each season, those teams that are left have the raw materials to win a championship. Teams that don't have those raw materials have usually been weeded out by that time. So it is very often that the "intangibles" decide the semi-finals/title games. So I do agree that some of these issues that Richlands fans are discussing are important and have made a difference in the number of state championships the Blues have brought back. I thought for sure last year's Blue Tornados would be Divison 3 champions - they had all the raw materials.