its gonna be like christmas..snow and well i just hope santa brings us toys and not a bag of coal from norton..(i kinda just thought of that..lol)GO BIG RED
Norton's got a heckuva chunk of coal in Miles,and the Southside Scooter is going to be a diamond tomorrow. LPD PRIDE-GO RAIDERS!!!
I haven't seen the Miles kid play, but if he is better than Brandon Atwell, Holston is in for a rough one.
He has blazing speed and can stop on a dime. Everytime he touches the football it scares you to death. Head over there and watch him Saturday. I promise you he's worth the price of admission.
Congrats to Holston. Sounds like bath counldn't hold on to the ball. Good luck against Burton. From what i hear they have one heck of a rb. and they are always athletic. Go Region C. Pulling for Radford also.
Martinez Miles is the best athlete Holston will ever see. Beating Burton? Stop Miles and you win. That's alot easier said than done (although JJK and PV did manage to contain him to a respectable level). Way too much speed for Holston. Raiders win 28-14.
Typical smash-mouth hard fought LPD football game. I had no doubt this one wasn't going to be 36-0 like last time. Rick Mullins is a heckuva coach,and adjustments have been made.
Please take some time from your happy,festive day today to think about our brothers and sisters in the millitary who have given us so many reasons to be thankful for. It's a happy day for us warm,safe,surrounded by our loved ones,and those folks,my true heroes are still doing what they do in hostile lands/conditions to make sure we still have Thanksgivings. God Bless our millitary,and I continue to pray for their safety and safe returns.
Im saying within the next 2 years the streak will end. Our programs are going in diffrent directions. The attitude has changed at Battle, now its just going to take another year or 2 in the weightroom. The new coaching staff has brought a winning attitude to the program and it has rubbed off on the kids and community. I mean look... Witten has been around a winning program in Elizabethon all of his life and as for assistant coaches , we have 1 that played under Ralph Cummings at Clintwood, 1 that played under Tom Turner at Appalachia, 1 that played under Dean Rhea at Rural Retreat during their playoff runs in the 90's, and 1 that played for some of John Battles best teams in the 1980's.
Its a staff that have always won that knows what it takes to win, and know how to do things the right way. The weight room that would sit empty 3 or 4 years ago every week from december to june will now have 60 or 70 kids working out every single day after thanksgiving break. All of those kids that used to play baseball only...now play football. Also, this is the first time that parents have really bought into the program and they're making a point to have their kids there every day.
So give us another year or 2 because we are very young.... It'll be the birds sitting there hoping that Witten calls the dogs off early.......I have a hard time believing that he'll do abingdon any favors however.
We can go on and on and on, but what good is it going to do. We both had bad seasons, and its time for the boys to hit the weightroom. My nephew plays for battle and I know that they're ready to get back to work. Like I said, The attitude and work ethic has changed.
I'd wager that the Abingdon-Battle games are going to be considerably more interesting in the next few years.
I've kept my nose out of the Abingdon Bashing...but SWD, im joining you starting right now.
It did you all so much good. You have a team dominated by seniors, defeated our team which was starting 8 freshman....and ended up with same record as us...3-7.... and once again watching the playoffs from home.
Im not sure you understand this, but the tide is turning. Within the next 2 seasons Battle will end that winning streak that abindon has going and start one of their own.
Im the first to admit the battle program hasnt been very good, but while we're coming up and have alot of young talent in grades 7-10..... your program has been sinking fast. Do you see me on here predicting district championships, and running my mouth about how good my 3-7 football team is doing ALL the time??? no.....
If abingdons players put in as much time in off season program as their fans spend running their mouths, They would be raising state championship banners every year. Unfortunatly....this is not the case. Coaches leaving, Talent level is dropping, numbers are dropping, # of wins of dropping, BUT the # of trash talking fans keep rising.... Im not sure how that works... Does anyone else on this board understand how this could happen? *anyone outside of abingdon I mean*:confused:
The Battle program is improving. I think everybody can see the progress being made. Abingdon is a mess however. Perhaps a coaching change may be just what the Dr ordered there. They certainly have the school sie to field the athletes to be winners.
Dude, get over it! This is what us Abingdon people hear on a weekly basis. What happened to you guys? Whine & Cheese and other intelligent sayings. Just deal with it when you get your butt kicked and get ready for next year. By the way, would your coach be interested in the Abingdon job? :rolleyes:
You know why Abingdon gets such a hard time on here? Fans like you who make excuses when they get beat. You all KILLED us all on here after the loss to Burton. Let me try the Abingdon approach:
"We got beat because we didn't have Osborne yesterday to cover Cobb. Oh yeah,and we got beat because the color of the grass on Lebanon's field had us confused. We also ran over a possum on the way over,and it got us all tummy sick". GEEZ!!! (rolls eyes)
We got beat yesterday,and the Kelly fans have enough class to acknowledge that,and we congratulate a fine Lebanon team. BTW not all folk from Abingdon are like that. I've got friends and family there,but folks are tired of hearing the moaning,whining,and crying week after week after the Birds get waxed. YOU ALL need to get over it...dude. As for the Big Indian? He's not going anywhere,as he's got a good thing going on The Reservation.
Congrats to the Lebanon Pioneers! I thought this would be a really good game. I am imagining there were no LPD chants at the game. lol :D
How did Abingdon do in their playoff game today? Oh that's right,Virginia doesn't let 3-7 teams in. You could always petition the state of KY though lol.
Absolutely took us to the shed today. Alot of folks from alot of places make alot of excuses,but a spade is a spade. It is common knowledge that when Lebanon brings their A-game that pound for pound,man for man,athlete for athlete,the only squad in the region/this end of the state who can go toe to toe with them is Gate City. Today they made us do things that I've not seen all year (like miss so many darn tackles). Now,you'll not hear any crying from Kelly fans. We were picked to finish 4th in the LPD after graduating the ENTIRE backfield from last year,and finished 2nd. We also increased the win total from 7-8 this year, and beat the Burton Raiders for the first time in ages . These things may not mean much to programs with strong traditions like PV,and GC,but to a program who has been down for so long like Kelly's,these are the positive proof/signs that the corner is being turned at Wise. To the seniors at JJK,I say "Heads up men. The program that you leave today is a heckuva lot better than the program you came into,and it's because of you guys. Losing is no longer commonplace or acceptable at Kelly. You all laid a foundation that the kids coming up (and there are some good ones) can build on,and more importantly than football players,you all are quality folks who will go far in life. It has been more of a priveledge getting to know you all as folks than watching you all on the football field (although that's been fun as well). To the crew from Lebanon: Best of luck vs GC in what should be a dandy.
I've been to several Lebanon games and was at the Kelly-Burton game a few weeks ago. I know it's hard to judge a team after seeing them one game, but in order for Kelly to win they are going to have to pass the ball and be able to stop the pass. Lebanon's defensive front can handle the run game if they can keep up with the misdirection.
Burton had receivers wide open all night the trouble was the QB couldn't throw the ball from his right hand to his left. Lebanon has a good passing game as long as they protect Jessee. If he has time he'll burn Kelly up with passes to Cobb. I've not seen anyone cover Cobb, it's just a matter of protection.
It comes down (as always) to who controls the line of scrimmage--I'll say Lebanon:
Lebanon 21 Kelly 12
Kelly has the best corps of LBs/defense that Lebanon will see. I agree with you that keeping heat on Jessee will be the key. If we can rush him,we'll be fine. I don't want him to have time to sit back and wait to hit somebody downfield. On offense,I really like Kelly's Offensive line. Against a Burton defense that had registered 6 consecutive shutouts,the Indian Offensive Line controlled the game. I really think this game will be as good as it gets.
Has Kelly been bit by the flu bug this year? I know it did a number on Lebanon the last 2 or 3 ballgames. I hope both teams come in healthy and will give us a good show. Last year was a nail biter.
We've been lucky with the flu,but we've more than made up for it with shoulder injuries and such. The week off was a Godsend for us.
Being due won't matter . . . from what I hear, you guys can't cover the pass. Lebanon does pass the ball . . . got some friends over there who can ball . . . Kelly is all bark and no bite in this one. Falconman predicts Pioneers spank the Indians!!;)
Hey Falconman,come on over to Lebanon Saturday,and see what a playoff team looks like. It'll be a doozy. We'll see if Kelly has any bite or not. Best of luck to everybody Saturday.
A little something I wrote earlier in the year. I think it is appropriate today.
Having just passed Memorial Day and with Father's Day on the horizon I feel like putting some thoughts about those who serve and my father in particular. Some of it will be in general and some will be personal in perspective
My perspective on those who choose to serve has evolved over the years. When I was young, it was during Vietnam, I was bitter and angry for our country for sending folks to fight and die for a government that seemed unwilling to fight their own war. In my later teens and twenties I came to understand that unlike my father who chose to serve, most who fought and died in Vietnam were not there of their own free will.
The abolition of the draft, the opportunity to get to know more members of our professional military, and the understanding that there exists, as throughout history, a group of men who freely take up arms for god and country. These people value honor and service above all. To those who make this decision of their free will and readily accept the risk and the consequences of service, I just tip my hat and say thank you. I just hope that they always have political leaders who are worthy of them.
On the personal level I have to readily admit that I had a hard time not intermixing my feelings about my father with the career he chose and the price he paid. For many years my view point was that of the 10 year old with the alcoholic father who could not function anywhere but in the Army. While in graduate school I had an internship working for a small town. A representative of the Disabled American Veterans saw vets in our conference room. We struck an acquaintance and I shared some of my feelings about my father and his service. He encouraged me to contact the VA and get a copy of his service record (201 File.) He told me it might give me some perspective on the man.
I did so, and found it very enlightening. From his 201 File I learned that my father had indeed served in combat in Leyte, and Saipan in WWII, saw action in Korea, and served three tours in Vietnam. He had earned multiple Purple Hearts, and a Bronze Star in Vietnam. It is important that I note that like most ex-soldiers who have seen combat, he never spoke about what he did or saw. All we knew was that he was a medic. (I will always wonder what led to a medic getting a Bronze Star.) I can only imagine what he saw and experienced.
As I said, he never spoke of his service. When I was close to 18, and the draft was still in effect we did talk briefly about what kind of decision I might make. He told me this; "I don't know what you will do, but I will tell you that the Army was my life." So it is and so it was. The Army gave him a career, a noble purpose and also planted the seeds for his undoing. For many years drugs and alcohol ruled his life and stole his gifts. Both were integral to Army life. Beer flowed freely, and in combat troops were given speed to keep them alert and then downers to sleep.
For me to blame the Army for all of my father's failings would be akin to blaming the refrigerator for me being fat. All the Army did was given him the opportunity and access to the things that would feed his demons.
Age and distance provide me the ability to see my father for what he was, human. When he served, he did so with bravery and honor. He left my life on a full time basis when I was 10, but has cast a shadow that still follows me. I see his face in my brother. I feel his presence when things get hard reminding me that if I quit I fail. He is my reason for seeking the unattainable, perfection. Yeah, I know that it is unreachable, but in the aspiring to it I have accomplished much in my life.
In the end do I wish I had a better father? Yes, but "we've got to play the hand that's dealt us." I am what I am in part because he was what he was. So I honor those who serve and those he only sit and wait since they too are a part of us all.
Awesome post. My dad was in Phluloi,Vietnam. When I was a small boy,we'd go to our family graveyard (have a long,lengthy list of family members who served),and my dad was not the crying type,but once a year,on Veteran's Day,I'd see tears. I asked him once why tears today (I was too young to understand),and he said "because my daddy cried today" >(my papaw was also regular Army). I am not ashamed to admit when I left Red Onion State Prison this morning after finishing my shift,and made my way to the cemetary where my Dad and the rest are buried,there were tears here too (as there are every Veteran's Day). One of my many Tattoos is a tribute to the Vietnam Vet,a way of saying "Thank You" to those "Forgotten Ones"
How much do you guys think being at home or away affects this game. If both teams are really evenly matched do you put much into the home field advantage?
To be honest i would call it a toss-up myself. The way JJK has turned it on the last few games, and Lebanon has been really up and down to say the least. It almost seems it is a tale of 2 teams going in opposite directions.
Given the choice,I'd rather go to Lebanon. I know that sounds crazy,but they came into our place last year and sent us home. The chance to return the favor is powerful motivation. We've been on the road in tough places the last few weeks,so our kids won't be phased by being the visitor again. I really feel that Tyler Graham for Lee will have a field day vs TW,and Lebanon wil host us. We are prepared for that.
I know that this post wasn't sports-related,but I put it on the football section because I knew it would get more views there. Many folks on here don't browse the General Discussion section. I apologize to the mods for the confusion.
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Bluefield v. Wayne -- State Championship
in SWVA Football
Posted
Congrats Beavers. You guys left no doubt. Man I love seeing locals win it all!