You just hate to see the Richlands meltdown after all that home cooking tonight. One questionable penalty and in the blink of an eye Bluefield has rolled up 600+ yards of total offense, hung 50, and are leading by 28 before the dogs are called off. Hopefully the Blues can bounce back from this and salvage their season.
What Devon and the Marshall offense is doing this year is amazing. They are rushing for 291.7 YPG and passing for 302.8 YPG. It doesn't get much more balanced than that, especially 6 games into the season.
Through 6 games, Johnson is averaging 17 carries, 136 yards and 1.8 TD's a game. At this pace, through 14 games (assuming a CUSA title game appearance and bowl appearance), Devon will rush for 1,904 yards, breaking the MU single season rushing record by 71 yards. At his current pace, he will also only have the 10th most carries in a season in MU history too. Right now his TD total projection is 22.5, meaning he would finish this season at 6th on the all-time TD list. (Totals: Randy Moss [29], Jackie Hunt [27], Moss [25], and Chris Parker [24] 2x).
He could easily shatter these records and rush for 2,000+ yards if he played more than a half and the Marshall offense wasn't so balanced. MU has already had 4 different backs run for 100+ yards in a game this season.
I'm sorry that our teams fight until the final whistle.
Your morally bankrupt team scored a TD as time expired. Complete joke. I hope we hang 90 on you the next time your talent dries up, as it did in '01.
Again, if your coach is dense enough to seriously say this in a newspaper last season he probably deserved everything he got tonight...
Graham head coach Mike Williams said, “We’re going to take the weekend off, the players are and we’ll study the film, come in here Monday, lift the weights, hit practice, learn from it and move on. If you would have told me we’d score 38 (points) and lose, I’d be shocked.â€
Bluefield fans...going for 2 when you've scored 70 is why people hate you.
...and leaving your starters in last year until the final whistle, putting up 24 of your 38 up on 9th graders and then acting surprised that you lost is probably why there isn't a whole lot of love lost tonight either.
I tried to forewarn some folks around here that dropping to D-2 would mean better competition for Graham....and that has played out to be the case. I'm sorry, but Region IV D-3 was not nearly as competive as D-2 West.... there is an abundance of good competition in D-2 in this area and it's really fun to watch Graham play teams like Giles, Fort, Grayson, Union etc... and I look forward to other good matchups in the future.
Aren't you the one who predicted Graham to go 9-1 or 10-0 this season?
This weekend's article in the BDT says Collier is still at Bluefield. He visited the prep school but hasn't enrolled yet. It looks like his attorney is asking for one more reconsideration hearing.
Also of note, Martinsburg's QB mentioned earlier in this thread, who was initially declared ineligible by the same SSAC rule, was just declared eligible this morning using the "Hamilton Case" that is mentioned in the latest Collier article. Maybe that will at least set some sort of precedent for Lykel's argument.
Just thinking out loud here... Since basketball isn't the same as football and each game doesn't count towards postseason ratings, playoff appearances, etc. what is the huge risk in forfeiting a few wins before sectional and/or regional play? So long as the final decision, court ordered or not, was rendered before sectional play it shouldn't mean a lot.
If there is solid evidence of the SSAC ruling the exact opposite in the 2007 Wyoming East case dealing with the same scenario, and keeping an eye on what happens in the other case regarding the Martinsburg QB and the same rule, there could be a decent shot at winning, IMO. Not to mention, the quicker the appeals process is started, the better the shot is at having it all resolved as soon as possible.
I don't know, I'd say Collier just wants all this behind him and to get on with playing basketball, whether that's in NC or at Bluefield again. It's just a shame for the SSAC to take someone's senior season away in WV with friends and family close by, all because of a social and academic decision that he had no control over when he was a 13 year old kid. I stand by their opinion when its used to gain an athletic advantage, but when a kid is legally homeless, that's an entirely different situation.
People b*tchin about Freddy Garcia after the game is just dumb. He pitched his arse off in that game. I felt like earlier they rushed Beachy back when it wasnt necessary with the lead they had in the division. Maybe his elbow still has the issues if they waited til closer to September to bring him back, maybe not. No one knows. It sure hurt not having him or Huddie available. The big games seems to big for Medlin though, but in reality he needs to be a #4 or #5 starter, and will be if Beachy is ready to go out of spring. I dont know if we bring Huddie back or not. Probably depends on whether he takes a hometown discount. If he does, we probably shop Maholm.
I wish there was a way to move Uggs and maybe there is, but its probably going to cost 8-9 mil a year to do so. Hate to see McCann go, but thats probably whats going to happen. I think I would tell BJ to not even pick up a bat this winter. He doesn't even know what he is doing at the plate anymore. Guessing at pitches and has so many changes to his swing its sad. 3 months away from the game and start fresh at camp. It sure wouldn't hurt any with as much as they have tried tweaking during the season.
Who is bitching about Garcia after the game? Everyone in this thread questioned it going into the game, not after. No doubt that Garcia quieted all his critics and pitched a great game going toe to toe with Kershaw. It was a risky move by the other Fredi (Gonzalez) to start him, but it paid off. The other risky move in the 8th inning that Fredi gambled with is the one that didn't pay off.
The Braves still owe him $13 mil/year for two more years. He ain't going anywhere, fellas, unless it's to AAA ball. Hate to say it.
Agreed for the most part, legend, but I think we could trade him for a bag of baseballs maybe. Seriously though, I think we have a small shot at getting rid of him if we eat the majority of his contract like we did with Derek Lowe to Cleveland. If we somehow could get $3-4 million a year and only eat about $8-9 million of his contract then I think we win in the long run. Any little bit of money saved is better used towards anything and its a lot better than it sitting on the bench or playing in Gwinnett like Uggla could conceivably be doing.
My off-season thoughts and hopes:
Not real reach here, but I'd bet anything we've seen the last of McCann as a Brave as he's off to the AL to get paid and catch/DH for the rest of his career. Enter the Gattis and/or the Bethancourt era with Laird playing spot duty. The money we don't spend on McCann would be better served for extending the younger guys like Heyward, Freeman, Kimbrel, Simmons, etc.
I'd love to see us go after a top pitcher to solidify our #1 spot, but this year's FA pitching market sucks and we can't afford (literally and figuratively) to trade for a big arm. I still like the overall rotation we have going for us and we have the possibility of Beachy, Teheran, Medlen, or Minor to step up and develop into top of the league caliber guys, its just a matter of doing it. I'd take someone like Josh Johnson who was a top guy in Miami but got hurt in Toronto. He's a low risk/high reward type veteran that could do a lot for the pitching staff. Same with Tim Hudson. I love him, but he's 39 and his ERA has increased each of the last 4 years. Not sure how much gas he has left in the tank.
I know we have problems at 2B but I'm not sure if its worth going deep into our pockets or throwing players at a trade for a huge name there either. A healthy Ramiro Pena, Tommy La Stella being called up, or even a slightly improved Dan Uggla and/or Elliot Johnson should fill the void there. Same with the OF. An average BJ Upton would solve a lot of problems too.
I like Chris Johnson and he and Freeman were the only ones on the roster who hit for average, but I'd honestly think about throwing him on the trade block and seeing what we could field this off-season. His trade value right now is probably as high as it'll ever be and we may get some interesting bites. Just a suggestion though.
Yep, what a disgraceful end to the season sitting here watching Freddy Garcia start in an elimination game. In true Atlanta Braves fashion, we should be pretty good "next year."
We've got a ton of relievers we can trade this offseason for a few missing pieces. Maybe Beachy can return to form and make the push to be our true ace. Hudson will help again, and BJ Upton can't possibly play this bad again next season. I said the same thing about Uggla for the past few years and it never happened but I'll try to stay positive with BJ.
I pretty much wrote off last night before it happened because I knew it would be virtually impossible to beat Kershaw if the Dodgers put any runs on the board.
A couple thoughts:
1.) We need an ace . The only arguable one is Tim Hudson possibly, but that's stretching it, and he isn't pitching for obvious reasons. Medlen isn't an ace. Neither is Teheran and Minor. Possibly in the future but not right now. Our bullpen makes up for it in a lot of ways, but you can't hide it in the playoffs. We're at a huge disadvantage when you go into a series (and especially a short series like LAD) against Kershaw/Wainwright, etc. Those are almost automatic losses unless the bats go crazy.
2.) Gattis is a gaping liability in left field. You can try to hide him there, but again, in the playoffs those things are almost always exposed. We need him in the lineup, but we're definitely strapped with him there.
3.) I'm not an Uggla fan, and I don't think it'll make a huge difference this series, but to leave him off the this roster is a move I don't like. I'm not saying start him, but Elliot Johnson is far from a gold glove (who had 3 K's last night), Yanish is a waste at the plate but a little better defensively, and BJ Upton is a waste too who brings basically nothing to the table. Fast, but average at base running and fielding too... and let's not mention his hitting. As bad as Uggla's average is, he still had a decent OBP, drew a lot of walks, and if he happened to get lucky and touch a ball it was gone. High risk high reward, but one that I'd probably would've taken if I was Gonzalez.
I wouldn't exaxtly call 91-63 and being ahead by 8.5 games in the NL East backing in. And it looks like the Braves are winning today ahead by 3 in the 9th.
Agreed. 90+ wins, best record in the NL right now, and in good position for home field advantage with 7 games at home to close the season. All that with the crazy amount of injuries and make shift lineups that have been thrown together for basically all season is unbelievable.
I don't think we see as many bears as we should solely because of the black bear's demeanor. They're there, but they typically avoid humans. They are actually more scared of us than we are of them. Just don't cross a cub the wrong way because you're in mama bear's sights already.
We'd be in BIG trouble around here if we were in Grizzly bear country though. Those suckers are mean.
Who does Graham have that will replace Sheets' production on offense and Hatfield's production on defense? Those two are HUGE losses and will be hard to replace.
Well, I guess the owners could take them back and continue to get fined......would be just fine with me....or better yet, send them to jail for not complying.....Surely they can find somebody to take these loving animals off of their hands OUT OF CITY LIMITS!! I believe most city residents support the ban....
This city resident doesn't. Even if I did support it, I wouldn't be too confident in it.
Who is going to fine these owners? You know the city won't. It's like clockwork with every issue. The city passes an ordinance that is supposed to be enforced. It never happens. Do you really think that the city is going to be competent enough to stop this? Are they capable? Yes. But will they do it? No. It requires work. Work that no one on the board and/or associated with it will do. The reason this banning has even come to this is because the city and its employees failed to enforce their existing ordinances in the first place.
"Ban" Pits, that's fine. Someone has to see it that the job gets done and I guarantee you they won't. There will still be Pits running the streets... along with, in all likelihood, an increase in those other "vicious" dogs too like German Shepherds, Dobermans, Rotties, etc.
German Shepards, Rottweilers, Bull Mastiffs and Dobermans all have been used as attack dogs, and are fearsome when trained, just like Pit Bulls. Are they being banned.
I find it interesting that no one has comment on the cultural aspect of the ban. Just which part of the community is owning and training these dogs? Answer that question and you will know the real reason for the Board's action.
He has the potential to hit .300 with 40 HR's at the major league level. McCann is a great player but in my opinion experience is the only thing he has over Gattis.
That's what I've been saying too.
McCann is honestly one of my favorite Braves, but I really don't think we'll see him in ATL much longer. Gattis is our future, IMO.
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Week 5 updates.
in SWVA Football
Posted
You just hate to see the Richlands meltdown after all that home cooking tonight. One questionable penalty and in the blink of an eye Bluefield has rolled up 600+ yards of total offense, hung 50, and are leading by 28 before the dogs are called off. Hopefully the Blues can bounce back from this and salvage their season.