V-Cats

This is probably the first time in many years that the BHC has Richlands as an underdog

Could end up with a situation where Lebanon winds up winning district amidst everyone focusing on Battle, GC, and VA High.

VHS Coach Wheeler has decided to move our starting qb (#2, Reisler) to wideback, effective tonight. His backup, freshman Ivan Moore will be the new starting qb. Moore, while inexperienced, has an impressive skill set; he's tall, has a good arm, and is fast. Of course, this means nothing if we continue to run every play; but it should be interesting to see how much of a difference this makes

Somebody's conspicuously quiet about his prediction on a little game going on in Dublin tomorrow night

Richlands went 14-0 in '06, The Perfect Storm

Marion Bluefield Holston John I Burton Wise Central Fort Chiswell Clintwood Haysi Honaker East Ridge Northwood Tug Valley George Wythe Gate City Harlan Union Virginia Tech Alabama Georgia Tech West Virginia Univeristy of North Carolina Florida University of Southern California Michigan State Carolina NY Giants Baltimore Pittsburgh San Francisco Richlands 40

Couldn't agree more. We sent our boys over there to help people who would've never otherwise affected their lives, and risked their lives to help them be free & this is how they repay us

Very true insight there. One thing that has killed Richlands in previous years has been the lack of decent competition (save Gate City) in the regular season. Most games, the starters only play the first half so when they reach the postseason and they need to play the entire game, they almost seem caught off guard

Obviously one can't make assumptions from a scrimmage but Pulaski beat Gate City 78-12 (without extra points, with them it would've been 91-15) & had 1033 yards of total offense. Then again, Richlands didn't throw the ball during their scrimmage so you can't completely base a prediction on this. But I digress, this will be Richlands' toughest game of the year, possibly until they get to the state level (if they get there). If the Blues can avoid too many penalties, they should win this Clash of the Titans

Couldn't help but laugh when Tazewell hired him a few years back

Yep. And the thing is, we've got athletes, they're just in the wrong system

Especially in comparison to his cross-town pupil, it's hard not to say that Paul Wheeler is on the hot seat at Virginia High. Whereas Steve Wright has the Trojans contending for a district title, we've lost both Bristol games and have yet to score an offensive touchdown this entire season. We didn't really expect to beat TN High but that was a shameful performance by our team & alot of it had to do with the fact that Wheeler absolutely refused to throw the ball. So far this year we are 0-5 on passes. Maybe we're jumping to conclusions a bit fast but it seems Wheeler's days are numbered and that his system just doesn't work anymore. Amazing how quickly a coach can go from beloved to being on the hot seat. If it weren't for that amazing game-winning pass last week, this may not have been as big as an issue. Thoughts?

I'm shocked that the Richlands people haven't brought up Brandon Breeding

Yep, Ian Frye. His Junior and Senior years we only had 2 kickoffs that weren't touchbacks

Richlands: Caleb Jennings or Brandon Breeding, many debates have raged over which of these State Championship-winning backs is the greatest. Breeding was larger than Jennings, and possibly even faster, but anyone who ever watched Caleb play knew he just had a knack for scoring and exciting play Virginia High: Beattie Feathers (okay so he played 80 years ago but he became the first NFL running back to rush for 1000 yards in a season, and I can't think of any other truly legendary player we've ever had)

I've had many people ask me, as a VHS student, how is this rivalry different from the Battle rivalry. My answer: we can pull for Battle in games that don't feature us, with THS we always want them to lose. My reasoning is that Battle has, until recently, been like our little brothers, we enjoy picking on them and clobbering them; whereas THS has always been the token school in Bristol, always beating us, so victories are sporadic and well-celebrated. This trend does seem to be changing though, at least on the JSB front.

Abingdon Christiansburg Marion Blacksburg Greenbrier John I Burton Thomas Walker Honaker Patrick Henry Battle Grundy Northwood Grayson George Wythe Sullivan Central Sullivan South Union Virginia High (upset special, we might just shock the world) University of Virginia Virginia Tech University of North Carolina Tennessee Marshall New England New Orleans San Francisco Pitt Richlands 45

Richlands has the best fans, Honaker has the best concession stand.

Both teams seem to be having off years. Last year was amazing (for us anyway) & obviously we'd love to see that happen again, after such a hard loss. Could be a close game, depending on how much progress our air attack (or lack thereof) makes this week. The fact that it's at Stone Castle is a pretty big factor, TN High plays very well at home

Alright, you've gotten what you wanted, the braggert has been embarrassed. But I digress; A few things I learned tonight: 1. Our offense is even worse than I thought, quite a drop off from last year, and especially from the Thurman days 2. Battle's offense isn't much better 3. As a result, both of these teams are overrated, both will get throttled by even a down Gate City team, unless we get a surprise 4. Very classless fans on both sides, at the game and on social media 5. We celebrated too early, forgot we still had a down to play; one blown coverage was all it took 6. The most sucessful part of both schools was the bands, advantage VHS (I am a proud member after all) 7. Our defense showed flashes of greatness, soon followed by hair-pulling mistakes 8. We apparently have a problem with holding on to the ball 9. I care about this game and this team way too much for my own good

I've made it my business talking alot of trash against JSB the past 12 months and the fate of that is going to be decided tomorrow night. I'm either going to look like a vindicated man..and an ass, or a paranoid loser..and an ass. Home field advantage has become a huge part of this rivalry now & one just knows that Paul Wheeler is going to have this team ready

I'm surprised there's not been a thread on this one yet, the one on the CMD website has been intense. When's the last time we looked forward to VHS-JSB? But I digress, the 'Cats are coming into this one pissed off and looking for redemption, Battle meanwhile spent last week smacking a school less than twice their size. Over the past year we've seen a Renaissance of Battle football, now it's time to bust these Trojans. Thoughts and rebuttals?

No VA High-Battle?

Abingdon Mt Airy Marion Richlands Graham Bluefield Rural Retreat John I Burton Honaker Grayson Clintwood Eastside Holston Twin Valley Lee George Wythe Grundy Harlan Tennessee Michigan State West Virginia University of Virginia Alabama Virginia Tech Virginia High 31

Is Rockbridge supposed to be 6th or 9th? Looks like VA Preps has screwed up again