sixcat

Eddie is a great human being. The kids would be better people having him in their lives. But he’s a terrible football coach.

I don’t believe Auburn is that dissimilar to Galax 20 years ago. They obviously have athletes coming out their ears. Evidenced by the number of state championships in a wide variety of sports. If they ever get the right person to get the community and school bought in on football, look out!!!

I don’t only blame Auburn. With Auburn being the topic of this thread, I kept my comments on topic. Craig and Bland are equally to blame but their situation is a bit more understandable considering enrollment. Auburn has double the number of students as either of those schools. With that said, Auburn should have only played a JV schedule last season. That is their fault entirely. They knew the age of the roster in July. It was as predictable an outcome as one could imagine.

A lot of resources being spent on football for a shrinking enrollment having a difficult time retaining staff at every level. Football coach making more than administration while only being responsible for teaching weight lifting. In addition to installing a turf football field at the moment, it’s tough to justify.

It's going to be difficult to find non-district opponents willing to agree to a home-and-home series if Auburn keeps cancelling the season in early October. I hope they figure it out but it affects much more than just the folks in Riner when games get cancelled midseason.

Rumors being what they are, I guess Doss is making a normal salary. But James is making more than the principals. https://govsalaries.com/salaries/VA/grayson-county-public-schools?page=1

It depends on who you ask. For one of the lowest paying school systems in the state to be paying two coaches in excess of $80k per year, it's driven a wedge in the community. I'm not sure how sustainable it's going to be long-term. The Grayson school system already has one of the highest rates of turnover in Virginia. This can't be helping solve that problem.

Auburn team state championships in recent years......... Baseball - 2017, 2019, 2021 Boys Basketball - 2020, 2022 Boys Cross Country - 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 (3 additional runner-up finishes since 2014) Girls Cross Country - 2017, 2018 (3 additional runner-up finishes since 2015) Golf - 2017 (runner-up in 2018) Girls soccer - 2019 (runner-up in 2022) Softball - 2019, 2021, 2022 (runner-up in 2018) Girls Tennis - 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022 (runner-up in 2014) Boys Indoor Track - 2017 (runner-up in 2018 & 2019) Boys Outdoor Track - 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2021 (runner-up in 2019) Girls Outdoor Track - 2016, 2017, 2018, 2022 (runner-up in 2019) Volleyball - 2012, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 (runner-up in 2015) Auburn has won the Class 1 VHSL Cup in 2015-2016, 2017-2018, 2018-2019, 2020-2021, 2021-2022. No VHSL Cup was awarded in 2019-2020 due to Covid. Auburn has only been beaten out for the VHSL Cup by Radford since the 2013-2014 school year!!!

As long as protocols are put in place to reevaluate as numbers improve, if numbers improve, I don't disagree with you at all. That community has said "let everyone else worry about football. We're going to go all-in on the other sports and dominate." To a large degree, that's exactly what they have done.

Isn't he the varsity boys basketball coach and defensive coordinator at Grayson? Former defensive coordinator at Ferrum College?

I know some guys around the golf course in Riner. I'm not sure that community will ever be fully on-board with what it takes to develop a winning football program. They have been dominant in Class 1 across the region and state in everything but football. Those kids participate year-round in track, cross country, volleyball, baseball, softball, basketball, soccer, swim, tennis, and golf. Not a lot left for football. When I say dominant, VHSL Book Of Records shows 91 state championships in various sports (team and individual) since 2012!!!

My brother played against a Pruett from Narrows back in the mid 90's. Really good basketball player. Attempted to play at Radford University if memory serves. Not sure how that turned out but don't think he played very long or very much. Any relation?

Don't blame the guy one bit. Moved here two years ago from Mississippi to land his first head coaching position and they have managed to play 9 total games. Maybe Auburn will get it turned around but the dedication those kids and community has to year-round basketball and baseball has killed the football program.

Alyssa Ervin - Carroll County - Reigning Class 3 VHSL Player of the Year

The whole “daddy wanted to be the middle school baseball coach, was denied, got pissed off and is trying to burn the whole program down” concept is a tale as old as time.

I don’t see VHSL or NFHS going to halves over quarters. Those periods between quarters give cheer, pep band, dance teams and other activity groups opportunities to perform in front of crowds.

I heard UNC decided not to play when they learned they would be playing John Marshall in the 1st round at VCU!

Carroll County graduates a lot from the two-time defending state championship team. But Alyssa Ervin is the best player in Virginia and she is returning. Carroll won't be as dominant but Ervin will keep them in the conversation for a three-peat by averaging 35 points a night.

I see this from a completely different perspective. Sports Illustrated did an exhaustive report not too long ago that was jarring and completely unexpected. I'm surprised it didn't get more traction. 54% of players who have entered the transfer portal to-date, have found a new school in which to play. 8% of that 54% lost the scholarship they had at their previous school and signed with the new school as a walk-on. 41% dropped to the lower levels of NCAA and even NAIA. 5% haven't played football since entering the transfer portal. It was exceedingly rare for a player to transfer from D2 to D1 football prior to the transfer portal. I don't see the transfer portal magically making that number increase. I actually see the reverse happening. Players not catching on to another D1 program after entering the transfer portal will drop to D1-AA or D2 and raise the level of play in those lower divisions.

My brother and I have talked about his high school years often. Grayson reached the state tournament three times in a four year span. Had Bland and Rocky Gap been combined at that time, they could have legitimately been state contenders. Bland had a lot of size but no ball handlers or really anyone that could shoot from range. Bland had a talented center named Heath Puckett that went a solid 6’-6” and 250 pounds. He started for 4-years at Roanoke College. I believe Puckett was the nephew of Joe Stiltner. Rocky Gap was loaded with guards that could shoot it from anywhere in the gym but no size. RG’s gym felt like playing in an elementary school cafeteria.

I’ve texted back and forth with my brother. We’re pretty sure (but not certain) Rocky Gap was still playing basketball in 2000 when Jamie Butler broke Grayson’s career scoring record. I’ll ask some of the old-school coaches when I see them this week. I almost always see a dozen or more of them from Carroll, Grayson and Galax at the golf course.

That’s what I’m saying. They combined for football in 1993 when they resurrected the program. All other sports sometime after my brother graduated in 1998. The schools didn’t actually consolidate until around 2014. I know for a fact, Rocky Gap and Bland each had basketball and baseball teams in 1998.

What are the odds on the sophomore from Lancaster being recruited to play at John Marshall next winter?

Newspaper article from the debates surrounding consolidation from 2013. https://www.bdtonline.com/news/local_news/bland-debates-school-merger/article_172c446b-fe72-557a-b917-eda114201624.html Link to a 2011 thread from this board referencing two high schools in Bland County playing under one county-wide team. I’m the 1990’s (possibly into the early 00’s) Bland and Rocky Gap only combined for football.

They didn’t for the first 20 o so years. My brother (class of 98) played against Bland and Rocky Gap in baseball and basketball but played the combined Bland County in football. I’m not sure when Rocky Gap closed and combined to form Bland County but it wasn’t until sometime in the 00’s. Rick “Cotton” Donathin coached basketball at Rocky Gap for over 20 years. I grew up with his kids in Fries.