sixcat

Galax will scrimmage Mount Airy Saturday at 6PM on the new turf that is 30% black! What's the over/under on the number of players who suffer heat related injury? Seriously though, who's idea was it to install black turf? The money could have and should have been better spent in many other areas for educational purposes in my opinion but black? Dam, that's gonna be a heat magnet!

I wish the kid all the best as well but dam, the kids in New Jersey don't even want to go to the state university!

On a much lighter note, It isn't out of the ordinary to see Oak Hill basketball players at Grayson County football games or it wasn't in the early to mid 90's. A very good friend and I were home on our first leave from the military. Paul grew up on a large Grayson County horse farm and has competed in local Rodeo's since he was a small child. He has always dressed the part but it isn't ornamental. He is a real life "cowboy". We were walking around at the game talking to old friends and former teachers when Paul started getting heckled by the tallest person I had ever seen over the way Paul was dressed. "Hey, look, it's Garth Brooks"! "Sing us a song Garth Brooks"! When that didn't get the response I guess this guy was looking for, he got really vulgar with his heckling. Paul, as only Paul could do, walked over and started singing "Much Too Young To Feel This Damned Old". Everyone within earshot started laughing. It diffused the situation for a moment but the heckler felt embarrassed by the "redneck" showing him up. He took a swing at Paul, who completed one of the greatest "Calf Roping" take-downs you have ever seen on Melvin Whitaker. Absolutely the funniest thing I have ever seen! A few years later, Whitaker was dismissed from UVA after slicing a football players face up with a box cutter during a pick-up basketball game.

My wife and I went to quite a few PH-Roanoke games when we lived in Roanoke. Her coworkers son was a four year starter and we are close with the family. Incidentally, He is the associate AD at VMI right now. During the final game of the 2000 or 2001 season, a huge brawl broke out on the field between PH and Halifax. A few dozen police officers on horseback were called in and teargas canisters were dispensed. It was the most surreal atmosphere I have experienced. It felt like watching yourself in a civil right video straight out of the 60's.

Tom Hale is the gift that keeps on giving!

http://www.vhsl.org/doc/upload/alignment-March-31-2016-ADM-numbers-by-classification1.pdf Riverheads must have something significant on someone at VHSL. According to VADOE records, they have never been below the magic number of 475 for 1A. http://www.pen.k12.va.us/statistics_reports/enrollment/fall_membership/report_data.shtml

Galax has 32 listed on the varsity roster effective July 25th which is more than they have had in a few years. Nearly half of those 32 are freshmen and sophomores but that hasn't been a problem for Galax in recent years.

They wouldn't be the "lone 4A school west of Blacksburg" but then again, everyone forgets Carroll because....well, it's Carroll! With that said, Carroll is a prime example that avoiding isolation from an enrollment perspective should be a key consideration when planning for consolidation.

Not firsthand information but I am told Deacon Beamer from George Wythe has a few offers from D-II schools as well as a few invited walk-on opportunities from FCS schools. Kid can play. He will land somewhere.

According to the most recent update to the district websites, the following "benefit" games are scheduled for August 18th. Christiansburg vs Carroll (each school has the game listed as being at home so....) Fort Chiswell @ John S. Battle East Mont @ Floyd Radford @ Auburn Glenvar @ Blacksburg Holston @ Bland Graham @ Gate City Rural Retreat @ Marion Chilhowie @ Castlewood Abingdon @ PH Glade Spring (Thursday, August 17th) Pulaski will host a jamboree on the 18th featuring Pulaski, Galax, George Wythe, Rustburg and Liberty-Bedford.

With George Wythe coming into the MED, I expect GW-Galax to become one of the regions best rivalries in every sport very quickly.

Won't get an argument from me. Galax could have done much more with the field, seating, restrooms and concessions with the staggeringly rediculous amount of money they are spending on the turf and storm water collection system.

Fries! But I may be a tad bias.

I will refrain from a top 10 list for the time being. Seems like a lot of uncertainty around the George Wythe and Galax programs right now. In talking to an assistant coach last night, both programs have apparently seen several returning players quit football and athletics as a whole. I know this has been an issue for Galax for a year now. I'm not certain what is going on but have heard a litany of rumors. Nothing I feel safe in sharing at this time, though. If the roster Galax posted on the district website yesterday is any indication, Galax has lost several starters and key contributors from last years team. Also, 16 of the 26 players on that roster have never seen varsity action with 10 of them being freshmen and sophomores. But, it's still July, things may change in a few weeks. And like other "big news" coming out of Galax in recent months, it could all be bullshit anyway!

The Mountain Empire and Three Rivers have moved to 7PM as well. I also noticed Grayson will be the lone member of the MED competing in Region D. Not sure how I missed that before?!?!? Must be some concession involving Grayson jerking the VHSL around over the move to the SWD. Not sure but interesting.

Conferences are gone. It's a 4-region set-up as it was in years past with a few caveats. Several districts in our area have/are changing significantly. Specifically, the Mountain Empire, Three Rivers and Southwest. http://www.vhsl.org/doc/upload/alignment-final-24-region-alignment-plan1.pdf http://www.vhsl.org/doc/upload/alignment-2017-18-2018-19-final-district-alignment-plan.pdf

George Wythe lost to Shady Spring in the lower varsity division (Varsity 2) championship game. Fort Chiswell and Galax each won a game before getting hammered by Cave Spring and Elizabethton respectively.

I said it several pages back, it would be hard for me to pass up an opportunity at any Ivy League school. It's instant credibility regardless of field or profession. Not to mention the networking that comes from being a member of the Ivy fraternity.

According to MileStat, 10.41 would rank 4th in the VHSL all-time record book!

Dam, my bad. According to the Carroll News, she threw 251 pitches!

Sydney Nester from Carroll pitched 18 innings last night against Loudon. She struck out 21, walked none and allowed 10 hits while throwing 225 pitches. So, yeah, no pitching rules for softball! Sydney is crazy good though and only a junior. She has a career record of 55-1 with an era of 0.55. She has signed with NC State.

I saw several snow/leaf blowers being used at Salem during the D3 National Championship game once. Been several years ago but I would assume that would/should be commonplace. Seems like they were only concentrating on the 5 and 10 yard lines though. Not the entire field I also recall some controversy over the use of some form of "ice melt" chemical compound that led to several players receiving severe skin irritations requiring medical treatment. I don't believe that took place in Salem though.

It would be hard for me to turn down any Ivy League school that came calling! He needs to make the best decision for himself but the instant networking that comes along with an Ivy League education would be difficult to walk away from.

Be aware, it's never just one thing when dealing with permitting agencies for purposes of construction. Stormwater collection, treatment and effluent systems will be required to some extent before any turf surface is allowed to be installed. A stormwater collection system necessary to meet those permitting agency requirements will cost a quarter-of-a million-dollars minimum. When the turf needs replacing in 10 years, the stormwater system will again have to be brought up to meet whatever the requirement is at that point. The old saying is, new governor, new stormwater reg's. It's a vicious cycle that will never pay for itself.