State Championship: Richlands vs Poquoson

[the_general 13]

Guys I was there and I am one of the the biggest backers of Richlands football period. The two holding penalties on the drive after we recovered the onsides kick appeared legit. In that instance, all of the receivers were covered, we had bookoo yards to go to get the first down. QB scrambles, linemen scramble. Perfect situation for holding to occur. We consistently get tons of penalties. The old "conspiracy theory" don't cut it. There are a certain number of calls that don't get made in any game and a bunch of calls that could go either way in any game. No conspriacy. We get tons of illegal procedure, holding and on occassion personal foul penalties. Are they the product of the officials imagination? a great conspiracy? NO. The bottom line is this. Richlands committs penalties. Officials did not lose this game for Richlands. Poquoson won it. I heard alot of arrogance in Richlands this week about beating them by 40 points. I think that seeped into our kids heads. I think that we (fans) have been spoiled with all of Richlands success over the last 7-8 years. Bottom line is this, we have a great program, a great Head Coach, a great coaching staff, and a ton of great kids that played their guts out this year as they have in years past. Don't dishonor them by pointing fingers. Poquoson showed up and played championship caliber football and won the day. Congratulations to both teams on great seasons.

 

watch the film could not find the first holding call, however the second one was very much legit and very unnessary.

[blueinbama 259]

watch the film could not find the first holding call, however the second one was very much legit and very unnessary.

 

There was holding by both teams on several plays during the game. Some were called, some were let go, as in all high school games. This game was for the State Championship. It seems to me that if you're going to call holding on some plays and not on all, it is very curious to me why calls like that would be made at such a critical juncture in the game. Why not let it go like the 20 other times you didn't call it? Why not let the players decide the outcome, and not decide the outcome of the game as an official in such an important time in the game? The holding calls at the end of the game that were called against the Blues were away from the ball, and had nothing to do with the play. Those lame calls killed any chance the Blues had to score.

Edited December 14, 2010 by blueinbama

[RichlandsAlum 678]

I have a friend @ my Sail club who is now a college ref, he did HS for many years. He said people call your home, reporters talk to your kids. I really don't know why anyone would do it. he played @ Cave Spring and love football.

 

VHLS picks the best refs for playoff games, it's a honor to be picked. My guess is Richlands was used to a loosely called game, and these guys called it tight. I did not stay for the second game, but my Buddy who was also taking pictures with me did and he said a ton of flags flew too.

 

I had a record # of views on flickr over 15000. Guess the Number #1 yesterday?

 

 

VHSL approves the officials, but they don't select them. That responsibility is delegated to a particular officials' association, and there are no binding guidelines for selection. It's reasonable to assume that the best officials are chosen, but that's completely dependent upon the individual association involved.

 

The biggest issue is the fact that crews for championship games are comprised of individuals who have never worked together. Consequently, some level of inefficiency is to be expected as a given. However, that seems counterintuitive at the very least, given the importance of the event itself.

[RichlandsAlum 678]

Having cooled off a bit myself, my personal opinion remains that the officiating in this game was horrible. No two ways about it.

 

I'm not convinced that this had any direct impact on the outcome, however. Poquoson controlled the line of scrimmage and didn't miss many tackles on defense. That wins a lot of ball games in any circumstance, and PHS was the better team on Saturday.

 

Sorry to hear about the young man from Poquoson who was seriously injured during the course of the game. He will be in my prayers.

[blueinbama 259]

RichlandsAlum: my personal opinion remains that the officiating in this game was horrible. No two ways about it. I'm not convinced that this had any direct impact on the outcome

 

No one will ever know whether or not the result of the game would have been any different, but I know the final drive by the Blues was stopped not by Poquoson, but by the lame and timely (or untimely if you're a Blues fan) calls by these officials. It was a great game by two great football teams. It's a shame the officials had to become such a big part of the outcome.

[tjwitten 10]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tjwitten/popular-views/

 

He's now in my all time top 3 !!

[BigD4VT 11]

I mean i understand where you all are coming from, there might have been questionable calls, i wasn't here. But i think dedicating a whole page to say to the world that you got screwed over by ref's is a little sad. i saw the page and the majority of the people are basically saying that You guys could have beaten poquoson with a hand tied behind your back. Poquoson was a great team, I know they were. But on a home field advantage, you guys would romp them. Like I said Gate City has been screwed in basketball numerous times, but i don't think making a facebook page is gonna get us our wins back.

Richlands didn't make a facebook page... someONE who's from Richlands did. As far as the officiating goes it was horrible, as it always is at state. People can say what they want, but it's hard to get anything going when you have 12 penalties against you. And it's esspecially tough when you have the ball on the 24 yard line with a chance to win the game, and then two well placed holding calls back you up to the 45! I was on the sidelines. I saw bad calls and bad non-calls. There were many unbiased members of the media right beside me who were completely disgusted with what they saw from the officials. It was bad and the VHSL needs to hear about it... BUT that is for Greg Mance and Richlands High School to do. Not the rest of us.

[SWVAfootball 10]

has anyone stopped to think that perhaps it was not the officiating that made bad calls, but that richlands was just playing undiciplined football? not to say that there weren't any bad calls, but none that directly affected the outcome. No one was on the field to see the entire play like the refs., they didn't just throw the flags for the heck of it. They saw something that appeared to them to be a flag so they called it.

[blueinbama 259]

has anyone stopped to think that perhaps it was not the officiating that made bad calls, but that richlands was just playing undiciplined football? not to say that there weren't any bad calls, but none that directly affected the outcome. No one was on the field to see the entire play like the refs., they didn't just throw the flags for the heck of it. They saw something that appeared to them to be a flag so they called it.

 

VHSL officials at the game apologized to people from Richlands. The announcers from Gamedaymagazine.com repeatedly questioned calls against Richlands. You are either ignoring the previous posts explaining what happened or you just choose to form your own opinion based on what you have experienced in the past. That's fine, but in this case you are wrong.

[SWVAfootball 10]

VHSL officials at the game apologized to people from Richlands. The announcers from Gamedaymagazine.com repeatedly questioned calls against Richlands. You are either ignoring the previous posts explaining what happened or you just choose to form your own opinion based on what you have experienced in the past. That's fine, but in this case you are wrong.

 

not as many calls as people think were bad. Majority of the calls were correct and i saw atleast 6 plays where richlands players on the ground were kicking. So dont sit here and tell me that the game was horriable and that Richlands was cheated out of a game, im not saying you were the one complaining but with over 600 people liking that facebook page, thats alot of people trying to say nothing was called against poquoson, they got sway with some aswell. Nothing but undiciplined play by richlands and a few bad calls that u have to live with

[EH31 2,518]

so did richlands hold on the last 2 plays or not?

[Dpattjr42 10]

yes

[blueinbama 259]

so did richlands hold on the last 2 plays or not?

 

No. Both holding calls were completely bogus, and the flags were thrown at the end of the play and well behind the play. It was so obviously intentional that you have to be an idiot not to recognize what the officials were doing. They were not going to let Richlands score no matter how many flags they had to throw. It was so bad even the VHSL representatives apologized for the horrible officiating after the game. For those of you doubting the officiating was that bad, why would VHSL officials apologize to our people? It was obvious to everyone there, including some of the Poquoson fans...one even apologized on our home board. Check it out for yourselves.

Edited December 14, 2010 by blueinbama

[sandman 13]

........ This is a SW Va. message board. There are a ton of Richlands supporters who participate here...............

 

...................and the rest of us are growing weary about your constant whining and complaining about a 13-1 season, grow up and move on.

[blueinbama 259]

...................and the rest of us are growing weary about your constant whining and complaining about a 13-1 season, grow up and move on.

 

You're obviously illiterate. The only game we're complaining about is the last one. Don't like it? F*** off. Nobody's twisting your arm to read it smart ass.

Edited December 14, 2010 by blueinbama

[sandman 13]

You're obviously illiterate. The only game we're complaining about is the last one. Don't like it? F*** off. Nobody's twisting your arm to read it smart ass.

 

 

 

 

 

The very fact that I logged on and responded to your insane rantings means you obviously don't know the definition of the word "illiterate". So in closing, I'd rather be a smart ass than a dumb ass.

 

"What's that, another penalty"? That's too bad!

[blueinbama 259]

The very fact that I logged on and responded to your insane rantings means you obviously don't know the definition of the word "illiterate". So in closing, I'd rather be a smart ass than a dumb ass.

 

"What's that, another penalty"? That's too bad!

 

Lol. That was lame. Nice try.

[P-Town Proud 10]

I will GUARANTEE you that if Richlands had scored on the last drive and ended up winning 24-23 this board would be FLOODED with complaints about the officiating from Poquoson because of the two TD’s called back. GUARANTEED. No one is forced to participate in this discussion. This is a SW Va. message board. There are a ton of Richlands supporters who participate here. The message board was created for discussion. Some may not like the topic or the discussion, and that’s fine. Voice your opinion, but don’t tell people to stop talking about it just because you don’t like what is being said.

 

The officiating in this game was HORRIBLE. Saying it was called tight is a joke. It was called HORRIBLY, and everyone from fans, to media to VHSL representatives all saw that. One VHSL representative even apologized to Richlands supporters after the game. He himself said it was the worst officiated game he had seen in years. There were flags thrown when absolutely no penalty occurred at all (interference on Richlands). There were some no calls when face masks were grabbed and players were slung to the ground. At least 75% of those calls went in favor of Poquoson. Holding can be called on every play, but the officials conveniently called holding any time Richlands was moving the ball, killing the momentum of the drive.

 

Poquoson has a very good football team, and I’m not trying to take anything away from those kids who played their hearts out. They are not to blame here. But when officials completely dominate the flow of the game by throwing flags on one particular team in excess, they are not letting the players decide the game. Like it or not, those are the facts.

Not facts, opinion. There is a difference. And yes you are correct that if the score had some how ended up as you seem to think at 24-23 we here in Poquoson would have been up in arms about the 2 TD's that were called back. But guess what, even with the score being what it is we are still griping about the TD's that were called back. So what does it matter now? We came to play the best football we could against the best team there was. We left there with a trophy but we had to leave behind one of our own. We paid a much higher price for that trophy than you think. Kudos to all of the other Richland fans that have denounced the facebook page and moved on to other things. We appreciate it!

[blueinbama 259]

Not facts, opinion. There is a difference. And yes you are correct that if the score had some how ended up as you seem to think at 24-23 we here in Poquoson would have been up in arms about the 2 TD's that were called back. But guess what, even with the score being what it is we are still griping about the TD's that were called back. So what does it matter now? We came to play the best football we could against the best team there was. We left there with a trophy but we had to leave behind one of our own. We paid a much higher price for that trophy than you think. Kudos to all of the other Richland fans that have denounced the facebook page and moved on to other things. We appreciate it!

 

I also denounced the Facebook page. That has nothing to do with my comments whatsoever. I swear I think some of you can't freaking read. I said nothing bad at all about Poquoson, either their fans or their players and coaches. They couldn't help the travesty that happened. But it happened nonetheless. To answer your question, it doesn't matter now...to you. But it matters to me and a lot of the rest of us who felt like we got the raw end of the deal.

[VHSLhelper 571]

...................and the rest of us are growing weary about your constant whining and complaining about a 13-1 season, grow up and move on.

 

I'll never understand why some ppl. want to stick their hant into a hornet's nest

[Dpattjr42 10]

I'll never understand why some ppl. want to stick their hant into a hornet's nest

 

cause its entertaining to see what happens next

[VHSLhelper 571]

Gotta say, I'm really disappointed by this thread.

 

SWVAfootball, you take the cake. It takes SKILL to put together a paragraph where every sentence shows your lack of understanding...

"has anyone stopped to think that perhaps it was not the officiating that made bad calls, but that richlands was just playing undiciplined football? not to say that there weren't any bad calls, but none that directly affected the outcome. No one was on the field to see the entire play like the refs., they didn't just throw the flags for the heck of it. They saw something that appeared to them to be a flag so they called it. "

 

I'm disappointed that no one has post a clip of some of the plays, like the wrong-way PoI call.

 

But what disappoints me most is that no one (?) has brought up the anti-SW VA slant the refs have historically had at state.

http://www.timesnews.net/print_article.php?id=3708642

http://swvasports.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7471

[RHS1987 10]

did you report them to vhsl if not then you are just as bad as them and cannot complain about calls in a game. you know there are questionable calls in every game ghs has had them playing rhs does that mean the refs are pulling for your team because they are doing better no.but again you need to report this admission to the vhsl until then you cannot complain about refs. making calls for the other team.

 

I did report it and they would not listen. What do you do? I would love to find a way to prevent any teams being cheated. If the refs cheated when the Blues played ghs you should have made a point to say something. If you do not say anything then there is no chance it will be fixed. There is nothing to do about the past. I'm taliking about future games. And I'm not talking about when one or two calls are questionable against your team. I'm talking about when the refs control the game. And yes they can control a game. First and 31 etc.. It's easy for a ref to control field position. For those who say the coach and team should overcome all the calls. Your full of S***! Anyone who knows football knows there is just so much you can overcome!

[P-Town Proud 10]

If you want to hear a Poquoson fan complain about the way the VHSL handles the state championship game, step right up. I have a beef with the fact that no doctors of any kind were on the field. Our player suffered a very serious internal injury but it was not detected until very much after the fact. Thank God he is recovering but I wonder what difference it would have made if a real doctor had been there instead of just a trainer from the University. Maybe an earlier diagnosis, faster treatment, less pain, speedier recovery? I guess we will never know. The good thing is no one lost their child. How about that for perspective? Love you true Richland fans!

[beano5 14]

No. Both holding calls were completely bogus, and the flags were thrown at the end of the play and well behind the play. It was so obviously intentional that you have to be an idiot not to recognize what the officials were doing. They were not going to let Richlands score no matter how many flags they had to throw. It was so bad even the VHSL representatives apologized for the horrible officiating after the game. For those of you doubting the officiating was that bad, why would VHSL officials apologize to our people? It was obvious to everyone there, including some of the Poquoson fans...one even apologized on our home board. Check it out for yourselves.

 

because everyone is out to get Richlands and keep them from winning a 2A state championship in va high school football? wow, get over yourselves, the refs were not "out to get Richlands" as you have made it seem, of course you are going to say they were bogus because they were against your team.