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Message to Richlands Fans & Businesses


Ryan4VT
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This was posted on the Richlands Blue Tornado Football Facebook page:

 

 

 

I've held back as long as I can. I'm gonna say this, and if you think I'm not talking about you, you're wrong. 

We are blessed here at Richlands. Winning is common. Big performances are the norm here. With that comes a certain amount of complacency and, frankly, laziness. 

I remember 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010. I even remember the semi trips that we came up short in other years. This town, no, this FAMILY was fired up and ready to go. Ready to run through a brick wall. Ready to support our boys at ALL costs. 

Driving through town, I haven't seen ONE IOTA of school spirit. Not one. No businesses with signs. No businesses with painted windows and words of encouragement. No one is wearing their Richlands gear. 

Did y'all forget?? WE. ARE. IN. THE. STATE. CHAMPIONSHIP. 

The opponent is good. There's no doubt about that. Appomattox is on a streak that rivals ours in the mid to late 2000s. Yet, if I remember correctly, those seemingly invincible teams got beat. 

No one is giving us a chance. NO ONE. At this point, even our fans are walking around with our heads down sulking because we aren't the favorite. Well guess what, Richlands is never the underdog. Never. 

FROM THIS SECOND UNTIL THE FINAL WHISTLE ON SATURDAY, I want to see spirit. 

Businesses. I'm calling you out. Start painting your windows. If you can't, make a posterboard and hang it from your windows. I repeat, I AM CALLING YOU OUT. For EVERY business I see with school spirit, I'll put a picture on here on that business. You should be PROUD of this team and these boys. It's time to put up or shut up and SHOW IT! 

Fans, we were rocking last week in those stands. We were rocking at Graham. KEEP. IT. UP. Our boys need us now more than they've ever needed us. Noisemakers ARE ALLOWED!!! I WANT HORNS, AIR HORNS, SHAKERS, CLAPPERS, COWBELLS, BOTTLES WITH ROCKS OR ANYTHING ELSE THAT YOU CAN SHAKE AND MAKE NOISE. Bring your voices!!! I'm going to take as many bottles as I can get my hands on and fill them and hand them out. YOU DO IT TOO!!! How many bottles of pop/water do you drink a day? SAVE THEM AND FILL THEM WITH SOMETHING TO MAKE NOISE AND PASS THEM OUT WHEN YOU GET INTO THE GAME!!!! Every single second we are on DEFENSE, you MAKE. NOISE. It's time for you to put up or shut up. No more defeatism. We R Richlands. We fear NO MAN. These boys feed of our OUR emotion. Show them you have their backs. 

Students, wear your Richlands gear to school tomorrow and Friday. Quit telling the boys that they will get beat. We are Richlands. That's not how we roll. Pump your boys up in the halls, in class, in texts. Make sure they know you have their backs. 

We only have a short time until the game. But I KNOW we can get this post to 10,000 people reached. SHARE THIS EVERY DAY!! Share it twice a day, heck, share it 10 times a day. Make sure every pair of eyes in Richlands, VA sees this post. 

The opponent is tough, but we are tougher. 

WE. R. RICHLANDS. 

We. R. Blues. 

#BeatAppomattox
#UnfinishedBusiness

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F@&$ you vitale!! These kids have played their asses off and overachieved this year. You may have forgot patriots/ giants a few years ago but a catch by Ball (like the Plaxico could change everything).

My advice to You is quit being a dick.

RYAN nice post!

Falcons have the Blues back.

If you can't say anything positive, shut your f@$€}ng mouth!

Real tired of some of your shit

From the Falcons-GO BLUES!!

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F@&$ you vitale!! These kids have played their asses off and overachieved this year. You may have forgot patriots/ giants a few years ago but a catch by Ball (like the Plaxico could change everything).

My advice to You is quit being a dick.

RYAN nice post!

Falcons have the Blues back.

If you can't say anything positive, shut your f@$€}ng mouth!

Real tired of some of your shit

From the Falcons-GO BLUES!!

Talk real big behind monitor!

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Okay, let me direct the awkward part to "Businesses. I'm calling you out. Start painting your windows. If you can't, make a posterboard and hang it from your windows. I repeat, I AM CALLING YOU OUT. For EVERY business I see with school spirit, I'll put a picture on here on that business. "

 

I agree the town should be "painted blue" but IMO that statement was a little overboard. It is a shame that some people are not "backing" Richlands. 

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F@&$ you vitale!! These kids have played their asses off and overachieved this year. You may have forgot patriots/ giants a few years ago but a catch by Ball (like the Plaxico could change everything).

My advice to You is quit being a dick.

RYAN nice post!

Falcons have the Blues back.

If you can't say anything positive, shut your f@$€}ng mouth!

Real tired of some of your shit

From the Falcons-GO BLUES!!

No offense taken. For some reason I rustled those jimmy's of yours. It is cool. 

 

Not a dick here... just someone who has an opinion just like your opinion of my post is poor. No shame in your game captain. 

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Not big talk. Real talk

Taking up for these kids

If that twist your panties - so be it!

Gonna take more than that or you to twist my panties!

 

And the original post come from a Nader on a Nader Facebook calling his community out! But I can tell ya this, that community will be in full affect come Saturday.

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Thanks Vitale. I get your point. Some of us Falcon fans still have raw nerves about this season. Sorry for the name calling. Just know that if Abingdon would have a game this week against the freaking Cowboys, we would be drinking the kool-aid for our team and holding freaking parades.

We wish the best for the Blues and Coach Mance

1st class group of people in my opinion

Bulldog go back to your pen in your trailer park, don't remember you being invited to this conversation

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Thanks Vitale. I get your point. Some of us Falcon fans still have raw nerves about this season. Sorry for the name calling. Just know that if Abingdon would have a game this week against the freaking Cowboys, we would be drinking the kool-aid for our team and holding freaking parades.

We wish the best for the Blues and Coach Mance

1st class group of people in my opinion

Bulldog go back to your pen in your trailer park, don't remember you being invited to this conversation

I am sure there will be some type of festive atmosphere in Richlands at some point this week. Just think it might be a little overboard to call out businesses for not "haning a sign/painting a window" in support of their hometown team. I get the point with the all in mentality, especially being the underdogs. I am sure the fb page won't do that either. 

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I am sure there will be some type of festive atmosphere in Richlands at some point this week. Just think it might be a little overboard to call out businesses for not "haning a sign/painting a window" in support of their hometown team. I get the point with the all in mentality, especially being the underdogs. I am sure the fb page won't do that either. 

In 2010, you couldn't pass a business in this town that didn't have something supporting this team. We are in a state final. Someone had to do it. 

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I can remember a huge difference in how the town looked during football season in the mid-90's compared to when I was in school in the early 2000's

 

 

The pride has dropped off sadly. 

I know what you mean.  I can remember when I was a kid come football season the windows of businesses in town were painted up.  Heck that was for regular season.  You don't see that anymore.  I will say though from the outside looking in it seems that Richlands and Union have held on to their school pride in this neck of the woods longer than most.  Not saying others haven't just what I've seen for myself.

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I know what you mean. I can remember when I was a kid come football season the windows of businesses in town were painted up. Heck that was for regular season. You don't see that anymore. I will say though from the outside looking in it seems that Richlands and Union have held on to their school pride in this neck of the woods longer than most. Not saying others haven't just what I've seen for myself.

The pride is still here. But this is a C hance for a title. Town should be bubbling over, not hiding.

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SOME of our fan base has become very spoiled over the last couple of years.  We have become so use to making deep playoff runs and being the favorite over the years that some have no idea how to handle not being considered the favorite,  and god help us if we actually lose a game !

I remember the last time we played in the state game most homes all had signs in their yards and stores all had signs and it's all anyone talked about.  

We still have one of the best fan bases around when it comes to high school football,  but you can see a difference this year.

 I had my cousin and his family come in from Maryland and stayed with us during Thanksgiving and they have become big Richlands fans.

    He and his 2 high school aged boys went with my wife and I to the Graham game and they were just blown away by the crowd and atmosphere on both sides.  His boys play up there and were in the playoffs in Maryland but lost in the first round and said that they didn't have a 1/3rd of the fans at their playoff game,  and during the season they were lucky to get 500 people at any regular season games.......both teams combined.  They also were just blown away back in 2010 at the amount of fans that traveled to Lynchburg that day and that's when his family became fans.  Now they listen to every Richlands game they can on the computer.

We ( Richlands ) should feel so blessed to have such a program !  Mance and his staff has brought this program to bigger heights than most really thought it could be and has sustained the success for far longer than most would think is possible.

I just want our fans to appreciate this program for what it is and for the work that the players put into it and the coaches.  These coaches do not have much of a family life during the season and not much of one out of season and they deserve all the support they can get.  For all this success can be gone in a heart beat and we will be wishing for the glory days of when coach Mance was here !

I know that for the most part we still have great fan support,  but you can definitely tell a little difference from just a few short years ago.  But I will say,  that come Saturday,  there will be a Blue Tornado sighting in Salem and it will be huge and loud !

Keep the pride Richlands for we have a lot to be proud of ! !

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The pride has dropped off to an extent. I remember when Ben Brown muffed the punt in the VA High 2nd round playoff game in 2013 and the stands emptied...those who stuck around saw the greatest finish to any game at Ernie ever. They are definitely spoiled. 

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Oh yea.  A lot left when we were down to Union earlier this year.  You just never know what will happen in a high school football game.

 

Just this past Saturday, you had a few carrying their stadium seats heading to the exits with Richlands down 7 with 1:28 left in the game.

 

The die hards are still here and will be in Salem in full force Saturday

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