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Bluefield -Richlands


ojrussell
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Richlands should end the series with  Bluefield as  it is extremely difficult to overcome biased  officials when  playing them  in Wva.  End it like RHS did in 2003  when any objective fan who saw that game  will admit that the Zebras made sure that the Beavers would make the playoffs. 
I will refrain from making any reference to dishonesty here , but ????

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addendum to topic -any official who cannot call a game without  favoritism to one team at the expense of the other is guilty of cheating young men who have been taught by a sincere coach that  clean and fair play is paramount. What message is sent to young men when it is obvious to them and  others that the Refs  deliberately made bad calls to favor their  TEAM!

One has to wonder how many of the wins Bluefield has won in Mitchell Stadium have been aided by FRIENDLY OFFICIALS ! JMHO !

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With all due respect, it’s ridiculous to compare 2003 to Friday night’s game. In 2003 the game was won and refs determined the outcome. There was one questionable call in my opinion Friday night. Bluefield had two TDS called back: two sloppy plays that allowed Richlands to score. If not for those missteps, the outcome would have been even more lopsided. Richlands played hard but they weren’t beating Bluefield this year, period. Anyone blaming the loss on refs didn’t watch the same game I did. Bluefield is strong, fast, talent all over the field. Richlands has talent in Webb and Forest. Simmons is decent at QB. They should have a good season when it’s said & done and make playoffs.  If Bluefield had everyone in & healthy it would have been a more embarrassing loss than the regular season game with Graham last year. I’m not throwing any shade at Richlands , they always play hard and are well coached. I’m just looking at the entire picture realistically. 2003 is nowhere near 9/27/19. 

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It's about the mighty "mo" and 50/50 calls. When the Beavers play at home, they overwhelmingly get a lobsided portion of those 50-50 calls. As for penalties, the timing is often spot on-perfect. When there is a since the momentum is shifting, there is a history of the officials inserting themselves and ceasing, halting, not allowing that momentum shift to occur. The call made was 100 percent wrong and the timing was perfect at not allowing the momentum to shift.

With the above written, I still think the Beavers win that game because Davis and the running game was simply to tough to contain for 4 quarters.  To beat Bluefield at Mitchell, you better be 10 points better because it's 7-0 or 10-0 at kickoff. Bluefield has been so good that most aren't within 10 points of them anyway, lol. That game on the road at LB this year? LB better be thankful it was down there. As close as that one was, I think they would have had a big L in Bluefield. The holding penalties would have been in full force. LB is very fortunate that one was down there.

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2 hours ago, Hokie1Pokie said:

It's about the mighty "mo" and 50/50 calls. When the Beavers play at home, they overwhelmingly get a lobsided portion of those 50-50 calls. As for penalties, the timing is often spot on-perfect. When there is a since the momentum is shifting, there is a history of the officials inserting themselves and ceasing, halting, not allowing that momentum shift to occur. The call made was 100 percent wrong and the timing was perfect at not allowing the momentum to shift.

There were plenty of those...the kick being the one that most will remember because it stopped Richlands from going up 7 at half and getting the ball back first. 

There was also a facemask called when we had Bluefield stopped on 3rd down. The player was facing me and I didn’t see a facemask. Take away the stop and on the very next play they got a TD. 

There was also a pass interference call on a Bluefield TD where the Bluefield defender ended up in the end zone and the Blues player ended up on their back after a shove. 

Those are 3 calls that’s directly stopped the momentum you’re talking about — and were directly tied to points. 

We probably weren’t winning anyways. Like you said. Bluefield is the class of the area. But just once...I’d like a clean shake up there. You don’t see VA refs treat them like that when they come to Ernie. 

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I do enjoy reading this board because it is local. That being said I have never posted until now, and is after I read the remark above about being treated like that at "Ernie".

I have personally seen teams treated that way at "Ernie", and this includes Bluefield. I watched the game, there were some tough breaks indeed toward the Blues, but make

no doubt Bluefield was by far the better team.

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43 minutes ago, riders61 said:

I watched the game, there were some tough breaks indeed toward the Blues,

So many times, those words I've heard about Mitchell and the Beavers "tough breaks."  The problem is......"so many times." Not a one time event. A pattern.

With the above written, it's important to note the Beavers have been arguably the best football program in the coverage area in history. Again, arguably, but no question top 3. I have them as the best. But......many think it's a binomial proposition. Meaning.......it's all or none. Either the Beavers get the calls at Mitchell and they are pretty good but not great........or they don't get any additional calls at Mitchell and they are great. The truth is that they are both. They are great and a fantastic-historically rich program AND they do get the calls at Mitchell over the long term. I take it a step further and stand by it. They have historically, at least the past 4 decades on most occasions, with INTENT, with purpose, by the WV officiating crews Purposely received calls to influence the game. Are there one game exceptions? Sure. But over the long haul, in my opinion it's true. I KNOW for a 100 percent fact this not just occured, but was literally stated by ole George and Bill in the 90s. 

A team like LB was to good last year. The deficit to much and it didn't matter where it was at. No way to hide it. With the gap closed this year, LB loses that game this year if it's in Bluefield, WV.

Where the officiating is good and legit and objective is when Bluefield gets in the playoffs and play other WV schools of which the crews have no intent. It's a huge reason many VA schools don't play Bluefield. Pulaski an example. You will hear stories of why the series wasn't renewed or this or that. Fact is, even in the 80s, Pulaski experienced the same issues either officiating in Bluefield. 

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My comment was't to pick on the Blues if that is the way it was taken. My intent was to say there is homecookin everywhere, Bluefield-Richlands- Pulaski ( I lived in Pulaski I've seen it)- anywhere! It

is a shame but it is a fact, in a way 50kw is right, you have to roll with the punches wherever you play. You want to see some homecooking go see a game at Salem (Va) or Mingo Central in WV, it is rather 

embarrassing for even a general fan to watch those two places, Salem is usually so good it doesn't matter and Mingo Central will pull your pants down for you! Hope everyone has a great day!

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I respect your opinion. I'm saying you and me disagree. 

A. There is Home Cooking Everywhere. True.

B. Bluefield has no more home cooking than any other school because A is true above.

I have a problem with B above. B is false. Bluefield has substantially MORE "home cooking" and I told you, it's not about "Richlands last night." It's a pattern of a long, long time.

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18 minutes ago, Hokie1Pokie said:

I respect your opinion. I'm saying you and me disagree. 

A. There is Home Cooking Everywhere. True.

B. Bluefield has no more home cooking than any other school because A is true above.

I have a problem with B above. B is false. Bluefield has substantially MORE "home cooking" and I told you, it's not about "Richlands last night." It's a pattern of a long, long time.

It is all in your head.

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1 minute ago, Bluefield researcher said:

It is all in your head.

With all due respect, Bluefield has historically, and constantly, received the benefit of biased officiating at Mitchell far greater than any team in the coverage region receives at its own home stadium, especially against VA teams.  

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Just now, UVAObserver said:

With all due respect, Bluefield has historically, and constantly, received the benefit of biased officiating at Mitchell far greater than any team in the coverage region receives at its own home stadium, especially against VA teams.  

Name one time other than George Simon making up his own time rules vs Richlands. I can name two time when VA officials gave Graham games over Bluefield.

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7 minutes ago, Bluefield researcher said:

Name one time other than George Simon making up his own time rules vs Richlands. I can name two time when VA officials gave Graham games over Bluefield.

Loved me some George!  I would see him at the center after a controversial call the night before and he would just grin. George is one of the few guys that would hit a jump shit in your face at age 60 and talk smack to you all the way back down the court! I miss him, (not on the field for God's sake) but in every other form. Great guy.

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My advice “Build a Bridge, Get Over It” , “Let it Go”, “Move On” & whatever phrases one can muster. It’s over, bad call, almost any team can argue a bad call at some point or another. 2003 was a game costing call , Friday night, wasn’t. Teams can’t always use refs as an excuse for losing. Sometimes the other team is just better. Refs are human, some are probably are not unbiased as they should be.  It’s unfortunate when that happens. Richlands needs to focus on Radford this Friday and put Bluefield behind them. The season must go on....best of luck Blues. I really think Blues can beat Radford or at least make it barn burner. 

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Richlands and G men both should drop Bluefield and see if the crying stops.If you can't run with the big dogs stay on the porch. Gmen have never won a decade series with Bluefield 8-2 last decade. Bluefield is 69-23-2 all time against Gmen. Bluefield has won 11 state champ. , 6 runner- up. Graham has never beaten Beaver any of these years. Graham has won 3 state champ. ,Bluefield beat Gmen 2 of those years.  1959 & 2017.    BAD OFFICIATING SURE LAST A LONG TIME.

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It was 2018.  I agree that Bluefield has the best program in the area.  Most of Bluefield's victories over Graham came when Graham was a much smaller school.  Today the enrollment is much closer.  I agree about the crying and complaining too.  No excuses, Bluefield is (in most years) the better team than both Graham and Richlands and the Bulldogs and Tigers too for that matter.  Graham has had spurts and so has Richlands, but in general the most consistent program has been Bluefield.

I'm more concerned with the recent past, rather than 40-90 years ago, however.

Also, It would be great if Graham and Bluefield would start playing on the last game of the season, I thought Graham would have given them a much better game (possibly even won) at the end of the season last year.  Too many unknowns at the beginning of the year and Bluefield usually has a better talent pool.

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Why is the Beaver-Graham game the first game? You have to know some history. It is true that in the early days Bluefield was a much larger school than Graham. Bluefield started full time football in 1922. Graham and the rest of Tazewell County in 1926. I can only find one game for Graham that they actually played on their schedule. I can't verify it but it seems logical that the Graham team disbanded in 1926 due to lack of interest.

In 1927 Graham actually played Ramsey and Wade Jr Highs from Bluefield. Bluefield had three Jr High schools then. Fairview was the other. In 1928 Graham was not on the Bluefield schedule but Graham challenged Bluefield to a city championship game and the first "modern" day game was played at the end to the 1928 season. Graham-Beaver games were scheduled wherever the schedule allowed until 1936. These games were not really a big deal to either school at that time. Bluefield was worried about beating Princeton and Welch and Graham was worried about their games with Richlands and Tazewell. This changed for good when Graham pulled off the upset in 1934.

In 1936 Jake Miller came to Bluefield from Princeton where he was an assistant. He was head coach and AD at Bluefield. Princeton was put on suspension by the WVSSAC in 1936 for using kids from Athens on their basketball team. They were not allowed to play anyone from the WVSSAC in football. Jake Miller got the idea that Bluefield and Graham should play every year at the end of the season of Armistice Day, November 11. Apparently both schools agreed to this idea and Bluefield and Graham played on 11-11-1936. 

After the 1936 season Miller went back to Princeton. Sometime before he left Bluefield he came to the conclusion that it really would be better if Bluefield and Princeton played every Armistice Day instead of Bluefield and Graham. Before leaving Bluefield Miller had a game contract drawn up with Princeton to play on Armistice Day in Princeton. This was in addition to the game that was already on contract between Bluefield and Princeton in late September 1937. He signed the contract as Bluefield AD and then resigned and took the AD job at Princeton where he then proceeded to sign the contract as AD for Princeton. No one at Bluefield or Graham was aware of this underhanded move and the 1937 schedules had Bluefield and Graham playing November 11 but this was simply a gentleman's agreement and there was no official contract,

Sometime in October 1937 (after the first Bluefield - Princeton game had been played in Bluefield) Princeton produced the 2nd game contract much to the surprise of Bluefield. At that time each city in Mercer County had their own BOE with the county board over them. The Bluefield board ruled the 2nd game did not have to be played. The Princeton board said the game was legally contracted and had to be played. The issue went to the Mercer Board and they ruled in favor of Princeton. 

Bluefield and Graham then began negotiating for a game on a different date. Negotiations quickly broke down when Graham discovered a clause in the contract that was new in most game contracts in 1937. The clause stated that no player from Bluefield or Graham could play in the game if said player had played at the other school the year before. There were at least two players on Graham that had played at Bluefield in 1936 and those players would not be allowed to play under the new terms. Graham simply could not be competitive without 2 players that had started all year and the contract was never signed. This is the reason there was no Graham - Beaver game in 1937 and two Bluefield - Princeton games in 1937. It is a shame because it was Bill Dudley's senior year.

From this time forward Bluefield and Princeton ALWAYS played on November 11 or thereabouts and it was Bluefield and Princeton's final game. This lasted until 1963 when violence at the Bluefield - Princeton games caused the game to be moved to the beginning of the season and ultimately removed entirely from the schedule until 1970. 

In the meantime Bluefield and Graham had started a tradition of playing their game as the first or second game of the season depending on when the states allowed the earliest game to be played and that tradition has lasted until today. This game is now an event and it would be crazy to move it to any other date. Just for the record there have been times Bluefield "knew they would win" if the game was later in the season. 1979 comes to mind.

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7 hours ago, crazyFB said:

Richlands and G men both should drop Bluefield and see if the crying stops.If you can't run with the big dogs stay on the porch. Gmen have never won a decade series with Bluefield 8-2 last decade. Bluefield is 69-23-2 all time against Gmen. Bluefield has won 11 state champ. , 6 runner- up. Graham has never beaten Beaver any of these years. Graham has won 3 state champ. ,Bluefield beat Gmen 2 of those years.  1959 & 2017.    BAD OFFICIATING SURE LAST A LONG TIME.

Since the Richlands/Bluefield series was renewed back in 07, it's 6-3 Bluefield. That's not as lopsided as some of y'all make the series out to be.

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