favorite in the southwest district and pre-season stand out players to watch?

[Deleted Account 5,203]

17 hours ago, Real Sasquatch said:

Gary Clark of Pulaski County and James Madision University was a two time Super Bowl Champion for the Washington Redskins as part of the "fun bunch", who played 1 season in the USFL and 11 seasons in the NFL..  He was the first player in NFL history to catch at least 50 passes in his first 10 NFL seasons.  He was a 4 time Pro - Bowl selection and a 3 time All - Pro selection.  He led the Skins in receptions for 7 seasons.

 

It's amazing how different the sport of football was in that era.  I'd love to drop a Cassius Harris or Brandon Beavers in 1979 just to see what kind of havoc they'd wreak.  The margins between success and failure are razor thin today,

[T8KNDookeez 100]

Tazewell success depends spreading the ball around. I hear they have speed and athleticism at multiple positions but going for a record and trying to win games CAN be two different things. It all depends on their offensive philosophy this year.

[SwvaOG 601]

1 hour ago, T8KNDookeez said:

Tazewell success depends spreading the ball around. I hear they have speed and athleticism at multiple positions but going for a record and trying to win games CAN be two different things. It all depends on their offensive philosophy this year.

Interesting comment.  I spoke at length to a parent of a graduating Bulldog this past spring.  He was not happy at all with how his son was/wasn’t utilized and how the Coach/Dad, WR/son dynamic affected the team.  I told him him he should have taken his kid up to Tony Palmer or down to Jeff Tarter and he would have been more successful.  Said if he had it to do over he absolutely would have.  And his kid was a very talented kid. 

[EH31 2,518]

1 hour ago, SwvaOG said:

Interesting comment.  I spoke at length to a parent of a graduating Bulldog this past spring.  He was not happy at all with how his son was/wasn’t utilized and how the Coach/Dad, WR/son dynamic affected the team.  I told him him he should have taken his kid up to Tony Palmer or down to Jeff Tarter and he would have been more successful.  Said if he had it to do over he absolutely would have.  And his kid was a very talented kid. 

transferring solves all problems!!! Good idea 

[BandanaVTDavis4321 1,717]

3 hours ago, T8KNDookeez said:

Tazewell success depends spreading the ball around. I hear they have speed and athleticism at multiple positions but going for a record and trying to win games CAN be two different things. It all depends on their offensive philosophy this year.

I'm looking forward to see if the Bulldogs can improve on that OL this year, and on 3rd and 4 or 3rd and 5, give consideration for toting that thing off tackle for the 1st down. Getting that run game improved to go with that passing game goes a long way. Of course, that's true for about any football team.

[SwvaOG 601]

27 minutes ago, EH31 said:

transferring solves all problems!!! Good idea 

Alienating talented athletes because you want to throw your son a 5 yard dig 120 times in a season and give another talented kid 30 touches seems like an equally good idea.  Better yet, let’s apply that to the working world.  Should that same kid stay at a job where his pay is 50% lower than another similarly skilled employee whose father runs the business?  Is it wrong for that kid to look for another job?

[Real Sasquatch 1,865]

4 hours ago, T8KNDookeez said:

Tazewell success depends spreading the ball around. I hear they have speed and athleticism at multiple positions but going for a record and trying to win games CAN be two different things. It all depends on their offensive philosophy this year.

Depends on the line-play, I think.  They will have the ability to run the ball successfully if the line has improved somewhat.  They have a couple of very good RB's.  If the line is a little weak, I suspect they will roll the QB out a lot and pass the ball around quite a bit.  I still think they throw the ball most of the time, even if they have the ability to run.  The passing game may open up the run game, sort of the reverse of what normally happens.

[Jags52 346]

2 hours ago, SwvaOG said:

Alienating talented athletes because you want to throw your son a 5 yard dig 120 times in a season and give another talented kid 30 touches seems like an equally good idea.  Better yet, let’s apply that to the working world.  Should that same kid stay at a job where his pay is 50% lower than another similarly skilled employee whose father runs the business?  Is it wrong for that kid to look for another job?

There is a lot more that goes into touches than just talent level. At the end of the day it falls on the QB most of those 5 yard outs were just teams giving Harris a 10 yard cushion so they didn’t get burnt deep so I would take that throw every day of the week. They were running full concepts away from him but that out was the right throw. We honestly don’t know what went down at practice but as much as I can’t stand J’me throwing that pitch and catch with the best athlete on the field is just stealing yards and good coaching regardless if that is his kid. It’s sad that running from things that don’t go your way has become the norm in sports.

[BandanaVTDavis4321 1,717]

2 hours ago, Jags52 said:

There is a lot more that goes into touches than just talent level. At the end of the day it falls on the QB most of those 5 yard outs were just teams giving Harris a 10 yard cushion so they didn’t get burnt deep so I would take that throw every day of the week. They were running full concepts away from him but that out was the right throw. We honestly don’t know what went down at practice but as much as I can’t stand J’me throwing that pitch and catch with the best athlete on the field is just stealing yards and good coaching regardless if that is his kid. It’s sad that running from things that don’t go your way has become the norm in sports.

As for running from things that don't go your way, it's beyond sports imo. It is invested in our culture.  With that written, there are situations of straight-up wrongdoing where people are left with no choice or recourse, but to remove themselves from the situation. I know nothing about the situation at Tazewell and can't comment on that, but I think it goes both ways, or each situation has to be viewed through a careful lens. It's like our media nowadays. Sometimes there is absolute truth, and sometimes there is fake news literally by the same news outlet within a 5 minute period.. This leads to not knowing what the heck to believe.  

[BigWinners 1,643]

2 hours ago, Jags52 said:

There is a lot more that goes into touches than just talent level. At the end of the day it falls on the QB most of those 5 yard outs were just teams giving Harris a 10 yard cushion so they didn’t get burnt deep so I would take that throw every day of the week. They were running full concepts away from him but that out was the right throw. We honestly don’t know what went down at practice but as much as I can’t stand J’me throwing that pitch and catch with the best athlete on the field is just stealing yards and good coaching regardless if that is his kid. It’s sad that running from things that don’t go your way has become the norm in sports.

That's mostly true but RV found ways to get Beavers the ball downfield, RVs line wasn't elite so it just seems like Tazwell could maybe attack more downfield and sacrifice some of those gaudy catch numbers. 

[Real Sasquatch 1,865]

2 hours ago, BigWinners said:

That's mostly true but RV found ways to get Beavers the ball downfield, RVs line wasn't elite so it just seems like Tazwell could maybe attack more downfield and sacrifice some of those gaudy catch numbers. 

The lineplay may force Creasy to get rid of the ball quickly, but Creasy has a lot of talent and if he can get the timing right with those receivers, I can see him throwing the ball downfield more.  Those guys have some speed and can run under a high arcing pass.

[EH31 2,518]

8 hours ago, SwvaOG said:

Alienating talented athletes because you want to throw your son a 5 yard dig 120 times in a season and give another talented kid 30 touches seems like an equally good idea.  Better yet, let’s apply that to the working world.  Should that same kid stay at a job where his pay is 50% lower than another similarly skilled employee whose father runs the business?  Is it wrong for that kid to look for another job?

I think if that was I would express my concerns to the boss before I ran to where i thought the grass might be greener. 
 

Embrace debate -

What’s worse: 

cancel culture or transfer culture?

[Union_Fan 2,155]

5 minutes ago, EH31 said:

I think if that was I would express my concerns to the boss before I ran to where i thought the grass might be greener. 

I tried that once with 5 other co-workers. We were told "it's ok to complain, but you have to realize where your paycheck comes from, so if you don't like it you might need to find a new job." I did exactly that 9 years ago and I've been happy ever since.

Nothing related to the transfer debate itself, just a side note on complaining. Sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn't. One thing I did learn from that experience was to be prepared and have something lined up before going to the boss just in case you don't get the answer you want.

[SwvaOG 601]

57 minutes ago, EH31 said:

I think if that was I would express my concerns to the boss before I ran to where i thought the grass might be greener. 
 

Embrace debate -

What’s worse: 

cancel culture or transfer culture?

So..you’ve never left a job for another?  If you left were you giving up on the promotion path?  I call BS.  If you were this kid you would have went to the coach and said “Hey, I’m as talented as your son and I think I should get more opportunities and that you call his number too often.”  As a 17 year old you would have said that to the head coach.  This isn’t a case of “complaining”…it is a situation in which the power structure may be compromised.  That isn’t hard to discern in this situation.  

[EH31 2,518]

8 minutes ago, SwvaOG said:

So..you’ve never left a job for another?  If you left were you giving up on the promotion path?  I call BS.  If you were this kid you would have went to the coach and said “Hey, I’m as talented as your son and I think I should get more opportunities and that you call his number too often.”  As a 17 year old you would have said that to the head coach.  This isn’t a case of “complaining”…it is a situation in which the power structure may be compromised.  That isn’t hard to discern in this situation.  

You didn’t say the kid was complaining… you said the dad was complaining. I wouldn’t expect a 17 year old kid to say anything. 
 

but if a dad is complaining… way after the fact… to a stranger …  don’t you think he may have had time to bring up his concerns to the person he was concerned with?
 

Is that not fair? 

 

[EH31 2,518]

1 hour ago, Union_Fan said:

I tried that once with 5 other co-workers. We were told "it's ok to complain, but you have to realize where your paycheck comes from, so if you don't like it you might need to find a new job." I did exactly that 9 years ago and I've been happy ever since.

Nothing related to the transfer debate itself, just a side note on complaining. Sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn't. One thing I did learn from that experience was to be prepared and have something lined up before going to the boss just in case you don't get the answer you want.

Understand what you’re saying. Sounds like you or someone else would have had to do some complaining before “remember where the paycheck comes from” would be brought up, right? 

That sounds like your concerns weren’t heard and you made the right decision for yourself to pursue other opportunities. 
 

You didn’t stay there for your whole career, retire, then after retirement complain to strangers about your boss’s decisions & say you should have left to go work for another company that “might” have given you more opportunities.

 

[sixcat 2,919]

Almost every dad thinks his son was cheated out of gridiron stardom by somebody. May as well lay claim to the “my son would have been better if Harris wasn’t the coaches son” argument.

VHSL may as well put an asterisk on Harris’ receiving records!

[stu_bean 1,058]

8 hours ago, EH31 said:

You didn’t say the kid was complaining… you said the dad was complaining. I wouldn’t expect a 17 year old kid to say anything. 
 

but if a dad is complaining… way after the fact… to a stranger …  don’t you think he may have had time to bring up his concerns to the person he was concerned with?
 

Is that not fair? 

 

I don't know for a fact who it is, but I have a strong suspicion on it as I hard someone complaining the exact thing every week I sat near them in the stands.  I won't debate they are talented but Harris was utilized more like a RB when there was no run game.  So would we be complaining about a RB that had 120 carries in a season?

Anybody on here knows how I feel about transfers 😡...

If it is the kids choice, what a great decision to leave your friends and team behind just to think about yourself.  The all about me attitude is alive and well in today's society. 

[redtiger 1,740]

12 hours ago, EH31 said:

I think if that was I would express my concerns to the boss before I ran to where i thought the grass might be greener. 
 

Embrace debate -

What’s worse: 

cancel culture or transfer culture?

Our culture has shifted to this view of confrontation as a bad thing, people will back bite and run their mouths but wont directly address the issue because conflict is bad. Confrontation gets the issues out on the table, makes everyone aware of the situation from various perspectives and ultimately solves problems. 

[SwvaOG 601]

5 hours ago, stu_bean said:

I don't know for a fact who it is, but I have a strong suspicion on it as I hard someone complaining the exact thing every week I sat near them in the stands.  I won't debate they are talented but Harris was utilized more like a RB when there was no run game.  So would we be complaining about a RB that had 120 carries in a season?

Anybody on here knows how I feel about transfers 😡...

If it is the kids choice, what a great decision to leave your friends and team behind just to think about yourself.  The all about me attitude is alive and well in today's society. 

As a Tazewell fan, do you think the other kid could have been used in a similar manner?  From the outside looking in, it appeared to me he could have been.  He was bigger and with similar speed.  I don’t know the kid personally, nor the dad, just ended up having a long conversation with him.  He had his facts and stats at the ready, though (YPC, TD ratio, etc.). Dude had a solid argument.  Some of the board seem to give no credence that the Coach might actually have given Preference to his own kid. If there is one thing this region has shown me it’s that “daddy ball” can be a real thing….just don’t usually see it at the HS level.  I’m curious as to the thoughts of the Bulldog people on the board since they don’t have to speak I hypotheticals.

[Real Sasquatch 1,865]

1 hour ago, SwvaOG said:

As a Tazewell fan, do you think the other kid could have been used in a similar manner?  From the outside looking in, it appeared to me he could have been.  He was bigger and with similar speed.  I don’t know the kid personally, nor the dad, just ended up having a long conversation with him.  He had his facts and stats at the ready, though (YPC, TD ratio, etc.). Dude had a solid argument.  Some of the board seem to give no credence that the Coach might actually have given Preference to his own kid. If there is one thing this region has shown me it’s that “daddy ball” can be a real thing….just don’t usually see it at the HS level.  I’m curious as to the thoughts of the Bulldog people on the board since they don’t have to speak I hypotheticals.

Harris is the best player on that team.  Creasy is the next best player on that team, in my opinion.  You have to get the ball in the hands of your playmakers and that's what Tazewell did.  Fortunately, a few kids developed into playmakers as the season went on.  I think the ball gets spread around a bit more this year, but they will still be a pass first team.  I am optimistic that the run game will take a little bit of pressure off of the QB this year.

[Liam McPoyle 1,863]

16 hours ago, sixcat said:

Almost every dad thinks his son was cheated out of gridiron stardom by somebody. May as well lay claim to the “my son would have been better if Harris wasn’t the coaches son” argument.

VHSL may as well put an asterisk on Harris’ receiving records!

If Kilmer weren't such a prick, my boy would be starting quarterback.
 

[Union_Fan 2,155]

2 hours ago, Liam McPoyle said:

If Kilmer weren't such a prick, my boy would be starting quarterback.
 

The same one that hit you in the face at the BBQ or the one that started the cult?

Either way, don't sound like 1st string material to me.

[BigWinners 1,643]

21 hours ago, Real Sasquatch said:

The lineplay may force Creasy to get rid of the ball quickly, but Creasy has a lot of talent and if he can get the timing right with those receivers, I can see him throwing the ball downfield more.  Those guys have some speed and can run under a high arcing pass.

The ball travels downfield much quicker in the air than on the ground, if they can attack downfield that would force cushion and create a lot of space to run and work middle of field. 

[Deleted Account 5,203]

On 7/19/2022 at 6:57 PM, BigWinners said:

That's mostly true but RV found ways to get Beavers the ball downfield, RVs line wasn't elite so it just seems like Tazwell could maybe attack more downfield and sacrifice some of those gaudy catch numbers. 

Tazewell had 3 other receivers with over 40 receptions, y’know?  One of them had 8 TDs to Harris’s 11.  It’s not as if Harris was receiving the ball to the exclusion of everyone else.  
 

Tazewell has a generationally-good QB and a WR that’s going to one of the nation’s premier FCS programs.  It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to exploit that connection.