Tazewell @ Carroll Updates and thoughts

[Iceman2553 23]

Anyone attending, thoughts on these teams 

[Real Sasquatch 1,865]

After 2 - 10 play series for each teams varsity,  no score for either team.  Carroll managed about 30 total yards on each possession, Bulldogs managed about 40 on each possession.  Impressed with Brock Alley and Reece Mullins at LB.  Avery Zeigler made a couple of impressive runs on offense, one of about 15 yards and another of about 20, with a nice stiff arm. (very quick).  Gabe Beavers and Jaime Rizzo look solid on both sides of the line.  Creasy didn't have a lot of time for slow developing pass plays, but he tucked it and ran twice for nice yardage,  came up favoring that shoulder on the last one(yikes).  Receivers are tall and athletic, Patterson, Gillespie and McDonald,  lot of potential for the Dogs.  I'm sure both teams are working on fundamentals, but Bulldogs look a little quicker on the line then last season.  Brock Alley looks good in short yard situations and Taylor only carried the ball once for a few yards.  Bulldogs need to shore up their pass protection and protect Creasy and they should do well.

 

J.V. is in for both teams and CC scored a long td run by a little fast dude...not concerned as much with jv, will post more if the varsity gets back in.

[Real Sasquatch 1,865]

Varsity back in playing distance and down now.  CC scores on their first possession aided by a long acrobatic catch during the series. 

Bulldogs go hurry up on the next possession.  Nice runs by Zeigler, Alley and Taylor.  Creasy with a nice scramble for good yardage. Quick pass to Mullins.  Creasy to Taylor and the Bulldogs score to even things up.  Dogs looked good with the quick tempo...

 

CC 1 td

Dogs 1 td

[Real Sasquatch 1,865]

Dogs force 3 and out on next possession.

 

Dogs go hurry up again, Creasy completing nice passes and flags seem to be flying every time the dogs make a first down.  Gotta fix that.  As I type Kaizon Taylor does his best Marshawn Lynch impersonation, rumbling for about 20 yards, followed by a 30 yd td toss from Creasy to Mullins.  Dogs up 2 tds to 1.

 

 

 

 

[Real Sasquatch 1,865]

Final tally.

Dogs 2-1 in varsity

CC 2-0 in jv.

[SpillBoss 127]

Some small stuff to clean up and they’ll be fine, was impressed tonight.

[Bulldogs52 482]

Was impressed, especially being the first day of actual full gear.

[SwvaOG 601]

Dawgs need to work on their defense and they'll be fine.  I watched them versus RV and Graham and I'll say that they just flat out quit on some plays...especially after they were down 2-3 scores.  Can someone speak to the DC and culture of defensive practice over there?  I know some places seem to overly focus on one side of the ball (Lee High is good offensively but consistently porous on defense while Union seems to place D above O). I'll say this.....in this era of flashy offensive football and the rules bending toward the offense it seems like kids gravitate more to that side of the ball.  So, I feel like to combat that you have to have a strong defensive culture from the Head Coach to the DC down to the positional coaches.  I wonder if Tazewell has that.

[Gridiron60 2,555]

7 hours ago, SwvaOG said:

Dawgs need to work on their defense and they'll be fine.  I watched them versus RV and Graham and I'll say that they just flat out quit on some plays...especially after they were down 2-3 scores.  Can someone speak to the DC and culture of defensive practice over there?  I know some places seem to overly focus on one side of the ball (Lee High is good offensively but consistently porous on defense while Union seems to place D above O). I'll say this.....in this era of flashy offensive football and the rules bending toward the offense it seems like kids gravitate more to that side of the ball.  So, I feel like to combat that you have to have a strong defensive culture from the Head Coach to the DC down to the positional coaches.  I wonder if Tazewell has that.

I’m not sure if Tazewell has that but I’ve always heard offense wins games, defense wins championships. If the Bulldogs want to be a championship team then perhaps a greater focus on defense will help cultivate that. I agree with your observation that at times they just seem to quit. Mental toughness is just as important as physical toughness. 

[BandanaVTDavis4321 1,717]

7 hours ago, SwvaOG said:

 I'll say this.....in this era of flashy offensive football and the rules bending toward the offense it seems like kids gravitate more to that side of the ball.  

Bingo. Also, with the rules on targeting and no more "knock out hits," it even further promotes the culture of offense first emphasis for kids. Defense wins titles in football more times than most.

[stu_bean 1,058]

1 hour ago, Gridiron60 said:

I’m not sure if Tazewell has that but I’ve always heard offense wins games, defense wins championships. If the Bulldogs want to be a championship team then perhaps a greater focus on defense will help cultivate that. I agree with your observation that at times they just seem to quit. Mental toughness is just as important as physical toughness. 

I know the coaches are working on it and it is there.  With that said, putting up points and a offensive show gets players to come out.  So kind of the old saying, "If you build it they will come".  Players have it and the coaches are there for it but just needs refinement. 

[sixcat 2,919]

2 hours ago, Gridiron60 said:

offense wins games, defense wins championships.

Is that really the case in modern day football?

The Kansas City Chiefs allowed 5.2 yards per play last season and 5.8 the previous season and have a 5-year average of 5.8 yards per play allowed. It seems to me "bend but don't break" is much more commonplace. Modern football is geared more toward the offense keeping the ball away from the other team by limiting possessions rather than immulating the '85 Bears or the 70's Steel Curtain. 

[tornado99 345]

I think Tazewell will be very solid now, and in the short term. I just don’t see anyone consistently competing with Graham during this time. I only mention this due to the potential ceiling of frustration in not getting over the Region D hump and/or potential student transfer issues in the future. I’m picturing consistent 6-4 to 9-1 regular seasons and falling just short. 

I’m not saying that as a certainty, just a potential obstacle. Kids nowadays would transfer simply to win a state title. 
 

I imagine, but don’t know, that there is a similar dynamic around schools such as Union (Lee and other Wise County schools), or for different reasons possibly Honaker in 1A, if they consistently win in the future and Richlands or Lebanon doesn’t get their house in order.

[1inStripes 932]

3 hours ago, sixcat said:

Is that really the case in modern day football?

The Kansas City Chiefs allowed 5.2 yards per play last season and 5.8 the previous season and have a 5-year average of 5.8 yards per play allowed. It seems to me "bend but don't break" is much more commonplace. Modern football is geared more toward the offense keeping the ball away from the other team by limiting possessions rather than immulating the '85 Bears or the 70's Steel Curtain. 

I agree.  Keep things in front of you in D forcing long drives and in HS hoping the offense's execution isnt as good in tight spaces, or the more plays they run the more likely they are to commit a turnover.  

[Real Sasquatch 1,865]

I think that defensively, they will do fine against teams that don't have a ton of speed.  Offensively, they need to work on protecting the QB when he drops back to pass after taking the snap from center.  He has the ability to tuck it and run, but I wouldn't want him in that type of situation very much, he has been nursing an injured shoulder and  he is too valuable to the team.  They did fine, lining up under center and running the ball, it was the passing that didn't go well from that position.  They looked very good passing the ball out of the shot-gun,  got some big targets to throw to.  I think about 5 or 6 different receivers caught the ball in the scrimmage and there were some running wide open when they picked up the tempo.  Interested to see how they progress.

[techfan 43]

I thought Tazewell Varsity looked better once it went to the regular game format they struggled with the defensive end getting pressure to Carter if he didn't throw quick developing plays but he's got a lot of really athletic targets so I think the quick developing passes may be best anyway.  My biggest concern for Tazewell is I feel like there is a lack of depth and a pretty big drop off between the firsts and the seconds.  It looks like a lot of the same numbers on both sides of the ball and when one of those guys came out it was pretty obvious the fall off

[Bulldogs52 482]

Again this was the first time they had been full gear this season. The intensity was there on defense from the first snap. Defense is always a step ahead of the offense this time of year. And they have a extra week to prepare due to no game on opening week.

[SwvaOG 601]

On 8/10/2023 at 8:53 AM, BandanaVTDavis4321 said:

Bingo. Also, with the rules on targeting and no more "knock out hits," it even further promotes the culture of offense first emphasis for kids. Defense wins titles in football more times than most.

It is a stark difference just in our family.  My brother and I were very defensive minded although he was a very good RB.  Both of my boys have never seen a tackle they wanted to make but will sacrifice life and limb to catch a pass or score a TD.  Breaks my old crusty defensive heart....but waddya do? 🤷‍♂️

[BandanaVTDavis4321 1,717]

55 minutes ago, SwvaOG said:

It is a stark difference just in our family.  My brother and I were very defensive minded although he was a very good RB.  Both of my boys have never seen a tackle they wanted to make but will sacrifice life and limb to catch a pass or score a TD.  Breaks my old crusty defensive heart....but waddya do? 🤷‍♂️

You and your brother were definitely defensive minded! Your brother was one of the few guys that played "defense" while playing offense. Dude liked contact when he carried the rock and was looking to deliver punishment to the poor soul that had to tackle him.