New Union Bears head coach Jamie Harless let’s hear your thoughts

[Gridiron60]

14 minutes ago, cityofRaven said:

If he knows anything about SWVA football, he'll take the long way from North Roanoake to Big Stone Gap through McDowell County...

I believe he took US 19S through Russell County 😂. GPS must have malfunctioned. 

[Union_Fan]

17 minutes ago, Gridiron60 said:

I believe he took US 19S through Russell County 😂. GPS must have malfunctioned. 

🤔🤐

[Unchained]

16 hours ago, Gridiron60 said:

Coach Harless does know it’s his sworn duty to stalk SWVA Sports page, right?  He’ll find out what he’s doing right, what he’s doing wrong, and the most up to date suggestions on how run his program. 

All he has to do is the opposite of what he reads here and he will be fine.

[tornado99]

3 hours ago, Fairlawncat said:

I agree with you, but disagree slightly. There is absolutely no question about his off the field conduct/issues/behavior. That is pretty clear, BUT I dont like revisionist history On The Field to "make us all feel better" in order to get back at the POS individual. Here is what I'm getting at. Sandusky at Penn St as an example. In the years that followed, many fans in Happy Valley slowly wanted to morph or rewrite history On The Field for Sandusky. I would reqd comments like, "ya know, he was an ok DC, he wasn't great." Well, they were delusional. On the field, Sandusky would be approaching the overused word "genius" on the defensive side of the ball. He might be the best On The Field DC in the history of college football. He was actually....that good On The Field. No question, off the field, he is someone who I think should have been executed by the state of PA.

The above is my concern about Turner. No question about his of the field behavior, but on the field, the guy could coach. As bad as "it makes us feel" when we say that, its a truth. He could coach. If we lie to ourselves by slowly morphing to the belief that "he was average or not so good on the field," we become the liar or delusional ones just like Turner was Off the Field. We dont need to become that. We can separate the two, On the Field and Off the Field.

 

I’ll take Union fans’ take on the on the field side of things. I have a hard time forming a valid opinion thanks to the talent resources.  In a sense, I think he “didn’t wreck the car.”

That may also be an advantage Harless will enjoy. I don’t have any information, but based on the talent joining the program and GPS travel posts, success, improvement, or maximization of potential may be more directly dependent upon being good “off the field” whether it’s keeping or bringing in and developing talent.

[Gridiron60]

1 hour ago, Unchained said:

All he has to do is the opposite of what he reads here and he will be fine.

Facts!!! 😂 I think he’ll be fine regardless. 

[Gridiron60]

28 minutes ago, tornado99 said:

I’ll take Union fans’ take on the on the field side of things. I have a hard time forming a valid opinion thanks to the talent resources.  In a sense, I think he “didn’t wreck the car.”

That may also be an advantage Harless will enjoy. I don’t have any information, but based on the talent joining the program and GPS travel posts, success, improvement, or maximization of potential may be more directly dependent upon being good “off the field” whether it’s keeping or bringing in and developing talent.

Don’t take my comments about GPS serious, I’m just having fun. You’ll need to actually consult someone in the know 😂😂😂. 

[Tigerman10]

21 hours ago, Stelley said:

There has to be a change of residence and it cannot be under the suspicion of transferring for athletics

 

20 hours ago, Real Sasquatch said:

Bingo.

Even with a legitimate move/change of residence, the new rules state that in order to be eligible for postseason a district committee must approve.  Not sure the M7 going to rubber stamp an obvious athletic move from a nearby school, regardless of loopholes.  

[tornado99]

1 hour ago, Gridiron60 said:

Don’t take my comments about GPS serious, I’m just having fun. You’ll need to actually consult someone in the know 😂😂😂. 

I know. But there’s likely some truth. However, the seriousness of my take is based upon primarily homegrown and developed talent compared to many places. Basically, they have a better starting point most years. Though, we all know transfers in general are a bigger part of today not specific to Union. 
 

(No judgement passed here. Just re-emphasizing how difficult it is to compare coaches on-field and the changing role of coaches.)

[Dodgers]

5 hours ago, Gridiron60 said:

I believe he took US 19S through Russell County 😂. GPS must have malfunctioned. 

So which school in Russell County has lost someone to Union? Lebanon or Honaker

[Stelley]

7 minutes ago, Dodgers said:

So which school in Russell County has lost someone to Union? Lebanon or Honaker

Castlewood

[UnionGuy2017]

Really big fan of what Coach Harless has put into the media so far. Strong leaders begin by setting the tone, and he is doing it very publically. 
 

I’d love to hear the message he’s sending behind closed doors. Big fan. 

[Dodgers]

Castlewood might have been the weakest football team in the whole state of Virginia. They have gone completely backwards the last two years.

[Real Sasquatch]

3 hours ago, Tigerman10 said:

 

Even with a legitimate move/change of residence, the new rules state that in order to be eligible for postseason a district committee must approve.  Not sure the M7 going to rubber stamp an obvious athletic move from a nearby school, regardless of loopholes.  

I don't understand why somebody that's already sparked interest in College's would change schools anyway.  Even if it wasn't the reason, it would appear he / she did so to pursue a chance at a championship or playoff success.  I've see numerous kids change from school A to school B over the years and end up at Emory and Henry, Concord, Bluefield State.... occasionally a larger school.  The move from School A to School B didn't help their shot at playing in College at all.  The only benefit, I suppose was a chance to win more games.  

[Fairlawncat]

Guys for the love of all things good, let's just lay it out there and stop beating around the bush. The talk or rumor or truth (I don't know) is that Lebanon's Jesse may end up at Union. If he does, wish him the best and hope he tears it up. If he doesn't, wish him the best and hope he tears it up.

[Union_Fan]

39 minutes ago, UnionGuy2017 said:

Really big fan of what Coach Harless has put into the media so far. Strong leaders begin by setting the tone, and he is doing it very publically. 
 

I’d love to hear the message he’s sending behind closed doors. Big fan. 

Definitely! What I like more than what he's said is that he's saying it with complete confidence.

https://wcyb.com/news/local/harless-aims-to-move-union-high-school-football-forward

 

 

 

[Stelley]

57 minutes ago, Dodgers said:

Castlewood might have been the weakest football team in the whole state of Virginia. They have gone completely backwards the last two years.

Was joking

[tornado99]

18 minutes ago, Fairlawncat said:

Guys for the love of all things good, let's just lay it out there and stop beating around the bush. The talk or rumor or truth (I don't know) is that Lebanon's Jesse may end up at Union. If he does, wish him the best and hope he tears it up. If he doesn't, wish him the best and hope he tears it up.

This wouldn’t surprise me. I don’t know about any of this, but it is commonplace now. 
I don’t think either party is to blame, so to speak. Again, if true, a great example of how a successful coach now is one who can keep and/or attract talent. 
You usually get immediate results by getting a talented kid, compared to developing the average player.

[Dodgers]

6 minutes ago, Stelley said:

Was joking

On a side note will Lebanon be 1A next year and if so which district will they be in? I'm assuming that was worked out today at the VHSL membership meeting.

[S10SQUAREBODY4LIFE]

Hogo, again. 

[Dodgers]

4 minutes ago, S10SQUAREBODY4LIFE said:

Hogo, again. 

Was that made official today?

[old_school_blue]

Harless played nose tackle for Abingdon during Richlands State Championship season in 1992.  He was one of the best defensive linemen in the area.

[Stelley]

8 minutes ago, Dodgers said:

Was that made official today?

Nothing officially yet but it wouldn’t be next year but the year after. Jessee’s senior year

[Dodgers]

9 minutes ago, Stelley said:

Nothing officially yet but it wouldn’t be next year but the year after. Jessee’s senior year

Exactly but isn't this meeting the one that determines where teams will be so they can start making schedules for the 2027-28 seasons. If the VHSL decides to go to 4 or 5 classifications the 1A landscape could see major changes.

[Stelley]

14 minutes ago, Dodgers said:

Exactly but isn't this meeting the one that determines where teams will be so they can start making schedules for the 2027-28 seasons. If the VHSL decides to go to 4 or 5 classifications the 1A landscape could see major changes.

Would also like to clarify that nowhere has VHSL stated that they are thinking about going to 5 classifications. It was just something proposed by a media source and it took off

[JDHoss]

37 minutes ago, Stelley said:

Would also like to clarify that nowhere has VHSL stated that they are thinking about going to 5 classifications. It was just something proposed by a media source and it took off

Yeah, I don't see any universe where the VH$L is going to give up the revenue from 32 playoff games by cutting out a division.