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You are gonna lose kids either way if you go Spring/Summer instead of Winter.
I think its played at the right time, but they outta give the kids a full practice week just to get used to playing together. its really impossible to get anything out of it if neither team is really prepared to play 100%.
Stupid? I think the VA teams would have a better chance in getting players if this game did not take place right when Basketball season was starting. The TN schools have larger enrollments and have the advantage in getting players that are not relied upon to play basketball like our smaller VA schools. Maybe play this game end of Feb. first of March? The main reason this game is played when it is now is due to the TN coaches. From what I just found out it gave them two weeks of practice compare to VAs 2 to 3 days.Quote:
Originally Posted by 1inStripes
Heck with it. Its time I take the vacation I promised myself from these boards. Sorry I wasted everyones time with my stupid opinions.
If you play it in Feb/March you still have kids playing basketball or baseball so the percentages of kids missing will be just as high or higher. Especially when they wont be in football shape leading to more possibilities of injuries and even worse quality of football. The TN kids only practiced 3 days that I heard of and the VA kids practiced 2 because of weather. At least thats what was said during the telecast.
Truth is Tennessee team just had more talent. And honestly TN didn't have all the best players either. There where four right off that I know didn't play and that was Sensabaugh, Spradlin, and Crowder and Downs. That is probably four of the top five seniors in NETN with Carmicheal being the other. But they didn't even play Carmicheal at QB?.....
I was impressed with Lowe from Richlands. I think that is his name. He played well. I was also impressed with the Story kid from Greenville. He had a great game. I think he is kin to Marty Story , who was an awesome player at Greenville as well. He later went on to play basketball at ETSU with mister Jennings and that group. Also Strong played good from richlands and fajardo from Richlands. Cannon from DB also played pretty good. No one seemed to be able to cover him.
I hope they continue to play it. But honestly most years it is going to be like this. TN schools just have alot more kids to pick from. No disrepect.... just the way it is.
I think that had the VA team went with more of a power game, typical I formation with some motion from the WR's, that the VA team could have hung in this game. When Thurmond finally made the call near the end to go into that type of formation with his best linemen and Honaker's TE, with Lowe at FB along with Vaughn at TB, they had a false start--then a 10-yard gain where the OL pushed the TN team's DL five yards up-field.
I honestly feel like if the VA team would have done that, the game would have been in the neighborhood of 28-21, 28-14 (TN winning). It would have been a much better game had the VA coaches played to their strengths on the team as opposed to playing out of the spread the whole day w/o a true drop-back QB. Whitesides nor Trey Meade are that kind of QB...they don't suck, but they're not true spread O QB's. As was mentioned--had Lockhart from Richlands been running that kind of O, then sure--VA's got a shot. But even at that--running a spread was a dumb move for the VA squad. The personnel didn't fit.
To be honest--imagine a wishbone/flexbone attack with Trey Meade at QB, Lowe at FB, and Balthis/Vaughn at the RB's. With the line that the VA side had, that would have been a tough attack to stop, even for the TN team w/all their talent. Thurmond could have implemented that type of O in 3-days time b/c there's not much scheming you can do out of a base cover 2 w/no blitzing on the defensive side that was mandated by the game setup. Spend that time sharpening up an option-type game, with that talent coming from running game backgrounds, and the VA team could have competed much better.
All that being said, Carmichael was the truth on both sides of the ball. Rusty Clark from DB was **** good at MLB, and the Maurice Cannon kid also from DB was really good as well. As mentioned--Chaz Story was Bettis-like at RB for the TN squad. He was unstoppable at times.
I'm just glad Spradlin wasn't on the field for them or the score would have been much worse.
Had VA not committed 9 turnovers mainly deep in each sides of the field, this game could have been very different. The opening kickoff kind of set the tone for how the day was gonna go. TN had more athetes, but VA still made plays all day offensively to move the ball down the field. But when you misplay the opening kickoff giving it to TN (on of the craziest bounces I have ever seen distance wise) around the 30 to start the game on your side of the field, give up a 98 yard pick six, have another INT returned to the 3, and have a bad snap on a punt that gives TN the ball inside the 15, its going to be a long day. Any all-star game due to time constraints isn't going to be the smoothest played or have players playing at their fullest ability since theres no time to gel. If you want really good games for exhibition, you are better off letting the two teams on each side of the line within a certain area play the deepest into the playoff square off. May be this year had Greeneville play Gate City, and DB play Richlands, and throw in Clintwood playing Elizabethton or something as an exhibition. That would actually produce the most quality of game, but isn't feasible either because this is designed to give SRs an extra shot to impress a college scout with their skill set and let them have 1 more HS game.
I must say I am disappointed that nothing could be worked out somehow for Michael Sloan to be able to get to RC and get his helmet to wear for the game. Instead he was wearing a VA High helmet, thanks to Coach Thurman I guess. He didn't start but played pretty well in pass blocking at RT for probably 3/4 of the game. Run blocking he really didn't look to know who to go after as much since RC wasn't much of a spread team.
Right there is the issue with most of the kids on the VA side. That's why an option look out of the flexbone/wishbone would have likely worked best. Either that or a straight-up I with 2 WR's.Quote:
Originally Posted by 1inStripes
Most of the kids from VA run dives, crossbucks, counters, off-tackles, option plays, draws, etc in their sleep by the time they're seniors. It would have been easy to coordinate the run game and be effective with it. Also, they're probably more adept at pass blocking out of the same set...play fake, roll the pocket, hit short routes to the TE/WRs.
Thurmond got caught up in the spread, and due to that, we weren't competitive, really.
It may have been just as big of an issue though considering most kids aren't used to seeing a 4-3 that was part of the plans as well. I think if you compromise on what D is allowed, they may have had to compromise on what formations were allowed as well. TN did run a little I, but only in goal line that I can think of. I have a feeling the T, wishbone, wing-T and flexbone may have not been allowed due to the set 4-3 alignment.
You wouldn't have been able to run the option in 2 or 3 days of practice. You would have had even more turnovers. Teams that run the option or a paul johnson style offense run it constantly in practice and usually start in middle school or even little leauge. There is a ton of timing and feel involved in those offense's. I played in one at DB.
I do think they should have been allowed to have two tight ends and line up in the T or I and ran it. They would have had more success. TN had an advantage with the type of players they had and the style of these games. But I do think Va would have put up alot more points with Lockhart and Hess, had they played. The turnovers is what killed them and I think you can look to short practice time for the answer there. TN had some turnovers as well I think and I know they had several fumbles even though I think they got alot of those back.
I see what you're saying, but what I'm trying to say is that most of these kids have played in those types of offenses at one point or another in their football lives. With the talent pool Thurmond had to work with, I don't see the trouble in installing a few of the simpler plays and running them to death. You don't even have to go to the trouble of flexbone/wishbone. Just running a simple option out of the I would have been effective, mixed in with dives/counters/crossbucks/off-tackles/quick pitches. Very basic offense that spoke to the strength of the roster he had--the ground game.Quote:
You wouldn't have been able to run the option in 2 or 3 days of practice. You would have had even more turnovers. Teams that run the option or a paul johnson style offense run it constantly in practice and usually start in middle school or even little leauge. There is a ton of timing and feel involved in those offense's. I played in one at DB.