To current Appalachia Bulldog Football Players

What were you doing this afternoon????

I seen more players throw up today, than I've seen in the last 9-10 years. And it was the easiest day of 2 a days I've ever seen. Have you all not been running? getting in shape? Some looked like they hadnt touched a weight? Whats goin on? Players sitting down, taking breaks...Taking helmets off, while on the field. Not paying attention to Coaches. Do you want to win a few games this year ? act like it. When Coach Austin says
"hustle" or "on the hop" There shouldnt be 5-10 ppl in the back still walking. Just b/c Coach Turner isnt there to stick his foot up your butts, doesnt mean you all can take it easy, or take shortcuts. 1 last thing...Where is the leadership at???? When you seniors/ Juniors see ppl walking, or taking plays off....step in and get on em. Even if its another Junior or Senior.
Remember this.... You play the way you practice. 4th and 1, down by 7 with a few min to go in the game....Ppl are tired.....Do you want to have someone on your team who's gonna take that play off, or go 50% on that play? If you do....then fine...Keep goin' the way you're going...You'll be in street clothes come playoff time, watching J.I.Burton playing freakin' Hurley for the region title. Do you want that? If not....go 100%, all the time. Get on the ones who're not going 100%. If you get sick and need a play off... do what coach says...take your helmet off and walk a couple laps to get some air....That doesnt mean walk 50 laps and take advantage of the situation, while your friends are running their butts off.

You all have the talent..Just listen to Coach Austin, and Travis. You've got good coaches...Just pay attention, and work for em. No shortcuts, 100% all the time. No quit.
Its time to step it up a notch or two. Good luck Dawgs!

How many do Appy have out this year?

I could have easily miscounted, but I counted about 37 or so.

On another note...caught about the last 20 min of Pvs practice....They're Big...real big...and real fast. What little bit I did see of em, they looked sharp. I dont see anyone beating them... not even close.

Never know. But good luck to em.

Best of Luck to the Dawgs, Hope to see them come back to the regular Appy Standards.

Took the words from my mouth.

Not on the subject of Appy football, but football in general. Even though Coeburn will be out of the LPD after this year, i look for them to start fielding some competitive teams in the next couple of years (couple being 4-5). I played under Coach Mullins, not as head coach, but assistant, and i've always thought him to be a footbal-minded person who knows his stuff. Anyways, i stopped by the fieldhouse to lift weights today and got to talk to him for a while. Just to see what all he has done to the place in general (ie. new weights, equipment, etc.), has surprised me. And to know that he spends so much of his time helping to get these things (via working bingo, fundraisers, golf tournaments, etc.) really goes to show how much he cares about the programs future. And with him starting to help out with the younger kids..elementary kids that is, is what we have always needed. A feeder program is where it is at, and when you have a head coach at the HS level getting involved in that, then good things can happen in time. I'm not saying that the Knights are going to be world beaters anytime soon, but give Mullins a few years, and good things will happen. The man knows his football, has a great staff around him now (got a new assistant this year as well, i believe he said his name was Reynolds..played at Clintwood a few years back i believe). Maybe not this year, or next year, or the year after that, but once he gets the pendulum swinging in the right direction in all aspects of "coeburn football" i look for great things to happen.

i'm heard JIB has 65 out..15 of those being jv players....

looks like the success of the program has attracted some attention of students that usually aren't out there in the heat working their butts off

how many kids did pv have on the field today?
will pv stay in the spread set or will they go back to the I formation.

They were running passing plays out of the spread, while I was watching. Like I said, I only caught about the last 20 min of practice though.

They had quite a few out when I passed by today, but didn't look anywhere near 65.

A friend of mine, her husband coaches at JIB, and I believe she said they had 43 out for varsity. Very good numbers for a school of their size.

Pv has 70 plus kids playing counting 9th graders on varsity with about 3 ninth graders getting some playing time with the 1st team. PV will stay in the spread. [img]/LDPforum/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wall.gif[/img]

To get back on the subject of this thread. I fully expected to hear bad things like this out of Appy this season, with the players not having a real idea of a head coach and nothing solid to go on with Travis holding eveything up till July and still not passing the test what do you expect. I think Bobby may have seen this coming with the passing of Tom the program had lost it's reason for being so good. No matter what anyone there will standing in Tom's shadow and it will be well Coach Turner done this and this and you need to keep it that way. I do believe Tom had a great system but it was Tom's system and noone else can come in and get the results that Tom did with it. A new coach won't have the respect that Tom had earned and they will have a hard time getting the players to believe in them trying to replace Tom.

Austin needs to just step up and let them know that it is his team now and that what he says goes no matter if it is different than what Tom did it is now how it will be done. With all due respect to Tom and what he was able to do at Appy and build such a fine legacy, he is no longer there and they will have to move on or get left behind.

Burton has 50 out for varsity with 15 out for jv..

but a good 10 or 12 of the varsity playing on the jv as well..

Bobby Sanders took the Lee High job the day before coach Turner passed away. Had he not gotten it, he would still be at Appy.
Appy will be where they need to be. Just need a wake up call it's still Appy football.
The next two years are crucial to PV and Burton. They will lose a lot of quality players.
And today, well 95 degrees with a heat index over 100. And many who were sick, were first year players and a few who hadn't been to summer running. That is to be expected.
Not sure if Burton will be able to maintain their holdback numbers.
PV will lose some of their finer athletes in two or three years. They have the numbers. Just like other Div. 2 schools do.
Things will come back to par. Every thing runs it's course then it comes back down to the teams that want it and work for it. Year in and year out.
Like i said in a previous post.
Now it's time to find out who is ready to challenge the top 3 teams in the district. And who knows what the other 5 have.
Never count Appy out. One thing to remember coach Austin played under Coach Tom Turner. I don't think he has forgotten what hard work, hard and determination is all about.
Neither should the players.
Coach Austin may not be Tom Turner, cause there will never be another Tom Turner, but he will be as demanding.
I've seen him on the sidelines and been with him on the sidelines and in film break down.
He knows the game. And it won't change much. Hard work, heart, detemination and desire, they still pay off. Coach Austin knows that.

Bobby saw what was coming before Tom passed, everyone knew he was not gonna be there even before he passed.

I never said Austin wasn't a good coach but it doesn't matter that he played for Tom and has a great work ethic himself it is completely different. If goes out and tries to copy Tom and be the same person the players will see through it and may not as receptive to it as they would if he were to go out and make it his with his own style and not Tom's. But they may want someone to come in and play the role of Tom, as they say "Immitation is the sincerest form of flattery."

Just hold on to that thought. [img]/LDPforum/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

I see no reason for the Dawgs not to be competitive and make another playoff appearance if they set their minds to it. It's not like Roger is walking into the same situation that B.I. walked into at Kelly with a completely empty cupboard. The Dawgs have several back, and the line should be solid.

Agreed, Appy has everything in place to make a good run this season with a playoff appearance.

I guess if he does immitate Tom and have some success at Appy then congratulations but we will all hae to wait and see what happens.

I am most concerned with Greg gettin the job done at Coeburn and having a good long run there. I really like Greg and do believe he has what it takes to be a great coach.

Greg is a good coach, as is B.I. There's alot of similarity there with both coaches having to play very thin hands. B.I. has some talent to work with at last for the next few years. We will see how it goes. I have watched the youth at Coeburn, and Mullins has talent coming as well. Both communities are just going to have to be patient.

Good luck to all LPD teams.

Counting freshmen Maryville has 120 kids out for football.

Good luck to Maryville also. I have great respect for the folks down that way and their program.

Even as much as I whined about Coeburn's team last year, I have alot of respect for Greg both as a coach as a person. I don't really know him personally, but since he was in several of my classes last year (helping out) I could tell he was a really friendly person and I know that he cares alot about the team just by what you guys are saying on here.

When I went to pass down there every Sunday last year, I could hear him really pushing the players and I remember one thing in particular.. it was when Ogre got suspended for a game (can't remember which one) and everyone was acting upset over it and just kind of walking around not giving any effort, so he really jumped them and basically told them that they didn't need him to work as a team and do something good.

Best of luck to the Knights this year.. it's going to be a rough one.

I think you missed out on what i am saying. Roger knows the work ethic, but Roger is totally different than Tom.
And he has head coaching experience already. That makes a difference.
Biggest thing i was trying to get across. It's now up to the kids to pick it up. A coach no matter who or how much a legend can only do so much.
Goes both ways in a sense.
You have to have mutual respect coaches to players and players to coaches.
Coming in behind a legend and a program is a challenge.
But that can be made easier by the folks around the program, and the players themselves, and not forgetting there was a change.
Some expect business as usual. Sometimes that happens and then sometimes there is changes and for good reasons.
I know Roger and i know he will do his best, to get the kids fired up and going, and put people in the right places.
After that it's up to the one's in the pads.
As with every season. Right now every one is 0-0. Until after that first game.

I don't know the guy, where was Austin a head coach?

He was head coach of the Appy baseball team, wasn't he?

Woops, correction on my post.. I meant
"When I went down there to pass every Wednesday last year."

Not SUNDAY. [img]/LDPforum/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

Coach Austin has been at one time head coach of all three major sports at Appy, basketball, baseball, and now football.

How good was he when he coached Basketball and Baseball??

Still is the baseball coach.

Ah I see. [img]/LDPforum/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img]

I was told yesterday that he will not be the baseball coach anymore. They hired a young guy, who played college ball (VMI I think) and he will also teach.

What are times for the Appy and PV practices?