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What does he do, Barney? Specifics, please.

Heeeeere weeee gooooo! HAHAHA! Y’ALL MUST’VE FORGOT… BUT DRESDEN DIDN’T. Ohhh baby, it’s about to be that time again — FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS, hometown pride, and a whole lotta LION HEART. Let me remind some folks out there, ESPECIALLY the ones who like to whisper and doubt from the sidelines — DRESDEN. AIN’T. GONE. NOWHERE. Last year, everybody counted us out. Said we were too young. Too green. “It’s a rebuilding year,” they said. New coach ain't no count. yada yada blah blah. Well guess what? That “rebuilding year” turned out much Much MUCH better than all y'all doubters & deniers thought it would. And this year we'll be gooder & gooder, and better & better than you think.. WATCH & SEE! We'll have a great team, with new & old faces, with new fire & passion & determination — and our HEAD COACH JUSTIN CRUSE last year led our guys into battle like seasoned warriors. Not just showin’ up — SHOWIN’ OUT. We didn’t flinch. We didn’t fold. WE FOUGHT! WE OVERCAME! WE PERSISTED! And now… it's 2025!! And guess what? With all the changes, new schedules, new regions... there's one thing you can count on that WILL REMAIN THE SAME.. THE LIONS ARE RETURNING TO THE PLAYOFFS THIS YEAR. AGAIN. (and for years & years to come!). Yeah we missed out last year, & WE WON'T FORGET THE ONES WHO DID IT.. payback revenge gonna be sweet! Y’all forget who runs Region 7? Y’all forget who built the standard? Y'all forget who sets the tone for toughness, grit, and Friday night electricity under those lights? Y'all forgot who’s been a 1A BLUEBLOOD long before it was cool? Well, our Mighty Lions are gonna give all y'all a giant refresher course of who's who & what's what! While others were just learnin’ how to tape an ankle — we were stackin’ region titles and playin’ deep in November. And this year, you'll remember! DRESDEN DOMINATION RETURNS TO 1A!!! So to all the haters, the naysayers, the rival fans talkin’ big behind a keyboard — YOU’RE ABOUT TO FIND OUT! Come November & December, we'll make y'all remember! The throne STILL belongs to our LIONS. And this year, 2025, with battle-tested warriors, leadership, new guys ready to fight, and a chip the size of West TN on our shoulder… you can't hide, you won't be able to stop us.. WE’RE COMIN’... FOR >>YOU<<. This ain’t just football. It’s TRADITION. It’s LEGACY. It’s DRESDEN LION PRIDE. And if you doubt us again — DO SO AT YOUR OWN PERIL. We ain’t just back. WE NEVER LEFT. #DresdenStrong #CruseControl #BluebloodFootball #LionsOnTheHunt #DresdenDomination #PlayoffsBound #YallMustveForgot #RefresherCourseBegins #KingOfThe1AJungle GOOOOO LIONS!!! #1 ALL THE WAY! BLACK & GOOOLD BABY!!

I'm glad you said that. I honestly didn't know, and am not in Dresden anymore so I'm out of the loop on all our activity. I'll always BE a Lion-Lover even if I lived in Alaska, and with this amazing tech we have these days, I can still follow them as if I was still at the games. And I posted to start the ball rolling, and stir up the pot a bit, hehe. There was lots of reshuffling of the deck in 1A, and especially in the West, it's wide open territory now. Anybody's game, as the saying goes.. so WHO will step up to "BE DA MAN"? .. I do like our chances, and also like our new schedule, and though lots of Lion fans are upset about no Westview game, I have to trust our new coach and his staff, & give them the reins to be himself, & establish his own dynasty, right? I can't help but think IF a coach would stick around here, he could do things that would set records & make history in small-town football. Others have done it, why not us, right? Shouldn't that be everyone's mindset who wants to be champs? To make a mark & legacy that lasts for generations? Odd coincidences, Ripley TN, that is my mother's roots, which is where Coach Cruse was head coach most recently, and we got them on our schedule now. Great move right there I think. And, really old timers from back in the day, talk about a legacy in Ripley & Lauderdale County, my mother's youngest brother is probably still well known.. as a player for Ripley, a veteran of Vietnam, then the man living in the community.. with lots of stories no doubt. My uncle was, Johnnie Hemby , & he left his mark when he had his chance, (as did my mother), and here in Dresden, in Weakley County, I'm hoping we start another legacy-making & record-breaking reign that wont be here & there, only just a year or so.. off again & on again.. but that we create stuff legends are made of! Why not? It has to start somewhere, with someone, doesn't it? And it starts with a dream, right? Folk say it's impossible & can't be done.. until it's done! Impossible.. or I'm Possible? Nowhere.. or Now Here? Whatever the mind of man can conceive & believe, he can achieve! .. And this ol' "unrealistic", crazy-dreaming fanboy hick from the sticks says to all LIONS & LION NATION everywhere.. LET'S DO THIS! BLACK & GOLD BABY! GOOO LIONS! #1 ALL THE WAY!

After accepting the PC job then leaving the next day for the CC job

The NCAA tournament this year showed how the shot clock could be positive in different ways. Duke was up on Houston and wasn't able to just hold onto the ball, Houston was able to pull off the comeback. UCONN women were up big on South Carolina, they were able to still stall, but due to the shot clock stay aggressive in their offense to continue to score. Obviously, this is nitpicking. I do see it both ways but having experienced playing & coaching with and without it, I lean toward being in favor of a shot clock. To each their own.

Great post for conversation. Let me start by saying that the region definitely got tougher in my opinion with adding Collinwood and Wayne County. They are both historically better than what’s moving out in west carroll and Houston county. Starting with Collinwood. They are losing 8 seniors who only won about 2 games last season so I don’t see them making much of an impact this coming season in the region. They have about 9 juniors that will be coming up to seniors but you’d thought they would have made a better showing last season if they were going to a real threat this coming up season. I don’t know much about their coaching staff or players however. Wayne County should be decent. They lost 10 seniors who went 6-5 last season. They will have 12 seniors next year so they’ll have some experience, however I just don’t see them having the athletes to really make a run. I think they’ll be hard nosed and tough, but without real athletes, I think they’ll probably end up about where they did last season. They definitely won’t be a push over though and could surprise us. Mckenzie definitely has some holes to fill but with the program they have built, I see them reloading instead of rebuilding. They are losing 12 seniors however they have 12-13 that will be seniors this next season. Don’t get me wrong, the seniors they lost were some good ones, but they have the talent below. This reminds me of their team two seasons ago, the year after they won the state championship. Nobody gave them a chance however they ended up playing for the state championship. You mentioned what there keys are, Cole Brown and Arline. I think Arline will come back just as strong. Not only is he a good RB, he’s also really good at catching the ball out of the backfield. Brown is a play maker, no matter where you put him on the field. There was never a question on who was next in line at QB. The only reason any other names were brought up was because Brown played receiver the past two seasons. He’s always played QB up until he got to high school and has had to wait his turn until Surber moved on. The coaches quickly realized that he was too talented to just sit on the sideline and be the backup QB so they’ made him a receiver. He started there as a freshman and then as a sophomore this past season he led 1A in all categories at receiving and was all state. The kid can play. I know it doesn’t always translate but he could flat out play QB in middle school. He’s probably more of an athlete than surber running wise and I hear he can sling it too. We’ll see what happens but if he’s healthy I see them making another run. Like you said, the only bad thing is, they are losing Brown at receiver. I don’t know if they have someone to put up the numbers he did, however they have some good receivers that will step up. I think the offensive line will be just fine. They have some younger ones that will step right in. As for defense, it may take them a few games to get it together, but come playoff time, coach Cantrell will have them ready and playing McKenzie defense. McEwen ended up 8-4 last season and had a pretty good season overall They had 8 seniors last season and look to have about that many this coming season Honestly I see them finishing about the same. They will be tough and run the football. They always try to slow the game down to their benefit. They have a couple of good athletes coming back but I don’t think it’s enough to really give McKenzie a run at the region. Perry County I don’t know much about. I hear they lost a lot of seniors but not sure what they have coming back. I know they went 4-6 last season with a heavy senior class so that tells me they will probably be about where they were. At best I see them at .500 on the season. Bruceton will be better than last season. I know that’s not saying much since they were only 1-9 last season however they are only losing 5 seniors and most of their athletes will be back. I really don’t see them making a run or competing for the region, but they definitely could be in that 4-6 record range. They could end up surprising us though because they do have some talent. So for the region, I would go with this. 1. McKenzie 2. McEwen 3. Wayne County 4. Collinwood 5. Bruceton 6. Perry County

Y’all will be much better this coming season , but there’s another team in your county that might give you a run for your money if they are healthy all season . I think Gleason has a chance to make some noise . Fyi Dresden will Scrimmage Bruceton in May if you did not know .

Disagree This argument has been basically proven already. Not just any 1A small school team maybe, but the state level 3A and up would beat most any college team, and there are several in state that would own the WNBA in a season...maybe not win every game, but be the best team. There's several small samples of this out there, and a standing bet (with no takers for two years) for one million dollars...WNBA vs. a high school team. WNBA team doesn't even risk losing the money, just their pride and the argument.

TSSAA is not negotiating at all, they are simply going through the motions and attempting to hold on to as much authority as possible. Without control over players, they are essentially done as a parent organization and relegated to catering events, providing officials, and sponsoring tournaments.

Pretty boring off-season when you don't have to replace a head coach for once.

I hope that they don't go back to the "Race To The Top" era of funding!!! The entire state got 500 million to disperse, and Memphis (city) was awarded over 400 alone. Inside two years the City System declared bankruptcy, disbanded, and courts forced Shelby County to assume control of their schools. That move led to multiple lawsuits by small municipalities to form Special School Districts... caused the State Dept. of Education to rewrite laws governing SSD's...and attributed to the formation of multiple Charter schools. Still haven't found the money🤐

The "Pod" terminology instead of quad sounds like some gen-Z soccer hipster designed it.

I heard DJ, Jayson and Tory are headed to Alcoa, if that’s true the 4A is in for a reckoning