Green_Acres

I think that if you start talking about winning state and what it will take to get there and win it, then the boys will work hard because they will understand the sacrifices they will need to make to have a shot. Nobody knows for certain who will win. The absurdity of the comments some of you guys have made made that generally communicate that if we start telling the boys they are good enough to win a championship, that might somehow disturb their fragile lives or get them out of focus is overwhelming and beyond my comprehension. I must be the one living in some far out place. I know that the high school boys basketball players have already set their sights on winning the basketball championship this year. I have heard them say they believe they are going to win it this year. Basketball season has not even really started yet. Should we say to those boys, "Shhh... Don't say that! The other little boys might get a big head and then not be able to play." Telling the boys they can win a championship does not give them a big head, it makes them work harder towards a goal. The thread was started for those who wanted to discuss the idea of Temple going that far, not to blow smoke and try to make kids think they are better than what they really are. I wanted to discuss and hear from people who know what the possibilities were that Temple could go and what it will take for them to get there. What are the realities of the situation? Is it a realistic consideration? If they win region and they likely will, who would they most likely face in the first round, second round? What are the teams like in the other regions? Will Temple be able to play any of their games at Finley? If so, how many? Based on what we have seen out of the guys this season and what we know about other teams, what are their chances? If South Pittsburg, finishes second and we are both successful, when would we see them again? I think you guys may have misunderstood the intent of this thread.

Do you know the difference between long and short term goals? Did you happen to hear Chipper Jones at the beginning of the baseball season say that their goal is not to win a division title but the World Series. Almost every team sets their sights on the big prize. Every game they play is against the back drop of a championship. You and all the rest are fooling yourselves if you think the Temple boys and coaches do not have their sights on the State Championship. They are reaching for the immediate goals of winning each game with a view to the big game in the end. Go take a poll of the players and coaches and see if they are not thinking and talking about it. Don't forget. I was one of the few on the messageboards talking about the potential Temple had and how South Pittsburg should be careful to not overlook us. You "prefer everyone to assume temple has no chance?" You think Temple can roll into an 8-0 record and likely a 10-0 record and you think everyone is just going to assume Temple does not have a chance. Temple committs probably one of the biggest upsets in the last 30 years against the team that everyone even still believes will go far in the "Boro" and you still hope that everyone assumes Temple has no chance. Temple is now ranked 6th but even ranked at 8th you still are thinking that people assume Temple has no chance. You do not sound like any Temple fan I have ever heard of and if you are, you better get back in your space ship and fly back down to Earth. You can rest assured that the other single a teams are looking at us hard. We may have been able to keep our jets cruising under the radar for the first 7 games but after Friday's game, no one is thinking that we do not have a chance. You sound like you are afraid. Think! Why are the boys are playing so well? Is it because nobody thinks they are any good and they have something to proove? No! It is because they have a state championship in view. Just so you know. I am not some random guy. You would be surprised to find out how well known I am around campus. Do yourself a favor... have a heart to heart with yourself and become a real fan of Temple's players or go find yourself another school that you can support.

It is the company I have been keeping this last week. You guys have been a bad influence on me. Proverbs says that bad company corrupts good morals...

The "Fab Four" are the true "message board moguls." We only played two games there and both were home games and never thought about the effect it had. I do not think Temple had anything to do with the arrangement of the fans. I am pretty sure that was all the Finley staff's doing. I imagine it had a lot to do with the small size of the crowd anticpated and trying to keep the number of personnel low for concessions, ticket, clean up, etc. You make a valid point and I know that we certainly would not have wanted to be in that position. You should be somewhat concerned with Silverdale. Even though they do not match you guys on speed, they have continued to improve over the season and are a very disciplined team. I can assure you that John Allen, Silverdale's coach will come with a strategic game plan. I would be willing to bet that his approach will be to run most of the game. He is an excellent coach. Having said all that, I have seen both teams play and SP's speed will most certainly be the determining factor in the outcome of the game. Also, Silverdale's team lacks the experience across the board to come to a big game against SP. The fear will be overwhelming. Good luck to you guys and you should get used to me hanging around and cheering your team on!

Did you notice the question mark in the title of the thread? I wrote the title and I am quite sure that I did not say that Temple won the championship. This is a messageboard that exists to allow discussion for those who want to discuss. We saw Temple play two A games (almost) the last two weeks and feel strongly they have what it takes. We believe in our guys and personally, I have set my sights on THE GOLD BALL. Cast a big vision. Without vision, people perish. Surely, Temple's goal is for more than just a region title... Do you think your school stands a chance to win? Must not... Players do read these boards and when they read my posts I want the Temple players to know what we as their fan base really think about them. We cannot ever tell them enough how much we support them and believe in them. Even if they do not get past the first round, we still think they are champions.

Temple has shown that they have what it takes internally and externally to be the single a state champs in addition to being the regional champs. If South Pittsburg believed so strongly in the distance they would go in the playoffs, hasn't Temple demonstrated how far they are able to go? They no longer can keep their jets flying under the radar.

I imagine that was almost painful to say wasn't it You know a lot more about football than I do. I am a newbie as far as the logistics and strategies, etc. I played one year but spent the rest of my time playing sandlot ball, full contact but there were no rules. You know how it is/was. I understand that Kevin Skogen, the offensive coordinator, is pretty sharp. It will be interesting to see how this chess game unfolds among the coaches. All Temple coaches are volunteers except Steve Beard who is part of the university faculty but they do an excellent job. After seeing the game Friday night, I was trying to figure out why the MC coach called a timeout close to the end of the first half rather than just let the clock run out and go into the locker room down by 14. Instead he went to the locker room down by 21. Without looking at the actual stats, I thought MC was connecting mroe with the pass than the run. Even though they did get a couple of good runs, I remember SP stopping them over and over before they got to the line of scrimmage and forcing them to have to punt from deep from within their own half. Normally those punts resulted in SP setting up close to the 50. I know I suffer from "delirium" but that is the gist of the way I remember it. Am I close? How do you remember it?

No way Temple is going to hold a team like SP to just 7 points. They have not proven they have the ability to stop a good team from scoring, consistently. They can do it but it will not be likely against South Pittsburg's proven track record this seaon.

Fair enough. And I hope that you have read enough of my posts to realize the respect I have for SP. As far as I remember, all my posts have been intended to communicate what I know Temple is capable of accomplishing based on what they have shown already on the field. I am having fun right along with the FAB FOUR talking the talk before hand. It really is more fun to smack before the game. Anybody can get on here and talk smack afterwards. That is for cowards and not real fans, right? By the way, tell the zonepirate I love the new look and even though I am a Temple fan, I would not mind having a shirt, too.

Geno, I predict that you will experience an epiphany (Just in case: "an intuitive grasp of reality through something (as an event) usu. simple and striking" - Websters) Friday night. Also, if I may impart a small amount of wisdom to the youngster. It is easier to talk about what you have done, after you have done it, than it is to talk about what you will do, before you do it. I have seen SP play and what I know is that Temple can win. You obviously have not seen Temple play and as far as I know this will only be the second time SP has ever played Temple, seeing as how our program is so new. You should not make the mistake of thinking that we will be like every other team you have played. If you do, you are in for an awakening (to become conscious or aware of something, to arouse from sleep or a sleeplike state - Websters)

Know, I just meant that 21 of the points Taft scored in the 2nd quarter were a result of interceptions that were run back for touchdowns. I do not remember how they scored the other touchdown. So, in the first quarter Temple scored 28 points and held Taft scoreless. In the second quarter we gave them 21 points, at least and they held us scoreless. The second half was a blur (It's the delirium). It all makes sense in my head but it may not come out right when it gets to my fingers banging away on my keyboard.

In the Taft game, Temple was ahead 28-0 in the first quarter. Temple threw 3 interceptions that were run back for touchdowns in the second quarter and by half-time, the score was 28-28. The rest you can figure out. As far as the SBA game goes, it seems that John Allen's strategy for beating us was to keep the ball out of our hands. We kicked off to them and they took close to 8 minutes driving down the field for a score. We came back and scored in less than 2 minutes. The game was close only because SBA kept the ball out of our hands as much as possible running more than passing and going for the 1st downs (and getting them) when most other teams would have punted. That's my take, for what it is worth.

Well said...

I tend to agree with you. I would think that Temple would feel more pressure being the underdogs. SP has a long tradition of having winning football teams. Goodness, look at the wall outside the gym. Very impressive. The reason why SP is so good is because they do not overlook anyone, even muffin teams. SP just has to come out and do what they always do. Temple has to rise to the occasion. In my mind, more pressure is on Temple to win than on SP as much as I hate to disagree with my Temple friend's post. Temple's team, as good as it is, tends to still make too many mistakes during the game and not have as much discipline as they could. From what I have seen so far, Temple does have the ability this season to reach down deep for the win and that is the thing that SP should be careful about. Temple is very dangerous. It actually may be in Temple's favor that SP has only played muffin teams. Honestly, someone else mentioned something about the games between SP and MC, and Boyd. MC beat Boyd with a very similar score as SP. Is it possible that Boyd and MC are really just muffin teams also this season and SP had a flat night against Boyd? I did not see the games or hear any details. Just curious.

Better a knife than a gun loaded with blanks

I am referring to the comments in the newspaper following last year's game between Temple and SP (I am proud of my delirium)

You are absolutely right!

I am really enjoying the lively discussion with you South Pittsburg guys and I really appreaciate your passion for your team! There is no smack or disrespect intended in any of my comments. They are simply my personal opinions based on what I have seen. And, yes, I do rather enjoy seeing you guys get your dander up. I It is true that Temple does not have as strong a schedule as SP and you definitely did beat the same teams more soundly than we did. And, even though I am not on depression or alzheimers medication, I truly may be somewhat delirious. If you have not seen Temple play this year then you are not really qualified to talk about what they can or cannot do on the field. I have seen Temple play and I have seen SP play. From all the smoke blowing around on these message boards, I expected to see a whole lot more on the field than what I saw Friday night. I did see a really good football team (SP) playing a team that did not seem to know what it was doing(MC) (We see the same thing every Friday night at Temple games). When I saw SP play, I thought, wow this is a good team but I think we can contend with them. SP is favored to win Friday and understandably so. If they do, though, it will be with fear and trembling, knowing they were almost beaten by little ole Temple. It is foolish for you to think that Temple will not score more than 14 points. It is more than foolish, it is absurd. Temple will score a minimum of 28 points. I know that SP will score a lot of points as they have every game except against Boyd (What happened there?) but Temple will also score a lot of points. By the way, over at Temple, they do not consider almost 300 yards rushing a big deal. They do that all the time just like SP does. But the stats you should check out is how many passing yards they have compared to SP's. In no way am I taking SP lightly. I am fully aware of what they are capable of and have a great deal of respect for the team and the coaches. I am also soberly aware of the twice as many players on the sidelines that SP has. If Temple is to win, it will require a lot of guts and heart and some serious scrapping on the field. They can do it. Hey, it is time for me to go take my medicine. Have a great day tomorrow!

You are trying to be silly aren't you? Do you really think that SP's defense is going to hold Temple's lightning quick offense to only 14 points. It will be a much closer spread than that and I can assure you that if Temple walks away with a win I will not be surprised. Temple normally picks up speed as the game goes on. They normally do not slow down once they get their rhythm going. Believe me, I saw the game and I repeatedly saw SP's defensive line stopped by MC's offensive line. If MC had an offense it would have been a much different game. Everything they did on offense was weak other than continuing to stop SP's line. Like I have said before, SP has a dominating offense and a strong defense but do you think that Temple is 7-0 for no reason? SP played a great game Friday night and I bet that almost every game they have played has been very exciting and nearly perfect in its execution. SP has a great program and some really great kids playing on the field. You have earned the bragging rights. I predict that the game will be close at half time and that Temple pulls out a win in the end and the SP fans will be eating humble pie. If I am wrong, give me a fork and a plate and pass the salt.

I am not saying that Temple is going to win but I cannot say that SP is going to win. I have seen both teams play and SP has some unquestionable speed across the board and excellent coaching. Temple on the other hand, has some qualities that I did not see in SP Friday. MC showed that it doesn't matter how fast you are running the ball if you are continually contained behind the line of defense. Most of SP's points were a result of MC's mistakes, coaching, and slowness, and the passing game SP had to switch to because their running game was getting shut down. Temple has a much better passing game than SP. It sounds like the Old Pirate has not yet attended a good Temple game this season. The Old Pirate should not talk so much about things he is not familiar with. It makes the Old Pirate seem like he may have Alzheimers. By the way, it is a good thing football is played in the fall during harvest time to match SP's pumpkin colored uniforms. Do they go trick or treating on Halloween in those things?

We always compare the present with the past. It is part of who we are. How do you know that SP is a lot better without comparing them to last year? I am sure you do not mean that SP is the only team that is better than last year. I attended the MC game and with all the talk about how good SP is I really expected to see more out of them and they showed a lot. Honestly, though, I did not see anyone who had the speed of Temple's Kameron Ridley. I did not see anyone who was quicker than Joey Skogen and Dee Neusome. I certainly did not see anyone who had the hands, size, and power of Seth Skogen (He has the ability to embarass the defense, repeatedly). I also, did not see anyone who could match up against Josh Smith. Marion County lost to SP because they were slow and could not match up on speed. They continued to contain SP's running game and their offensive line continued to crumble SP's line. Where they got hurt was their lack of speed. That will be the difference in making this Friday a great game. Temple, I think, has the size to contain SP's defense giving their QB the time to make the plays. They definitely have enough quickness, power, and speed to contend with SP. In every way, Temple has improved over last year, just like SP has. Temple would have beaten MC just as soundly as SP did if they had played them. I would be very careful about overlooking Temple. I am not sure Temple even realizes how good their own team is.

I have seen Temple and South Pittsburg play this season. From the posts I have read on here, there does seem to be a little cockiness on the SP side and rightly so. Four shutouts, no teams has scored more than 2 touchdowns, very high scoring games, etc. You have earned a few bragging rights. Yet, I do respect the fact that South Pittsburg is not writing Temple off. If I remember correctly, Temple last year scored more points against SP than any other team and was winning at the half. Was SP surprised by what Temple brought to the field? I think Temple earned their respect even though they lost and the SP's coach was complimentary and classy in his comments after the game. No one expected Temple to do as well as they have and Temple may be even a little surprised themselves. The truth is, they seem to be able to turn it up a notch whenever they need to and that makes them dangerous. In several of their games they made what could have been a number of game losing mistakes but they were always able to recover, refocus, and win. I think the Temple boys know how to win, over all and they have an across the board attitude of being winners. I saw the MC and SP game last night and I felt that MC hurt themselves more on offense than SP's defense. MC had some huge kids on the line and they were giving their quarterback plenty of time to throw. MC's running game was pretty weak, though. Their line did not create the holes needed to make the play. The one thing MC lacked to win the game was two Skogans, a Ridley, a Neusome, a Smith, and a Wadley. We will see the difference these kids make Friday. By the way, for all the talk about SP's speed and dominance, get ready for some shock and awe!

As good as MC has been in the past years and as big a rivalry as it is in the valley, I would be surprised to see MC pull this one off. South Pittsburg has a dominating offense and a strong defense. No team has scored more than 14 points against them. Three teams have scored 14 points and three were held scoreless. Truthfully, though, I do not know much at all about Marion County and I am planning on making the trip tonight to see what will hopefully will be a great game for both teams.

I anticipated a temple blow out against Silverdale. The Temple boys actually came out a little flat against them from the beginning. It may have been a combination of things. I understand that the Silverdale's wing T offense was not one they had not faced yet and were in a learning curve. Silverdale is a very disciplined team that has continued to improve, John Allen is a great coach and had a good, strategic plan for beating Temple, Silverdale played a near perfect game, Temple may have been looking past SBA towards tonight, etc.