CHS 2007

.........I'm gonna guess you didn't win the "Most School Spirit" award in the yearbook.

Gameday. It's homecoming and the fans will be there in full force. Here's how CHS can snap the homecoming drought. Get the running attack back: Despite the 27-0 win, last week was the worst rushing performance of the season for CHS. Coming into the game averaging nearly 170 yards a game on the ground (including back-to-back games of 220 or more) picked up only 50 last week. The CHS gameplan hinges on the running game. We need to be more effective on the ground to open up some plays through the air. Limit Mistakes: Last year, a slew of key mistakes by Centennial turned a blowout into a shootout. Two turnovers in the fourth quarter turned a 38-16 lead into a 38-30 game and let the Colts get back into the game. CHS needs to continue the trend of playing smart, mistake-free football. If we don't, we could be in for an upset. Stay Humble: Basically the calling card for the rest of the season. The Cougars have something special going this year, and it would be a shame to blow it all by taking a couple of plays off or looking ahead. Glencliff has the speed and athleticism to turn a few sloppy plays into a 14 point swing. Stay focused, concentrate on the game at hand, and then worry about the next game when this one ends. Should be a good game. Homecoming always brings an extra buzz into the crowd at CHS. Hopefully the stands will be packed and the Cougars come away with the W.

It should be 100% up to the teammates.

Im cheering for Ravenwood, but I think the edge goes to MBA. The Raptors just haven't shown the consistency they need to beat a team of MBA's stature. Raptors should make it interesting early, but MBA pulls away in the 2nd half.

....and Centennial

Regardless of who wins, it will not be an upset.

Now I don't want to take sides in this whole Heckman vs. Smith debate, but I will say I don't think Smith was given a fair opportunity at Independence. I know he made some mistakes, but what everyone seems to forget is the kid was a first-year starter. No matter what year you are, if you're taking the reigns of the team for the first time, you're going to make some inexperienced mistakes. I've seen Heckman make the same mistakes as Smith. And not to make excuses for the kid, but he wasn't exactly thrown into the best situation; they had lost alot of key guys-especially on the O-line, Pettigrew wasn't 100% yet, their star QB quit abruptly after Week 0, he hadn't taken alot of snaps with the first team. And MBA is not exactly the team you want a first-year starter debuting against. The one argument I keep hearing is Smith's performance in the Memphis East game. Look, every QB is going to have a terrible game now and then, but you don't bench a kid as a result of one game. You sit him down at practice, have him watch every mistake he makes, and have him learn from those mistakes. If you look at Graham Nichols and Chaz Scales, each at least 3 year starters (Scales 4 years), neither one of those guys were spectactular their first couple years on the job. But their respective coaches stuck with them, taught them how to fix their mistakes, and they are each currently having strong senior seasons. I believe that if Eubanks had stuck with Smith, he could have been a great QB.

Here's the tale of the tape: CENTENNIAL COUGARS (3-2, 2-1) vs. GLENCLIFF COLTS (1-3, 0-2) Previous Games: CHS def. Northeast 27-0 GHS lost to Gallatin 38-7 OFFENSE: Pts Scored: CHS-115, GHS-49 Total Offense: CHS-257.5, GHS-201.75 Rushing: CHS-152.0, GHS-103.25 Passing: CHS-105.2, GHS-80.25 DEFENSE Pts Allowed: CHS-104, GHS-116 Total Defense: CHS-266.2, GHS-320.5 Rushing: CHS-207.2, GHS-240.25 Passing: CHS-59.0, GHS-89.25 Offensive Leaders Passing: CHS-Scales (31-53-521 7TD, 3INT) GHS-Clemons (25-42-339 3TD, 2INT) Rushing: CHS-Scales (44-308 , 7avg 2TD) Jackson (62-293, 4.73 avg 3TD) GHS- Mintlow (36-126, 3.5 avg 2TD), Clemons (22-95, 4.3 avg TD) Receiving: CHS-Kemp (8-202 3TD), Kelly (8-100 3TD) GHS-Johnson (9-163 TD), Thompson (9-120 2TD)

Centennial comes in at 3-2 (2-1) and is looking to snap a streak of 3-straight Homecoming losses. Glencliff comes in at 1-3 (0-2) and looking to pull an upset. Both teams have alot of speed and athleticism, and each have dual-threat QBs in Scales and Clemons. A CHS win would give the Cougars their best start since 2002. Still, Glencliff is a very athletic team and could cause some problems. Thoughts on this one?

Next week should just be business as usual for the Eagles. Forget the record and just focus on improvement after every game. If you do that the wins will follow. I don't think anyone was expecting a State-Calibur season this year, although they do have some good talent. Indy lost the majority of their key guys from last year, and thats not an easy thing to immediately recover from, especially when that team was in the finals last year. Alot of these guys didn't play or played sparingly coming into the season, and everyone knew it would take time for them to get up to speed. Indy will get better, and they will get better this season. They have a gem at QB in Heckman and alot of young playmakers that will be great in a year or two. Not sure what this year will hold, but I think in a year or two, you will see this team back at the top of the region.

At least your former coach isn't posting.

Final from Centennial: Centennial 27, Northeast 0 For the third time in the last 4 years, Centennial shuts out the Eagles. Not sure of the game details. Sounds like it died down a bit after halftime.

Got word from a friend, Centennial up 27-0 just before the half.

Kingz, I think I speak for everyone here when I say "Just Shut Up." Every post you make is trashing someone or something: The Franklin Rebels, a poster, some team's fanbase. Enough of it. Unless you have some real insight, and not this smack you've been talking, then please hold your tounge for once and let people who want to actually discuss the game post without having to put up with all this crap.

Gameday: Here's how Centennial can win this game. Keep the Gameplan Going: The last two weeks, we pulled out the W by staying with our gameplan. We have some momentum going, so don't make any major adjustments on the gameplan and keep rolling. Run the ball effectively with Chaz, Tony, and Raymond, and then open it up with the passing game. Key in on the run: As I said earlier, Northeast runs the ball an average of 40 times a game as opposed to 4 pass attempts. While that stat will worry alot of CHS fans (has given up over 220 yrds a game on the ground), the CHS defense has done a good job of stuffing the run as the game goes on. If CHS limits the run early, we can force them to try and go through the air against a very solid CHS secondary. Get #5 going early: Last year, Chaz dominated Northeast on all fronts, picking up 3 TDs and an interception. With huge performances the past two games, Chaz needs to take advantage of this momentum. Get him going on some bootlegs and QB draws early. In the red zone, get Drew one-on-one with some fade routes in the endzone, and give Chaz that big target he had against Indy. Stay Humble: Almost every CHS fan is expecting the runaway win in this game. This is a different CHS team, but this is also a different Northeast team. We all remember the Homecoming game 2 years ago, we remember Page earlier this year, so all know these kinds of things can happen. Stay focused on the game at hand and keep up the intensity. Remember where you were two years ago, and remember all the hard work it took to get to this point. Should be a good one. Unfortunately I wont be there tonight (home opener for WKU this weekend), but I hope the fans are there in full force and stay loud the entire game. Good luck and Go Cougars.

Really? Cause they were extremely quiet at the CHS game. Not trying to be cute, they seriously looked like they were dead for most of the game.

I agree, especially in 6-5A. It just seems there's just alot more electricity in the air when two WilCo teams go at it.

Looking at the NE boxscores, it looks like they run the ball an average of 40 times per game as opposed to only 4 pass attempts a game on average. The running game still concerns me a little, but the CHS D has done a great job of keying in on the runners as the game moves on. This will have to continue this week.

I know what you're trying to get at. But listen, Indy (or as the fans say: INDY) just doesn't have the caliber of playmakers around Heckman to make it happen. Hillsboro and McCallie gave Franklin trouble because a.) they have a reliable, two-dimensional attack. and b.) they have alot of depth at those skill positions. Simply put, they are just at another level than Indy (INDY) is. Heckman is a great QB, no question, but he just doesn't have the help he needs. You look at the games these past two seasons: Pettigrew ran the ball effectively, the receivers made some great plays, and the defense stepped up. This year, the running game just isn't getting it done. And no offense to Boatman or Stannard, but they are NOT the caliber of playmakers that Isaac Baugh or Chris Darnell were. The defense has been very inconsistent, as they've lost the majority of their guys from last season. Like I said, Heckman will probably give Franklin alot of problems, but like the CHS game showed us, he can't carry the entire team to a win in a big game like this. Someone needs to step up to keep the Franklin defense honest, and as of now that has yet to happen. I could be wrong, but I don't see that changing against a defense with Franklin's caliber.

Having a 1-1 region record would be atop-the-mountain?

He won't come on here unless he wants to "set the record straight"

Oh Im not getting cocky. Trust me I know how fast a season can turn around. I want to see how the Cougars respond in these next three games. CHS played flawless and pulled off two big statement wins, but I'd hate to see them blow all of this momentum by coasting through Northeast, Glencliff, and D.C. Hopefully, Coach Mat will be feeding his team humble-pie and remind these guys where they were the past two years. I believe the Cougars will keep up the intensity, especially after what happened against Page. But there still has the be that air of caution.

From talking with people on the team in the past, it really seems that these two teams do not like each other. From the cheapshot that sidelined Capris Longmire for several weeks, to the Homecoming fiasco and the confrontation after that. Combine that with 3 consecutive blowouts, and you should have alot of intensity for the coming week. I do have some concern for this game. Northeast has improved alot and will be looking for some revenge after getting blown out 33-0 on their own field last year. CHS just pulled off two big statement wins, but we have to continue that level of play and not let up. If we stay humble and remember where we were the last two seasons, I think Centennial will walk away with this.

Both Rector and Crawford are amazing coaches and I really don't think there is a good way to compare the two because they each have such different styles. But you can't argue against either one, as they've proven time and time again that each style is effective. As for the game, I'm gonna go with Brentwood. I think that BHS's D may legitimately be one of the state's best, and they've started to click on offense. I stick to what I said before the season started: This could very well be a team we see in Murfreesboro come December

I'll admit I am a little worried about this Friday. I know its Northeast, but the Eagles are a much improved team, and you know they will be looking for a little revenge after last year's blowout. As long as CHS stays humble and sticks to their gameplan, they should win. But that Homecoming game will always stay a little in the back of my head.