Road2Three

Man, I said that Fulton probably would not have won the game anyways, but that particular drive, and anybody who saw the game on CSS knows what I'm talking about, it was poorly officiated. Those were horrible pass interference calls and that ball was a fumble. Packer and Todd Kelly are unbiased opinions and were going nuts over those calls, watch on On Demand. Packer says when Catholic scores, "Score one for Catholic, score one for the refs". I didn't say that, Mark Packer did. And last year, that "incomplete pass" was a TERRIBLE call, anybody watching the game on CSS knows that as well. Give it a rest? Give what a rest? Man, me and my '07 teammates didn't need any help to win three State titles in four years. When I was getting that 3rd ring last March and putting it on my finger, I could have cared less about that regular season game. Don't come on here and make it sound like Fulton is a bunch of whiners. I'm perfectly content with my bling and don't need to give anything a rest.

I've raved about David Lipscomb ever since we played them. Like I said, strong, physical. But.......to compare the region they play in, to region 2-3A isn't a fair comparison. Our region is good enough where a team can lose 5 regular season games, finish 4th, and still win State (Livingston in 05), beating the best team in the region 5, Lipscomb. I would rather see Lipscomb win it than Catholic quite honestly, heck, those guys have been to the ship two straight years and lost, so they deserve it. But....it's not fair to compare Fulton giving up 27 to Catholic, the best team in our region right now, to Lipscomb only giving up 3 points in region play. I would like to see Fulton, as YOUNG as they are, play in region 5 and see how many they give up. Had only given up 2 points their last 3 games before Catholic, who is heads above anybody Lipscomb has played in their region.

Irish, you don't get rings for winning Region titles and going undefeated in the regular season. Catholic has a good enough team to win it all this year, but State titles are not easy to come by and their will be teams such as Pearl-Cohn and David Lipscomb that will have a say-so come playoff time. Pearl-Cohn got to the semis last year and David Lipscomb is more than familiar with the BlueCross bowl, being there for the past several years in 2A and 3A. They have a bunch of guys back from last year and after losing two straight years in the title game, will be hungry for that ring. That is, IF you get out of this region. AE and Fulton won't lay down. Last night was 27-0, but we beat the Irish by like 5 touchdowns two years ago in the regular season and lost in the playoffs. Also, upon watching the game back on TV, the Catholic drive that made it 14-0 consisted of the worst officiating I've ever witnessed on any level of football. Even Mark Packer was going nuts (he always gives Fulton a hard time) and made the comment "Are you joking me right now" while Todd Kelly said "The zebras are completely taking control of this game, they're not letting the kids play football". Two awful pass interference calls and a fumble by #25 where he was called down. Clearly a fumble and Fulton would have recovered. The Falcons probably would have lost anyways, but football is a funny game of momentum and a few breaks can go a long way. #1 teams in the State don't need any help from referees and I just wish they would keep the flags in their pockets, both ways.

Yeah, two straight years we put Stanton Stevens, McAlister, & Co. out of the playoffs on their home field as they were also Region champs and winners of the regular season matchups. My freshman year, with Justin Long at QB, AE beat us 26-7 in the regular season and beat us again in 2004 at home, but we won State both years, both with exciting wins at AE in the Quarterfinals. Now, it seems like it's Fulton and Catholic duking it out, but you're right ruse, can't count out AE. They're really playing good football and they say Montgomery has settled down at QB and is throwing the ball well. No time to get down if you're Fulton. The playoffs is all that really matters, just ask Livingston Academy. I fear AE moreso than AC, but if you've watched any college football this year, you've found out that you can never count anybody out, that's why you play the games and that's what makes High School playoffs so exciting.

I believe they said Bubba Stokes suffered a hyperextended knee injury. Must have got bent back in an awkward position. Not sure what the extent is though. They really need him in a tough test next week at AE. I really expected Blair to play better last night as a senior. He just really struggled in spurts and I thought another Alcoa from 2005 was on the horizon. But...he did look good at times on some shorter routes and I think that Fulton will utilize that more the 2nd time around (considering a 2nd meeting happens). The offensive line just struggled mightily to hold off Catholic's big defensive front and linebackers. That is where I fear Catholic is just too much for the Falcons this season, including the playoffs. The "Region Champion Curse" in the playoffs may not happen this year unfortunately. We'll see what Fulton's kids are made of next week at Austin-East. Time to step up.

Well, Fulton will have to rebound next week at Austin-East, who is playing good football right now. Blair just didn't bring his A game tonight, missing on some golden oppurtunities early. The offensive line of Fulton (even more than the D front) was a big concern of mine going into this year and I just haven't seen much improvement. Even in the wins the past few weeks, the O-Line struggled. It was floodgates all night long with Catholic bringing the house and I don't blame them, Fulton is just having a very hard time blocking anybody. The bad thing is, it's already upon week 9, you have AE on the road, and I don't see Catholic getting any smaller or weaker any time soon. I knew they would be hard to block (We had a hard time last year with 6 experienced seniors) and I'm just not sure Fulton has anything for them up front. Hard to run or throw with no blocking. The thing is, Catholic don't even have Zak Tait for the rest of the year and he was a monster up front.

Farragut appears to be ready to make a run in 5A this year. Farragut by 2 scores.

Wow, good to see White House and Big Country getting along. /rolleyes.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":rolleyes:" border="0" alt="rolleyes.gif" />

The regular-season game in 2005 was complete domination by Fulton and we flexed our muscles big-time. We knew we were better than the 0-3 start to that season, but losing Ish Young before the season who would have been our senior leader at QB who had led us to State in 04 was a huge blow and having to start a true freshman at QB was just as huge. AE was a hard fought loss on the road, as was AC. Jonathon Blair had to make his first career start as a sophomore against Alcoa (who was loaded) because of an incident with Wagner. That was just unfortunate. Alcoa was probably a better team, but 48-6? Not that much better. We took it personal against Catholic. They had beat AE 21-0 on the road and proven to be legitimate. However, we dominated every phase of that game and won like 38-7. That's no fluke. We were better than Catholic and just didn't play to that potential in the playoffs, losing on the heartbreaking catch by Harrison Smith. That cost us another title because Livingston won it, who we had just beat 18-6 the last game of the season and were really 3 scores better than. Made me sick to my stomach. As far as last year's regular season game...we just never could gain any type of momentum and Catholic's D front was bigger and stronger than I thought, very hard to block, especially #57 Zak Tait. The Stokes TD called back on the "incomplete pass" was a horrible call and was at least a 13 point turnaround (Catholic ended up scoring on that drive) and maybe 15 points if we get the 2 point conversion, HUGE play in that game /dry.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=". So, we were confident that we could beat them the 2nd time around because despite playing mediocre, we could have won. Now, the second time around didn't exactly go as planned, but that finish was classic and will be watched over and over on my TV for years to come. We won, which is all that mattered. I think tonight could be another good one. However, Fulton HAS to throw the ball effectively, especially in the short passing game with slants, hitches, curls, etc. and use the experience on the corners. This will also help relieve some of the pressure on the O-line, which is a big factor tonight. Fulton also could use some points on special teams and the return game. A big play or two to D Hump or another wideout on a long pass won't hurt either. If Fulton doesn't throw effectively, Catholic could win by 2 scores or more. Sorry for the long post, but Go Falcons! Oh, and I finished my 3 tests for this week this morning ruse so I may rest a little today and get ready for the big game tonight!

Yeah, whether or not one likes Fulton or Catholic, one cannot argue the atmosphere and excitement the 4 games between the two have produced. Catholic was on the winning end of one great catch, Fulton on the other. 2-2 so far and that's what rivalries are made of. I don't see Friday night being any different. I hope my Falcons pull it out, but if not, I'm sure it will be a great game to the finish. Go Falcons!

Who said I have no love for the East? My whole post is talking about how dominant East TN is in 2A, 3A, and 4A. I'm a Fulton guy, so it would make no sense to down the eastern part of the state in any classification. I even said East TN might bring home the gold ball in 5A this year with Farragut and William Blount having solid teams.

Nobody in the Knoxville area (at least from Fulton's standpoint) doesn't believe David Lipscomb is a good football team. The point trying to be made is that the best of the state in 3A has come out of Region 2-3A the past 6 years. AE won it in 2001, Fulton was runner-up in 2002, won it in 2003 & 2004, Livingston Academy (with 5 losses) still won it in 2005, and Fulton reclaimed the title back in 2006. Nobody can argue the dominance in that region. Catholic appears to be the team to beat this year (again, Region 2-3A) and Fulton is 6-1 even in a rebuilding year. So, it's easy to see how people can assume the game to get out of that region is the "State" game in a sense. I, for one, would like to see David Lipscomb beat Catholic in the BlueCross Bowl this year, unless Fulton makes it of course. /thumb[1].gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":thumb:" border="0" alt="thumb[1].gif" />

That's another drawback to playing AE late. I know Fulton's guys will be rather sore Saturday morning following a physical game like the one Friday night. To follow Catholic up with AE on the road is tough.Oh, and sorry Scott for sounding short about the apology. Didn't realize you hadn't read it. /thumb[1].gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":thumb:" border="0" alt="thumb[1].gif" />

Oh, and I apologized for the no respect comment and want to get back to football, so let it go man.

We were leading Peal-Cohn 20-6 at one point in the game and you're right, it was 20-12 for a time, but 26-12 is really closer than it actually was. Anybody at that game knows that the penalties were heavily in favor of Pearl-Cohn and we even had one touchdown called back because of a bad pass-interference call (Bubba Stokes ran it back for a score). Had it not been for the Mason guy being 6-6 and the QB(his brother) throwing it up for grabs all night, that game would have been a lot worse than 14 points. We never really felt threatened to lose that game. Now, David Lipscomb was very, very close to Catholic and I would like to see those two go head-to-head. Lipscomb was doing a great job of controlling the ball and time of possession in the 1st half until the fumble that Terrence Cobb ran back for a score ultimately turned the whole momentum of that game. In the 2nd half, adjustments were made and we controlled the line of scrimmage. Stokes fumbled one drive that we would have scored on in the redzone, but they did have a crucial fumble as well. It was 24-8 with a little over 3 minutes remaining. On the other hand, Catholic had us 13-0 with only 6 minutes left in that game. I would be lying if I said that I wasn't worried of losing, for the 2nd straight year, to Catholic at that point. But, as championship teams do, we found a way to win the ballgame on the heroics of our Defense and Dennis Rogan and D Freeney's incredible catches in the final drive. Joc Stinson also played very poisied for a sophomore. I would have to say Catholic, outside of Alcoa, was our toughest opponent and we were very confident after that game that we would win the State.

You know what....I am very unintelligent because I'm going to college, getting it paid for because I made good grades in high school, and will be going to graduate school in a few years while majoring in Biology. Wow, you're just so much more intelligent than me /dry.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=" . With that said...I agree with fultonfalcon2006 about getting back to football and would like to apologize for the no respect comment. Catholic was the BEST football team we've played the past two years and believe me, I have the upmost respect with how strong and physical they are. I just get a little wired up when it comes to this game because Catholic is one of the few teams that did beat us a couple of times and the games were all so emotional and there was so much at stake in the playoffs. Not to mention they beat us out of another title two years ago. Catholic is a good football team and it should be a great matchup. I hope Fulton pulls it out, but Blair will have to be on his game to do so and he has looked really good the past couple of weeks. I also think special teams will be a huge factor and Fulton may be able to get some points out of the return game. Again, my fault for getting too much off of football, but I do resent the crack baby, unintelligent comment. I have 3 tests this week and need positive reinforcement /thumb[1].gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":thumb:" border="0" alt="thumb[1].gif" />

Alcoa didn't just lose to Maryville last year, they also lost to Fulton, 24-21, in a classic in Alcoa. But, outside of that, I don't remember anyone else besides Maryville beating them in the last 4 years.

Alcoa should be #1 in 2A. Until someone beats them in 2A (which may never happen /rolleyes.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":rolleyes:" border="0" alt="rolleyes.gif" /> ), nobody should be ahead of them. I realize Goodpasture is undefeated, but still, Alcoa's only loss is to 4A untouchable Maryville. Outside of that, they've been blowing people out. I'm happy with Fulton being #3 in 3A. These next two weeks will seperate the men from the boys with Fulton going to Catholic and AE back-to-back weeks. Should be exciting.....

Stiller, I see that you now have some respect for the Tornadoes of Alcoa. I remember a time when this was not the case. I guess a good beating by an East Tennessee team can earn a little respect. East Tennessee owns 2A, 3A (Region 2 is all that is needed to accomplish this task), and well....4A is all Maryville, every year. Heck, East Tn. might even have a shot in 5A this year with Farragut and William Blount both having fine teams. But, I know Ravenwood, Riverdale, and Smyrna will all have solid teams as well.

Catholic has earned they're rep by 1) How they're fans have acted towards the Fulton faithful in the past 2) A bagpipe lady playing her stupid bagpipes after the controversial win for Catholic last year at Bob Black Field on the field while Fulton players walked off. Total disrespect, but she had to eat the stupid things later on! 3) Harrison Smith winning Mr. Football and that being an absolute joke, his numbers were not even close to D. Rogan's 4) Designing their State rings last year before the rematch between the Falcons. Too bad it had to stay a picture because they would have been nice. See, we got the real ones in the end. 5) Whether or not the flag staked in the falcon at our field was the coaches or Catholic students has never been completely determined, but it wouldn't surprise me. 6) Catholic's bunch coming to Fulton last Friday and the "We don't do pictures thing" is right on par with everything else I've heard from the Irish faithful before. See, Fulton and AE have been rivals for a long time, but there is a sense of respect between the schools for each school's respective accomplishments in the past and for the rivalry. Both schools have earned this respect. Catholic has no respect for Fulton, so until they can win a State Title, I will show them NO respect.

When you have a private school, it's a known fact that the school can pay players' ways to assure they go to that school, to PLAY for that school. It's called recruiting and it is SUPPOSE to be illegal. Maryville has been doing it for years, Webb has been doing it for years, if anyone said things like that don't go on, than they're in denial.

Catholic probably will win this game (as much as I hate to admit it) simply because Fulton is so young and inexperienced up front. This is the 8th game of the year, but still no experience in the "big one" for the guys in the trenches. This may be the year Catholic does win it, but they better take advantage while they can. Fulton has a good sophomore class and from what I hear, a heck of a freshman group as well. Everyone wants to go to Fulton now because they are the perrenial power in Knoxville (that is, unless Catholic pays them illegally /sleep.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="-_-" border="0" alt="sleep.gif" /> ) so I'm sure Fulton will be loaded with athletes for years to come. Not to mention the fact they have a coaching staff that has won 3 State Titles, which is a big factor as well. As Terrell Owens says, "Get your popcorn ready for this one" /popcorneater.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":popcorneater:" border="0" alt="popcorneater.gif" />

I know David Lipscomb returned a lot of guys from last season and that was a big, strong defense we faced in Murfreesboro. I could see how they are dominating this year. Fulton's defense has looked really good since the Oak Ridge game and has only allowed 2 points the last three games I believe. The speed is there as always and I think they are doing a great job after losing 7 starters on D from last year. I would put Fulton's secondary up against anyone in the state. Catholic is big and strong again this year, but losing Zak Tait hurts the Irish a little bit. Kingston will not finish the year giving up only 10 ppg, count on that.

Got a little bored and figured I would venture on over here to this Middle Tn. matchup. I've never seen Giles Co. play before, but I do know that they apparently gave Lipscomb a scare last year in the playoffs if I'm not mistaken. I played against Lipscomb in the championship game last year, so I know they are a very good football team. Big, strong, and they do have some speed in all their tailbacks. It wasn't enough speed for my Falcons, but still, a good, fundamental football team. Someone said something about Lipscomb ending a possible State run for Giles last year, but feel better knowing they would not have won it anyways. Us Fulton Falcons and a guy by the name of Dennis Rogan knew all year long that 3A was ours, as it should have been the previous year. We beat Livingston Academy and were sick that we got beat by Catholic by 1 because we knew Livingston couldn't hang with us. Seeing how they beat DL....should've been 4 in a row in 3A for Fulton. Anyways, good luck to DL and just for the record, if Catholic does knock Fulton out this year, I'll be pulling for the Mustangs to win it all. Everyone in 2-3A hates Catholic, they are a bunch of punks.

The loss of Zak Tait doesn't hurt Fulton by any means. He's a big, strong guy and would have caused problems for the Falcons. It always seems like Catholic has depth up-front though, so the trenches could still be problematic for Fulton. The line play and Fulton's ability to throw the football will decide this game.