mad dawg

I agree. I've seen him a couple of times this season and he is quite good. Is he a senior?

loveusasoccer - Thanks for the post...excellent insight.

dins - Outstanding writeup. No surprise about your players of the game with Williams a member of the 93 ODP squad and Stone from the 94 ODP squad.

I had no idea that Berean was such a training ground for soccer...I bet the club teams around town sure are thankful, as well.

Coach Mike - Thanks for posting this. There was quite a bit of angst among some ODP participants because TSSA could only provide a verbal ruling from TSSAA.

This has been a great conversation (for the most part) so far. Quite a few interesting opinions/thoughts. I was under the impression that home schooled students were allowed to participate in extra-curricular activities as long as they were zoned for the particular school. This will certainly be a continued topic of discussion as the number of home schoolers increases. Does anyone have any statistics as to whether or not the numbers are trending one way or another? I do not think that the argument for allowing home schoolers to take single classes at a school is valid ??“ you??™re either enrolled or not. To my knowledge there is no ???ala carte??? or open campus environments in the public school system (as would be the case at a community college, etc). My thought is that a pure home schooled team being allowed to compete in the regular season or post-season is not appropriate but I also see the points of those that oppose them being allowed to play on school teams. In my opinion, part of the decision to home school (regardless of the reasoning) is that you forgo the other ???benefits.??? You can??™t have your cake and eat it, too.

With the number of world cup events held in Nashville in recent history, is Nashville in the running for a MLS expansion team? Seems the support is strong enough....

Ref - Not to be a stickler, but he did prove it to you: Article IV, Section 1 (page 20) in the TSSAA Handbook "Schools Which Member Schools May Play or Scrimmage." What more proof would you want?

I agree that they have a nice complex, centrally located, etc. How are the fields this year? Seems to me that the last couple of years they haven't been quite up to par...maybe something to do with the drought?

This is my last post on this thread and I guess I want to defend those who have negatively opined. First of all, please refer back the initiator of this thread and also look at the back page of this morning??™s KNS sports section??¦a story on this very same topic. It is clearly obvious that BigG knew that there would be differing opinions on this subject so why not get it out and get the furor over with? So again, to MVM and others who say this is a private matter, or that its hypocritical because no one knows the whole story ??“ wrong, it has been put on an opinion board and published in the paper by the school via the coach! And please understand: I don??™t disagree with BigG??™s approach on putting it out. Secondly, for the most part I think posters have given their honest opinions and should be respected for that. Why put something on an opinion board if you aren??™t soliciting opinions? Certainly a couple of comments have been harsh toward this young man??™s commitment, but what do you expect given the on again-off again scenario that has played out? As someone mentioned earlier, I don??™t have a dog in this, but I am a parent of a young adult similar in age, so I do have an opinion. Personally, I disagree with what has transpired. Nothing against Brandon or BigG or CAK. It??™s called living with your decisions, right or wrong. Had he been denied a spot back on the team, it would be known as tough love. BigG, no one is questioning your humanity or Christianity. No one has accused you or your staff of making a hasty or light-hearted decision. No one has alleged rules violations. The one thing we can all agree on is it certainly is controversial. The question (not that I??™m going to post again) is why do so many people care about this? In general terms (not directed at anyone, in any way shape or form) to me it??™s about motive, integrity, accountability, and responsibility. Again, I would reiterate that the comments aren??™t necessarily and completely directed toward this situation but rather to the precedent set that could be seen as a slippery slope. I suppose we can only accept the answers that have been offered. Thanks, and good luck on the rest of the season.

Easy, friend - no hatred intended, after all this is an opinion board. What I hated was Brandon's initial decision not to play. I did not "bash" CAK, BigG, or Brandon. I, like dins and others, think that there are flaws with this decision, but then again we are human and we do make mistakes, and we all have opinions, and.... Again, I've always appreciated BigG's comments and moderation of this board, and CAK's program. I stand by my comments/opinion fully - I'm disappointed....

Couldn't disagree with you more! Brandon lost an opportunity to grow-up a little, BigG lost the opportunity to be a coach and teacher, CAK and BigG lost a lot of credibility.

dins8, you are spot on with your comments. High School sports should be much more than all about winning; it should encompass character, accountability, and personal growth. A part of all those traits is learning to live with your decisions. Instead, in today's society, we coddle our youth allowing them to change their minds, third/fourth/ fifth chances, etc. Disappointing for Brandon, CAK, and especially for BigG.

http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/h...25hssoccer.html I don't know if the above will paste as a link or not, but it is definitely an interesting article about high school soccer in Georgia. These types of behaviors have certainly been the topics of threads here before. I hope all will share with their school community. There is no place in soccer, or any other high school sport for this. Also of note is the state of ref shortages in Georgia...Tennessee is not the only one suffering from it.

Much better than the first meeting of last year when both sides were so tenative. This time out, both sides played with a great deal of intensity and drive much like games 2-4 of '06. CAK probably possessed the ball better, in general, but a very evenly set match. 0-0 at the half. The score by Martinez was indeed a header off of a corner. The center ref was consistently poor in his calls...the key word being consistently. I'm very interested to hear BigG's thoughts on the call against the KCHS keeper late in the game. If anyone has a shot count, I would be interested in seeing it. I hope Tarr and Nieri aren't too banged up after that header. Can't wait to see these two play again!