Raven1

You should see him when things are really going bad!

I don't believe the Cyclones could beat Cloudland but not many up here can. The 'Clones have had a year of injuries and distractions and the return of Coach Jenkins puts things in perspective. It's only a game while the important things center around life and friends. Glad to hear that Coach Jenkins is well. That's victory enough for any program!

The turning point in this one will be when the Higlanders board the bus in Roan Mountain. They are agile, mobile, and hostile and on a mission. Unaka has improved but you have to question their competition. They are coming but it's going to take some time before they are where they want to be. They will build a program if they can keep their coaching staff in tact. David slew Goliath but this isn't going to be a rock slinging contest. Highlanders by as much as they want to make it.

The refs are just plain bad everywhere I've gone this year. There are few veterans around and we are going to endure a "learning curve" until some are developed. Some are out there for the money while others should not be out there period. Others are really trying but it takes time to develop them. I think a good ref has to be someone who has played the game and knows how the game flows. Every time someone is hit or tapped it is not a foul and there is such a thing as incidental contact. The hardest call they have to make, in my opinion, is the charge vs block. That depends on the angle they are standing on the floor. Another thing that makes them look bad is the inconsistency between what is called on one end vs what is called on the other end. Bottom line, the best place to call a game is from the stands. You can see everything that's going on from there. I believe the refs really try but some just don't need to be out there. In my opinion, the area has about 6-10 good officials and they are asigned to AAA games. The rest of us have to take those who are still in the "learning curve." No intent to offend anyone with this note. It's just my opinion from observation over several years of watching basketball.

Strange things happen in Snavely Gym. Don't count the Creekers out!

I saw the game at Hampton and I saw a team that was not mentally prepared to play with regard to Unaka. They were not focused as already mentioned in these posts and certainly showed no desire to win. May have taken Hampton for granted but Hampton is beginning to turn the corner with a very young team. They sometimes play 4 freshmen and 1 junior Early season success may be the worse thing that has happened to the Lady Rangers. You have to work hard every day to maintain the level of intensity that is required. As a matter of fact, the only time that success come before work is in the dictionary....

Right on, Justwatchin. The only coach that I personally know who helped anyone was Len Dugger when he was at Elizabethton. I was part of the scene there for several years and we had kids from other schools who came and asked len to help them. He always went the second mile with his players and stayed apart of their lives after graduation. He instilled a work ethic in his teams that helped them after they left school.

Thanks, Justwatchin. It has been my experience that a person cusses because their vocabulary is limited. In the same manner,maybe they yell because they don't know what to do. Whatever the reason, they need to look at themselves. Wonder how many of their players they work with after gradualtion to go on to college? That's the mark of a true coach. It doesn't just stop when the season is over.

I didn't see the game last night but I agree with the comments about coaching behavior.I have seen coaches in this area who were in need of anger management and who acted like more like kids than the players who were playing for them. It's only a game, people. The yelling and screaming and temper tantrums that some throw do nothing but reinforce poor performance. If I were playing today I would probably quit rather than listen their demeaning behavior. At a time when the youth of this country could be going to war it is no time to make a game bigger than life. Glad my son is grown. I wouldn't allow him to play for some coaches in this county. By the way, if you want to put across a point, try doing a better job of teaching/coaching and then if that doesn't work, re-inforce your argument without bringing shame to your players, fans, and school.

With all the political correctness we are being faced with in this country, I can understand why the game was cancelled, but coachtdog is right. They should have been up front if that was the REAL REASON for cancelling it. But that brings up another question...Why not play the game and allow the young man to set out thereby respecting his religion? No one is forcing him to play. If religion is the question, why did UH play last Friday in the Grindstaff Classic at Hampton? Anyone think about that? Something wrong with the picture!

The 'Creekers are hard to handle at home and it makes no difference who they play. UH is the "real deal" in my opinion but they are due to lose one. They have too much talent for the 'Creekers and should win. However, having seen a lot of games at Unaks, I'm going to pick the 'Creekers in a close one. Were the game being played at UH,I'd take UH to win in a rout. UH has the better overall talent and this is the first year they are playing with a lot of discipline but I'm going with a hunch.

This year's tournament has been the most competitive one I've seen. While they may not have the "big teams" of the Arby's in Bristol, I don't think they come behind the Arby's in competitiveness. The finals today should be more of the same.

Bud will do the job given the support of the "powers to be" plus the fans. He's facing an uphill battle this first year with a young team and the loss of his most experienced player, Kevin Harrison.Bud is a good teacher and knows how to win. However, he has to play the hand he was dealt and their being young will take some time. Also, several of his players have not been out long because of their being in the football playoffs. Sounds like I'm making excuses but I'm not. The Dogs are being rebuilt. Have patience.

Well deserved celebration! Coach White has left a mark on East Tennessee basketball that will long be remembered.

Rome wasn't built in a day. It took years and years but when it was finished, there was something to behold. Building a basketball team takes time, too. Unaka has lost the bulk of the team that was successful last year and is starting over. Given time and support from the fans they will be ready at tournament time and that's all that the regular season is designed to do. Gets you ready to play in the district, regional, sub-state, and state. It matters not what you do during the regular season. You can go undefeated and end up losing that first district game and you're history. You then spend the summer talking about "how it could've been." It's not how you start that counts but how you finish.There's nothing wrong with Unaka Basketball; they are progressing as to be expected. [Edited by Raven1 on 12-12-02 9:48A]

I have heard some of the same things that penquin alleges but like pujo says, the facts need to be obtained. That does mean coming up with names and dates and other information that pertains to the allegations. I for one think the "landers have done a great job over the past years and their work ethic is beyond question. They would have won the state last year had the private schools who do recruit been in another classification. For a school the size of Cloudland to accomplish what they have is agreat feat. Maybe next year!

Oleagle, I was not there but talked with a coach who was and he said that the call was made against Happy Valley with 9 secs left. Time out was called and the Dogs were expecting to shoot a one and one. They go back on the floor and the offical changes the call to go against the Dogs. He said it was the worse travesty he had ever seen. To beat that, the Happy Valley coaches agreed "tongue incheek" that it was the wrong call. Mistakes can happen seldom do they cost a team a win or lost. Teams usually have put themselves in the position to where a call can beat them and had they played well, they wouldn't be in that situation. Last night's incorrect call gave took the game away from the Dogs. No reflection on Happy Valley is intended. It would have been the same situation had the teams been reversed.

I have watched basketball in East Tennessee for years. One of the truths that we all must realize is that girl's basketball unless it has been Hanpton has never garnered the support it should have. And it could have had more. That's just a way of life. The only support the girl's have had has been from the parents and other family members. I'm not sayiny that's right but just the way it is. The fans at Unaka are used to having a winning program and when the team is down, you see how it affects the fans.I'm not saying that's right, just a way of life. It does say something, though. Why do fans go and watch the game? Do they expect to see a winner every time? Haven't they stopped to realize that "studs" come and go and that each year a new bunch of young men and ladies are out there doing their best to win? Sports have become something more than they were ever intended to be. Instead of being character developing, they have given "fans" an outlet to project themselves and live through the lives of the players. The only thing they care about is winning and never stop to think that every young person is out there to do their best and noone wants to lose. We have put caoches under pressure to win at all costs even to the point of trying to bend the rules. Their success is measured by wins and losses and not by how many lives they influence for good. When we get back to the basics of high school sports we will begin to realize the real purpose in arthletics. Do I want to win? You betcha, but not at losing sight of the priority of putting the athlete first. As for the cheerleaders...that's the responsibility of the sponsors...the cheerleaders follow their lead. 'Nuff said.

The Ranger football program has been down for several years and until a winning tradition is established, it will continue to stay down. They need to establish consistency in the coaching and keep a staff for more than one year. The staff they have this year can get it done in time but it's not going to be an easy job. They need to look at scheduling some people they can beat in order to establish a winning tradition and build some confidence in everyone.The fans, parents, and school administration needs to get behind them and support them like they do basketball.