FootballDad

Great to see you too BC...kind of felt like old times. I will pass along the "fine young men" compliments to the two former Warriors helping CRB. They are acclimating to having the "G" on their gear, but excited to still be involved in football and hopefully having a positive influence on other young men. Good luck to your Tornadoes this year, they have a long and proud tradition to uphold. Good to see that the Alcoa faithful still travel well to support their team.

Hey BC...long time no talkie. My first time back on the "T" in about 5 years! I will try and find you at the game tonight if you are coming.

I think that sounds like a pretty accurate prognostication...I set the over/under at around 28. No one that I know of has faced each other any more than Rankin and Bradley over the past 10 years, with both teams meeting twice (reg. season & playoffs) many of those years. Bradley knows how to score points on Rankin, and Rankin knows how to slow down Bradley's offense. Neither General has their best Armies to command this time like they have had in the past IMHO, but it still should be an interesting game to watch. Bradley's CAK squads finally learned not to be intimidated by "Too Hype", 90+ players on the sidelines, and an Alcoa trophy case full of gold balls, but it took them a while and a lot of bruising and bleeding to get to that point. I'm interested to see how the Rams come out of the gate to start the game. However, I've seen enough games between these 2 coaches to know anything could happen. We shall see soon. Good luck to both teams for an injury free game. I hope for a hard fought contest with great effort, exciting plays and good sportsmanship regardless of the outcome.

I must say that Ram Nation is very blessed to have been able to hire a coach of the caliber of Rusty Bradley. He was the perfect hire. Not only because of his meticulous practices, detailed schedules and genius offensive schemes, but because he does things the right way. People may still choose to have ill will towards the Rams based on past indiscretions, but that should eventually disappear when they see how Rusty runs his program...clean and competitive. Additionally, having his father Mark Bradley coaching the offensive line is an incredible bonus. Mark is the best offensive line coach I have ever witnessed in TN high school football. Trey Smith, USJ, and now at UT, will be much more prepared to start as a freshman after having been coached by Mark for a year and the Ram's offensive line will benefit greatly from his vast experience. Rusty was also able to add a couple of his former CAK players to his staff to help instill his system more quickly. However, I caution Ram fans not to have overly high expectations this first year or two. Your schedule looks pretty brutal to me. After years of watching the Wing T you will have fun watching the Spread-Coast offense throw the ball all over the field and I believe you will certainly win some games. Be patient. Support the team and I believe you will have some successful years coming to you in the near future. Good luck to the Rams this Thursday.

I've been traveling and just made it back into town. Thought I'd check in and see how the banter was going with the "Liars Club" posse. Of course I'm hoping for a good game from CAK and that we can keep it close most of the way. However, I think the F5 has too much for my Warriors. Unfortunately this game doesn't hold as much energy & enthusiasm as it has for the past 1/2 dozen years or so. In part because CAK is down from our championship years and Alcoa doesn't appear to be as strong as their teams in recent memory. Still, Alcoa is a prohibitive favorite in this game and for another gold ball. As far as this being the last game between these two teams, I totally agree with Warriors2011. Unless something odd happens I fully expect CRB and CGR to continue scheduling each other. There was a time back when CAK was loaded and Alcoa was even more loaded that I think CAK would have liked getting away from the F5 in order to get a shot at a state title. Its discouraging when you know you are really really good but by misfortune you happen to be locked into playing someone who is even better. Heck, we couldn't even get a chance to bring home a silver ball because of geography. Once CAK broke past that and brought home a few trophies of our own, I believe the value of playing Alcoa every year (twice each year including playoffs) truly became apparent. Good luck to all and I hope for a safe and spirited contest.

Since I haven't seen either team this year I don't have any idea who will win, but I hope SD wins this game. Nothing against HVA at all, I'm merely throwing my support behind Coach Clark Duncan. I respect the way he handles his business and goes about building a program. He certainly isn't going to win over everyone with his old school approach to discipline and team first mentality, but he is a great coach and a good man from what I know and he isn't afraid to make tough decisions. He deserves some recognition and SD surely deserves some success after all the tough years of losing. Hope both teams play well, with no injuries, and the Cherokees prevail.

I don't know for sure, but my feeling is that CAK will try to keep its rivalries with Alcoa & Grace going. If so, that will only leave 1 remaining game each year outside of the new district. If that's the case I suspect CAK will choose between Webb & Catholic. Neither are good choices for CAK if Alcoa & Grace stay on the schedule as well. It may come down to which of those 2 schools are available for scheduling. Just a guess but I would think Webb would be given first choice based primarily on past scheduling with the Spartans from middle school to high school. But that is mere speculation on my part.

I forgot about the Coalfield game in 2004, but I should have remembered the Anderson Co. game since I was actually there. That was the Josh Smith show. Oh well, now we know how it feels to get 70 hung on us...not a real resume builder to say the least.

One game doesn't define any team or certainly not a program. Remember CAK was 2-0 going into this game, albeit against weak competition. But I would say this. Most schools have cycles of athletes that come through from time to time and the Warriors have had some nice years recently where there were just enough really good to exceptional athletes, combined with good coaching and a great offensive scheme, to put together some formidable teams. However, at this particular time CAK is lacking in enough of them to carry the banner. Only 6-7seniors, about a 50 man roster including the freshman, and several freshmen & sophomore starters are certainly some factors contributing. But the bottom line is this, CAK has a few very talented players, but we don't have a roster of players like the ones we have had recently. Maybe they will mature and grow into the kind of team all us Warrior fans would like to see, only time will tell.

Based off what I heard on the radio, and what GVK said, I think "CAKe" might actually apply for real, or at least for last Friday night. Of course one game doesn't define a team or a program, but geez, thats embarrassing. I too, like GVK, have always been proud of how our boys competed hard, even when we were getting our hats handed to us by the likes of the Tornadoes. Youth may have played a factor with only 6-7 Seniors on the roster, but thats no solid reason to allow someone to lay 70 pts on you. Hopefully the team will take this butt kicking and get a little tougher, both mentally & physically. Still love the Warriors and I still love my sweets, but come on guys, lets not combine the two I'll see you goons week 8.....maybe. ha.

Wow...sure glad I was flipping burgers at home for a birthday party rather than sitting there miserable at this blow out. I kept running back and forth from the grill to the radio to catch the score, or at least until about 1/2 thru the 3rd qtr. I can't really comment about specifics of the game since I didn't see it in person, but it sounded like an old fashioned butt whipping. 70 pts. is the most points ever scored against CAK, for that matter CAK has never scored 70 pts. against anyone else either. I expected that Catholic would prevail, but I expected a closely contested shootout. It started off like that but then the Warriors quickly ran out of ammo. No ammo and multiple turnovers to boot, including 2-3 pick 6's (I don't remember how many now) will get you run out of the stadium against a good team, and thats what happened. CAK is young but should be OK a little further down the road, but they struggled mightily against the Irish. Congrats to Catholic. Sorry I missed the Goons, I hope you at least got some burgers & Nanner Puddin.

Looks like I may miss this game Goons. The wifey has me down for flipping burgers for a b-day party or something like that. I will have to catch it on the Warrior TV Network I suppose. Should be an interesting game.

It excites me to see any Knoxville area kids in the NFL, even if he did play at Catlick I feel the same way when Randall Cobb does his thing for the Packers, D.Smith for the Bills, and when any of the Colquit boys are punting. I'll throw J.Whitten in there as well, even though he's from up the street aways in Betsy. Are there any others for the local area playing in the NFL?

I agree, this should be an interesting game for both squads. Last year's loss was painful considering all the opportunities for the Warriors to have won the game, but the Irish prevailed. I haven't seen Catholic this year, but CAK is improved over last years squad. Catholic has a considerable size advantage from what I'm told, but with the exception of 2011-12, that is normally the case for the Warriors. CAK's QB play is improved as well as the play from the receivers. A solid D line has played well so far, but very thin, and lots of small, young, inexperienced players filling out the rest of the defensive roster. This version of the Warriors will be a work in progress all season long, but the future looks promising. Catholic will be by FAR the best team CAK has seen this year to date. I expect it to be more of a shoot out than a slugfest. Looking forward to an exciting game. P.S: have to brag just a little here...it was nice to see 2 CAK alumni playing for the Vols Sunday night. Having any of our players on the SEC stage is a new thing for us. Go #25 & #63...proud of you and all the Vol players...seeing more of those TN high school players on the roster warms my heart (so long as they can play...ha)

Sorry I missed this thread before the game, I had a busy week, but I did make it to the game. It felt strange watching a game from the visitors bleachers at Powell, I spent many years watching and coaching rec. teams on this field. CAK may be a bit better this year than I gave them credit for in the pre-season. Their skill players are developing nicely and I see a lot of grit out of the other players that might be considered undersized or not as athletic as we may have had in the recent past. The Warrior coaching staff continues to prove their worth. Their teams are always prepared and rarely are intimidated and almost always play hard for 4 qtrs. While CAK is progressing nicely, I certainly can't call them a real threat for a gold ball just yet. I think next year could be a very interesting year if things continue to go well for the Warriors. Regarding Powell, it is sad to see such a successful program be so woefully inadequate at this point. Its a proud program with a lot of recent success, but they are merely a shell of themselves. I don't think they have an identity at this point. Are they a spread team, are they a Wing-T team, I don't think they really know at this point. I didn't see much that would suggest that they are strong at any one particular thing. Unless they had kids injured, or there is a sleeper on the sidelines, I didn't see any real threats on the field for the Panthers. They would be pressed to have a winning season in a lower classification, but playing in 6A now I don't see them winning many, if any, games this season. I wish the Panthers well, but the feedback I got from ALL of my old friends from the Panther Nation at the game was that the program is spiraling in the wrong direction. I hope they can get it back under control sooner than later.

I haven't seen Pope play, but by most accounts he will be a very nice addition to the Warriors passing game. Depth is always an issue for us, and this year is no different. I would take Alcoa Roundball's prediction of 10-3 and be very happy with that this year, but I think that is unlikely. Like APB, I do believe our cupcakes will improve as the season goes along, but it will be a work in progress.

Agreed. Alcoa fans on the T did give credit where credit was due when CAK won those games. They also have given us credit for some of the games that we have lost to them, but stood in there and traded punches until the end. Alcoa fans have fun on here, cross the line ever once in a while, but for the most part are educated about their football. But you have to earn Rankin's, the team, and the fans respect. All the pre-game shenanigans on here by Alcoa are just for entertainment. Go out, play them hard to the end, win or lose, they will give you credit...at least enough credit to buy a sandwich at Bread of Heaven with, but not the buffet...its expensive.

Skill positions should be improved, should have more team speed, but will be thin & small overall up front on both sides of the ball with little, if any, depth. I think in reality #3 is a very lofty ranking for the Warriors considering their schedule & youth. However, Coach Bradley & staff have proven time & time again that they can make a team competitive even with overall fewer athletes, size & ability. They are masters at game planning & preparation. When given enough exceptional athletes (like in recent past) CAK is a serious threat, even for Alcoa. However, I just don't see that being the case this year.

I agree and have had several conversations about that over the years with my friends from Alcoa and other open zoned schools. (1)The Open Zone schools have the benefit of a "guaranteed" student/athlete population provided by a set school zone, just like all public schools have, (2) have the benefit of being able to accept students from outside that school zone, even outside of the county, like all private schools have, yet (3) have NO multiplier, unlike the privates who are assessed a 1.8 multiplier, and they compete mostly against schools that are not open zoned and cannot take student/athletes that live outside their school zone, at least not legally . IMHO the Open Zone schools should be assessed a multiplier just like the private D1's. Most Open Zone schools are playing by the rules, it's just that the rules are slanted in their favor. It's also true that some of the Open Zone schools would win in a big way even if they faced a multiplier or played in D2, but the point is to make the playing field as even as possible for everyone.

Should have added a small F-5 on both five yard lines... Looks great. Congrats. I saw the final field design for CAK and it is fairly plain. Not as fancy as the Blount County brethren. Originally the end zones were blue, but concern over fading changed the design to only have the lettering in blue, most of the field is simple green & white. I still prefer grass, but I will have to get use to this artificial stuff I guess.

Really????? Thats good to know. Next thing you will be telling me we don't even have to cut or mow the game field anymore.

Sounds like a good design. Our Warrior with the helmet is still relatively new (past 4-5 years) and the shield is incorporated in the logo with the school charter since 1977, so maybe that was the reasoning...not sure, but I'm sure our field will look good as well. Question: how are your Seniors going to know where to stand on Senior Night now that they won't have their jersey number painted on the field?

CAK's level of play last season was tough to take after the last several years of success, but it was expected. Given that, I still thought the Warriors scrapped their way through the schedule admirably. I'm not sure I would put them in the top 5 myself, but Rusty will have them ready to play and win against teams that don't bring their A game. Overall I believe CRB was pleased with their spring and is optimistic, but also realistic. I think they may have a little more speed on the field this year than last. CAK will be scrappy, but they are excruciatingly thin at almost every position. I agree that the QB should be improved and he has a world of potential. Also agree that Jost is a good one. We just need some help up front.

Hey Roundball: Will your field turf have the Tasmanian Cyclone logo or the Atlanta Braves "A"? I think we will have the "CAK Shield" logo, but I would have preferred the Warrior with the Helmet. Since I'm not buying the turf I didn't have any say so....ha.

Those Hi-Def cameras on our spy quad-copters must have missed the signs....ha