PhoosballPhan

Brint Russell hasn't had the schedule to contend with that past coaches have had. See this link[/url. Also, he has insulted and belittled the players on and off the field. This isn't my imagination, it is first hand from boys who played in the past, but refuse to play for him. The rest of the season is set and I doubt that they will win any more games. That's not a knock on the kids, they can and have worked hard. It is Russell's attitude that will determine his future and the future of HHS football. If he can get over himself, he can probably become a great coach. But introspection is not his strong suit, so he will not change. I could be wrong, but I doubt it.

Programs that do not have effective development wither on the vine. Not enough players in a 6A school to form a freshman team is not a warning sign, it's a death knell. One has to wonder what in the world is going on that you cannot get 20-30 boys out of a freshman class of over 400 to play football. Also, 2-1 is not a good example especially against the opposition they have played. They are supposed to win those games and didn't against LC.

If this is to be believed, Heritage High School, a Class 6A program, has NO freshman football team? What in the world is going on over there? How can any school expect to continue, nevermind build a football program when they cannot field enough players for a freshman football team? I though Brint Russell was the answer to the program. It doesn't seem like he is inspiring young players to play for him. Also, rumors going around that people want Russell out. Any truth to that?

the reason for talking about the past is so that we can assess the future. it is my hope that coach russell & company have tremedous success. however, it is disappointing that the county schools keep losing home-grown coaching talent to other schools. opportunities have come up in the county schools for young coachs to advance and help teams. as scoot posted, rewis wasted a young coache's talent. great programs start with great coaches. once again, i hope wb and hhs develop long-term success. the kids deserve it. the students deserve it. and the county deserves it.

it is remarkable what professional EA NCAA and Madden players think they know. obviously you have no idea what has gone on in the disfunctional hhs football program. having followed hhs football for a while i'll explain what i know from observation and conversations about the hhs football program in its last two years. first, anyone - and i mean anyone - who watched a hhs football game the last two seasons saw a very undisciplined group of players. this isn't to say all of them were undisciplined. however, there were enough players running the team that it was clear the coach did not have a grip on them. i watched a few practices. they were pathetic. rewis ran everything while kids and coaches stood around wondering what to do. in fact, i saw young bring enthusiasm to his scout teams as they could score on the first team defense at will. the rewis brothers offered excuses for failure. it was obvious the kids loved playing for coach young. second, anyone who watched a game the past two years saw young men who gave up on themselves first. last fall i thought that after the seymour win, then playing tough first halves against farragut and maryville that perhaps they had turned the corner as a team. unfortunately, whether it was coaching, attitude, or whatever their season fell apart. that was clear after the drumming they took at campbell county. the rest of the season they played like they were in a fog and didn't care if they were on the field or not. third, i have watched several hms middle school football games. to my knowledge they were never more successful than when they were under john young's direction. i saw both of their appearances in the county championship game in 2006 & 2007, which they nearly nearly won. those kids played quality football. at no time did i see young give up on the kids or the game. forth, young walked into a no-win situation with the rewis brothers and that disfunctional offense they ran. with the players they had, and the physically weak offensive line, it was stupid to line up and run that offense. it was clear that coach rewis did not listen to his assistants. young was treated no differently. finally, as a supporter of the county football programs it pains me to see good, young coachs seeking opportunities elsewhere. however, young coachs who have an opportunity to hook up with g.q. or rankin is a smart move for them. and it says a lot about what quality coachs think of these young men when they offer them positions on their staffs. the revolving door that passes for head coaching positions in the county schools doesn't offer young coaches stability or in some instances quality coaching experiences. budget problems are not going to make it better as good coaches will migrate to better paying jobs. let the flaming begin!

don't get you jock in a bunch. /rolleyes.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":rolleyes:" border="0" alt="rolleyes.gif" /> young was named offensive coordinator but, from what i saw, he had no say in the offense at all. i watched a few of the middle school games that he coached, including that championship game at MC where they came within a hair of winning the country championship against maryville (his quarterback then was patton robinette who is now a maryville signal caller). young's creativity never showed up in that disaster of an offense that rewis called. btw, i found out that rob and jamie davis are going to coach the heritage middle school. my stepson said the kids were excited. as i remember jamie davis was a pretty good linebacker who played well tackle to tackle. as another poster noted, gq should send a thank you.

i saw him at the game. he was talking to some guys on the fence. i can't believe he's goin to either. what's wrong is he too good for heritage?

FLASH... i heard in the stands lastnight that john young is going to coach at maryville. is it true? i hope not since heritage could use a good quarterbacks coach.

How are things going in the weight room? Are the boys really getting stronger? Are all of them working hard? I have heard that Waters is a driver in the weight room. Are all of the players showing up for workouts? I'm looking forward to hearing about Monday. Coach Russell will only get one chance to make a first impression at practice. I hope he does it right.

Where to begin... First, I'm sorry that you played for such a poorly coached team. The head coach sets the tone for a team and you had a poor example. Anyone in the stands on a Friday night could see it. Second, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. The offense that you were forced to run exposed every weakness of the team. Third, too many players who were out there to work hard and play hard were overlooked while deadbeats got most of the gametime. Finally, a list of issues that lead to poor seasons, apathy, and a lack of esprit de corp: 1) a quarterback that couldn't throw deep and ran like he had chains on his legs... not your fault. 2) a poorly coached defense that depended on having a better linebacker corp than you had... not your fault. 3) team discipline that was so poor that home and visiting fans had no difficulty seeing that players did what they wanted to not what they were told to do... not your fault but it is the head coaches fault. 4) injuries that took players out of the game for extended times... not your fault. 5) Inability to play an entire game due to fatigue... not your fault. The coaching staff has the duty to push you beyond what you want to do. And nobody likes conditioning. 6) Team mates that only played at half of their ability... not your fault. They have no pride in themselves or their team. After all, half an effort is good enough. 7) According to players and parents i have spoken to, the weight lifting program was a joke. Pulling on towels? No squat racks. Poor lifting technique when you boys did lift. No wonder you had so many injuries. 8) A lack of commitment by a large number of players. My stepson told me he overheard many players talk about how it didn't matter if they showed up for conditioning or lifting, they knew coach rewis would play them anyway. that is loser thinking. 9) Poor community support. 10) A poor attitude toward the football program in general. I have heard my stepson say that teachers actually ask players how bad they will get beat in a game! That is sick and sad. No players of any sport should have to hear their teachers talk about them like they are trash. As for putting down coaches and players. I wasn't aware that criticism based on observation was a put down. As someone who has watched many games of all the bount county teams, i can tell you that i never saw such a lack of team and teamwork. it was obvious that the hhs football team was more an assembly of individuals out for themselves than working for a team goal. I hope that coach russell puts an end to that crap. if he doesn't then nothing will change and hhs football will continue to be a 3-7 or an 0-10 team. good luck 2009 hhs football!

yep, another player from heritage that wants a coach who cares about his feelings. how many games did you win there gipper? by the way, judging from your terrible grammar and inability to express yourself i'm betting you don't hit too many books either. did you graduate? are you still in school waiting for another year of glory? if coach russell is "mean and hateful" and says things that hurts your feelings are you going to go to the sideline and cry? were you one of those kids i saw on the sideline playing around with your friends instead of focusing on the game? did you ever give 100% in practice, or did you stand around whining about how hot it was and how you didn't want to do this stupid stuff? Did your mommy and daddy tell you how great you are when in fact you never worked hard enough to play second string on a pee wee team? did they teach you to blame the coaches for your failure to work hard and learn. Did you lose all those games because the referees didn't like hhs? How many excuses did you and those around you make for your failure to work hard to win. i don't know if you know this or not, but no one ---- NO ONE gives you anything. you have to earn it. hhs boys football hasn't worked or done the things necessary to earn it. excuses. that's all, excuses. go away old heritage. if coach russell is half as tough as he needs to be to overcome all of the cry baby parents and players you won't want to be around for it. you'll have to work hard and he will probably hurt your feelings. that's too much to ask of a delicate flower like you.

old heritage! a loser mentality with mediocrity held up as high art. there are several coaches that do not need to be asked back. based on the lack of success i'm not sure if shane rewis even knows what to do to utilize the players he has. hhs football hasn't had a real linebacker corp in years. tommy rewis's offense might as well have worn the other teams colors. it couldn't score with that idiotic system he had. how is it that a talented kid like that cermack boy doesn't get the ball at least 20 times a game? it isn't the talent, it's the coaching. coaches develop the kids they have. the rewis brothers didn't develop any players to a competitive level in 5 a. according to people i talked to that did watch practice, john young would scorch his defense in scrimmage on a regular basis. rewis never did anything to adjust. they said he just kept saying that who ever they were playing that week wouldn't do that! that's not coaching it's hoping! as for west, he was a linebacker in high school as i recall. i'm not sure that he had any experience coaching offensive line when he came in. on top of that he had some of the weakest kids to try to block stronger kids. it was painfully obvious that tommy rewis did not focus on the weight room. over the last two years hhs players could barely block 3a players from seymour. you can't hold a young coach responsible for that. i talked to the baseball coach bennett. he said that west is a very good coach for him. i can't imagine that he is as lazy and stupid about football as you have made him out to be. i have it on good authority that he was one of the hardest workers, learning to coach offensive line. it isn't his fault he was saddled with lazy, and some say not very smart, linemen. a new heritage football team will have to have discipline and work ethic. there are too many lazy kids that have been on the field for too long. i hope he is able to run off the ones that are out there to wear a jersy on friday night and do nothing else. the coaches need to develop leadership in the kids. i haven't seen any leadership at any of the games i have gone to in the last 8 years. leadship, discipline, work ethic and focus can turn this program into a 5-5 to 7-3 program. or people can keep worrying about stupid crap, promote weakness as strenght and accept "good effort" as the crowning achievement of years spent sweating on the field and getting your butt kick for ten years. (School record since 2001 13-67 a .163 winning percentage Heritage High School Records) PITIFUL! old hertiage or new heritage? the boys at heritage deserve better than what they have gotten the past ten years. it has been hard to find good coachs since hhs has such a poor reputation. i hope that coach russell is a good hire for the kids. i hope that he recognizes what a huge job he has ahead of him. i hope that he puts discipline first. good luck coach russell and staff... you're gonna need it!

i am wishing him the best of luck. i hope the kids grow into young men and put in the work that is necessary to become successful. i want them to learn and understand what it means to be a team and work as a team. i am optimistic that true leaders will emerge on this team. i pray that the parents let the man do his job. i have high expectations that he will hold them accountable... in the classroom first and on the field. having coached for many, many years and having played for a great coach i know that these are things that will begin to lead to success. coach russell will have to make tough decisions. i hope he is up to it. he will have to let some kids go that do not tow the line. discipline is rule number one and if he manages to pull that off he will have cleared a high hurdle. if he doesn't then it will be a long, long year. by the way, i have watched the "professionals" handle it for too many years. if i lack blind optimism i hope you will forgive me.

"It allows those who knows absolutely nothing about a subject to express an opinion that nobody wants to hear." how do you know what i know? i know that the boys are working harder than they ever have. i know that waters knows what he is doing (followed him for years). i know that there is more to be done there than "hope" and "change" can accomplish. i don't wish ill on this program. i just think there is something wrong when an incoming coach don't seem to be able to get in school coaches that can help him to stick around. btw, nobody will "hear" my opinion here. it's all text! /roflol.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":roflol:" border="0" alt="roflol.gif" />

i've forgotten more about football than most know. coach russell has his work cut out for him. the ME and I attitude that soaks hhs boys sports programs is like a stink on their programs. there is little concern for TEAM as many of those boys have been told by their parents and others that they are special. they don't teach them how to work to get what they want. i pray that coach russell is a tough as nails disciplinarian who will fire kids who pollute the team with their loser mentality. that has been something i have observed as i look at the sideline behavior of the hhs football players the past years. it's not all of them but quite a few of them. all hhs boys programs need a dose of discipline and work ethic. there are too few boys who exhibit it. they have to be willing to unlearn losing and learn how to win. they need to know what it is like to put themselves second to the team. if they can do that they can win games. if they can't then no amount of schedule changes can make a winning program there.

heard from my stepson that the cline boy might be moving to alcoa. any truth to that? i know he ran good as a freshman. he'd have to stand in line at alcoa before he got any play time. i saw on the thread that he likes to run the spread. how is he gonna do that at hhs? those boys can't catch a cold and are not fast enough to beat anyone deep.

Rumors branton - no leatherwood kid - no rang - no young - no also heard that rankin is looking for a qb coach. reed is in final for oak ridge job. could he be interested in any of our young coaches? is russell driving these guys away? how many kids will play for a guy that isn't getting the local talent he can get to stay here?

I heard that his staff isn't lining up like he thought. Is Scott Branton going to coach there? I haven't heard about what John Young or that Bradford guy are doing yet either. Is he going to announce his staff soon?

I heard Leatherwood was looking to go to William Blount. Any truth to that? Also have heard that John Young has been to a lot of Maryville practices. He was even seen there the week before they went to state. More recruiting by GQ?

Just as graduation can help a program, retirement will help HHS. The problem for any new coach coming into HHS is that there a few teaching positions open. There are some young men in the school system that would be an asset to any program, but getting them interested in coaching at HHS (other opportunities are available with better programs) is another matter. The next head coach needs to know quality coaches when he sees them and then let the do their job. Rewis was a micro manager. A successful head coach needs to know how to coach coaches. HHS has had ONE winning season since 1997. (Source HHS Football Record since 1997) They are 27 - 93. That's a .225 winning percentage. That is a tremendous amount of baggage. It will take a crusader, someone who really believes he can win here and instill that belief in the student body, community, and the players. It can be done. It has been done. The question is does HHS community want it bad enough to do something about it?

I'm sorry you feel that way about the attitude and work ethic. The fact is that it simply is very, very lacking. The few who do work cannot make up for the many that do not. But then, that goes back to coaching. Attitude reflects the values of the head coach and the assistant coaches. As I noted, it will take a totally new staff. Everyone will have to apply. There will be some people who are bitter and feel like they are getting screwed, but, hey, that's life. Anyone associated with HHS football should want the best for the athletes they are coaching. If that means stepping aside then there should be no hard feelings. The saddest thing is that for the past ten years, no senior has a memory of a winning season. This last team walked off the field 1-9. That is what they will take with them and relive for the rest of their lives. Any coach that puts his ego and arrogance above welfare of the kids he coaches and the community he represents deserves neither sympathy nor respect. Heritage can win. The kids are there to win. But as you and others have noted it will take a heck of a head coach and a staff of competent, enthusiastic, and knowledgable assistants to turn it around. I hope Chip Fuller can make the hard and right decisions.

Stanton Stevens is now available! /roflol.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":roflol:" border="0" alt="roflol.gif" /> Seriously, these are the obstacles Heritage Football faces: 1. Poor attitude and work ethic on the part of athletes. 2. Parents who involve themselves beyond their roles in the program. 3. Poor support by many staff at the high school. ("So, how bad are you gonna get beat tonight?" actual quotes reported by athletes). 4. Excluding the practice and playing fields, athletic facilities are fair to poor. The weight room is pitiful and the locker rooms are terrible. 5. Failure to assemble a winning football staff. There are more, but these stick out. Any coach who goes to Heritage will have to have the ability to assemble his staff. He will have to be able to run the program, including firing athletes who continuiously screw up off the field. He will have to be a disciplinarian whose authority is respected by players and parents. He has to be willing to break eggs. It is a thick fog of a losing mentality that has to be cleared. I'm just not sure anyone at HHS has the guts to be hard on the kids, pushing them to be more than they are.

I have heard that no one at Maryville is aware of Bradly Ladner. Hertiage boys would be best off staying at Heritage. Whoever takes the head coach position will have their work cut out for them. The attitude is deeply entrenched and it will take a winner/motivator coach to begin to reverse it.