BulldogGrowl

CA-Culleoka last night was an ugly, ugly game. I really thought that the Bulldogs would hang in and pull it out. The boys have played several close games in the last week or so, losing by 7 to a good Mt. Pleasant team, losing by 2 to an underachieving Hampshire team, and last night by 12 to Culleoka in an ugly, ugly game. Looks like we get Richland in the tournament, and will need to step up to play, but they are capable, and Zack Johnson is a beast. Looks like the matchups will be Mt. Pleasant getting a bye, Santa Fe hosting Cornersville, Richland hosting CA(provided they beat CA Friday, then depending on how tiebreakers work if not), and Culleoka hosting Hampshire. With Cornersville, how good would they have been if the Lovette?? kid had not gotten hurt. They have several good pieces, but are definately missing the big kid inside. I thought they would be better this year with what they had. Not enough to crack the top 4, but certainly good enough to be out of the cellar. Of course, I would have expected CA to have a better record too. As far as Hampshire goes, I am with you about the coach there. He was here at CA for a little while, always stirring up stuff. Very hard to work with an be around, I always questioned his motives when I saw him around campus. I have known the administration here as long as I have been around and know how things shook out. Frankly, I didnt realize he was a teacher. Hate it for Hampshire, have friends out there, they definately got a headache with that one. CA's gain with him leaving was definately a loss for Hampshire. That is the most talented Hampshire boys team I have seen in at least 10 or 12 years, but look and sound dysfunctional. The Boshers kid can play, but looked out of his game both times I saw him.

I think everyone so far has the same basic predictions for the district. I will add my personal opinion. 1. Cornersville--- The only tough games for the Lady Bulldogs will come from District 12A opponents. Haley Fagan is the real deal, and she has a talented, experienced, and tournament tested supporting cast. 12-0 in the district should be a given, #1 seed in district tournament, #1 coming out of the tournement into the regionals. Coach Landers does a great job year in and year out, and he will not break stride, even when he is replacing such a talent as Nelms. 2. Columbia Academy--- The other Lady Bulldogs will be improved this year as the experience that the returning group has garnered in the past couple of years begins to pay off. Coach Bingham will have this group dialed in this season, and only tough games should come at the hands of #1 Cornersville. Santa Fe might make it tight, but the experience of CA should hang on and finish 10-2 in the district. 3. Santa Fe--- The Lady Cats, after a great run last year, should dominate the bottom 4 again this year. Coach Brown did great things in his first season, and with White could exceed his win total from last season. Their depth could make their games with CA ver competitive, and everyone knows how hard Santa Fe plays at home. They could suprise CA at Santa Fe, but for now I will stick with CA in both games. Santa Fe finishes 8-4 in the district. 4. Richland--- The Lady Raiders look to overcome a disappointing season last year, and return one of the better scorers in the district in Kim Lovell. The team has underachieved for the past few seasons, and maybe the addition of new coach Fralix could improve chemistry and effort. In a season of transition, I cant see them cracking the top 3, but they should be far enough ahead of the bottom 3 to hold the 4 spot at 6-6, to host a lower seed, and probably advance to the regionals again. 5. Culleoka--- I honestly think that the change in coach, in this situation, will be visible immediately. Coach Sharp was successful at the junior high level, and will be coaching many of the same girls he has coached to many wins in the past. Kizer and Foster can play, and the young depth will be more than enough to beat the bottom 2. The future is definately brighter for the Lady Warriors, as their your will only get better for the next few years. I see Cully finishing 4-8 in the district, and playing Richland in the first round of the district tournament. 6. Mt. Pleasant--- The Lady Tigers typically have a number of athletes, but it rarely results in a number of wins. Coach Hughes will rely on the athleticism of speedy left-hander Hughes, and the outside shooting of McNeese. Aside from those two, I am not sure where the offense comes from. They have shown signs of improvement over the last couple of seasons, but that improvement hasnt shown up in the win column. They will beat Hampshire twice and finish 2-10. 7. Hampshire--- While the Lady Hawks overachieved last year, and played harder than any Hampshire team in recent memory, they will be replacing the only offensive threats that were available last season. Coach Fite is intense, and drives his team every night. I said last year after the game at CA, when the Lady Hawks went on a 19-2 run, that was the best I had ever seen Hampshire play. However, I dont see him getting a district win with this group. They are young, and no proven scorer in the bunch, finishing 0-12 in the district. The countdown is on to tip-off. I am excited to see what happens. Good luck to all. Go CA!!!!

CA should definately finish in the top 2 in the district, even with the change in coach. I thought Dejarnette was a great coach, and I wish him well at Culleoka, except when he plays CA!!! Go DAWGS

Is Brighton in west Tennessee? Is Coach Woods remaining at Hampshire, heard today he may be the Hampshire coach on the way out, not the girls coach. In the games I saw them play this season I thought he was unstable.

Good luck..Coach Fite has done a great job over there. I agree....he has done a great job with very little talent. I thought if he could win 2 games there last season it would be a surprise. He impressed me on the sidelines during the CA games I went to. I am absolutely shocked he is staying there, knowing what they have returning, or lack of. Thought he would be moving on. Anyway....how does a team from wherever Alabama find a Hampshire camp? Kinda surprised that there aren't other district teams.

Any news or happenings with teams in 11A? Where are teams heading for camps this summer?

Just heard about this one today. I had been hearing about John Wild, but obviously that all changed when the Riverdale job came open. I did hear that the Culleoka JrHigh coach would be moving to the high school, and I believe that is Sharp. I am still hearing that Richland will be naming a new coach this week, and I am assuming that it might in fact be Frost-Anderson, as someone posted here before. As for the other 11A presumed openings, noone at either Mt Pleasant nor Hampshire cares so I doubt we will know anything until it is done. I have been following this district/area for several years and enjoy it because of the proximity of the teams to one another. I realize that this district is not as strong as many 1A, but I enjoy following the teams. I try to see all CA games, and am able to catch some others in the county because of my job and where I live.

I heard that Wild will be hired at Culleoka and take over the girls' team. I am still having issues with the nature of hiring/firing of coaches in the district each year....virtual revolving doors. And, in the case of at least Cully and Richland, the decisions were made by parents and not by administrators, at least by the way things seem. The coach at Culleoka was on the chopping block from day 1 there. I remember all of the early stuff over the past two seasons, people questioning his dedication to developing the program, people questioning the manner in which he used/didn't use players. I saw Cully play two games this year, and I thought they looked better as the season went on, not necessarily winning games , but playing better, and this was all happening WHILE the coach was being drug through the coals in the bleachers, in the community, and on here. How long has/had he been head coach there? 2 years? More? Doesn't matter, the people who wanted him out got what they wanted, and whomever it is, ild or whoever, will be looking up at the top 3 every year. I am sure that some folks out there will be posting soon, and be able to give us more definate word, the Cully people are very good at posting on CoachT. I honestly thought the guy at Richland was doing a pretty good job. I saw Richland play three times this season and felt like they were decent. People who think they underachieved need to realize that the top 3 were better than they were all season long. I did see some bright spots, but I also witnessed the faces of a couple of players that looked like they had no desire to be on the court. That could be a result of parents undermining the program, which I have been told is a common occurance in the Richland sports community. How do certain individuals or certain families get THAT much power, to nod in disapproval and cost a hard working coach their job. Was the guy the best in the district? Probably not. Did his record deserve him losing his job? I don't think so. More on this job will come soon I know, as Richland fans are very good about posting about their teams. Hughes at Mt. Pleasant has gotten wins out of a program that hasn't won many in quite some time. He overcame the personal issues at the beginning of the season and made the team more competitive. I am still hearing that the shake up at Mt. Pleasant may include moving Hughes, and if so, finding a new girl's coach. This is bad news because I think they have turned a corner and could be improving as they move forward. It is unfortunate, the situation at MPHS, but I hope that things improve soon for the kids, not just the athletes. The girl's program has been through alot over the last few years, and some type of consistency would help. I doubt we will hear from any Mt. Pleasant parents on here, as I do not recall a single post all year, they don't care anyway. Lastly, the Hampshire job. I am still hearing the guy there is leaving to take another job. I saw them twice this season, and I think he did a great job with very little talent. If anyone saw the game at CA they would understand. The guy was intense and they had an unbelievable 2nd half. The team was playing harder than any Hampshire team I had ever seen play, and I have been around for a while. If I were in the Hampshire community, I would be trying to show more interest in the teams and programs, because noone there cares how the teams do, nor shows any dedication. The guy knows he won't ever finish high in the district, he lost his best players, and, worst of all, noone there cares about basketball. It would have to be disheartening for a coach, and motivation to leave. I don't expect any Hampshire people to be on here posting anything one way or the other, just like their lack of interest all season. Their attitude toward the basketball teams out there will likely be enough reason for someone to want to go elsewhere.

I heard some people talking like a former coach either at Lawrence County or a school in Lawrence County coming to Richland and/or Cully. To me it seems like the guy from Richland never had a chance, just an observation. And people at Cully have seemed down on that guy all year long, and I saw signs of life off and on there, not sure the girls wanted to play every night for him. Not sure about Mt. P, but people over there that I have talked to this weekend seem to think there are alot of changes coming, not only to basketball, but to the school as a whole. I agree with what has been said, they did look improved this year, and the coach had a very tough start from a personal standpoint. And I am still hearing that Hampshire's coach is gone, possibly to greener pastures, a place that can win coinsistently. I stated earlier in the year, especially after playing Hampshire, that I was impressed with their coach's intensity, and the way he had the girl's team playing harder and up-tempo than any team I had ever seen in Hampshire, and I hope for their program he stays, I just don't expect it. None of the four will compete with the top 3 any time soon, but it is a shame that there is such turnover in the district each year.

That is unreal, if true. That would make it possibly 4 schools in the district replacing coaches that are either leaving or being run off, from what I have heard. Cully, MtP, Hampshire, and now Richland? Anyone in those areas have any more information?

Can anyone provide the All-District teams, both season and All-tourney? Also, I think Cornersville should represent the district well in the next round, but I think the others, CA included, will have their hands full with 12A teams.

The weather extended the season for Culleoka, Mt. Pleasant, and Hampshire by one day. All three will see the season come to an end tonight at each satellite site. I see CA beating Culleoka by 25-30, I see Santa Fe beating Mt. Pleasant by about the same. Richland should beat Hampshire by 15-20. Round 2 will set up a great CA/Santa Fe matchup, and Richland will fall to Cornersville handily. Any thoughts by others?

Doubt it....they are done. They have been done for weeks. They caught Richland the night after a physical, close game. Obviously they were tired, and still won by double-digits. I dont see 6 or 7 upsetting anyone in the tournament.

Hope there are no changes at Hampshire. Coach Fite has done a very good job for the ladies in red. I hope he is happy at Hampshire. The guy is intense, and I think the girl's team at Hampshire exceeded expectations for sure. They played very hard in both games against CA, just very little talent and depth. I have heard he may go elsewhere, it would be hard to love a place where you are fighting for 5th or 6th in the district each year because of size and lack of interest. That is one of the bottom spots I heard would see a change. I have not seen on here nor heard anyone from Hampshire really voice an opinion on the guy, so I guess noone really knows about that situation. I think I read somewhere or heard it discussed he lives in Lewis County and has a child in school in Lewis County, so he has ties there. I was also told that Mt. Pleasant will have another coach next year, 3rd in 3 years, despite of a much improved team and record. No details there either, as we seldom get reports either way from Mt. Pleasant fans, like Hampshire, little interest in the program. I am not sure if the coaching change there would be at the administrations decision or coaches decison, as i read in the Herald that he is no longer coaching baseball in an effort to be home more for his family. regardless, they played much better basketball than they have in previous seasons. Culleoka gets quite a bit of attention on here, and we have read about that situation all season long. They don't practice, they don't play hard, they play the wrong people, etc. I am sure that there are people with more details on that situation, and I am certain we will hear more over the next couple of weeks. There are very passionate people out in Culleoka, and I am confident that we will know soon enough. I am glad that they are excited about the win the other night, but beating Franklin Classical is not really a statement of change. The coach there looks very young, and I hope that parents have a full understanding of the situation and don't rush out a young coach. On a side note, I think Coach Bingham at CA has done an outstanding job with that group of girls, and I think they get little attention or publicity because of how good Cornersville really is, but they have a chance to come in 2nd in the district, a great season for the coach and the girls.

I have heard the same from a few different people. Not sure if the information is accurate, but have heard it, mostly concerning the bottom 3 teams seeing changes.