flngrvy

Tierney Jenkins gets my vote for AAA hands down.

Look for an exciting game when Mt. Juliet and Gallatin hook up after a long time not playing. For Mt. Juliet fans, Gallatin ranks right up there with Wilson Central and Lebanon on the Don't Like Ya meter.

Interesting topic. My daughter had the privledge of being a sophomore on the Mt. Juliet state championship team two years ago. As a Freshman, she and five others won the championship under the coaching of a great, young coach Anna Sharpe who is now an assistant with the varsity. Ahead of my daughter's class was the group of juniors, (four year starters), who, along with Alysha Clark and Holly Hudson the seniors, were the core of what should have been back to back to back championships. Unfortunately, this group achieved only one championship due to various circumstances, injury to Clark her junior year and one bad game against Wilson Central last year in the region finals. Of the 8 girls in my daughter's class, 2 are still playing, Miaca Bowman and K. C. Vanatta, both are obvious great players and contributers to this years senior class at MJ. The class behind my daughter who were freshman during the championship run is chock full of another group of great players, Taylor Hall, Jordan Nixon, Rebecca Sharpe and Heather Miller, all starters now, (Taylor is out with a knee injury). I feel that the group of five who won the Freshman championship could have easily transferred to Mt. Juliet Christian, or Friendship Christian and would have done well, getting to regionals and possibly Murfreesboro with further maturity. These girls were great teammates for the State Championship run and there was seemingly a bond between the starters and the others that fits the old, "the sum of the parts make up the whole." Mom's and dads sometimes get frustrated when the end of the bench gets in for the last few minutes of a blowout victory. Coach Fryer at Mt. Juliet isn't one thing, stupid. He knows that it's a long season and in order to win in three days in Murfreesboro, the starters play and play some more, even in lobsided wins. That's how you win championships. By the time the Lady Bears won the state Championship in 2005, the starters knew who would be where virtually every trip down the floor and the on floor chemistry was a thing of beauty to witness every night. Again, that's how you win the gold ball. By the way, the first seven on that team are all playing at the next level, (K.C. Vanatta will be playing next year at Trevecca). I think my daughter made the right decision when she went to Coach Fryer after the season and told him she wouldn't be back, one thing she isn't is stupid, knowing how good the group was behind her class as you can see with the #1 ranking. Don't get me wrong, she loves (and loved) basketball, but like I told her, life is full of decisions and choices and you must always try and choose wisely. I think she chose wisely. Being a part of greatness and championships is rare for any athlete no matter the role.

Regarding the AAU season and playing with and against each other all the time, there is an old saying that fits: "Familiarity breeds contempt"

Mt. Juliet won by 7, I think. It was nip and tuck and the Lady Bears had to abandon the press due to two related things, 1) The Lavergne team is real athletic and 2) Illness, flu-like stuff for the Bears. Becca Sharpe stepped it up along with Miaca Bowman and Miller was battling with the big girl inside. Too close for comfort.

Being a Mt. Juliet fan and attending the Mt. Juliet-Lavergne game last night, several observations come to mind. 1) Lavergne is LOADED with young talent. If I'm not mistaken, the three players, the big post, (looks 6'2" or so), number 3, a wing and the long-range shooter are all either Freshman or Sophomores. These kids have huge potential and gave Mt. Juliet all they could handle. Granted, Mt. Juliet has sickness going through the team and they pulled it out buth the improvement from the first game was remarkable. 2) With discipline, these girls will be a force by next year and will shake up the district. 3) Along with discipline, if these girls commit themselves to off-season conditioning, true discipline to getting in shape, again watch out. They were sucking bad air at the end of the second quarter and in the fourth, it appeared their lack of conditioning led to the three straight turnovers that Mt. Juliet capitalized. 4) Coaching. I don't know their coach and he seems like a good guy but if they ran a more structured offense and pressed with their athletes they woould be more successful. By structured, I mean a high-low game, double screens to open their shooters, etc.. It looks like a lot of free-style play going on that in close games will hurt. I look for them to pull an upset in the district tournament and maybe pull off the third or fourth seed going to the regions.

Look for an announcement with TTU playing an SEC school from the great state of Alabama soon, as in 2007.

Regarding the picture from the DNJ. Oh My! Please tell me that no Smyrna fans were screaming for a foul. Alas, I already know the answer to that question.

Didn't make the game and read this morning in the Tennessean that Freshman Chelsea Brown blocked the last shot by Smyrna. Anyone who was there, some details from the game would be great.

Slight correction, tonight's win was the 59th in a row at home.

I'm thinking......Yep, that's the absolutely the dumbest response ever on CoachT, I think you win a prize!

OK Topper, here's the deal. If you could beat Miaca Bowman in a foot race I'd be surprised. If you could defend Tierney Jenkins in the post, I'd be surprised. If you could defend either Rebecca Sharpe or Jess Christopher on the perimeter and not break an ankle on their crossover, I'd be amazed. If you could out rebound Sarah Williams, well, that's not gonna happen.

Actually, the last loss at home for the Lady Bears was January 4th of '02 against Beech. If you are going by the CoachT Year by Year, there is a misprint showing Gallatin winning in '03, that is incorrect. The Wilson Central Game will be #59. Thank you for your time and attention.

Let me give you the short answer. They are in District 7AAA. Consequently, they can't be in any discussion concerning District 9AAA because they are in District 7AAA. See, District 7AAA and District 9AAA are not the same, they are different. 7 is two less than 9, or two more than 5. See, it's not the same. 7AAA and 9AAA are not the same. Thank you for your time and attention.

Back to the original topic, there have been some posts about Lavergne. This year will be a learning experience for them and I don't look for too many wins. However, their Freshman class is loaded and if the coach keeps playing them and have them face the pressure defenses night in and night out, as early as next year they will be major contenders. Hendersonville is in a down time but will bounce back in a few years. Gallatin is a hot and cold team and will get better come tournament time. Wilson Central should still be the odds on favorite to repeat not only as district champs but state title holders. Smyrna just needs more consistency and they will be a threat down the stretch. Mt. Juliet continues to not miss a beat and somehow Coach Fryer is pulling this off with smoke and mirrors. It'll be interesting how long it will last for the Lady Bears, if they can keep their legs fresh and a few of the younger players step up. Like the SEC in football, the teams in this district beat on each other and come tournament time they are always ready. The AAA state champion will be from 9AAA.

From an outsider's perspective, I think the "chemistry" problem, if there is indeed one, is not the player to player type. I have observed more of the player to coach chemistry being a little strained. Just an observation which may be way off.

I believe Sarah Muniz, (the 6th girl for Mt. Juliet the past few years), walked on and is playing at ETSU.

As far as a "classic point guard", Junior Rebecca Sharpe at Mt. Juliet certainly fits the bill. Quick as a hiccup, intense defense, and dishes really well. She can also score when needed and can hit from anywhere on the floor.

Two things: First: Did Stratford just not show up for the Wilson Central Game? If so, that seems to be a pretty poor lesson for the young ladies on their team. Maybe there are extenuiating circumstances that I am not aware? Second: As far as Lavergne goes, the fans need to understand that this is big girl basketball with full-court pressure, relentless defense and the refs let them play. You have an incredible future with the 6' 4" Myers girl and #3 who I think are both freshman. These games are intense and pressure defense is the norm when you step up in competition and play with the elite programs. You guys are in good shape for the next three years and will definately be reckoned with.

It seems like this post comes up year after year about this time just like the god-forsaken "who's student section is better...". Like every other year the coverage in the Tennessean picks up in January and on into tournament time. I think that they do a decent job and as a side note, patience is a virtue.

Now that the choice has been made, here's to Watson winning an OVC title and getting in the playoffs.

It's Brown! http://www.herald-citizen.com/NF/omf.wnm/h...news_story.html?[rkey=0042638+[cr=gdn

He was acting in a dual role as head fb coach and AD. I guess the board of trust/President relieved him from his coaching responsibilities. I think he's still the AD at UAB?

I think that while Watson Brown is probably a good guy, if I were the AD, I wouldn't recycle him. Guys my age know who he is and I'm 47. My choice would be Sanders who has a blank canvas and it was pretty evident he took one for Fulmer by falling on the sword. While Brown would be a feel-good story, in my opinion, it would be the wromg hire. Recruits make and break programs and probably not one 17 or 18 year old kid is gonna even know who Watson Brown is but they will know Randy Sanders name and who he has coached and is now in the NFL. We all know that 1% make it to the NFL but all kids, D-1 or 1-AA, all think they will be playing on Sundays and the 1-AA kids think the D-1's messed up by not offering them a scholarship. Like I have said in previous posts, Sanders is the perfect fit for the sophomore to be QB and can build a program around him. If Sanders is a hot commodity for bigger programs in 2-3 years then the AD has done his job.

I think you missed the point about the academics. For instance in our county, there may not be certain AP classes available at one high school that any student wants to take. We offer transportation to the school that does offer the course and the student's academic needs are met. The same holds true for certain foreign languages that may only be offered at one of the three high schools, as well as vocational curriculum which is offered in only one high school. Now, if the open zoning is soley being used because little Johnny and his dad want to play for coach bigdog then you have an entirely different set of circumstances. That being said, I guess it would be up to the local board of education to correct any deficiencies in that area. What would be really intriguing would be to have all 95 counties in the state have open zoning based on athletics. After a while, school A would be known for football, school B for girls basketball, school C for baseball and on and on. Is that scenario a good thing? I have no idea.