fromthetop2

Consistently, Williamson County has had the top teams in DII year in and out. With a WillCo team now King of the Hill in D1, I think the claim has merit. Ravenwood has routinely had large graduation losses, it is just that the talent pipeline runs deep and gets better all of the time. Each class has appeared to have better talent than the one before. The problem that the Franklins, Brentwoods, and Centennials have had over the years, is the lack of stability in the coaching, or the general lack of coaching expertise. These are all volunteer, non-paid positions with a high turnover rate. Ravenwood has been stable, which has aided there success greatly.

Props to Ravenwood for their Championship at the D1 level. They have put together a great program from the middle school on up, and truly shows what a commitment the program has made to this sport. It is even more remarkable that this "newbie" to the D1 ranks has established its dominance in such a short time against such older, more established programs. Just as they did in 5A football, they focused on this goal and committed to it thoroughly. It was a tough task in both cases, but one that yielded results. And with Franklin again the victor in DII, dare we say the heart of lacrosse in Tennessee again resides in Williamson County?

Here is the deal with him being charged with DUI by consent. The federal government mandated around 2002 that, to release federal funds for highways, that all of the states change their BAC laws to reflect the new, lower statutes (0.18) AND put in this law of DUI by consent. All states have until 2008 to implement these changes. Tennessee implemented them in 2004. The thought of this law is that you are reasponsible for whom you let drive your vehicle, and you will be charged if you let a drunk drive it. The intent is to get all impaired drivers off of the road. The fact that he thought he was doing a good deed by letting someone less drunk than him drive is irrelevant. He obviously was not in a position mentally to make the determination that his brother in law was OK. He took a chance, and got nabbed. The moral of the story: Get a cab, a motel room, or call someone who you know is sober to drive you home. Roger G. has his plate full now with Pac, Chris Henry, Tank, Ron Mexico, and now Stevie Mac.

It will be real interesting to see how Roger deals with this appeal. Like David Stern, he is appointing himself judge and chief high executioner. Don't get me wrong, it is not a bad setup. Only one person is held accountable, and only he has to worry about the flack. The NFLPA is nowhere to be found on this appeal, and strangely no players- teammates or otherwise- are claiming this punishment is overthetop. If I were Jones' handlers (is there such an animal), I would keep him in a monestary the night before, and have pages upon pages of examples of how he has changed. I think his strip club episode the night before his first meeting was indicative of how he viewed his meeting. I think Goodell scared the beejeezus out of him during the meeting, and showed how Goodell will determine his future. Pac is a study in contradiction. Those I've talked to who have engaged him one-on- one say he is gracious and friendly. Get a litttle booze in him, put him with his posse, he turns into Mr. Hip-Hop Hyde.

I was reading the San Jose Mercury News, and they are complaining about their collapse in the same terms as we are. What happened? Do we need to shake up the team? What about the players who had strong regular seasons disappearing in the playoffs (Marleau vs. Kariya and Legwand)? Can we keep our players? They were also complaining about the lack of shots, looking for the perfect passing lanes, stupid penalties (stop me if you heard this before...) Question: Would the Preds have fared better this year playing the Wings first? Sharks power play was non-existant in the post-season.

That would be George Dickel. Jim Beam is the O-line coach, with Ezra Williams coaching in the secondary. This should be an interesting season of transition to Jack Ball. A little factoid: Tim Brown, Asst Principal, was his linebackers coach a decade ago at Brentwood. At the very least he'll bring some fun and excitement to that end of the county. Expect a couple of trick plays per game.

CODESo...you're back to being invincible or do you still wear it? Absolutely. It is the easiest thing you can do to increase your safety while driving. There are far too many imbeciles driving (particularly on cell phones) not to. I tried being invincible in college and it was too risky. I am proof positive that the Lord watches out for fools and little kids!

Unfortunately, the news now coming out of St. Louis is not good. Hancock was well over the limit with alcohol. He also had on him some weed and was talking on his cell phone when the accident occurred. He had been at Mike Shannon's Restaurant prior to the incident. Apparently, there was no effort to stop his vehicle. If there is any bright side to this, he did die nearly instantly. A sad coda to the story. Hopefully, this will cause at least one person to rethink their actions if in a similar situation. I know when Bobby Hurley was in his accident, and it was reported that he was not wearing a seat belt- that incident really reinforced my usage for quite some time.

From ESPN and AP NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Nashville Predators general manager David Poile picked up the option Friday on coach Barry Trotz and his assistants for next season as a reward for the best season in franchise history. The Predators had chosen not to pick up that option before the 2006-07 season, and Poile said last week the move was to let everyone focus on the season. The Predators responded with 110 points and finished third in the NHL with a record 51 victories. But Nashville finished with the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference and lost to fifth-seeded San Jose in the quarterfinals in five games for a second straight year. Trotz is the only coach the Predators have had, and he ranks 16th on the career list for most games (656) coached with the same team. Poile stated in an interview that the Preds accomplished alot of goals this year, and the next goal will be getting over the playoff hurdle. This remains a HUGE hurdle for the team, as they discuss their reconstruction for next season. Is this a good move, a wise move, or a stupid move? Thoughts?

I am going to see how this all plays out during the summer. I can't see where Mikey is going, he may be looking at getting his wide receivers and d-end from the list of waivers or unsigned after camps begin. There is a method to this madness, in that an experienced WR would have more of an impact than a rookie WR, and a similar case being made with an experienced D-end. That strategy makes sense only if it works. I wasn't under any illusion that the Titans would fill all of their holes in the draft, and I am not sure that the WR's drafted late will be any sort of upgrade (or bargain bin gems) over what we already have on the roster. It seems to be a real roll of the dice that Brandon Jones and a take- your- pick- receiver will see the light and be a force. You could also make a case that the Colts totally ignored their biggest need area (defense) yet again, and once again went offense. Sort of like the anti-Titans.

This scrimmage will be a huge measuring stick for the Burros. They are not ready for the type of national competition they will see; but it will tell everyone from coaches to JV reserves what type of talent, commitment, and coaching these elite teams have- and what they would have to do to get to the next level (i.e, beat Maryville). He must be confident in his talent for next year- if he wasn't, there confidence would be Crushed.

Dwayne Jarrett; let me tell you about him (from an NFL coach): The team was interviewing him at the combine, and Jarrett arrived late and with an attitude. They first asked him if he was going to run the 40, and he said "yea." They asked him how fast he would run, and he replied "4.2". One of the coaches, knowing this kid was out of shape and no way would run that fast, said "Oh, we know you'll run a 4.2; we just don't know if you'll be at 36, 37 or 38 yards when you get there." Finally, the head coach, tired of the attitude of Jarrett (like he was doing them a favor by talking with them), got into his face and said "Look son, there hasn't been a wide receiver come out of USC who's been worth a sh#@* since Keyshawn Johnson. Mike Williams was supposed to be "all that" and he totally su##s! What makes you think you'll be any different? You know, I don't know if you can take some HARD coaching- not like that country club sh#@t Pete Carroll runs. Heck, we ran his candy a*& out of the NFL years ago, now he's a college boy and trains puss*&s like you thinking they can play with the big boys!" BRUTAL

According to the owner, Trotz was victimized by injuries, not incompetence. I think the team and Trotz were victimized by defensive turnovers, inability to adjust to the game being called, poor strategy, lack of production by key players, and being out-coached during the series. Other than that it was fun. Big turning point was losing the 1st game in OT. But with everything being said, the Sharks are our Kryptonite. We have to get much better- or much worse, and play someone else! This feels like the Titans losing to the Ravens in '03.

What's the definition of insanity? Doing the same thing over and over again- and expecting different results. I am so ill over this I can't type- maybe later, when I can use less expletives.

If the Preds have any gumption, they should come away with a victory on Friday. However, they haven't shown the ability to beat the Sharks in San Jose during any playoff series, let alone win an away game during the playoffs. For as much as the Preds have improved, it is becoming abundantly clear that the Stanley Cup dreams were very premature. They are not yet constructed well enough, and I also am beginining to think that our coaching staff cannot take it to the next level. There will be some changes on the team. Gone will be Forsburg and Hartsie. Kariya (the dissappearing man) is in a contract year. Sullivan is not built physically for the long haul. Legwand has gone back to his internal moniker of "Muffin Man." Defense has got to get bigger, stronger, and the whole team has to get SMARTER in the way it plays. It just stinks all the way around-such great hopes skewered once again.

Because the NFL suspended him, the Titans do not take a cap hit. Had the Titans suspended him first, they would have taken a hit. As Bud said, i.e, first and foremost they are one of 32 entities in the organization called the NFL, secondly, they are an individual franchised business. So much for all of the "experts" who said the Titans should have shown him the door months ago. For the people out there who are in the business-world, this was a no-brainer. It may be all about accounting, but it has tangible results to the bottom-line. It's like being able to take an accelerated depreciation, or refinancing debt, right Solly? For the non-business ones out there, ummmm. . . . just trust me, the Titans knew what they were doing all along. Now whether or not he plays again, the Titans definitely want him to play again- for them and them only, and under their rules. Otherwise he can be a permanent student at WVU.

Bleery-eyed thoughts from the game last night: -Zids and Hammy need to have better games. Turnovers down low, or being out of position killed us. -We're still small compared to the Sharks. It is an issue in this series -Not having Sully hurts as we lose some speed advantage against a bigger team -Scott H's hit on Cheechow was unfortunate, but not a suspendable offense. No way did he do it intentionally. No way was it worthy of a game misconduct. -The ref's (as the Small Time Rock Stars put it) must be from San Jose. We were getting destroyed by their calls. First period alone we doubled the penalty minutes. -Radulov brought energy to the ice- others didn't. -I didn't think the defense played a strong game last night. That is where there size hurts us. They consistently keep four guys in the neutral zone to slow us down. We did a better job than the past few weeks, but we've got to make something happen strategically. -For anyone who doubts what Forsburg brings to the game, does not watch what he does and does not understand hockey. His passes are works of art, he plays with grit and attitude, absolutely knows all of the tricks, and we could use a few more like him. He is a Superstar, even at his stage of his career. There was a definite buzz when his line went out there. -Midway through the third, I thought we had no chance and was ready to go home. Rads, then Webber/Dumont bring it home. I felt we outplayed them in the first OT, looked flat in the second OT. -HAVE TO WIN FRIDAY or we are toast!

The League has also strengthened its personal conduct policy: Discipline The standard of socially responsible conduct for NFL employees will be higher. Club and league employees will be held to a higher standard than players. Conduct that undermines or puts at risk the integrity and reputation of the NFL will be subject to discipline, even if not criminal in nature. Discipline for individuals that violate the policy will include larger fines and longer suspensions. Repeat violations of the personal conduct policy will be dealt with aggressively, including discipline for repeat offenders even when the conduct itself has not yet resulted in a conviction of a crime. Individuals suspended under the policy must earn their way back to active status by fully complying with professional counseling and treatment that will include evaluation on a regular basis. Clubs will be subject to discipline in cases involving violations of the Personal Conduct Policy by club employees. In determining potential club discipline going forward, the commissioner will consider all relevant factors, including the history of conduct-related violations by that club's employees and the extent to which the club's support programs are consistent with best practices as identified and shared with the clubs. Recommended best practices include having a full-time club player development director and a full-time club security director. The specific conditions that apply to Jones' suspension include the following: -He must have no further adverse involvement with law enforcement. -He must fully cooperate with all required counseling, education, and treatment assigned under league or court-ordered programs. -He must adhere to the restrictions on his activities that have been agreed to by he and the Titans. -He may not be at the Titans' facility through May 31 and may not participate in any practices or organized workouts during the term of the suspension. Beginning June 1, he must visit the team facility once each week to meet with the team's player development director. Also, beginning June 1, he is permitted to spend one day a week at the team facility for conditioning, film study, and other similar activities. -In conjunction with the team's player development director and other professionals working with him, Jones must develop with the Titans a structured program of community service or other activity. This program must be submitted to the league office for review and approval.

Not trying to sound like any posters from other forums, but. . .I suddenly can't stand you!! /mad.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":angry:" border="0" alt="mad.gif" /> You definitely need a timeout after posting this! Seriously, I should make the rest of this post in green ink, as in "green" with envy. Cheer the troops on! Okay, in talking about this game. Since we played them last year, we have dramatically upgraded our team, particularly at the center position (with the added bonus of a healthy Legwand). While we took the first game, the Sharks physically whipped us from that point on and, IMO, intimidated us. It was like boys against men, and they just pushed us all over the ice. What I want to see is how much we've learned, how much we've grown, how more ready we are for the grind of the playoffs. Question I have also is, who sits and who plays? Will we play Vishnevski (whom I assumed you got just for this type of situation)?

Need some break down on the game, as I was at a previous engagement. MUCH, MUCH, needed victory. Do the same at Colorado and I'll feel better. Mason in goal for that one? Good to see Harts back on the ice.

Hitchcock and his boys will give us trouble tonight, I predict. Their style since he took over has given us fits. Hartnell should skate tonight, right? I heard Sully is skating; when will he be really ready? It is starting to sound just like last year for him. Volkun will be in goal. Prediction: If he posts a win, Trotz will go with him for the playoffs. If he stinks it up and Mason does the job Saturday, Mason gets the nod. I can't make the game tonight, so yell for me. BTW, what did you do to get the Politics board shut down? You and ELA come to blows?

It's like I'm watching reruns every time. On a football spin, it's like first down, run off tackle. Second down run off to the other side, third down pass, then punt. How can you not figure it out. And guess what, another defensive turnover of the BRAIN-DEAD variety, this time courtesy of Mr. Hamhuis. And what the heck happened to Mason in overtime? 3 goals???? We dump pucks down the ice like it was when the Devils were playing the zone trap. What is going on here? Just like you said Dandy, it is virtually the same attack time and time again. Now I am not sophisticated enough to tell if even Chicago has caught on to what we are doing, and is modeling their attack after what the Wings, Sharks, Stars, Ducks, Wild, do to us. At this point it is a toss-up whether or not we beat the Blues-who we have owned this season, dispite Mr. Hitchcock behind the bench. What I am getting REAL tired of hearing is anyone of the following phrases: "We'll get it turned around soon." "We've just got to work together." "We've just got to learn to do (insert any word) better." "Just one of those things." "Next time." ARRGGHHH! They've had almost 82 games to get it worked out, ironed out, or fine-tuned. Playoffs is about showing what you've got, adapting to the other team's strategy changes, changing up your strategy. It is not the time to FIGURE OUT what you are doing or making BASIC plays. Smelling more and more like one and down- AND A VERY P.O'D FAN BASE!!!!!!!

100% right- I'm listening to Plaster right now and they are bar-b-queing the Preds. Trotz, as he says will be to blame if they collapse in the playoffs. Willie is defending him and using the now worn-out excuse of it being due to injuries. That doesn't cut it anymore. I think, as well, it is the style of play we've fallen into. They need to reexamine their attacks, their plans, their approach and understand HOW the other teams are playing us and change some things up. It is getting really sickening to see team after team clog us up and exploit us. Frankly, I don't think they've got some master plan hidden under wraps. If they do, they're really looking for the home run ball to get them out of a jam. Volkun's brain lapses are annoying. Waiting for him to stand on his head could be a long wait. /mad.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":angry:" border="0" alt="mad.gif" />

Well it is now the last week of the season and Nashville has frittered away all its momentum. The only thing they have to show for the last few weeks is two victories over a poor Edmonton team. Three straight losses to Detroit, a loss Saturday to the Stars. . . what is going on????

Also trends I am noticing that have me disturbed. . . Detroit, definitely, has us figured out. They pressure our defensemen, who will make a lazy or a sloppy pass and BANG- they grab the puck and shoot. I don't know the percentages, but every mistake the Preds D makes seems to result in a Detroit score. Secondly, we will allow two players to set up often right on the goal mouth and are very vulnerable to the back door pass or rebound. We aren't moving anyone out or protecting our backside. Never! Thirdly, our goal tending right now is just a little above "average." Not good, not great, just a little better than average. Osgood stoned us the other night, Kiprusoff was playing hot, and Roloson looked great. Only once in the last two weeks can you say our goalies outplayed their counterparts. That won't get it done in the playoffs. I'm not being totally gloom and doom- maybe some players back will make it better this week- but I do feel uneasy going into the playoffs. As Barry Melrose said, "Nashville is the type of team that should not care WHO they face in the playoffs- it's the other team that should be wary about playing Nashville." Sorry Barry, I know it SHOULD be that way- but I don't sense that is the case. I think other teams think they can beat us now in a seven game series- ESPECIALLY Detroit.