chxian

You are correct soccercrazed. There is very little emphasis in soccer on Risk Management issues including negligence on the part of officials and coaches. I'll throw another one at you. There are many conflicting reports from well educated medical people some saying that repetitive heading of a soccer ball can be damaging and others that say it is not. Maybe a parent/player will test this in the courts one day and we will get an answer.

I won't be able to answer your questions adequately but practically speaking the one thing that can be done (me included) to offset the situation (if you are physically able) is to become a referee. As you are probably aware not only is there a shortage of qualified referees there is a shortage of quality qualified referees especially at the youth level. I do have a question for you soccercrazed, what age group club team is trying to pull off an offsides trap? Are they rather trying to take advantage of the offsides law (for example pushing up the defenders when the ball is played back in order to shorten the attacking space)? There is virtually no coaching material on the trap as even the best of clubs teach how to take advantage of the offsides law rather than forcing a trap which as you witnessed fails miserably due to referees not being alert.

Are we talking about complete separation (publics from privates) or complete separation (best interest of the kids vs best interest of the sport)? How do we separate what is best for a sport from what is best for the individual athlete? At some point we must agree you can't have one without the other. OVERALL (and for those current and former wrestlers please don't take offense) Tennessee wrestling is not well thought of outside our own state. Yes there have been some quality individuals and there have and currently are some quality teams but for the most part we are way behind because there are only a few programs that invest in procuring and retaining good coaching. Having multiple individual and team champions waters down an already soft sport in our state. Trackman thanks for the response and I hope your program has more solid supporters like you.

Does anyone know the outcome of the vote on the location for the Girls State Tournament 2003-2005 and if the number of teams is expanding from 4 to 8?

Toro - Not certain why you feel the emotional need to answer for Trackman. My questions are legitimate and help to frame the reference point behind what Trackman is saying. Asking about his (or her) athletic background doesn't imply that the points made are not valid. Just curious and waiting for Trackman to respond, not you Toro.

Trackman, 2 questions...are you saying a split would benefit the sport of wrestling and if so why? Second, have you ever competed at the high school level or above in wrestling and if so was it at Clarksville? You seem to have some inside knowledge of the sport.

Toro, Where do you get your information from? You seem to know what's going on with boy's soccer. Not to defend UPS but there has been a lot of confusion on how many teams are going to Spring Fling and it varies by Division so although this may not be (in your opinion) a good site for reliable information it is better than nothing.

Gosaints and MHA, My post was 100% sarcasm. I'm with you MHA. Briarcrest hasn't demonstrated anything yet and the competition is going to be up for them every time they step on the court.

They are incredible and should probably be playing in the boys 6A division. The other D2 teams should just start focusing on their spring sports because Briarcrest has it all wrapped up and no need to play the games.

Some of this is second hand but in the east Jimmy Weekley's Baylor teams consistently perform at the highest level with solid defense a hallmark of his teams. In the middle Ken McDonald's FRA teams since he's been there have consistently improved. In the west Todd Purcell's Cordova squad has really made giant steps to change the landscape in that part of the state. Since I'm not a player it is difficult to know who really is effective as the players are the best source for providing an answer to your question.

Ego, You are correct. It does not occur merely for athletic purposes as there are some legitimate reasons for holding a child back and sometimes those chidren happen to be more athletically inclined at a young age. It's not limited to just the PDS/MUS scenario. In fact, because of the academic requirements to get into these schools, academics will always come before athletics. I think what you describe actually goes on to a greater extent throughout the parochial and less academically oriented private schools than the ones you mention.

For those that think total goals is a meaningful statistic please see Soccercrazed comments in this thread which are right on target. For those that think colleges are all about recruiting stats...think again.

Well thought out Soccercrazed and what you propose approximates what is in place for D2 schools as far as rotating teams and schools from the same region playing only in finals. My only thought is the championship is probably what everyone is shooting for and regardless of who finishes 2nd, 3rd etc. it's the title that is the prize each team wants and even in the existing format that team should win.

Sounds reasonable. Thanks Whitey.

Soccercrazed, That's a good question for TSSAA. If you went to 8 teams the way you describe who would decide who plays who?..personally, I think the way they have it now is the best scenario...you win it on the field and not in opinion polls.

I think you may find that the 8 team playoff for boys is the result of the Spring Fling being moved to Memphis. Instead of quarterfinal matches being held at different venues and winners moving on to play in the Final Four at Chattanooga you will now have the quarters, semis and finals all at one venue in Memphis. Unfortunately I do not believe this will mean two teams from the same region will have an opportunity to play one another in the semis or finals as the elimination process will be the same. As for the girls, (again this is speculation) if it is approved for the girls tournament to be played in Memphis next fall the same scenario as the boys would apply.

Well put and I couldn't agree more with you sportsfan85!...do you know what kind of team FRA has coming back next year and if they are in a good position to repeat? Nothing against Ridgeway but it's good to have a different team win it all.

Not so fast sportsfan85...first, remember these were predictions for fun, not guarantees and I see you waited till after the games were played to make yours...no guts...second, you say I'm a "he"...your wrong on that count too...third, you put intelligent in quotes...who said I am? (obviously I'm not from the predictions made!!)...way to go FRA and especially their coach! They obviously played with great passion to pull off several upsets and that's what makes soccer so exciting!

Have any of these teams played eachother this year? Make your picks and tell us why? Oak Ridge vs FHS : FHS BEAT OAK RIDGE in the regular season and will win all due to talent alone with strong senior and freshman class Tull vs Cordova: Toss up game however should Cordova win it would set up a rematch with FHS who got beat previously 1-0 by Cordova. Finals Champ: FHS has been there done that and will win over either Cordova or Tullahoma. Christian Ac of Knx vs Chatt Christian: Upset pick is CAK primarily due to strong senior leaders and motivation to beat CCS who handed them a defeat early in the season. Ridgeway vs FRA: No contest. Ridgeway by at least 2 goals. Too much team speed for FRA to handle. Finals Champ: Again, CAK in the upset primarily due to strong senior class which Ridgeway does not have although Ridgeway has the team experience of winning 4 in a row at state. BGA vs Baylor: Close game with BGA winning. 10 seniors, several all state. Girls Prep vs Harpeth Hall: No contest. GPS by at least 2 goals. Finals Champs: BGA due more to experience and giving their senior class a second state title in 3 years

Franklin wins AAA CAK wins A-AA BGA wins D2

Anyone know how these two teams are doing this season?

You miss the point NoClass...what those with a differing point of view believe is that it's possible to "look classy and win", still get the coveted college scholarships, and live happily ever after. For someone that doesn't care, "its soccer", you sure spend a lot of time on this board. Out of curiosity what IS your favorite sport to watch and what sport (s) did you play?...my guess is that you were probably at least an above average football player that has a family member involved in soccer. I do give you credit for being able to spell WUSA.

FHSKeeper2002 you have the right perspective and have obviously played for coaches and teams that have helped mold your maturity. Ignore responses from posters like FrankyNoClass...they are only trying to live out their unfufilled dreams when they put so much emphasis on margin of victory.

Correct me if I'm wrong Jason24A but I'm pretty sure it was a bit of sarcasm regarding Memphis, Nashville, Knoxville, Chattanooga...what I'm trying to say 4Time is that he knows the best soccer comes from these areas.

Nonose...using your logic why do we have referees then? I'd be interested in a well thought out response rather than an emotional Vince Lombardi quote.