delaWarr

Riverdale, My crowd and I were with you. We had hotdogs too. The Brentwood athletes always impressed me that they were the kinds of kids who would appreciate a good hotdog also.

Dunning, This is from vague recall, subject to error except in the quality of the wrestler. Ernie Rose of Kirkman during the mid-'60s was so dominating that it was felt by some that his opponent in the State Finals during his senior year earned a moral victory by scoring a point on him. This may be stretching it, but I believe that was the only point scored on him all season. I believe he was the weight below heavyweight, whatever that was at the time. Chattanooga oldtimers can clear up the facts of my fuzzy memory and give you the scoop on him. He is worth considering.

Someone in the other cheerleader thread also made mention of cheerleaders and Title IX. Cheerleaders have nothing to do with Title IX and its enforcement.

Brentwood is obviously a well-coached team, but what is even more impressive is how well-coached the players are individually. These kids seemed to understand what their roles were beyond assignments and patterns. They seemed to really analyze what was developing in a play and respond with an understanding and an intelligence that was exciting to watch. As a fan I have seen many, many high school football games over the years, but the performance by Brentwood tonight was one of those special treats that has come along only rarely. Congratulations to the members of this great staff of coaches who are a great match for the kids they coach. Congratulations to these players for claiming their place in Tennessee football history. And thanks for entertaining an old football fan with such brilliance. The Riverdale team and coaching staff are to be commended for their play in keeping themselves in a position to win right up to the last few seconds of the game. But that is what Riverdale does. That shows the fine character their program and their team are made of.

Those of us who knew "aka Joe Blair" during his wrestling days knew him as JoeBob Blair.

Fatkat's ID of Joe Drennan (1960s/early 1970s) as one of the great coaches is right on target. Not only was he the first to move a State Championship out of Chattanooga (more than once), his dual teams were untouchable in Middle Tennessee. He left a legacy for Ryan which was continued by Bob Garmon who succeeded him, and by Pat Simpson who succeeded Bob, both of whom have claimed State Championships. Joe set the standard for the aspirations of the entire Middle Tennessee wrestling community. Ralph Brewer (1960s/Early 1970s) was a comtemporary of Joe Drennan. He coached at the Tennessee School for the Blind. His competitive intensity, his teams' work ethics, his unwaiveringly high expectations for his athletes, his knowledge of the sport, all combined to produce some of the most highly skilled wrestlers of their day and, also, to produce some of the most highly contested and colorful matches in Tennessee Wrestling history. In addition to being a great wrestling coach, he was also a great teacher of other wrestling coaches. Several of the early coaches in Middle Tennessee started under his guidance. Ralph, himself, was a Tennessee State Champion from TSB under yet another great coach, Moe Harrelson. John Farr, whose Red Bank successes are documented in the TSSAA archives, was in the forefront of wrestling's early expansion on the state level. His love of the sport and his vision for the sport were a part of the foundation from which our sport has evolved in Tennessee. Not only was he a great coach, he was a Mover and a Shaker.