Redtwin

MBA beat Westminister 11 - 9 after having an 8 - 4 halftime lead. MBA was very sloppy with several unforced turnovers. Was not all that impressed with Westminister, although they had one kid, maybe #17, was a pretty good player. Good win for MBA though. They showed a lot of heart in the 4th quarter when Westminister started coming back.

I believe the Nashville Outlaws are now being officially recognized at Hillsboro High School's team as well

I think things are run very well under the current system and see no reason to become involved with a broken organization like the TSSAA>

I didn't say I don't care about his treatment. I said I don't care if he's playing on the varsity basketball team two months after transferring in as a freshman. Life does not revolve around basketball. MBA's Ideals of "Gentleman, Scholar, Athlete" are in that order for a reason. Believe it or not, some people may want to make sure that everything is squared away in the classroom and outside of school before they get too worried about basketball, especially at such a pivotal point in a boy's development. I also didn't say that I don't care about winning. Score is kept for a reason, and players should play to win. As I have previously pointed out, MBA has an athletic tradition steeped in winning, and I think this year's MBA team has done a good job of winning games. They have one more opportunity to win this weekend, and it would be great if they did. You can accuse MBA of poaching talent, but I believe this was a family decision. BOTH boys are attending MBA, only one of whom plays basketball. The good thing about MBA is that there are options besides sports for boys to pursue, such as theatre, film, music, and debate. MBA isn't worried about keeping up with anyone. It's in a class of it's own. For your information, IHS defeated MBA in 2005 65-48, and MBA beat IHS in 2004 42-51. The beat Father Ryan in 2006, and lost to the only DII team it played this year, BA. So, IHS is .500 against D-II AA. These boards are usually fun to read, but listenting to an internet hissy-fit about sour grapes is no longer entertaining. Good luck to both teams with the rest of their seasons.

Why are you so concerned about this? I don't know why he isn't playing, nor do I care. I am also not privy to the reasons that the Howards decided to change schools, but that is also none of my business (our your business), so again, I don't care. You can play the recruiting card all you want, but you'll never be able to offer any proof of wrongdoing. Based on the limited information that I have, there was a change made because the family moved, and both boys, including the older brother, who is not on the basketball team, were enrolled. I'm not sure why he isn't playing, but I trust the judgement of the people who would make that decision. They are the ones who see him at practice and in the classroom on a daily basis, and I can think of a variety of situations related to basketball, academics, or life outside of school where it might be in Mr. Howard's best interest to let him develop for a year. I do know that it is very atypical for a freshman to play much less start for the basektball team at MBA or any other large DII school for that matter, especially if they transferred in after the season started. He will still have 3 years to play on the varsity team, and it sounds like he has a lot of potential to be a very good player. You can keep taking digs at the MBA basketball program, but the bottom line is that this team of "football players" turned out to have as good of a year if not a better year than the Independence team, and as has been previously pointed out, MBA has more state titles than almost any other basketball program in TN.

I think this year's team has done a fine job of exceeding people's expectations. Their record was better than the previous team's record, and they had wins over BA, Ryan, BGA, and Culleoka. They won 70% of their games, which is better than IHS' win percentage of 65%. I've never seen Mr. Howard play, but I trust the judgement of the coaches, teachers, and administrators at MBA, who have plenty of experience developing young men into successful students, athletes, and men, and I'm sure they had his best interest (as well as the team's best interest) in mind when any decisions about playing time were made. It sounds like he has the potential to be a very talented high school basketball player, but he is only a freshman, and I don't recall David Harrison starting on the varsity team as a freshman, and his career worked out just fine. It's not any of my business as to when the Howard boys enrolled at MBA, but I would encourage anyone who is interested in attending school there to get there as soon as possible because it is an awesome experience. The more time on The Hill, the better.

I think MBA knows a little bit about basketball. As has been previously pointed out, MBA has won 5 basketball titles to IHS' 0, including back to back titles in 2000 and 2001. To add to that point, IHS hasn't won a state title in any male sport... ever, while MBA has won titles in football, basketball, baseball, lacrosse, tennis, track, golf, riflery, and debate with multiple titles in many of those sports.

Well, freshmen don't move, their parents do, and if this was a basketball driven move, I don't think MBA would have been the first school on the list. The basketball program has been pretty mediocre in recent memory. Believe it or not, not every parent who sends their children to MBA has athletics as their top priority.

The higher seed should get a home game. Works in GA

The 4tds are great but 12 of 27 for 200 yds is not overly impressive. I still think it's a close call between he and Jefferson. Ingle Martin was a two time winner @ MBA. I believe Golden Tate won 2 @ JP2. I can't remember if any lineman have won twice

I'll take MUS by 14. BA has historically suffered in two categories....1) Turnovers...2)Missed assignments. MUS will strongly test them in both areas. It looks like the Eagles are flying high after a blowout of a pretty bad Briarcrest team and win over Ensworth, where I believe the Eagles were just the more talented team. On the other hand, MUS won a sloppy game against a pretty average BGA team. The game included several MUS turnovers. Last weekend, MUS put up a decisive win against MBA. MBA certainly gave them some help to the tune of 5 turnovers. It will be interesting to see which team comes out more focused after both teams under performed in round 1 and both teams played somewhat hard to value games in round two. My guess MUS is both more focused and more disciplined. It should be a great game.

Hard to compare the backup to the other two with a whopping 40 passing attempts in what I have to assume is mop up duty. Although neither Brunetti nor Jefferson have attempted what I think most consider a normal amount of passes for a QB. I belive both have right around 100 attempts for the year. Both are primarily running Qbs which is again why I think the statistics support Jefferson. He has outperformed Brunetti in almost every category. He has rushed for more yards, thrown for more yards, is a more efficient passer, better TD to interception ratio, more total offense, etc. He's done this playing QB which is not his natural position. He's also been splitting carries Darkwa who has the 2nd highest rushing total in the league. I'm open for debate but show me some concrete reasons why Brunetti would be favored over Jefferson (or Wise for that matter) that don't relate to him being a greater college propsect than the other two.

I think people are putting way too much stock into what kind of prospect Brunetti is gong to be at the next level. He will without a doubt be very highly recruited and sign with a top flight school. That being said, the award is supposed to be based on the season's merit and not the player's potential. It's pretty obvious that if Jefferson were 2 inches taller, his offer list and prospect status would be greatly enhanced. The numbers don't lie. Jefferson leads the league in total offense both rushing and throwing for over 1000 yds. People knock on him for his awkward throwing mechanics but his passing efficiency is fantastic (more efficient than Brunetti) and unless he threw an interception last weekend, he didn't thow a pick all year. They both play in similar offenses in the respect that the QB is heavily involved in the running game and passes when the need arises. To me, Jefferson's season as a whole has been more productive. It's a shame Spencer Wise's season had to end the way it did last weekend. I think a great season is being over shadowed by one tough night. In terms of traditional QB play he was outstanding this year. It's hard to compare him to Brunetti or Jefferson with the style of offenses being so different but he certainly carried the Bid Red throughout the year.

I don't think MBA thought they would steamroll MUS at all. I think MBA expected a tough game from a very good MUS team. I also don't think MBA came expecting to run. They've been very balanced all year, passing roughly 50% of the time. If you want to talk about gifts, the 5 turnovers, most of which were MBA mistakes rather than MUS plays, gave MUS tremendous opportunites on which MUS did a good job of capitalizing. The game was very even until MBA gives MUS the short field two series in a row. Turnovers are part of the game tough, and MUS came ready to play and took advantage of them. I'm not sure MBA would have been able to produce a different outcome had they not turned the ball over, but the score certainly would have been more indicative of their potential. I'm looking forward to watching Brunetti. I wish we could have had an internet broadcast of Friday's matchup. I think MUS will give BA more than they can handle. Good luck to the Owls.

Tough game for the Big Red. You can't spot a good team like MUS 14 points, and you definitely can't turn it over 5 times. Either way, I certainly agree that MBA exceeded most people's expectations this year, and a 10-2 record is still quite an accomplishment. Congrats to Coach McGugin who is now 23-2 as a head coach. Also, congrats to the Owls who appear to be every bit as good as advertised. I think I'm gonna have to go to MTSU to check this team out.

MBA finally gets on the board with a Spencer Wise pass to Hunter Mobley. 35-7 MUS with a minute and a half left in the third. MBA recovers the on-side kick. Next play: interception.

Touchdown MUS. 35-0. 6 minutes left 3rd quarter.

MBA finally moves the ball a little, and then fumbles for a third time. First down MUS.

MBA goes three and out. Punt is muffed but recovered. Brunetti fumbles, but MUS recovers. That's 4 times MUS has put the ball on the turf, but they've recovered every one. Next play MUS scores on a pass after busted coverage. MBA is not sounding good.

Apparently Jefferson is out of the game?

MBA radio reports 17-3 in the second quarter, but there was some confusion as to the accuracy of the score.

MUS bust a run up the middle for a 65 yard TD. MUS up 21 nothing with 1 minute in the half. Starting to sound like the Ensworth game all over. Offense can't get started and 2 fumbles inside their own 40. Defense had been playing well, but starting to miss some tackles and give up some yardage.

MBA radio reports BA on top 10-3 in the second quarter.

7-0 MUS after MBA fumbles on their end of the field. 6 minutes to go in the first half. Other than the turnover and short field, this game has been very even. Somewhat of a defensive battle. MBA fumbles again right around their own 35. Brunetti scores next play. 14-0 MUS. 5 to go in the second quarter.

For folks here in Nashville you may listen at 106.7 FM or online at http://www.montgomerybell.edu/podium/default.aspx?t=32534