TankTalk

Not that I am one that thinks bulletin-board material means squat in a game between good football teams, Oak Ridge fans should go pick up a copy of the Farragut Press. Some very interesting, confident comments from the Admiral players. Of course, you can wait and read the Ridger tomorrow to see those comments as well. Heck, after reading that article, I am thinking about picking the Admirals to come to Blankenship and hand the Wildcats a whipping.

Oak Ridge vs Farragut Series: Oak Ridge Leads (25-4) (W) 1977 21-14 (L) 1993 20-21(OT) (L) 1978 14-17 (W) 1994 28-14 (W) 1979 37-6 (W) 1995 19-0 (W) 1980 28-15 (W) 1996 36-7 (L) 1981 7-35 (W) 1997 34-6 (W) 1982 21-7 (W) 1998 41-0 (W) 1983 33-15* (W) 1998 17-3* (L) 1983 7-10 (W) 1999 49-14 (W) 1984 14-7 (W) 2000 41-21 (W) 1985 19-14 (W) 2001 36-0 (W) 1986 21-14 (OT) (W) 2002 17-7 (W) 1987 13-7 (W) 2003 14-3 (W) 1988 14-13 (OT) (W) 2004 21-13 (W) 1989 44-10 (W) 2004 48-0* (W) 1990 30-7 Thanks to David Clary, who gave me all of the all-time records of Oak Ridge and their opponents this season. Clary is the man!!

They can ... and have.

Hats off to Ooltewah, they showed a lot of heart in tonight's win. However, the fumbled called on Coffey was not even close. The kid made a fantastic hit right as the ball got there. Bottom line, Oak Ridge should have recovered from the bad call ... they didn't. I think this loss makes Oak Ridge a more dangerous team, if the leadership handles it the right way.

for the subforums, don't have a reason ... just like them.

Man, it was a great help and I appreciate it. Once I realized the RMS coach just wasn't going to return calls or e-mails, I should have taken the bull by the horns and got the kids the coverage they deserved. Won't happen again.

Hey, when you get your name on a topic on the CoachT.com message board, does it mean you have made the big time? The 'Whatever Happened To' series continues in tomorrow's paper with a look at Adrian Porter. In that article, the e-mail address for Tatia Harris will be available. Send ANY name that you feel would make a good subject to her and she will add it to her growing list.

Guys, I appreciate the kind words and all, but if you can't do the job/jobs I do without taking some hits, you need to find different work. I have built thick skin (which is rather obvious, whew) in the years I have done this and actually appreciate the original poster for typing his opinion. I come here, people know who I am and what I do, thus sticking my neck out a little further. I don't mind at all. Wish more "media" types would be open and discuss things in this manner, I think it keeps you more focused and in-tune with the folks that really care about athletics. Like I have said a million times, what Coach T has done for lovers of high school sports is truly amazing and I appreciate him for it. If I didn't want to take hits, I would make up an anonymous name and post away, but I don't gain anything from that either. Again thanks, I feel like the luckiest man in the world, being able to make a living by covering 'games.' 99 percent of the people I have met and encountered in Oak Ridge have welcomed me with open arms and have been so incredibly helpful while I have been here. I can honestly say, I hope I retire as the sports editor of The Oak Ridger.

I am sure they would love to have someone like that. I just can't be consistent now, covering the 'Cats and all. It will just take someone who finds it intriguing to be on TV until 1 a.m. for nothing more than free pizza. I wish I could think of someone who could comment better on this year's team, hopefully they will work it out. But those guys do a super job and give up a lot of free, late time to come down there, so I agree with that.

I have a tape, would love to sit down and review it with you. I did say Ooltewah was a very dangerous team, felt like they had the best chance of beating Oak Ridge in the regular season. At the beginning of the year, I could have added Soddy as well. I did NOT make that statement recently. And Oak Ridge can't just show up and beat Farragut either, they will need to play well, like they are very capable of. If you think I am Oak Ridge bashing, I am very sorry. You should hear those guys that do the Friday night show! If I ever pick Oak Ridge to lose in the paper, and they don't, then you can bash away. I can say many things, I said I thought WB was a dangerous team, but who did I pick to win? Saying a team has the potential to do something and believing they will actually do it, are two entirely different things. I honestly doubt I will pick OR to lose a regular season game, but who knows, if it stirs the nest, I have always enjoyed doing that.

Here is this week's poll AP) - The Associated Press' Top 10 teams in each of Tennessee's five Division I non-financial aid classifications and in the combined Division II financial aid classification as selected by Tennessee AP-member sportswriters and broadcasters. With first-place votes in parentheses, records through October 3, total points based on 10 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 10th-place vote: Class 5A Record Pts Prv 1. Riverdale (15) 7-0 150 1 2. Oak Ridge 6-0 135 2 3. Houston 6-0 90 4 4. Kingsport Dobyns Bennett 5-1 85 5 5. McGavock 6-0 79 6 6. Wilson Central 5-1 67 3 7. Cookeville 6-1 64 8 8. Ravenwood 5-1 51 7 9. Sevier County 6-1 25 10. Ridgeway 5-0-1 23 Others receiving 12 or more points: 11, Gallatin 20. 12, Ooltewah 17. 13, Brentwood 16. Class 4A Record Pts Prv 1. Maryville (15) 6-0 150 1 2. Morristown West 6-0 112 5 3. Knoxville Central 5-1 110 2 4. Melrose 6-1 107 6 5. Hillsboro 5-1 74 7 6. Whites Creek 5-1 46 3 7. Knoxville Halls 5-1 35 9 8. Memphis East 5-1 34 10 9. Maplewood 5-1 30 8 10. Portland 5-1 29 4 Others receiving 12 or more points: 10, Hardin County 29. 12, Sullivan South 26. 13, Red Bank 21. 14, Daniel Boone 15. Class 3A Record Pts Prv 1. Dyersburg (6) 6-0 126 2 2. Creek Wood (1) 6-0 90 4 3. Knoxville Catholic (5) 6-0 89 4. Notre Dame 6-0 88 5 5. Lexington 6-0 87 3 6. David Lipscomb 5-1 70 6 7. Knoxville Carter (3) 6-0 69 7 8. Trezevant 6-0 47 9 9. Covington 5-1 39 1 10. Cheatham County 5-1 32 Others receiving 12 or more points: 11, Pearl-Cohn 24. 12, Polk County 22. 13, Austin-East 21. Class 2A Record Pts Prv 1. Alcoa (11) 6-1 137 1 2. Milan (3) 5-0 112 2 3. DCA 5-1 104 3 4. Huntingdon 5-1 93 4 5. Loudon 5-1 78 6 6. Westmoreland 6-1 58 7 7. Westview 5-1 51 8 8. Ezell-Harding 5-1 44 10 9. Cumberland Gap 5-1 27 9. Tyner Academy 4-2 27 Others receiving 12 or more points: Class A Record Pts Prv 1. Trousdale County (13) 6-0 147 1 2. South Pittsburg 6-0 120 2 3. Jo Byrns (2) 6-0 116 3 4. Jackson Christian 6-1 93 4 5. Mt. Pleasant 6-1 74 6 6. Cloudland 5-1 71 5 7. Columbia Academy 6-1 51 9 7. Friendship Christian 5-1 51 7 9. Coalfield 6-1 42 8 10. Hampton 5-1 40 10 Others receiving 12 or more points: 11, Lake County 12. Division II Record Pts Prv 1. MUS (14) 7-0 140 1 2. CBHS 6-1 113 2 3. Knoxville Webb 6-0 93 4 4. MBA 5-2 89 5 5. Brentwood Academy 4-2 74 3 6. McCallie 4-2 67 7 7. ECS 6-1 66 6 8. Bishop Byrne 6-0 50 9 9. Briarcrest 4-3 29 10 10. Baylor 3-3 27 8 Others receiving 12 or more points: 11, Pope John Paul II 12.

They now run on a regular basis in every Thursday's sports pages ...

Did you get the e-mail today vowing that Catholic was listed correctly now? Wonder if Saturday morning, that will be true or not. I can't understand why so few actually participate in the poll, it does make it tough for us that take it serious and see it as a privilage to be a small part of a wonderful sport. I too wish the CoachT media poll had taken off, but just not enough interest at the time I guess.

The AP told all of their voters at the start of the season, there would be no AP players of the week this season.

The Associated Press' Top 10 teams in each of Tennessee's five Division I non-financial aid classifications and in the combined Division II financial aid classification as selected by Tennessee AP-member sportswriters and broadcasters. With first-place votes in parentheses, records through September 26, total points based on 10 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 10th-place vote: Class 5A Record Pts Prv 1. Riverdale (14) 6-0 140 1 2. Oak Ridge 5-0 123 2 3. Wilson Central 5-0 99 6 4. Houston 5-0 74 4 5. Dobyns Bennett 5-1 64 5 6. McGavock 5-0 57 10 7. Ravenwood 4-1 50 7 8. Cookeville 5-1 45 9. Gallatin 4-1 29 3 10. Ooltewah 4-1 22 8 Others receiving 12 or more points: 11, Sevier Co. 21. 12, Ridgeway 17. Class 4A Record Pts Prv 1. Maryville (14) 5-0 140 1 2. Knoxville Central 5-0 121 2 3. Whites Creek 5-0 105 3 4. Portland 5-0 87 6 5. Morristown-Hamblen West 5-0 83 5 6. Melrose 5-1 74 4 7. Hillsboro 4-1 38 8 8. Maplewood Comprehensive 4-1 32 7 9. Knoxville Halls 4-1 18 10. Memphis East 4-1 17 Others receiving 12 or more points: 11, Sullivan South 14. 12, Hardin Co. 13. 13, White Co. 12. Class 3A Record Pts Prv 1. Covington (8) 5-0 125 1 2. Dyersburg (1) 5-0 119 2 3. Lexington 5-0 103 3 4. Creek Wood (1) 5-0 79 6 5. Notre Dame (1) 5-0 68 8 6. David Lipscomb 4-1 60 4 7. Carter (2) 5-0 57 7 8. Polk Co. 4-1 32 5 9. Trezevant 5-0 30 10. Pearl Cohn 5-1 19 Others receiving 12 or more points: 11, Livingston Academy 17. 12, Anderson Co. 15. 13, Austin-East 14. 13, Fulton 14. 15, Haywood 12. Class 2A Record Pts Prv 1. Alcoa (11) 5-1 137 1 2. Milan (3) 4-0 124 3 3. Donelson Christian 4-1 100 4 4. Huntingdon 4-1 61 6 5. Goodpasture Christian 3-2 54 2 6. Loudon 4-1 49 7. Westmoreland 5-1 40 8. Westview 4-1 39 8 9. Oliver Springs 4-1 38 5 10. Ezell-Harding Christian 4-1 27 Others receiving 12 or more points: 11, Peabody 19. 11, Cumberland Gap 19. 13, Tyner Academy 17. 14, Fairview 16. 15, Gibson Co. 14. Class A Record Pts Prv 1. Trousdale Co. (12) 5-0 137 1 2. South Pittsburg (1) 5-0 119 2 3. Jo Byrns (1) 5-0 101 4 4. Jackson Christian 5-1 77 5 5. Cloudland 5-1 64 9 6. Mt. Pleasant 5-1 61 6 7. Friendship Christian 4-1 57 3 8. Coalfield 5-1 46 8 8. Columbia Academy 5-1 46 10. Hampton 4-1 24 Others receiving 12 or more points: Division II Record Pts Prv 1. Memphis University School (10) 6-0 118 1 2. Christian Brothers 5-1 100 3 3. Brentwood Academy 4-1 89 5 4. Webb School of Knoxville (2) 5-0 87 4 5. Montgomery Bell 4-2 61 8 6. Evangelical Christian 5-1 60 6 7. McCallie 3-2 55 2 8. Bishop Byrne 5-0 36 9 9. Baylor 3-2 34 7 10. Briarcrest Christian 4-2 26 Others receiving 12 or more points: 11, First Assembly Christian 18.

I know, got to do it all .. to count for any. It gets frustrating that something that seems so easy to fix, hasn't been fixed. It's not like voters don't get nailed enough for credibility, but to not be able to vote on deserving teams ... makes it even worse. I did as last week, put a squash team in the first slot, and sent really big notes as to my intention of Catholic as the No. 1 team. Also sent another e-mail, in hopes of them being able to get it right. Maybe by week ten, they will have things worked out.

I gave Catholic a write-in vote for first place, using the comments section to do so. Also e-mailed the person over that explaining that and got a reply saying that would be fine. I can't understand how they can't fix something that seems so simple. If they don't care enough to get it right, I may just wait and vote when they decide to.

The Oak Ridge/Jefferson County history How the Wildcats have fared against the Patriots: 1982 0-7 (L)* 1984 14-21 (L)* 1985 7-8 (L) 1986 7-29 (L) 1987 0-51 (L)* 1993 23-14 (W) 1993 32-7 (W)* 1994 27-10 (W) 1996 7-26 (L)* 1997 10-20 (L) 1997 31-14 (W)* 1998 34-0 (W) 1998 28-12 (W)* 1999 42-7 (W)* 2003 40-24 (W)* 2005 44-20 (W) * denotes playoff games Oak Ridge leads the series 9-7 Oak Ridge has won six in a row now.

It was almost a first for me, after a comment I made to one official. Thought he was gonna toss me when I said "Hey, just leave your flag laying on the field ... you know you are going to throw it again." On the next play, he threw the flag and I grinned at him. He didn't grin back. As for Spencer Gulmire, this kid is a warrior. He tries so hard on every play and why haven't you talked about his defense last night? He was incredible, with a couple of sacks, several tackles and played great. Fumbles or no fumbles, he is a player and has as much heart as any kid I have seen play. I do want to say I was proud of the Jefferson County players. I know things haven't been great in Patriot land but I think they played with a lot of determination and pride last night, never giving up. The community should do whatever it takes to get things turned around up there. Everyone is right about the sloppy play by the Wildcats. Winning by that much and playing that poorly, is kind of scary to me. I don't know how they are going to react when they get in a tight game, which is right around the corner. It's going to be intersting, I still have them pencilled in as the best team in the region, but the last four weeks are going to be intriguing.

A lot of things can happen, but Stevens allowing Oak Ridge to overlook Jeff County will not be one of them. The first time I ever interviewed the man after taking the job, he talked about the beating he took as a senior at OR to Jefferson County and this Friday could be a bit personal for him.

Man, that 3A poll still has me scratching my head.

Another incredibly puzzling question.

Records don't matter, the game will be played at home by whoever comes from this part of the draw ... be it Ooltewah, Oak Ridge, DB, Farragut or whoever.

While I am full of questions about my peers and their votes, the one that really sticks out is an 0-3 Fulton team being anywhere close to the top ten right now. Sure, they may be eventually ... perhaps, but not right now. And something else to notice, twelve members actually voted. I, for one, never was able to get my votes in due to technical issues on both sides. It was frustrating and hopefully more can contribute as the season rolls on.

The Associated Press' Top 10 teams in each of Tennessee's five Division I non-financial aid classifications and in the combined Division II financial aid classification as selected by Tennessee AP-member sportswriters and broadcasters. With first-place votes in parentheses, records through September 12, total points based on 10 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 10th-place vote: Division 5A 1. Riverdale (8) 4-0 116 1 2. Oak Ridge (3) 3-0 102 2 3. Ooltewah (1) 4-0 82 6 4. Brentwood 3-0 57 3 5. Gallatin 3-0 55 7 6. Houston 3-0 40 5 7. Dobyns Bennett 3-1 32 4 8. Science Hill 3-0 27 8. Germantown 1-2 27 10. Wilson Central 3-0 26 9 Others receiving 12 or more points: 11, McGavock 24. 12, Ravenwood 20. 13, Franklin 19. Division 4A 1. Maryville (12) 3-0 120 2 2. Knoxville Central 3-0 89 3 3. Melrose 3-1 65 6 4. Whites Creek 3-0 56 5. Morristown-Hamblen West 3-0 53 1 6. Cleveland 3-0 43 5 7. Tullahoma 3-0 41 8. Hillsboro 2-1 29 8. Portland 3-0 29 10. Maplewood Comprehensive 3-0 28 Others receiving 12 or more points: 11, Powell 24. 12, Cherokee 18. 13, Memphis East 15. 14, Sullivan South 12. 14, Red Bank 12. Division 3A 1. Covington (3) 3-0 80 5 2. Dyersburg (2) 4-0 68 3. Crockett Co. 2-0 45 4. David Lipscomb (2) 2-1 43 5. Lexington (1) 3-0 42 3 6. Carter 3-0 38 7. Polk Co. (1) 3-0 36 8. Greenbrier 3-1 28 10 9. Creek Wood 3-0 27 2 9. Fulton (2) 0-3 27 Others receiving 12 or more points: 11, Austin-East 25. 12, Trezevant 24. 13, White House 22. 14, Pearl Cohn 21. 15, Anderson Co. 14. Division 2A 1. Alcoa (8) 3-1 110 1 2. Westview (2) 4-0 76 6 3. Goodpasture Christian 2-1 61 4 4. Milan 2-0 56 5 5. Donelson Christian 3-1 44 6. Huntingdon (1) 2-1 41 7. Loudon 3-0 38 8. Oliver Springs (1) 3-0 37 9. Tyner Academy 2-1 36 7 10. Fairview 3-0 31 3 Others receiving 12 or more points: 11, Boyd Buchanan 22. 12, East Robertson 20. 13, North Greene 18. 14, Westmoreland 15. 15, Peabody 12. 15, Christ Presbyterian 12. Division A 1. Trousdale Co. (9) 4-0 117 2. South Pittsburg 3-0 78 8 3. Friendship Christian 3-0 74 3 4. Wayne Co. 3-0 57 9 4. Jackson Christian (1) 3-1 57 6. Jo Byrns 3-0 41 7 6. Coalfield 3-1 41 2 8. Mt. Pleasant 3-1 35 9. Gleason 3-0 30 5 10. Grace Baptist (2) 4-0 25 6 Others receiving 12 or more points: 10, Cloudland 25. 12, McKenzie 18. Division II 1. Memphis University School (5) 4-0 98 3 2. Christian Brothers (1) 4-0 84 2 3. Brentwood Academy (4) 3-0 82 1 4. Webb School of Knoxville (2) 4-0 72 5 5. Baylor 3-1 49 5. McCallie 2-1 49 4 7. Evangelical Christian 3-1 47 6 8. Pope John Paul II 3-1 46 9. Montgomery Bell 2-2 41 10. Bishop Byrne 4-0 20 8 Others receiving 12 or more points: 11, Briarcrest Christian 14. 12, Harding Academy 12. 12, First Assembly Christian 12.