donhaney

I have been following this story with great interest for almost three long years and now have breaking news to share with each of you. Indeed job opportunities were afforded Howard "Bear" Spears at TSU, Villanova and the Atlanta Hawks. The Bear struggled mightily with the decision making process and he has confided in me the real reasons. As of January 1, 2006, Mr. Spears will become the newest member of the E-Bay corporate family working in the newly created position of Vice President of Sales and Services for all things orange! Naturally this will encompass all of his beloved University of Tennessee memorabilia and the sale thereof but, notwithstanding the occasional marketing of Texas, Syracuse and Clemson paraphenalia, he will also occasionally highlight the faux orange tints of the Florida Gators. So for those who long for his return to the hardcourt, it seems that it may never happen again. The lure of the big business internet world has apparently taken our fearless one away from us permanently!

I agree. Vanderbilt always seemed to draw bigger crowds

I did. I do a weekly radio show that discusses high school football on Friday nights and I must say that I picked Camden over DCA by a 21-13 margin. I must also say that I did not pick Richland over East Robertson and could only imagine a mystic could have made that call. But, nevertheless, congrats to the Raiders and Lions for well representing region 6-AA!

I can assure you that no one in Lewis County has even had a thought of taking Ezell Harding lightly. As I see it, in region 5-AA, there is not a huge spread in talent as far as any of the top four teams. They are talented, well coached teams and whether you drew Ezell, DCA, Goodpasture or East Robertson, you got nothing easy. Any of the four could have as easily won the region championship. Lewis County knows quite well that they have a big task ahead of them this week and are preparing accordingly.

Lewis County just won the region 6-AA championship but the future is as promising as I have seen it in a long time. Past three middle school teams have won 24 of 27 and three straight bowl games. Junior fullback Chris Hatton with close to 1300 yards rushing will be an even bigger force in 2006. Wingbacks Ryan Greve and Nick King are both sophomores. Backup fullback and starting middle linebacker Dakota Crews is a sophomore. Backup wingback and linebacker Chuck Dodson is a sophomore. Wings Eric Wright and Kyle Crowell, both great talents are both freshmen. Starting safety and backup quarterback Kane Crowell is a freshman. Jake Tennison, played a lot at corner as a freshman. Colton Mathis, who started at middle linebacker against Camden is a freshman. Chris Odom, starting at outside linebacker, is a sophomore. Jason Crews, Carson Bates, Willie Frazier and Mason Sharp, all who saw plenty of action on the line this year are freshmen. Current eighth grader Paxson Spears, offensive tackle, is 6'3" and 309 pounds. The team will have depth, more than I have ever see them possess. They will have tons of skill people and a lot of really football savy players. If I sound overly excited about the future prospects, I am. I have covered LCHS football since 1974 and you see seasons on the horizon where you think... man, we are gonna be awfully good. But I haven't seen a lot of seasons where I think... Boy, we are gonna be really good for awhile.

As for Lewis County... The program really turned around in 1975 with a bowl game, the first in 9 years and then their first state playoff team in 1976 and then again in 77. With the arrival of Mike Pack in 1978, the program went to a new level. Undefeated regular seasons in 1979, 80 and 81.... Down period when he left in 1983 until Coach Sharp arrived in 1988. Made it to the state playoffs in his second year and have never looked back. I have the info downstairs but I believe that his teams have been to the playoffs every year but once since 1989. Two more undefeated seasons during that time frame and two 12 win seasons. Pretty good tradition, pretty fair program over the past 30 years. Playoffs 21-22 times Bowls four times. Five regular season undefeated teams. Lots of distict and regional titles. Never been to the big dance but future looks pretty promising.

Congrats to the Hornets for a great win over Columbia Academy. I can only hope that you guys the best bowl game that is out there! Pretty tough to finish 7-3, dominate the #2 team and get left out.

I am not that familiar with Jo Byrns. Wayne County is pretty solid but also pretty reliant on CJ Hammack (sp?) I do know this about Jo Byrns. They beat East Robertson, a AA team that won out over Goodpasture, DCA, CPA and Ezell in region 5-AA. That was a remarkable feat for them and for Jo Byrns to defeat East, they must have a heck of a single A program.

First Round Playoff Games as Requested: Ezell Harding at Lewis County DCA at Camden Richland at East Robertson Riverside at Goodpasture

"lewis co has an awsome kicker, but i dont think they'll score any tds.. camden has got great speed and should score alot as usual..." ========================= "Since Camden is going to win by 2 td's this is how it will turn out." 1- Camden 2- Riverside 3- Lewis County 4- Richland ========================== "thanks ekard, i was jw about all that, but i believe that camden will have this one wrapped up, which means they and Riverside will have a home game, and lewis and richland will be traveling some long distances lol" ========================== "Camden wins! Lewis Co. needs to pack a lunch because they will be taking a road trip!!!" ========================== "Lewis Co dreams big but their dreams will turn into a nightmare after they go to Camden friday night. Like I said before Camden will win!" ========================== "Im not trying to disrespect you on this but in my "opinion" the region championship was played last friday." ========================== "Camden will DESTROY Lewis Co. this friday! Good luck to all 2A teams in the playoffs" ========================== "sorry to bust ur bubble but lewis co. will not win.. camden wins easily!!" ========================== I have been around for a long time covering LCHS football. One thing that I have found is that when you give Bobby Sharp an extra week to prepare for a team, you are going to have problems. I think that the bulletin board material that Camden provided this week, just a few snippets that I have recorded here, made life much easier for a team and a coaching staff to get ready for this game. As d-daddy stated, whether you like it or not, Lewis County is not new to playing for regional championships every year. Our program has a rich and long tradition and every young man who walks through the locker room doors is well aware of that tradition. This is a team that has been to the playoffs for many, many years and is used to preparing for and playing in big games. There is no doubt in my mind that Camden has a tremendously talented team. But I would suggest that in the next week, and hopefully weeks, that you show a little more humility in being a fine team. If you don't believe that the opponents read this stuff and feed off of it, then you are sadly wrong. I would also like to congratulate the Camden fans who showed class after the fact and even more so to the Panthers who stayed away from the one upsmanship this week and took care of business tonight. And for those who care, as I said at the beginning of this season, this is a team that is definitely on the rise. Get them now, if you can, because the next few years are going to be special. Freshmen starting at middle linebacker and safety, freshmen playing extensively on the line and in the defensive backfield. Sophomores at both wings, linebacker, offensive line, a gifted junior fullback and a middle school program that has won three straight bowl games and are 24-3 in their last 27 games. I wish great success for all region 6-AA teams but I think if I have to hear how good west Tennessee is and how bad middle Tennessee is one more time, I will hurl...lol We are all part of region 6-AA. For those of us in Lewis County, we are the red headed stepchild of the Nashville media anyway. Maybe playing some teams west of the river will get us recognition in the Jackson Sun and Commercial Appeal, real newspapers, not like that rag The Tennessean! And for all 6-A teams, Lewis County, Camden, Riverside and Richland. Please excersise humility with your posts. Telling everyone how you are going to slaughter your next opponent does nothing for you and everything for them. Good luck next week!

I will put two dollars on Lewis County if you'll cover those odds? I need to know who holds the money though... HA

Underdog? Favorite? Prep Performance Polls have Lewis County a 1 point favorite. Sonny Moore has Riverside a 1 point favorite. Ken Massey's complex computer poll has Lewis County as a 1 point pick. The facts as I can present them concerning Lewis County.....and thoughts on other teams: We have been very opportunistic, and that is putting it mildly. We have a plus 17 margin turnover ratio. The defense has 19 interceptions and 6 fumble recoveries for 25 takeaways. The offense has turned the ball over only 8 times all year. We do a fine job of hanging onto the ball and and even better job of taking it away. Clay Colley has 7 interceptions and that is playing the last 6 games with arm in cast. He has returned 4 of the 7 for touchdowns. As for being a dominating defense, we are not. We are allowing 231 yards per game. Some of our stats are skewered by games with Houston and Stewart County where we tossed goose eggs on defense and completely shot them down. Against Riverside, our defense must stop the run first and that will be a task. If Riverside gets into a situation where they are forced to throw the ball, Lewis County has proven ball hawkish and dominating. As for being the number one rated defense in the region, that is subjective. That is being based soley on scoring average and that really means nothing. I would suggest that you look at common opponents Waverly, Loretto and Richland. Lewis County scored 98 and gave up 69. Riverside scored 95 and gave up 81. Against Richland and Loretto, Camden scored 85 and gave up 38. The most compelling available evidence by crunching these numbers and by looking at overall results is that no one in Region 6-AA has shown to have a truly strong defense, much less a dominating one. Lewis County's Offense: As I have contended all season, those that think Lewis County is totally one dimensional are wrong. Loretto found out, as did others. Certainly Chris Hatton is the hoss, as are all fullbacks in the true wing-t. If your fullback isn't carrying the load in the wing-t, you had better go to the I and do it quickly. The wing-t is built for explosive fullbacks. Lewis County's greatest success over the past 15 years have been when we had big dominant fullbacks. Example, the Hankins era, the Sparkman era, Ellis Daily, etc... When the fullbacks were weak, our offense was weak. Hatton has carried 153 times for 1148 yards, a 7.5 average. The three wingbacks who share the load, sophomores Ryan Greve and Nick King, and now Clay Colley after returning to offense have carried 108 times for 823 yards, a 7.6 average. The passing game has improved dramatically over the past four weeks after a slow, slow start. Quarterback Alex Edwards has been a steady performer who does not do things to hurt the team. He has thrown just one interception all year. The Game: Should be a really good one. These two teams have played some top notch, memorable games over the past several years and done so when they were in different regions. Best remembrance being during the Webster era at Riverside. Of course, an old codger like myself can still recall the 23-20 upset of Riverside back in 1973...ha ha Hey, I am a historian. Here's what might happen? Usually, when you get two high powered offenses together and everyone expects a 42-38 game, you wind up with a 14-13 encounter. Neither would surprise me! Lewis County has the advantage of playing at home. Both teams have momentum. Both teams have excellent offensive ability. Both teams have shown breakdowns on defense. Riverside has shown breakdowns in the kicking game. Lewis County has shown some problems stopping really good backs. So here goes...... Naturally, being born and bred in Lewis County, I am with our Panthers. But being that I really do respect this new region 6-AA and the posters seem to be a lot more polite than our old region, I will predict this: A tossup! HA I told you that at the beginning of this post. Good luck to both teams, I really mean that, and let's have a fun, injury free game.

HA HA You must have gone to the Mean Jean school of determining good 1-A teams! Perry County is 1-6... Lewis County by contrast played Wayne County, a good 1-A team (5-2) and ranked sixth in the state in Class A. I am sure there are some good debating points for this game but your's was poor at best.

I believe that the winner of the Richland-Loretto game this week will wind up fourth. Just my opinion. Here is how things currently stand: Region 6-AA Standings: Lewis Co. 5-0 (5-2) Camden 4-0 (4-2) Riverside 4-1 (4-2) Waverly 2-2 (3-3) Loretto 2-2 (2-4) Richland 2-3 (3-4) Adamsville 1-3 (1-5) Stewart Co. 0-4 (1-5) Houston Co. 0-5 (0-7) Remaining Regional Games: Lewis County: at Waverly, Riverside, at Camden Camden: Adamsville, at Waverly, at Riverside, Lewis County Riverside: at Lewis County, Camden, Stewart County Waverly: Lewis County, Camden, at Stewart County, Loretto Loretto: at Richland, Houston County, Adamsville, at Waverly Adamsville: at Camden, Stewart County, at Loretto, at Richland Richland: Loretto, at Houston County, Adamsville Personal opinion only here... If Richland loses to Loretto, they are out. It would take a lot of positive scenarios for them to get in with 4 losses. Given an Adamsville loss to Camden, their only chance is to run the table then and that might or might not be enough. If they did win out, it would also give them 4 losses. Loretto's early victory over Riverside could be huge if they defeat Richland. A victory over Richland and they could slip into third place. If Lewis County beats Waverly, then Waverly might also wind up with 4 losses. If Lewis County wins this week, they are guarnateed a spot and have their spot in their own hands. Same with Camden and Riverside. Finally.... After this Friday, it will be much easier to update these scenarios. But right now, there is a real possibility that two or more teams could tie for fourth with four region losses.

With the lack of defense that these two have shown, I'll say it will be about 47-41...

I think Lewis County is showing improvement... I know Riverside is... I was once convinced that Camden couldn't be challenged in the region. I am no longer convinced of that. I still think they are the most talented team.. but I think they will be challenged by both Panther teams. Could be an interesting finish.

As usual, I will try and add some facts. Lewis County's defense has been soft. Thye are playing a lot of freshmen and sophomores but, they should not be making All-State running backs out of everyone we play. Thus far, outside of Stewart County, the other team's top back has had a career night against us. As for Lewis County not winning the game but Richland losing it. Spare me that tired refrain. The last I heard, a defense intercepting four passes and returning three of them for touchdowns is a big part of winning and losing. As for Richland and Lewis County and total yardage and the such. Richland ran 69 plays from scrimmage, Lewis County had 31. But when you spend the entire night returning interceptions for touchdowns, your offense is NEVER on the field. The Panther offense scored twice in four plays in the second half, a pretty good indicator of potentcy. Still, if Richland had ran 100 plays from scrimmage, there is never, ever an excuse for giving up 500 yards of offense to any team. Our defense better improve before we meet Riverside, much less Camden. If we do not get better on defense, Boyd of Camden will run for 300 yards on us. That is not dumping on our young team, it is just the way I see it. Now, let me state that I feel we will get better and if the defense catches up with the offense, we will be in the upper echelon of the region. Until then, we will be scraping for everything we get. As for stopping Hatton, I would suggest that we aren't quite so one dimensional. We had all three backs go over 100 yards rushing against Loretto. And sophomores King and Greve both had 50+ scoring plays on Friday. Now then, in general, for all the fans of this region, I don't believe I have ever seen a region that Lewis COunty has been a member of that is showing so little defense and so much offense! It seems like every team in the region is capable of scoring tons of points and conversely, giving up bushels of them as well. As for Richland and Camden. I think Richland is much improved and might run the table after this week, if they don't get down after the game with Camden. But the Lions are the cream of the crop in our region (as I stated in a pre-season post.) Anyone who thinks otherwise is delusional. I have covered LCHS football for 30 years and love our team to death but we are a long ways currently from being equal to Camden, and so is Richland. Don't mean to incite angry retorts, just stating facts.

Richland has got to really be let down after this game. The Raiders had 500 yards of offense. Of course they had the ball almost all night because the Panthers were returning interceptions for touchdowns and then kicking it right back... what a weird, weird game! I would guess until getting our book that Richland must have had the ball 80-85% of the time. As already described, senior Clay Colley returned three picks for touchdowns! Quite an unbelievable occurance!

Chris Hatton had 26 carries for 209 yards. Nick King 11 carries for 145 yards. Ryan Greve 10 carries for 121 yards. Hatton is a junior, King and Greve are sophomores. Another sophomore, Dakota Crews had a 30 yard touchdown run on the first series of the game. Greve had a 55 yard touchdown run called back on the infamous "inadvertant" whistle. He had a 45 yard punt return called back on another suspect call. Sophomores Crews, Greve, King and Chuck Dodson and freshman Kane Crowell were the leading tacklers. As I said last year, this year's team will be exciting, the next three years could be really special. Sophomores are playing everywhere... Freshmen Crowell, Jake Tennison, Willie Frazier and Mason Sharp are playing extensively. Another freshman Eric Wright would have played a lot but broke his leg in a freshman game at the beginning of the season. Gonna be a load in the future.

To expound somewhat.... Fullback Chris Hatton was taken to the hospital after the game with an irregular heartbeat and was treated for dehydration. Halfback Clay Colley who had an 83 yard kickoff return for a TD broke his arm during the game. Linebacker Colin Lancaster tore an ACL (Apparently) as Coach Sharp told me last night that the results of MRI weren't in at that time. Not an excuse for the loss just telling that this year's team is dealing with some very serious injuries to some really key players early in the season. Tip of the hat to Wayne County on their victory. And hopefully the Panthers can work thru some tough early season woes and get things turned around, which I believe they will.

I thought the key was conditioning and Hickman County's desire. Lewis County was winded by the fourth quarter and Hickman County was not. Plus Hickman County is much, much better. Lewis County is young... three freshmen and seven sophomores means growing up quick. We will see if they do?

I agree. It takes some moxy to schedule these types of games and a tip of the hat to MBA.

Since the original topic was length of rivalry and nothing else, I would offer our longest standing rival at Lewis County and that is Loretto. The two teams will meet for the 59th straight year this season. They had played before then but World War II caused a break in the rivalry and a break in football period. I wonder if some of those that are talking of 70-80 year rivalries are counting any downtime for World War II? I have always found this to be a fascinating rivalry because the two teams are not geograpically that close. Both schools have literally a dozen similar sized schools nearer but they continue to trek 50+ miles each year to play each other.. well done!

To any Bulldog fans, we are working on a pregame show before the game on Friday night. I am looking for basic information about some of the key players, etc that we can use on our radio show. If anyone has the time to shoot me a bit of information, I would surely appreciate it. Either PM me or e-mail me at donhaney@yahoo.com Thanks in advance.

Hello folks.. glad to be back with my first post since last November. To introduce myself, I have covered LCHS football since 1974 and currently write for our local newspaper. I also pride myself on being unbiased and totally objective. I also take pride in being one of the first moderators on this site a long time back.. So I have been around, just don't check in much until football season kicks off. Let me chime in with my thoughts... Last year, at this time, while many were predicting another stellar season for Lewis County, I tried to be realistic and predicted a 6-4 season since the team was so young. This year, they have grown up quite a bit. Those who think it's the same team that lost to Camden 32-0 don't understand the growth of high school aged kids and the improvement that comes with experience. This team will be improved, much improved and yet, will still be playing a lot of young guys. I fully suspect that they will be starting 4-6 sophomores and amazingly, 3-4 freshmen will see significant playing time, if not starting. They will be much better but they are still one season away from really being a hoss... next year begins what should be a three year run of legitimate title possibilities. As for this year, much better but will need some younger guys to get real good, real soon. With that in mind, I don't see how anyone could pick against Camden at this point and time. I am one of those midstate guys who saw nothing flukey about last year's great season. I thought that they were making real progress in 2003 and it just carried over into 2004 when they discovered winning, and liked it. If they can continue and build some tradition, it goes a long way in leading to a certain swagger and confidence that is hard to simply instill in high school footballers. They have some true talent and are the favorite in the preseason. I would pick Lewis County second right now simply based on the unseemingly pipeline of talent that is available. I have bever seen them with so many possibilites at sjill positions. If their line play catches up this year, they should be solidly #2 in the region and could give Camden a real tussle for the top spot. If Riverside gets out of the blocks quickly and gets some momentum, they will make the playoffs. One of their problems in the past is getting momentum established. It is oh so necessary that they get out of the gate fast. Two of their first three games will be against old 5-A schools Loretto and Richland and this should show every other school just how the two combined regions match up. Personally, I think that Riverside has to win both these games to be a serious contender. Adamsville gets their first true regional test in week four at Waverly, it's an early game I realize, but this one is a good indicator of who will not advance to the playoffs. The loser can surely kiss any aspirations goodbye. This is a very important matchup to see who can advance and who will play out the string. I look at both these teams, along with Loretto, Richland and Riverside battling for third and fourth place. Two will make it, three will not..... As for Loretto, I always like them but they drew a really rough schedule.. They will open up with a much improved 4-A Lawrence County.. then get Collinwood, normally a tough foe and then it's a defining moment against Riverside. I think Riverside can lose this game and still make the playoffs, I don't think Loretto can afford that luxury. Mark down week three and see who wins this game? Why do I see this as a possible "break-it" game for Loretto. because they catch Lewis County and Camden both on the road in the next two weeks. Richland could be a true "sleeper." If their coaching staff gets their act together, they always seem to have loads of talent. They could easily start 3-0 before travelling to Riverside for game four. An upset there and then it's Lewis County at home and Camden on the road. If they have momentum, they always seem to play LCHS tough. Can you imagine if they are 4-0 and got some confidence? If they start fast, they could be a 7-3 or 8-2 team. But, and a big but... with Richland, they could as easily go 2-8 or 3-7, their lack of team discipline seems to always play a role in their finish. Waverly is another team that should be improved. They need stability as much as anything. They were once one of the most respected programs in the midstate but something happened a few years back that sent them into a downward spiral and they have had trouble righting the ship. We will see if Coach Pullen can get it turned around? They have to be 3-2 or 4-1 when week six rolls around or it's a tough road to hoe with Riverside, Lewis County and Camden back to back to back. Now I will admit that I am pretty uneducated about Houston County and Stewart County although Houston County has enjoyed some success lately. The Irish might make a play for fourth, maybe even higher? I simply don't know enough about them to make an educated synopsis. Heck, they might be #1... we will surely find out. As for Stewart County, I will simply say that their chances of making the playoffs are not as rosy as some... Thank you. That's what I got now and look forward to discussion concerning the new region and really look forward to visiting some new locales this year. Adamsville [ 2 ] [2.86%] Camden [ 31 ] [44.29%] Houston County [ 1 ] [1.43%] Lewis County [ 18 ] [25.71%] Loretto [ 2 ] [2.86%] Richland [ 1 ] [1.43%] Decatur County-Riverside [ 11 ] [15.71%] Stewart County [ 1 ] [1.43%] Waverly [ 3 ] [4.29%]