letsgodevils

Ladd is so good, WH won 5 games. That is stout!

You want to know what is impressive, if you would bother to know the facts?

Ladd has played nearly every down on the football field this year, after being just an offensive back and kick returner only for the majority of last season.

He ran behind six seniors last season, including two tight ends, and was handed the ball by a senior quarterback who threw for as many yards as Ladd ran for.

But just to tell you how impressive this year's feats were....that team from 2004 never even played a close game until losing by six points in week 14. No other game's margin was in single digits. They were efficient and scored countless points. Ladd was out of many games by the third quarter.

This year, at the close of 10 games, he is JUST LESS THAN 100 YARDS from his week 10 stats a year ago, scoring more touchdowns in an offense that has no passing attack and very few weapons, and SCORES LESS as a whole, with a patchwork line that is not only full of new players, but half of them have been hurt all season. He has played four quarters in every game but one, DeKalb County, when he could have padded stats but carried only eight times and still got 180 yards.

He is a leader on defense, returns kicks and punts, and played in no scrimmages or jamboree then played the first three weeks with an ankle injury.

You put last year's factors with this year's Ladd, and you have a 2,000-yard back in the regular season alone.

www.polkcountywildcats.com

There site has all the info you need including video clips from every ball game the entire season. Where do you get they don't have an impessive site? Looks alot better than WH IMO. GO to Schedule to see clips and pics.

Also Joey Lowe quit week 8 DownWithPolkFootball, so you are not too down with it obviously.

You may think the site looks a lot better than White House, and you may be right, considering the software used to make your site is some sort of flash player, while Kris keeps it pretty basic.

But other than some photos, video and a roster, there is absolutely no detailed information about the football team on the site. No recaps, no links to newspapers, no history, no stats.

I feel like I know a TON about White House football from the past few years, and I didn't see a lot of that history myself. I am just a fan, but looking at our site, you can find out everything you need to know to learn about the White House football program, facilities and team. That's a HUGE benefit to me because it's my connection into the program outside of sitting in the stands.

If you're working on a dial-up internet connection, then video and flash isn't that impressive, I'd rather see some stuff to tell me more about it, but that's just me.

Kris, you do a good job, keep it up. Polk County, you have an impressively set up site, but wish I could find out more.

Is your name Kent

Nah, I'm just an old man who loves my White House Football.

I am a Nashville work transplant to White House and I have no kids there, I'm just a football fan and now this is my home and I love it. I am thankful that I have been able to see the program build from the 1980s to now. I don't go way back, but from looking at the history, it appears that the decades past were full of struggles before this modern-day run.

There's something special there. I have family that lives in other states and they can't believe high school football is this big here, they just don't understand.

Actually guys there will or should be a sign up sheet located at the Cumberland Bank in White House. Last I heard- You can sign up there.

The bus plans on leaving around 2- This info came from a player.

Hope this helps to get you started on plans to attend.

Isn't this an Eastern Time game? I think I'm going to drive and leave earlier than that. 2 p.m. seems to cut it a little close, but I like to get there early.

Well I'll stay out of the White House posts from now on. I now know what I said was stupid. I mean White House did make a huge run for the playoffs after a rough start. Congratulations Blue Devils. I just feel bad for those Patriots who can't get any love. But I guess some of the best teams work through that....Congratulations to both Programs on a fine season.

I don't think anyone is slamming you for being high on Heritage. They are to be commended for making strides and they continue to do so. I think the original post was viewed as piling on a White House team that still had much to be proud of following a loss to Greenbrier, which was a tough dose of pride.

I hope Heritage continues to improve, but I also think that it is a shame the split happened and that the two schools have to share a stadium. Though it's at the city park, and no offense to Heritage, it's kind of hard for the Blue Devils to know they can't paint that WH in the middle of the field until Heritage is eliminated from the playoff picture or done with all their games. That red and navy concessions stand is hard to take, although we know you all have every right to be there.

There is just a lot of history in that stadium for the Blue Devil fans and now it appears we have to share it. Sure, the signage hasn't been changed and some things have been allowed to continue, and for that I'm sure they are thankful. I know it must be hard for Heritage to play in a place with BDP painted all over it, too.

Sharing something new with neutral signage would be one thing, but having a new tenant move into the place you have held for years is a little tougher, so I hope you understand why that's hard for White House fans.

What's going to happen the first year both teams make the playoffs and get a home game? Doesn't the TSSAA mandate all playoff game starting times at 7 p.m. on Friday? I just think that will be a bad deal.

Until then, maybe we can make it work and both teams will be successful.

Well I know this was a White House post, but I'd like to say congratulations to WHITE HOUSE HERITAGE....OOPS I mentioned them with White House ....They once again bettered their record from the seasons in the past. Why does everyone have to hate Heritage so much? We give it our all, while White House High School still has some of our Robertson County players. I heard someone complaining about White House having to be stuck in 4A ball while the schools split....Are you serious...My graduating class in 2005 was 37 it seems to me like ya'll had enough people to compete. Obviously, I do remember a semi finals game White House played in in 2004...Don't take it out on the students/players at Heritage....Maybe some of the "POLITICAL" people in White House need to be looked down on....Keep in mind we've been around 3 years, we've improved every year. EVENTUALY, those Blue Devils will have to worry about some cross town rivals!

 

Must I remind you that in 2004 White House went 10-0 (In the regular season), and in 2005 they went 5-5....Heritage went from 3-7 to 4-6...Not real big but it seems like they are on the way UP where as White House is on the way down. A lot of times I feel bad about these posts because I have real good friends, and ex teammates who play for White House..But I don't think the players at White House Heritage, who've worked their butts off only to improve every year deserve a comment like.....White House and White House Heritage don't deserve to be in the same sentence.

I'm still trying to figure out how that has anything to do with the Greenbrier game...

The White House program may have been down this season from years past, but the fact is we are still advancing to the playoffs and everyone's record is 0-0. You cannot fault those boys for coming out of an 0-3 slump to make a season of it.

The Heritage program improved by one game. Well, good. I'm glad you are improving and I hope it continues. Fact of the matter is, you would like to compare White House to last season and say we are going down...

White House was 13-1 and six points away from playing for a state championship in Class 4-A with a 3-A enrollment team. Those graduating class numbers you spoke of might seem small, but when all four classes are added together, you find that number is exactly why a 3-A team was having to play 4-A competition for three years, and did it very well.

But that's the past. Here comes the future.

The current Blue Devils are 5-5 and headed to the playoffs. Next season, we lose some seniors, but the underclassmen coming are very talented. Everyone will worry about losing Ladd, but they forget about Justin West. He has never been a starter before and is arguably as good a back.

The Blue Devils freshmen are undefeated. And they went undefeated last season as a middle school team. Both seasons were led by what started to be a backup at quarterback in Zack Duty and turned into a heck of a player. What some consider to be the best athlete on the team has hardly played at all the last two years with injury (Parker). They played in one of the best organized middle school conferences in Tennessee in Sumner and won it going away, and then steamrolled through freshman competition including some HIGH classification teams. That's 15-0 in two seasons.

Then, let's look at middle school. Remember that freshmen bunch that went 7-0 in eighth grade? Well, the team from this season matched them and did it with perhaps even more dominance. They have skill position players who figure to contribute at the varsity level for years to come. That Dixon kid at tailback is the real deal, and I hope to see him get some varsity action as a freshman (wishful thinking of a fan?). The Greenwade kid at quarterback is pretty special.

So in two seasons, those two groups are 22-0. I'd say that bodes well for the future. I'm not sure anyone can say they have done that over two seasons at White House.

So wish what you may for the future, Heritage.

I have seen the future, and it's full of Blue and White.

I can honestly say that I respect Greenbrier and I have great admiration for their turnaround of success in the program from two decades ago.

There has been a long history of hatred and animosity between the fans of Portland and White House, and even White House and Springfield.

I feel it's different with the Greenbrier fans. It's sad that some take it to a bad level, but for the most part, I think the schools and teams have a great amount of respect for each other. I don't remember hardly any of the games being dirty, unfair or played with poor sportsmanship.

I think it's a positive rivalry that ought to be celebrated, no matter who wins. It's good for the communities and for the schools. And now that both teams are extremely successful and back in the region together, it just takes things to a new level.

Titan remind me who did White House play last year in the 'Boro?

That's kind of a foolish post.

In four years of playing in Class 4-A, White House went 39-10 with two region championships, four playoff appearances and played the final three of those years technically as a a Class 3-A school, since Heritage opened on the Robertson County side and White House was locked into the 4-A program for the finality of those four years.

In 2004, White House played at Memphis Melrose in the quarterfinals and lost by six points. All four teams, including Maryville and Tennessee (Bristol) were 13-0 in the semifinal round, and all of them played quality non-region and region competition during the season. White House beat an undefeated Hillwood team in the quarters, 56-28, and nearly beat an undefeated Melrose team in the semis in without a doubt, the most hostile environment as a fan I have ever been a part of.

Maryville went on to beat Melrose, 7-6, in the state finals. That could have easily been White House in that game, had the Blue Devils scored even once of the two times they were inside Melrose's 20 without a touchdown.

I don't think it's fair for Greenbrier fans to chide White House about not making it to the state finals. Class 4-A in Middle Tennessee over the last four seasons was no cakewalk, including Stratford, Pearl-Cohn, Hillwood, Hillsboro, Overton, Whites Creek, Shelbyville, Tullahoma and all Clarksville teams plus Mt. Juliet. Many of those teams have changed regions or classifications for this season.

White House beat Greenbrier on the field last year, straight up. Greenbrier made it to the state finals and had a great season. Neither of those things can be changed.

This year's matchup will be settled on the field, and the way the playoffs are aligned, it might not be the last time they face one another.

Thanks for the info.........

 

The announcer is something that I'll definitely be looking forward to.........

 

Hopefully our slow-down game will limit his material....

We beat them handily there last year and there were only about 100 Pearl-Cohn fans in the stands, but the PA announcer was in full force. He never slows it down, and he is very complimentary of the other team.

"Oooooh, that Ricky Ladd. What another tackle for da Ladd man! He got to be leading them Devils tonight. Ricky Ricky coming up big for da Blue Devs."

Actually, that happened in a game at DeKalb County back in the late 1990s. It was when Finch, Lanius and company were rolling up teams, and we were up 50-0 at the half.

I remember sitting in the stands thinking, "why is the clock not stopping?"

Had to have been requested just to get the game over. I don't think we scored again.

I can't fault your attitude and we White House fans would be foolish to overlook anyone.

Someone asked about parking....it's not too bad around the school. Several good lots to park in, you just have a pretty good walk to your seat, but nothing out of the ordinary.

The Pearl-Cohn seating is pretty decent. There won't be a full crowd on the home side, but the band is pretty active and never quits.

Trust me, the PA announcer will keep you in stitches tonight. He's worth the price of admission.

"Here come the Bobby Council. That's Metro Council-Man Bobby Two-Eight. Firebird O-fence. Uh. huh! Don't play wid it! Don't play wid it!"

"Touchdown Firebirds! Boom, boom, clap! Boom, boom, clap!" (he says that, not the band playing it)

I mean no disrespect, but come on.

The Tigers are 0-7 and have not scored over seven points in any ball game, and given up 31 in the other six. Is that right? And they are playing a White House team, that while down, is 10-2 all-time against DeKalb with nine straight wins against them.

White House has outscored DeKalb 37.7 to 8.8 in those nine games, six of them seven points or less.

They have not played since 2000 according to the White House history on the site and that was perhaps the closest game of them all, 23-7.

I don't see how losing two players and making changes to a team that has been wallopped all season is going to make that much difference.

When these high school sports scoreboard shows started, they were based on callers giving a recap of their game and fed off of listener support and calls.

Now, 104.5 has shifted its focus, and spends a premium amount of time interviewing coaches. I guess if you are a fan of one of those schools, then you could say it's a good show. Here's the problem -- they interview and talk about the same schools, all the time.

They have a number of coaches who are like revolving doors. Every time they win, they have them on. Especially Metro, which is expected.

Yesterday, for example, they interviewed the McGavock head coach for almost 15 minutes in the afternoon prior to the games with Murphy Fair. Last night, they interviewed a McGavock assistant coach for about five minutes after the game. They guys sounded like twins with all their coach speak, and it was a McGavock focus on the show. I'm not ragging on McGavock, I'm just pointing out that they shouldn't interview two coaches from the same school in the same day.

And one final point. They need to get rid of Darren McFarland. Like or hate George Plaster, the guy knows how to operate a show and talk without stepping all over himself. McFarland is one of the worst radio hosts I have heard in a long time.

Well milk! You must not know The Mighty Tigers very well. They don't know the meaning of "give-up"!!!!.... Yes white house may have won the game. But Macon County won the fight.  It is so sad that our boys played so hard to get cheated out of a game. I watched the film. There was alot of ball-spotting for wh and against us. Say what you will but the tigers won that game. And you can bet your sweet tail that the Tigers are not done yet.

Go Tigerssssssssss!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I am very proud of all of you!!!!!!!!!

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What does ball spotting have to do with the outcome of the game?

White House scored its final two touchdowns on runs of 23 and 63 yards by Ricky Ladd. That has nothing to do with ball spots. Neither does a first-half touchdown set up by a Dallas fumble at midfield on a toss sweep.

Macon County's final attempt to score ended in White House territory, nearly two full yards short of the first down marker when Dallas was tackled by seven White House players after being slowed by Joe Mayhew. Even Coach Porter said in the paper that if White House doesn't hustle to the play, he falls with momentum for the first down, but the rest of the defense ensured it.

I have nothing but class things to say about Macon County, that was a very improved program from what we used to plant, 40, 50 and 68 points on in the 1990s. They had every chance to win the game, and came up short. It happens.

Give White House some credit, and quit saying things that have no bearing on the outcome of the game.

If you're looking for omens...

It was an 0-3 start in 2000 for the Blue Devils and a home win in week four that turned it around.....

AGAINST MACON COUNTY.

Wow...hard to read all that stuff. I'm baffled to see all of the bickering and detractors, sounds a lot like 2000 when an 0-3 team ripped Macon County, winning nine straight and nearly beat a state-champion in the quarterfinals at Portland.

The boo birds were out, the critics were harsh, and then the earth tilted back on axis and everyone loved everyone again.

These streaks are going to happen when the program goes through tremendous change. We lost 17 seniors, at least 15 of them who started considerable time. Four linemen, both tight ends, four receivers, the quarterback, two defensive ends and four rotating defensive backs.

It will turn. Always does. Discipline and fundamentals will produce long-term success, but that attitude with a young group takes time to build.

Young QB, young and banged up line, and starting tailback with injury problems in preseason. Leading tackler sidelined. Lots of factors to be 0-2 and still had a chance to win both games.

As for this weekend, I kind of hope Portland does pass. We have only given up 11 receptions in two games and we have picked off three out of 20 passes, so that plays into the strength of the White House defense, with linebackers and secondary folks back from last year. It's up front we are struggling.

This game never seems to disappoint, and about one out of two are nailbiters. It's time for a barn-burner.

For all that might not see the other thread, Gallatin has made a decision to postpone the Sumner County Jamboree to Friday night.

It was supposed to be played Thursday but the rain has halted those plans. White House, Beech, Gallatin and Portland are playing in the varsity portion with middle school and freshman teams from various schools as well.

Just FYI...

Any day of the week that you think Portland has had better talent than White House over the past 10 years is the day pigs fly.  While I did say that Coach Porter and his staff were a close second, Coach Perry has won as much at Portland with less talent.  That is the way I see it.  And the reality of it all is that when it comes to what matters in this sport, they both have won the big one, each taking different teams to the big game.  Realistically though, I think that Portland's out of region schedule in the past has been more difficult than White House's.

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You have got to be kidding me. Portland's out of region schedule better than White House? Now I can accept the argument that athletes at the two schools are comparable, because they draw from the same 30-mile radius and that is expected. Both have won with lesser talent than many opponents.

But White House has played a non-region schedule that was brutal, dating back to the 1980s. They have never backed down from playoff powers and developed some huge non-region rivalries.

In the past few years, Portland had hardly any non-region opponents except White House because the region was so big and didn't split into divisions.

This is the list of non-region foes White House has played since the late 1980s when Coach Porter arrived. Some of these teams have moved in and out of their region, but have at one time been a non-region game. They have played at least two games against each of them, and many of them have been long, sustained rivals.

- David Lipscomb (long rivalry)

- Marshall County (long rivalry)

- Greenbrier (region too)

- Springfield (region too)

- Beech (never beaten)

- Russellville, Ky. (a Kentucky power at the time)

- Page

- Hillwood

- Goodpasture

- Humboldt

- Smith County

- Cookeville

- Westmoreland (region too)

- Hickman County

- Brentwood

- Spring Hill

- Antioch

- Portland (region too)

- Sycamore

The above are all regular season opponents.

In the past four years, White House has played Portland, Greenbrier and Sycamore, which were perennial powers in Class 3-A playoffs, and despite being in Class 4-A where they were 3-A size because of the Heritage split.

Portland has played some Clarksville schools, but mostly before Clarksville became a force in football. They also had a long sustained rivalry with Franklin-Simpson, Ky., which like Russellville is a great Kentucky team. I give them credit for that. But they have also played cakewalks like Butler County, Ky. too.

I do not have the mental list of Portland's non-region opponents, but I would like to see how it's possible that it compares with the above.

They may have moved to Region 6-4A, but boy did they catch a break.

Northwest is down, and look who is no longer there...Whites Creek, Pearl-Cohn, Stratford, Maplewood and White House. That's the class of the region, gone.

Portland will have a good season, but the playoffs won't be anything like the first round cakewalks in Class 3-A.

I think the coaching staff argument in Sumner County is an easy one.

No disrespect to Portland, but White House has made the playoffs in 21 of the last 22 years (maybe 22 of the last 23, but I will have to check).

They have won the region every time classifications and regions have changed.

They have the same coaching staff that was there in 1992. All four main assistants could be head coaches elsewhere, without question.

White House runs a pro-style offense in a Wing-T dominated area. No deception, no disguise, just run the ball and throw the ball right at you. They are as fundamentally sound as anyone in the state.

And here's the kicker (no pun intended...)

With all that success and tradition, White House has produced ONE Division One signee in the 19 years Coach Porter has been there, and that was kicker Clint Ruth who just graduated at Kentucky after playing there four years.

That's getting the most out of little talent.

Climer's editorials on everything wrong in Vol land doesn't sell many papers either!

 

I have been a critic of the Tennessean's prep reports from the days when the Shelbyville girls score would always be posted and if their boys got beat, it wasn't reported because everyone had left the gym anyway.

 

Coacht and WWTN is where I got my high school football news last year.  I hope The Zone or someone will have a high school scoreboard on Friday nights.

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I think you have WWTN and the Zone crossed up.

Darren and Willy carry the high school sports scoreboard on 104.5 the Zone and they did so last year.

The high school show at 99.7 WWTN stopped when Darren and Willy left and it moved with them to 104.5. It is a good show, they do a good job with scores and reports, although they have too many favorites they do reports from nearly every week, like BGA (George's home), Greenbrier (Darren's love) and Riverdale (everyone's darling).

I thought that the Tennessean staff just took and threw together a football preview section for this year, especially in 3A.  It was favored heavily for the 5A teams, outside of Hillsboro, and the privates.  Some of the region predictions have me scratching my head in amazement. 

 

What all did everyone else think of the section???

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I can't argue with the amount of space and coverage they devote to high school football on Saturday mornings through the season. Do they weigh toward some of the local teams, especially the private schools? Yes. But that's expected being a Nashville-based paper.

However, their weekly previews and primers are terrible, and they waste a lot of space on nothing. Meaningless stories and they often ignore the best upcoming games.

Same thing for their preview sections. I just think they miss the boat, but I also think I know the reason why.

Most small rural schools have county papers that do an adequate job of covering high school football. Football gets more coverage than all the other sports combined. The Tennessean knows that bordering counties all have local papers, and the Gannett Inc. conglomerate owns many of them, just like the Tennessean.

So the Tennessean appeases to its most available reading audience for high school football, which is the Nashville crowd. They don't have small-town papers for the most part, everyone relies on the big dog to get their news.

So the results in the paper show that.

The 2002 & 2003 teams were also gone after the opening round of the playoffs.  For some teams making the playoffs is great, but at White House winning playoff games is an absolute MUST!!!

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I think Regions 5-6 playing one another in the first round of the playoffs was one of, if not the toughest opening bracket, in the entire state among all classifications. In fact, if you look up the records of the eight playoff teams in 2002-03 from Regions 5-6 in 4-A, they were better than any other eight-team grouping from any other class.

You had Hillsboro, Overton, White House, Stratford and Pearl-Cohn who had the potential to be undefeated, then you had up and comers like Northwest, Whites Creek, etc. with perennial stable playoff teams like Columbia, Tullahoma and Shelbyville.

I would say that the 2002 playoff game with Tullahoma was the hardest lower-seeded team we had ever played in the postseason. The team was in a region with Columbia and Hillsboro, who both went undefeated, and they finished third with two losses. That was a great game at White House and we came up on the short end for the first time in the first round in over a decade.

The 2003 season was a classic case of what-if. White House all but had the region locked up, but fell apart at Northwest in the infamous "sprinkler-fumble" game as we were driving for the win and the region championship on the Viking 30. We lost, and then Pearl-Cohn came in and muscled us around at White House. We went from finishing first to fourth in two weeks time and caught that just brutally nasty Hillsboro team in the first round. It was ugly.

Win the region, do well in the playoffs. It's a pretty good formula. Finish second through fourth, then look out in Class 4-A.

I don't think it was EVER that tough in the first round of Class 3-A, where we cake walked through McMinn, Howard, and the like in early blowouts.

White House returns its entire linebacking corps from 2004, however the leading tackler for the team has moved from linebacker to defensive tackle, and that's senior Max Barrett.

Linebackers will be returning starters Joe Mayhew, Zach Wood and newcomer Justin West. Size is according to the newly released roster on the web.

Mayhew (Junior) -- 5-11, 175

78 tackles, 4 INT

Wood (Senior) -- 5-11, 175

61 tackles, 6 TFL

West (Junior) -- 5-11, 160

11 tackles

* also one of the top rushers and leading backup behind Ricky Ladd