letsgodevils

Wow...Calvin Short returning to coaching and at White House. Very nice to hear. Should be an exciting year for the Blue Devils. I've been out of the loop because I didn't realize this had happened!

I just looked in an old White House program from the 2002 season, and under the 2001 recap it indicates Dorris rushed for 1194 yards his senior year with 19 touchdowns.

Shane Dorris is not that high, probably in the top 10, but his numbers did not blow anyone away. Dorris was just a good, hard-nosed runner and there have been many like him. Ricky has not played but one full season. He started with White House against Maplewood in 2003, the fourth game of the year. According to the website, here are his stats. The website did not have individual stats for Dorris. Ladd (2003) -- 125-673-5.4 avg-7 TD Ladd (2004) -- 232-1985-8.6 avg-24 TD Total -- 357 for 2658 (7.45 avg) - 31 TD I don't know what Turner, Harris, Woods, etc. and their numbers are, but it would take a MONSTER season from Ladd to qualify for that list.

I take nothing away from Sycamore, because they have every right to be confident against us. They have perhaps played us better than any team in the last four years consistently. However, playing Sycamore is like playing ourselves. It's a fundamental team that runs basic smash-mouth offense with a little play action and double tight end flare passing game. And truth be told, we have been sloppy aganst Sycamore. Even when we've won, except for last year, it has not been pretty. In 2003, we were not the better team and it showed. Garza was a heck of a player and he gave us fits every time.

The most impressive thing about Gerald Turner was the fact he ran in the Wing-T Portland offense, and there were years where Portland had eight or nine backs with 100 to 600 yards rushing for the season. He would rack up huge numbers and yards per carry, but never against White House did he carry it too many times in one game. He was limited by the system. Portland also manhandled most of its regular season and playoff opponents during his career, leaving the second half to youngsters. Had Gerald Turner ran in an I-back formation as the feature back, he might have been the best this state has ever seen at the high school level. I'm taking nothing away from Portland -- their style is suited to many backs. But Gerald could have blown more stat records away, but he just didn't play enough. I'll never forget what I saw at Portland one year from the stands against White House. They handed off to him and he jumped the line of scrimmage when the linemen fell and the hole collapsed. He scored on a long touchdown run.

The advantage in returning to Region 4-3A is we come from a very successful campaign in Class 4-A, where we played in one of the top four regions in the state over the past four years (look up the records), and played deep into the playoffs against some of the most athletic and physically-impressive teams this state has to offer. I think four years in Class 4-A, playing teams that were athletically better than us, and finishing 39-10 with four playoff appearances and two region championships is a great resume to bring back to 3-A, where we arguably have the best player in the entire classification lining up in our backfield. If lining up and running over people is what you think we cannot do, then keep believing it. The fundamental smash-mouthed approach is the secret to White House football. No smoke, no mirrors, no Wing-T, no deceptive motion, just line up the football and run up someone's rear end. That's the way we like it. P.S. Player of the year for White House football may be Ricky Ladd, but the secret weapon wears No. 29 and sits right in front of him.

Who's living in the past? I think you all missed what my post was all about, it was a statistical comparison to what happened the last time White House went from a pocket quarterback to an option one, which is again going to be the case this time. The question was asked what was going to happen to our passing game, and that is the answer. We have been through this before, and the 1997-98 numbers were only used to show the biggest contrast in a change of quarterback style outside of the 2004-05 years. If Mash did not have a Mr. Football candidate and starting fullback returning behind him, and if Mash were not following one of the best pocket passers in school history, then the comparisons to Lanius would be null and void. But they are notable comparisons, because the situations are very similar. You know, it's OK to talk football in a statistical sense without bragging about it. Facts are facts and we'll see if 2005 backs up the comparison.

Parker is the younger brother of Mitchell Parker, a former standout lineman at White House and now a volunteer coach. There have been a number of boys coming up in that freshman class who have been playing together for a while, including Parker and Cody Allen, the younger brother of former tight end Trey. And I saw Parker playing around when he was in fifth grade. He had a better deep ball than some high school quarterbacks then.

And just FYI...it has always been the offensive style for Coach Grantham to run the football. He is an I-back, ball-control coach and pocket passes have been the exception, not the norm, for the White House team in recent history.

I liken the situation with Mash to what happened in 1998 when Lanius took over for Jon Finch. Finch and Levering were very comparable in style. Both drop-back passes and hard-nosed when scrambling, but ran very little option. They each had a JUNIOR tailback returning after they left, it was Brian Jones and now Ricky Ladd. Compare the numbers (from the White House site:) Team Stat Chart since 1980 1997 - 2633 rush, 2110 pass, 28.6 points per game, 316.0 total offense 1998 - 3778 rush (record), 779 pass, 36.6 points per game, 326.0 total offense 1997 team won the state, 1998 team lost in the semifinals when Roane County shut down the run and hit a big play to win 10-3. 2004 - 3476 rush, 1813 pass, 35.3 points per game, 371.0 total offense 2005 - ? Let's hope this time, since the 2004 team lost in the semifinals, the 2005 team can be the one to win the state. As you notice, the 1998 team did not miss a beat offensively, in fact were better across the board though the passing numbers were down. That was with an option quarterback. Same thing this year.

Thanks for the update. I get some of my information second hand and I won't get a chance to see them in action until the two-a-day scrimmages. I had heard Max was moving to the line, but I didn't want to make a stupid statement when I did not have it confirmed. I really believe that is a good move, considering Max's size and ability on defense, plus it opens the way for West to start and I think that will be a good decision. Anyone know where the new guy Gaines fits in all of this, or is it too early to tell?

I'll check the website, but I don't think he has individual season records. You might check with Dewayne McDaniel. He hands out some newsletters to the fans on Fridays during games and seems to keep a little more of the historical stuff.

Ricky is certainly a big part of it, but it's more to do with the depth of the overall team. This is a big White House roster, including freshmen (don't know the exact number yet). Ladd's backup is a junior, Justin West, and though running a different style, could be nearly as effective as Ladd if starting in that offense. He is a bruising runner, but very fast. Ladd is quick and cut and tough on his own. But it just appears to be a good thing to have a 4-A Mr. Football candidate dropping in classification for his senior year, with an experienced fullback in front of him. They also have the key component...the returning fullback, who is a 210-pound chunk of steel. Aaron Hargrove had the best per-carry average on the team and even as a fullback broke two huge runs for touchdowns last season. Offensive line has four new guys, but most of them played a lot last year, and the center started when a departing senior stayed hurt. They have Ryan Mash at quarterback, which is a definite style change. Levering was a drop-back pocket passer, Mash is likely to run lots of option. Mash is a tremendous athlete and a returning starter on defense. History has proven that option quarterbacks flourish in the White House system when there is a great stable of backs behind them. White House is VERY DEEP at tailback and fullback. And here's the key...they return the majority of the up-front defense, including the entire linebacking corps and the nose tackle. The young guys in the secondary got a lot of playing time because Class 4-A teams threw the football so much. White House is always very fundamental, and the kicking game is key. The kicker and punter is back, and he was the placekicker of the year in Region 6-4A last year, Douglas Johnson. One other tidbit from history...every time White House has changed regions or classifications, they have won the region that year.

We win. No, just kidding, although a successful program does help. One of the neat things I have heard about with White House is a great outreach to eighth-grade football players, as they are allowed to come into the locker room for the pre-game speech of the final home varsity game, and then they are also invited and honored at the football banquet (free tickets) and welcomed as the new Blue Devils. The community also has a program called Upstart B.D.P. which the seniors of the football team go to the elementary schools like once per week and read to the kids. By the end of the season, they become celebrities to these youngsters. The Run With the Blue is an annual race across the football field, like 50 yards, and entrants are elementary school kids sorted by grade. It's done late in the season.

I agree that it looks sharp, but it's not original. Maybe I just like originality too much.

We played Columbia in the first round of the playoffs last year. They ran the Wing-T with Tremayne Coger and Antres Booker both accumulating over 126 yards in the game (from White House's official site). I think Coger is back, but I don't know about Booker. Looking at the box score, they ran 61 plays and attempted only 10 passes, and they were down double digits most of the game, so you would think if they had a big passing attack, it would have came out. They also threw two interceptions. Watching Columbia, it reminded me of Portland. Same style of offense. Lots of speed, a little power, tries to beat you to the corners and off to the races, but cannot pass the ball very effectively. Are there any teams that run the Wing-T effectively in Class 5-A?

Perhaps it is a bit biased, but I have always preferred the White House helmet because it is so unique, and the script WH makes for a very fancy design. Too many teams rob ideas, this one is original. While it seems fun to have helmets that look like an NFL or college team, I do have great respect for a school or program which can create a unique identity that is hard to copy. Our logo is so nice and original that when someone tries to copy it, you can tell what's the real deal and what's not. Official merchandise is easy to spot, because the real stuff looks right, the spin offs look fake. It's just a very creative logo. Don't know who did it, but I believe it started in the early 1980s.

I would agree that Fullilove from Melrose would have to be considered tops in the state after the semifinals last year, although we did move the ball through the air effectively in the second half, just ran out of time and cost ourselves with a turnover on downs and an interception inside Melrose territory in the third. Coger did have an interception against us in the first round of the playoffs and returned it 37 yards, but White House did not have to pass the ball much at all with Ricky Ladd rushing for 202 yards on 21 carries in a 49-28 win. The two teams combined for 669 yards rushing and only 86 passing. Coger also had 137 on the ground. Those are from the official White House stats box scores from their website.

I'm glad someone else finally sees this, too. Everyone seems to be quick to put the blame on Vandy football, and this has nothing to do with them. Daunic also mentioned on the radio he was going to Austin Peay for a year. He did not say he will play football, did not say he will not play. It wasn't discussed. This may be to increase his test scores and entry potential to try again. Daunic made it clear that Bobby Johnson had no problems letting Herndon walk on, but he was not going to offer him a scholarship. That left things in the hands of the academic admissions process, and he was denied.

Yesterday, a caller addressed this issue to Willy Daunic on the afternoon sports talk show in Nashville on The Zone. Daunic, a former Vanderbilt two-sport athlete, was very aware of the situation and seemed very knowledgeable of what had happened and how the Herndon family had responded. But he confirmed what everyone seems to be missing.... Herndon was not a legitimate Division I football athlete at the SEC-caliber level. He was not offered a scholarship by Vanderbilt football. His size is limited, and he does not fit the mold of the superstar college athlete. That takes nothing away from his high school career, nor his class. It's just the facts. So when Vandy football declined to offer him a scholarship, his standards to enter Vanderbilt were measured not against other athletes, but against other prospective students (non-scholarship athletes and regular students). At that point, no football concessions could be made for him. He had to get in on his academics alone, and then walk-on. This is not the fault of the Vanderbilt football team. It is a standard admissions and acceptance procedure that happens to students every year. Some make it, some get rejected. Daunic said Bobby Johnson had promised Herndon his place on the football team if he could get in on academics, but he had no scholarship to offer him. So according to Daunic, Herndon plans to attend Austin Peay for one year and then re-apply.

There are only two Vanderbilt teams I thought ever had a shot of beating Tennessee since 1982. One of them was the Zolman/Stricker bunch which nearly did at Adelphia. The other is Cutler's boys. This is his last chance.

Vanderbilt has what could be its best quarterback in school history, perhaps equal to that of Bill Wade, in Jay Cutler. He is projected by many as one of the top-10 quarterbacks in the country heading into the 2006 NFL Draft. Tennessee saw what Vandy can do last year in the second half when they do not turn over the football. They man-handled the Vols. But it was three turnovers, two early fumbles inside the 20-yard-line that led to two Tennessee touchdowns, then a game-sealing interception on a blitz by Tennessee in the final two minutes, which provided the way for Tennessee to win. There is no question Vanderbilt is less superior than most SEC football powerhouses in athletic talent. That's why it will be all the sweeter when we knock off one of the big boys. It's coming. Six wins? Maybe not. But the big one is coming soon to a field near you.

Perhaps comparing basketball to football is like apples and oranges. Ron Mercer would have been one of the top recruits in school history. Roger Herndon was not even offered a scholarship. Herndon is a superior, stand-out athlete, but he does not hold a candle to the impact a Ron Mercer could have made. And if Gordon Gee were here for Ron Mercer, he would have been a Commodore.

Gordon Gee has actually cleaned up some of what Paul Hoolihan destroyed at Vanderbilt. Gee's process seems to be long term, and I too am not yet sold on Bobby Johnson, but Vanderbilt's overhaul of the athletic department two years ago produced two Sweet 16 basketball teams, nearly a College World Series baseball appearance, a tennis NCAA runner-up and other minor sports success. In all (look it up) Vandy was seventh in the SEC in 2003-04 for overall sports success out of 12 teams, and they have less competitive sports than anyone in the conference, making that even more impressive. True to your statements, the football team needs work. They were the only part of the school in the last two years without significant improvement. But firing the coach and changing the administratrion every 3-4 years won't do it. Give the guy some time. They also run a clean program, and that should be respected. They may not win, but ask the SEC teams. They are competitive. They battle. They scare. And one day, the big one's coming. One day it will and the bandwagonners will come out of the closet. And hopefully, so will the fans. As for Herndon, I stick my guns. This one is on admissions, not athletics.

I think many of the shots directed at the Vanderbilt football program in this thread are highly unwarranted. Roger was not offered a football scholarship, therefore his acceptance and entry to Vanderbilt was based entirely on academic standing and test scores, etc., and nothing to do with football. That removes all responsibility from the football team and places it on the admissions acceptance procedures. And if indeed he was in the lower 25 percent of ACT test scores for incoming Vanderbilt freshmen, and had problems submitting an SAT score, then I can understand exactly why this happens. Students get denied to premier universities every year, and it happens often. Just because he is a high-profile athlete doesn't change how he fits in the big picture. If the football team wanted him that badly, they could have easily cleared this whole thing by putting him on the field with a scholarship. They didn't, and in my book, blame is removed.