crazzyness

UH will name the score. Hampton and Coalfield will flirt with a run rule win. Now Greenback/Oneida has at least a chance of being an interesting game.

Heck if you've got enough kids in the program to do that, that's awesome. Give the young kids as many games as you can. The better question, IMO, is why you'd be playing a kid you think you might LEGITIMATELY need for districts in a JV game that week.

It's always a good day when I come back on here and DON'T have to eat crow. Monday night, it almost seemed that neither NG or Hampton really cared if they won or lost. It was like they had both decided they'd get rolled by UH and have to play each other again tonight. I believe Hampton could go on the road next Friday and give a good game to either Coalfield or Greenback. UH, though, is just playing on another planet right now. Their last 6 games, they've outscored their opposition 105-12.

I've seen NG and Hampton quite a bit this season. I've been less impressed with NG. That's not to say they won't make substate, though. They have the better #1, and I think they field the ball a smidge better. But Hampton has the better bats, and better depth in the rotation. In a double elimination format, I think I'd give Hampton the advantage, IMO.

Everyone here has valid points. The one game thing is a total crapshoot, there's no doubt about it. On the flip side, the travel is absolutely atrocious for some substate games. Say last year (before reclassification) you could have had a substate matchup of Lookout Valley at Cloudland. Travel for a 3 game series would either require ridiculous amounts of milage, or Lookout Valley having to to put up 20 kids (and parents/family members/fans) in a hotel somewhere. The only "fair" way to deal with that would be a centralized location, and have a sectional tournament between the top 2 finishers in each region, like they did in basketball in the 90s. Of course, that takes away the home field advantage for winning your own Region, which I absolutely love. There's no real good way around it.

Not surprised at all. Not saying he was a bad coach, but I always felt like he was there to just manage the remains of what Mains had built while it was still there.

Turn around and got bumrushed 16-0 today. Baseball is a funny game.

There's no need for a shot clock. If a coach don't want a team to hold the ball, then he needs to pressure the ball. Then there will either be a turnover, or a defensive breakdown and an easy layup. Problem solved, let's move along.

To be frank, I believe UH is looking head and shoulders better than NG right now. They've already got wins over East and Volunteer. In fact, I'd hazard to say UH might be the best 1A team east of District 8. Don't get me wrong, NG is solid, but they look very pedestrian compared to last year. I wouldn't be completely surprised if Hampton doesn't split with them in the regular season. They didn't lose much off of the team that was a couple pitches away from eliminating UH in Districts last year.

Nicchaeus Doaks for example

I'm sure having him is a difference maker. But, you being a local of the UC, I don't think you fully appreciate how tough a task driving 4 hours to go play a team from the upper Cumberland at their house is!! That's worth a few points too. Only tougher home environments I'd even compare to that is going to Cloudland when they had strong teams, and having to travel to Sneedville.

You know, maybe I did come off alittle strong about that. But, you following up an opinion that there should only be 2 Classifications in DII for 49 schools in football with a rebuttal of there should only be two classifications in DI for 322 schools in basketball is just absolutely preposterous.

Well heck fire, using that logic, we should have like 300 classes right? Cause there's no way Clinch can compete with Hampton in basketball. Give everyone a state championship!!

I've been waiting on 4 classes in basketball/baseball/ext for a while, and I'm glad it's finally come to stay. Football would be perfectly fine with 5 classes. And Division 2 absolutely doesn't need 3 classes in football. 47 teams competing for 3 state championships is a joke. I mean in D2 AAA there's like what, 11 teams playing for a state championship? Ridiculous.

Hampton has the ability to completely harass their opponents, sometimes to their own detriment. I think it will all come down to how tight the game is officiated.

You can think what you like, but Jellico struggled to beat Unaka not once, not twice, but 3 times this year. They got rolled by Hampton when half their team was still playing football. The 1 point game in the region semi finals was an anomaly. Oneida got beat by OS twice. We saw what OS was all about tonight. And in Districts 4, 5, and 6, there were exactly 0 teams that were better than average. Let's just face the music. Hampton, NG, ER, Clay, and Pickett were head and shoulders better than everyone else in east TN in 1A. No other teams were even above average.

NG and Clay win in running clock games. ER wins by 20+, and Hampton wins on the road by 14 after not getting off the bus until 10 minutes into the game.

Well to be completely honest with ourselves, aside from District 1, Single A basketball east of the Cumberland Plateau is pretty much a joke this year. UH, Unaka, and possibly even Cloudland would have competed near the top in Districts 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 8.

If Hampton plays their game, they'll roll Harriman. I mean Harriman lost to Clay by nearly 50 less than four weeks ago. They are NOT a state tournament caliber team.

Definitely neat seeing a small school like Santa Fe have a strong class of kids come through and creat excitement for the community. They haven't been anywhere near relevant since I was in school nearly two decades ago.

I don't understand the whole fuss about sub-state travel. While I was in school, my school participated in 13 substate games (Boys/girls bball, softball, baseball) And our CLOSEST opponent in any of those games was from roughly 1 hour 45 minutes away.

Hampton, NG, ER, Clay. Geeze it's so odd saying ER out of the "East."

The two Region 5/6 matchups should probably be interesting games. I don't expect any of the 4 games in the East being close, honestly.

What planet are you from where you think it's a referee's job to control a player's actions and bad sportsmanship? That has nothing to do with officiating. That has to do with coaching, that has to do with character, that has to do with being able to keep ones emotions in check. NONE of which are an officials responsibilities. Officials don't control a player's/coach's bad behavior. Player's/coach's control a player's/coach's bad behavior. It's that darn simple. The purpose of officials is, to the best of their ability, enforce the rules of basketball as prescribed by the NFHS (one of which states that ANY player leaving the bench area during a fight/altercation is to be ejected.) Maybe if there were less folks in the world, like you, who attempt to pass blame onto others instead of holding people accountable for there actions, there'd be less garbage like this happening in high school sports. Yet, here we are. Thanks a bunch.

Does this happen if the officials call a tighter game? You know, maybe, maybe not. But let me tell your something I DO know. Does this happen if: The players keep their cool: No. The players don't try to fight: No. The players stay on their respective benches: No. The teams show better sportsmanship: No. The coaches control the bench: No. Need I go on? Folks like you need to wake up and quit trying to throw blame on officials for "lOsInG cOnTrOl Of ThE gAmE" when in reality the problem is the players/coaches/parents/fans don't know how/refuse to conduct themselves properly or have good sportsmanship. Cause if you don't, in 40 years there won't be any officials to call games, and you'll be sitting at home on Tuesday nights with your thumb up you butt trying to figure out who to blame.