Grey Ghost

No doubt, "Ding, ding ding . . . lightbulb anybody?" After #11 went out with the injury (thoughts and prayers with him), the common sense response would be to give the ball to #8 every single snap. When he was at TB, they moved the ball. When #8 was at FB, they didn't. I'm sure CPA was exhilarated that they didn't keep #8 at TB the whole time. I'd take #8 on my team any day - and I'd give him the ball about 30 times. #2 coming into the game at QB is baffling really, and likewise resulted in negative yards. Great players with no chemistry will not find success.

I've mentioned this before on other threads and never received a response. I'm still confused, not being extremely familiar with the state association. Folks keep congratulating the 10AA teams: Maplewood, CPA, and Pearl. But, isn't Maplewood a 4A team? So, Maplewood wins the district with 3A teams in it? So, CPA has only one loss - to a 4A team - so they don't win their district? CPA beat Goodpasture head to head and had a better record, but they had to go to Goodpasture? Harpeth HS and Fairview are a closer drive to CPA than Stratford, Goodpasture, and Maplewood, but they have to drive to those schools because the state association says it's closer? Who in the heck runs/or makes decisions in your state association? I've never heard of anything so ludicrous. So, just to be clear, Maplewood is a district champ with 3A teams in it, although they are a 4A team. Well, heck, that just makes perfect sense. It seems a bunch of folks just got around the firepit and drew straws blind. Anyway, I'm excited to see how round 2 of Pearl-CPA goes. The first one was quite the event. Good luck to both teams. P.S. So are Maryville and Alcoa in the same district? Shouldn't FRA have to play BA, Ensworth, MBA, and Father Ryan because the state association deems them closer, as opposed to some of those distant little bitty schools they play? Why doesn't CPA play Nashville Christian? They are right down the street. Does the state association really even care?

I've lived in a few places, and Tennessee, from what I have seen and know, has the most dysfunctional playoff system I've ever seen. I don't know who leads your TSSAA or who makes these decisions, but it's odd. Just so I'm not confused, a 4A team can be region/district (whatever you call it) champs over a 3A team - but yet they are in two different classes playing for two different state class championships? Why even have a district champ, if a district has schools from two different classes? I'm just awestruck on this and need help. Additionally, if team A beat team B head to head, and team A also has a better regular season record, team A must travel to team B in the playoffs because team B was first in its district/region and team A was not first in theirs? Sorry, I'm just baffled. I haven't been in TN since they re-shuffled all this region stuff around.

I agree with you. Sportsnutdad was either not at the game, doesn't understand the rules when watching a game, or had the color of jerseys backwards when watching the game. CPA was called for a dozen penalties to DL's two. DL high lowed (completely illegal) the whole game.

Ya'll are funny. So do ya'll have kids or jobs? Ya'll sure get to spend a lot of time on here. I am allotted about once per month to visit "fun" sites. Listen, bottom line is not what happened in the past, but what MBA does now "in the present". How do they move forward. Mistakes were probably made - but whether you hide it or disclose it is really irrelevant. The important thing is what is being done to provide the kids there right now the best opportunity to succeed. So, what is arguing about the past getting anybody? It's like an ol' fellow told me one time, "Worrying, or bitching about the past, is like sitting in a rocking chair. It's something to do, but it won't get you anywhere". You have to think about the future because the kids that are there now aren't the past. They have to be the focus. Mistakes were made, so fix them - but don't dwell all day on the "why" and "how" they were made. Move forward. As Will Rogers said, "Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there". So, move forward all of you. What can be done now to make it better on the hill? My only interest in all of this is the student-athletes and the quality of competition on the field. I'm a fan of several private institutions. I just want the quality of MBA football to stand strong, along with Ensworth, BA, and so on. It's good for middle TN, and it's good for the student-athletes. I would love to hear about the day when Tennessee is considered a power state in football - but we are so far from that. That's my goal anyway. Maybe all ya'll have a different agenda.

If they don't call David Pack, they are idiots. They should offer him everything (including headmaster in waiting). Yes, I said they should offer David Pack control of the school. This would be the best course of action that MBA could pursue. I could get in to why this is the best course of action, but I will not (it just is). Coach Pack will more than likely not even consider the phone call if Gioia (or however the crap you spell it), is still present. Get rid of Gioia, get Pack. That's my opinion, and it's not worth the dirt on your boots, but that's what it is. So, since they won't get Pack, they should call Paul Wade, but they probably won't call him cause he's not in the family so to speak. Let's be clear and admit that the DII coaching carousel is incestuous. Scared of hiring from the outside. I've heard they might go after Maryville's coach. This is all I know about him: He is a high character guy. He might be too high character for MBA. Does he want to deal with the complexities that will accompany such a job. If MBA could land him, that is a massive win for the school IF they let him do his thing. We'll see. You just don't see lots of outside coaches getting a chance at DII, especially at the HC level, because it is so incestuous. You have to be a member of the family. Really, at the end of the day, it's all sad, because the most important thing is the interest of the student-athletes. So, possibly, hiring some ol' boy from a south Alabama public school might be the best possible thing for the sake of the "student-athlete". But, how likely is MBA going to give a chance to a guy like that? That's the question. Anyway, I'm curious what will happen. It's very bad timing. Gioia needs to know that these kids need a new leader immediately. All other schools are starting spring practice. I hope MBA considers the kids first, and not the "face" of the program.

So this thread has been quiet for so long. What's the word? Who has Coach Martin hired for his staff? I haven't seen any press releases regarding anything. Anyway, just curious. Does anybody think that MBA will call Ingle about any kind of position? So what's up - was Ingle (Coach Martin) able to complete his staff? And, furthermore, will he leave if MBA comes a calling?

Your allegiance to MBA is well noted. I have always respected your posts. I agree - there is no debate about the rigorous academics. MBA and Harpeth Hall have and probably always will have all others beat in that category. And MBA has had many more good teams than mediocre teams.

I know these stories - and I certainly agree with you on this. I am not suggesting off the field behavior, for those stories were certainly embarrassing to Ensworth, but more of an overall "demeanor". But I will accept your advice, lest I lack all the correct information and cease broaching the issue. I certainly don't want to "slip". Therefore, I concede, cause I really don't have a dog in the fight.

Oh wow, I love observing ya'lls comments. Did this go from talking about the game to about the # of African-American athletes on each side of the ball. Well I'll let ya'll know something: Dick Butkus, Jack Lambert, Jim Taylor, Steve Owens, Jay Novacek, Lance Alworth, Roger Staubach, Wes Welker, Jason Witten, Peyton Hillis, Bill Bates, Teddy Bruschi, and Tom Brady are all white. Would ya'll take these guys on your team? If that doesn't settle the point: Have ya'll looked at MBA's freshmen and 8th grade class? They have twice the # of African-Americans in those class than Ensworth does? But, I don't hear anybody talking about the direction that MBA is obviously going. I watched MBA football closely when I moved here in 1998, and the culture there has completely changed. I don't know what boosters, or guys like K Woodruff think about it, but I would be concerned with the direction of the program. I used to be an MBA fan, but not anymore. And I'm not talking about the influx of African-Americans, I'm talking about the "culture" of the place, from the way the kids behave off the field to the way they compete on the field. Something has changed about that place. I don't have the reasons or any answers to the solution, but it sure seems nobody is talking about it. I guess when you lose, nobody cares. I don't have a dog in the fight either way, but when I watch how Bowers handles his players compared to McGugin, I'm sending my kid to Bowers every time. Regarding the state championship game, I thought it was ugly on both side of the ball. It reminded me of a bowl game where teams had an entire month off and lose their discipline, focus, and most importantly, their rhythm. Maybe the two weeks off lessens the game discipline. There were several ugly penalties on both teams that negatively interrupted the flow of the game. Honestly, it didn't look like either team deserved to be in the game initially. For the one fella that said the receiver stepped out of bounds on the late TD, that never happened. Nobody ever stepped out of bounds. The refs viewed it as a tie. The tie goes to the runner (just like in baseball). So, the tie goes to the offense. But to prove this point further, Huesman confessed in the Chattanooga paper the Dingess just pulled the ball away from him as they went to the ground. Huesman is a great competitor and has all my respect. For him to say that, it had to be humbly difficult, but he did say it. So, take all that as you will. Great game. Baylor came with a great game plan. Hats off to them. They absolutely brought it to Elder. Outside of the one long run he broke, they shut his butt down. He had his way with them the first time they played, and Baylor definitely adjusted. They played with great heart and guts. The coin just flipped on heads when they called tails.

Congratulations to Jacob Huesman. He is a great competitor.

All righty then. I can't argue with the great Murphy Fair book. I'm just sorry you won't see Antonio on the field or on the sidelines.

Since my thoughts got started on "player of the year" considerations, I think back to last year in which Brunetti beat that Orleans kids from Ensworth. I have no idea what Brunetti is doing in college right now, but I keep seeing Orleans name in the paper on Sundays. He has rushed for 5 straight 100 yard game at Tulane, and even threw a couple of TD passes. He is also returning kicks apparently. Looking back on unapproved website stats, he rushed for almost 2300 yards and 24 TDs last year, far more production than Brunetti did. So my question is this: since the Jefferson kid from Ensworth won it the year before (beating Brunetti), did they not want another Ensworth kid to beat Brunetti two years in a row in an effort to look unbiased towards the middle TN region? Clearly, unless someone informs me otherwise, Orleans was the better football player and is showing so on Saturdays right now. However, you can say that Brunetti was the state championship QB (and if that is the sole basis of the vote), then I stand corrected for even bringing this up. Happy Thanksgiving to all.

I'm not sure if you're joking or not, quite honestly, since Antonio doesn't play for Ensworth anymore. Yes, you'll probably see Antonio in the SEC for the next 3-4 years, but I thought most fans that followed HS football probably knew that he was no longer playing for Ensworth. Anyway, Ensworth has managed to win without him. Baylor has a great QB, who is surely the front runner for the DII-AA back of the year (and I'm really only saying that cause Corn is a sophomore - I feel like there is a Heisman tendency to steer away from underclassmen). Nonetheless, Huesman is really good. From watching him in a couple of games, he is a competitor. He expects to win, and he will do all it takes to do just that. He always leaves it all on the line. That is, he plays with no regrets. Baylor also has that #32 DL/FB. He is a load. One of the best in the league. I don't think you can gauge the first game between these two as a predictor of this game. However, I still give the edge to Ensworth. Guess my last remarks probably belonged to another thread. Anyway, have a good time in Cookeville if you go for 3 nights. I'm sure the town will appreciate your revenue.

Yep, none of this matters if you don't give up 3rd and 33 and then another long completion to a TE who had only caught one ball for 6 yards entering this game. The TD came on first down, so who knows what would have happened on the next 3 downs. If he's ruled out as he apparently was, Ensworth was carrying an awful lot of momentum, but it's football, so who knows.