Dynasty31

FOHSF - Point taken. I was having a little fun that is all. I do not think either team played their best. I can recall a high school game of mine (eons ago) in La where we lost to the #1 ranked team in the state 15-8 despite outgaining them 385-79 in yardage. Turnovers and penalties will hurt you. Those guys will say they caused them and that is what good teams do and we say we beat ourselves. As the saying goes, there are 3 sides to each story - yours, mine and the truth is somewhere in the middle. My point was simply that Arlington did not play their best game either and a lot of that had to do with the Tigers themselves just like the Trojan fans are saying about their team. After seeing them play in person and watching tape of both, I think that Arlington is the better team this year. Obviously, we rely more on the pass and field conditions can affect us. I think our passing game was terrible in that game due to a number of factors (QB contact problems, dropped passes, wrong routes, wet field, etc) that are unrelated to Millington. You guys have been the kings for a while, AHS wants to enjoy being king for a least a day. One point I think we agree on is now we are fans of both schools. I wish Millington and all Memphis area teams the best as I would like to improve our perfromance against the other parts of the state. Now let's focus on the playoffs and hopefully both make a run to December. Good Luck!

You missed my cryptic message - The Wooddale thread had the comment about Millington torching the Tiger defense. Just thought I would tie it all together

I know this thread is supposed to be dead but I wanted to get my .02 in. I have not posted about this game until now. I do find it interesting that only a few weeks ago, there was a theme that Millington would not lose to Arlington. Now the theme is that Millington beat themselves. Interesting theory. Millington did make mistakes as did Arlington. I think the point that is lost here is how Arlington coming off a 1-9 season with no history to speak of in big games went to Millington on senior night with the region crown on the line and won ....without playing their best (by a longshot). The Tigers played pretty average football as well..missed open receivers, had missed tackles (yes Millington was not the only team to be in position to make tackles and miss them - but it is in the eye of the beholder. When Millington misses a tackle, they beat themselves, when Arlington misses a tackle, the Trojans torched the Tiger defense - I get it). Our QB was inadvertently poked in the eye in the first drive of the second half, lost a contact and did not have a spare. It is amazing that he didn't throw a pick as by then there wasn't much difference in the colors of the jerseys due to the weather - LOL! So there is plenty for both sides to lament about. I think Millington is a good team (not as good as last year, but good). Bottom line is that in a game that was for the region championship, on the road, not playing thier best game, the Tigers overcame all that and won in OT. That is what championship teams do - they find a way to win...period. When the game was on the line, the Tigers stared down the Trojans and did not blink and for that I could not be more proud. As I have said before, this group of seniors have won at every level and were expected to be good (now 10-0; who would have thought even with the schedule). When our soph. kicker nailed the FG for the win (what a pressure kick by a soph. by the way), I was almost brought to tears. These kids have worked their tails off and proven everyone wrong. Enjoy the Region Championship Tigers! Now, the thread is officially dead and let's focus on the playoffs. Hey, if both teams take care of business, maybe we can play again later this month. Good Luck to both teams in the playoffs. Our region looks better the farther we both go.

With the Arlington open date, I am out of town - I heard Craigmont beat Millington 7-0 - Is that correct? Big win for the Chiefs if true.

Not going to be able to create any bulletin board material from Arlington. I am pretty close to these players and they have a lot of respect for Millington and know how difficult a challenge next friday will be. These kids remember 1-9 and one reason for the success this year is they do not overlook anyone or take anything for granted. As I have said before, Millington is the king of the region until someone knocks them off. Looking forward to a great Craigmont-Millington game. Good luck to both teams.

GoChiefs - I would like your assessment of Arlington after seeing them up close. I know you are disappointed in the loss - but Craigmont played a heck of a game and it was a playoff type atmosphere. I think Craigmont has a chance to go deep in the 5A playoffs. The defense is athletic and salty and the running game has the ability to control the clock. I appreciate you comments regarding the city school issues faced by some coaches. I applaud them for doing everything they can to provide mentorship and leadership in the lives of the ones that need some guidance. I was not glad to see the incident after the play, but just glad no one was injured. Everyone makes mistakes.Hopefully the young man will continue to get guidance and it will have an impact in his life. GoChiefs - Your team's effort has made another fan - I hope the Chiefs go far in the playoffs and good luck against Millington - Should be a heck of a ballgame.

Craigmont at Arlington was a very exciting game to say the least. Hats off to the Chiefs whose defense was as good as advertised. I think the Tigers caught them off guard in the 1st Q, really moving the ball at will through the air. Only good defensive stands by Craigmont to give up only 1 TD and 2 FG kept it from being 21-0. After the first quarter, Craigmont really frustrated the Tiger offense. They played man-free coverage, locked up the receivers and got good pressure forcing Poole to throw on the run a lot. The Tiger defense was also very solid. Credit to both teams as they kept doing each what they do best (Craigmont - tough man defense and Arlington passing attack). When it mattered, Jordan Leakes beat his man down the left sideline and Poole hit him in stride for a huge 70+ yard gain. Only the sloppy field, which caused Leakes to fall at the Chief 10, kept him from scoring. Two plays later, Poole connects with Jake Boring on a 5 yd TD pass with under 2 minutes to go for the win after the Tiger defense forced a Chief fumble on the ensuing drive. In summary, these are both two very good teams. Craigmont does not have a great passing game, but it is adequate as long as they do not get behind and have to throw. They have a great running game and really at times dominated the line of scrimmage ripping off 6 and 7 yard gains on 1st down. The Tiger defense who gave up nothing in the 1st Q, made key stops when it mattered. Craigmont had a good plan on defense, they shut down the Tiger run game and for the 2nd and 3rd Q, kept the Tiger offense in check. This Tiger team continues to amaze me. For the past 3 weeks, they have played very important region games, in less than ideal conditions, against teams who would like nothing better than to beat Arlington and say the Tigers are not for real, and all the Tigers have done is go out and win. The Tigers are becoming a complete team on both sides of the ball and the special teams have been huge contributors to the streak. In two of the last three weeks, Arlington has trailed late in the 3rd or 4th quarter, but yet this little team that was 1-9 last year, refuses to blink and succumb to the pressure. Open date comes at a great time. We have remained healthy for the most part this year and will need the extra time to prepare for Millington. As I have said earlier, Millington is the big dog on the block until someone knocks them off. This will be a huge game in 2 weeks. I am interested to see how Craigmont and Millington turn out. Should be a tough game between 2 good teams. Congrats Tigers! Huge win against a good team and you did it in 4th quarter 2 minute highlight reel fashion! By the way, will this win help our strength of schedule? (wink, wink)

Now that my white paper on Arlington's schedule is done; I will get to my picks: Craigmont at Arlington - Chiefs fell behind Arlington 12-0 last year before pouring it on and handling the Tigers 37-12. This Tiger team is clearly better and I think this will be a good one. I will not get in front of the streak - Arlington 24-20 Germantown at Wooddale - Do not know a lot about Wooddale, but they have been impressive. I do know a lot about Germantown and think the running of Thorton and Lowe will prove to be too much - Red Devils 28-14 Kirby at Collierville - Have seen Arlington shred the Dragon secondary first hand but have not seen Kirby, I do know that Kirby has played Craigmont and Germantown tough, that is enough for me - Kirby 30-14 Whitehaven at Mitchell - This should be an interesting game. Have not seen either one in person. Just a hunch here - Whitehaven 26-18 ECS at FACS - Could be wrong, but do not think FACS has horses to run with ECS - ECS 38-20 Briarcrest at CBHS - After Craigmont handled the Saints, I have an idea how this may go - Brothers 28-12 Good Luck to everyone, Please no more rain and Go Tigers! (AHS that is - Kwc, although I did pick Whitehaven to win!)

I will make my picks in another post, but I thought since the Arlington schedule has had such little discussion, I would add my two cents. First, I agree that our schedule will certainly not be rated as very difficult given how the teams have performed. That is a fact. Now let's compare the schedule from last year to this year: 2008 Region games: Millington, Bartlett, Bolton, Cordova, Craigmont, Ridgeway, Overton and Central 2009 Region games: Millington, Bartlett, Bolton, Cordova, Craigmont, Raleigh Egypt (Two less region game from prior year) That is a schedule you have to play. Now to compare the non region games: 2008: Germantown, Kossuth (MS) 2009: Collierville, Overton, Frayser, Westwood Since we did not have the benefit of hindsight - on paper switching Collierville for Germantown would not normally be a huge difference (Germantown has been better lately but Collierville historically is not bad) - Should have been approximate even swap Overton was a region game last year - Non region game this year; Oh by the way, we lost to them (along with many others last year) Just for the sake of analysis, let's swap Central from last year for Raleigh Egpyt in the changing up of the region - I do not see a big difference there So we are left with swapping Ridgeway (left region) and Kossuth, MS for Frayser and Westwood. I would put Kossuth, MS and Frayser in a similar category. Now swapping Ridgeway for Westwood is clearly easing the schedule. Now having said all that, it would appear that Arlington played a not dissimilar schedule last year on paper - only when you go 1-9, no one cares if your schedule is subpar. I believe that given the prior year, installing a completely new offense and wanting to build some confidence, I have no problem with the staff at Arlington adjusting the schedule. Even with our schedule, I did not predict 8-0 because I thought Collierville, Bolton and Cordova would be better. I have stated on here, the proof will come out. AHS could finish anywhere from 8-3 to ????. How would we know that Craigmont (who I think is very formidable) would be 6-1 and not Cordova, Bolton or Collierville? I think it is easy for people to point fingers with the benefit of hindsight once the results are in. Arlington is a good football team or not regardless of the schedule. I think that is why we have not moved up in the Dandy Dozen - fine, doesn't matter. Keep winning games and we will see where it ends up. I am sure that Millington gained valuable experience playing CB, MUS and OB, but I would think they would like to see what that game would have been last year when Millington was arguably stronger. Millington is the big kid on the region block until someone knocks them off. The next three weeks will be fun and interesting. I am just glad that Arlington is being mentioned on this board at all.

I see some posts on here linking midstate leaders and I know the Commercial Appeal has a stat list for Memphis area teams. Is there a site or source that tracks statewide stat leaders (rushing, passing, receiving, etc)?

Agree with Ace5 - Obviously from the stands, we got no explanation of the punt call, but it was pretty clear when the officials awarded the ball to Arlington, the ruling was the Tiger player was blocked into the ball. The player in question was a linebacker who I am pretty sure was instructed not to get near the ball. As for the personal fouls, go to Friday Football Fever and play the highlight where the Arlington runner is taken out of bounds standing up and a Cordova player decides to perform a MMA takedown clearly out of bounds. That one is fairly representative of the calls. It started to get pretty chippy out there and I can understand the frustration of Cordova, that loss may have cost them a playoff spot. I never like to criticize the officials, but Arlington was on the receiving end of several calls at Bolton that were hard to see, but you have to overcome it. Cordova has some good athletes but after watching them in person, I think they are hurting at receiver. Baker is a good QB, just not sure he has many options to throw to. Thornhill and Heaston are good backs but the muddy track limited them as it limited the Tiger vertical passing game. It was a hard fought game by both teams.

For the Chief fans in the know - give me a snap shot of what the chiefs like to do do on offense and defense? Run or throw primarily? Defense - blitz a lot? As I have said, I was very impressed with the D in the 7-7 this summer by Craigmont. I know that each team will try to be balanced and take what the other team gives them, but give us Arlington fans a scouting report since we have not seen you in person.

GoChiefs - Very good summary. I am looking forward to this game because it does involve 2 very good teams with a lot on the line (Region Championship opportunity). Both teams will be in the playoffs but I think for Arlington (win or lose) this game will be a great measuring stick for things to tighten up before the playoffs. I have said on here before, I was very impressed with the secondary play of Craigmont against Arlington at the Braircrest 7-7. They are very fast and physical. I think this will be a key matchup. If the Tiger O line can give Poole time to throw, I like our chances to move the ball as he is very good at reading defenses. However, Craigmont will be the best secondary we have faced this year. A second key matchup will be can the Arlington defense continue to play well and hold the Craigmont O down. I knew coming into the year that the Tiger offense would be good (this group of seniors have been good since 7th grade) but the question mark in my mind was the defense. Last year, a big reason for 1-9 was a defense that gave up way too many explosive (>30 yards) plays for TDs. The biggest surprise of the year, in my opinion, is the constant improvement in our defense. They are very good up front, have 4 very good linebackers and the secondary (after some early season shuffling) has settled in. I thought for Arlington to be a serious player, we had to have solid defense and good special teams play. Both of those areas have improved as the season has gone on. I think it will be a great test for both teams. If the field was dry (IMO) Criagmont would have handled Cordova and still been undefeated. I think it is clear that Millington, Arlington and Craigmont are the 3 best teams in the region. Hats of to Bolton though, who had 2 tough losses to Arlington and Millington that would have them playoff bound. I know they lost to Craigmont by 7 or so, but it sounds like that game might not have been as close as the score indicated. Let's get to Friday!

Gritty win by the Tigers tonight. I was very pleased that Arlington did not turn the ball over. A key play in the game was when Arlington was punting on 4th and 10 from their own 20. The snap was fumbled by the punter (starting WR) and he avoided the first Cordova defender, made his way to the sidelines and earned a first down that allowed the drive to continue. Our Qb did have 2 TD passes but did not have a great night statistically (10-24 for 116 yds, 2 TDs 0 Ints.) but he didn't turn the ball over and our defense played lights out for the 2nd week in a row. Cordova played hard and aggressive and the wet field, while limiting our passing game, probably hurt Cordova in getting their speed backs out on the edge. Playoffs, here we come! Sounds like Millington and Bolton played a slugfest. I really thought the Trojans would handle them, but give Bolton credit. This sets up a 6A showdown in 3 weeks between Millington and Arlington - Hope it is a good one. Craigmont is next up for the Tigers. I beleive that this may be our toughest test to date. We played them in 7-7 at Briarcrest in the summer and I was very impressed with the physical nature and speed of the secondary. Our offense will have to be clicking on all cylinders and the defense continuing thier play to beat the Chiefs.

I have been on the road all day and am making this prediction without seeing the Thursday scores....given that...here we go: Millington 28, Bolton 7 - Trojans roll Arlington 21, Cordova 14 - Tough game that could go either way Ridgeway 21, Wooddale 20 - Have not seen either, just a feeling White Station 35, Melrose 21 - Just think Melrose has some work to do CBHS 31, ECS 14 - Was not impressed with ECS at 7-7 competition this summer Good Luck Friday - I think canoes and rafts will be issued at all gates on Friday! Also think Craigmont rolls 45-7, I am very impressed with the Chiefs!