K2ruth

Looking at the AAA schools Bearden and Farragut, the District was won by Farragut, not by coaching, but by the coach and team getting out of the way so the star player could get the job done. Bearden, if they learned anything last Thursday, is let your star player do what she does and stay out of her way. Coaching no longer impacts the game when you have talent let them play.

Wouldn't it be fun if the Bearden coach let his superstar play all six positions so the two best players in Knoxville could go against each other for all six rotations. That is where his inexperience got Bearden beat in districts. He is too timid to unleash his super star.

The proof is in the results. Farragut and Bearden are both headed back to the state tournament and could meet in the state finals. The two superstars went head to head in the District Finals and will have to have a repeat Tuesday in rage Regional Finals. What's funny is that neither player can be stopped. The team will win which has the coach that uses their star the most. In District that was Farragut. The Bearden coach needs to wise up and play Chesney on the back row so she can hit from six positions like the Farragut star. That way these two can battle it out!

Bearden and Farragut have a clear path to the state tournament and maybe the state finals. Chesney is clearly the best player to ever play at Bearden, and maybe in the state. If they will get out of her way she will lead her supporting cast a long way.

Farragut is the gold standard.

Should be fun

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I don't think it is either good or bad. In Catholics situation I think it satisfied some disgruntled parents. The parents ran off a really good coach, I think one of the top two or three in Knoxville, and replaced him with a really nice guy, but an inexperienced coach. Won't matter this year, CAK is better at every position, I worry about whether it will hurt them down the road.

That's why they hired a club coach. I don't think they will be bad, they just can't compete with the other top tier teams.

Knoxville has an interesting situation. Of the six real volleyball schools, CAK, Bearden, Hardin Valley and Catholic have brand new, young, coaches with zero coaching experience in high school. Farragut and Webb have seasoned coaches, Webb has the best high school coach East Tennessee has ever produced. My question is does high school coaching really matter?

Catholic and Bearden picked club coaches to satisfy disgruntled parents. Bearden has a super star who doesn't need a coach, Catholic is way down and coaching doesn't matter. CAK is loaded with talent, most in town, and HV both promoted assistants. Does it matter.

Isn't most coaching done in club. Can a high school coach have any real impact anymore?

I have been hearing positive things about HValley, could be a surprise team this year. I do agree about coaching. Of the six real teams, CAK, Catholic, HV and Bearden have young coaches with no high school experience. Farragut and Webb have seasoned coaches with real experience. We will see.

No, you have no clue. These are the two best players in the state, the best I've ever watched in high school. I agree with fly, they should have won the state last year. The problem was not getting the ball to the best player when they needed it. Won't happen this year. She hits from all six positions and cannot be stopped.

With two big time D1 players one on Bearden and one on Farragut this season, both Juniors, and both literally in my back yard, I wanted to revisit this topic.

Does it help either player to play high school?

Risk of injury playing in practice and against badly coached teams who come under the net almost ever play.

Risk of burnout.

And playing with and against players of a much weaker skill set.

Is playing high school worth it, or should they use this time to train for a chance at a club national championship?

Knoxville has two Juniors, one at Bearden and another at Farragut, who are the two top players in the State. My question is whether one district has ever had the two top players at the same time? While it will be fun to watch, I am still concerned that these two elite players risk burnout and injury by playing high school.

SJ, did HV play either DB or TN High? If so, how did they look? HV is in a tough district this year. Who do you think the top three AAA teams are?

Will Sullivan South come out of AA? If so they should have an easy road to State. Defending state champion CAK looks better than they did last year but Catholic lost their coach and should be down.

Let's have some fun. Let's rank the Knoxville teams. Just Knoxville. No Tri-Cities, Chattanooga, Anderson or Blount County teams. Only Knoxville.

1. CAK - Should be a repeat state championship. No AA team can beat them and they are the class of Knoxville.

2. Bearden - Can one great player make a great team? In this case yes. An average setter, no other hitters and a rookie coach, and still they can win a state championship. She can hit from all six positions and cannot be blocked.

3. Farragut - They are almost identical to Bearden. Both led by a great Junior hitter, but average setter and a weaker supporting cast gives the edge to the Bulldogs. These District rivals will meet four times this year, and I hope the coaches let the State's two best players go head to head for bragging rights. Both schools will have an easy path to the state tournament and could very well meet in the state finals.

4. Hardin Valley - Any other year this would be HV's year, but they don't have a player that can stack up against Bearden's and Farragut's big time Juniors. Great team, but not enough to beat either of the D-1 hitters.

5. Webb - Best coach in the state, and her daughter is another big time player. Lacks the height of the big four, but should win a state championship.

No one else I'll make any noise. Catholic lost there coach and don't have enough to take a game from any of the top five, but they are the best of the rest.

CAK is loaded with talent. They probably have more talent than any ET team. They will not lose a game, let alone a match in AA this year. I don't see anybody, except maybe Bearden taking a game from them in Knoxville.

Both CAK and Bearden made coaching upgrades. I don't see anybody in AA beating CAK and it will be between them and Bearden to see who is the best East Tenn team. Bearden has way under performed the last few years. They will be close to unstoppable this year. CAK is loaded with power and may be better overall than Bearden, the difference is Bearden has a GREAT player unlike anything Knoxville has ever seen before. If they can cind a setter that is half decent she is unstoppable.

CAK won't lose a set, let alone a match, to any AA school. They should roll to a repeat. Bearden needs to train a supporting cast of players to stay out of the big girls way and help with defense. Knoxville has not had two teams this strong ever. Should be a fun year.

Is that just a rumor? I thought they were promoting the asst coach?

Hey EB, any word on the CAK coaching hire?

EB, can you keep us updated when CAK makes a hire?

I heard that the CAK job is open. Did the coach resign? If so thoughts on the new coach?

Philly, your above post is why it is hard to take you seriously.

Philly, you seemed to have insight into this job. Was this your hire?

Angle, I agree. Zach was not a placed coach. Dave must have destroyed a program that could have been a powerhouse. It must have really been bad.

Zach Forgani. Another school goes K2. With Webb, Catholic and Bearden now in the fold the Knoxville volleyball market, and parents, have spoken. Philly, surely this wasn't the coach you were talking about. It will be interesting to see how Zach handles this. I like him, but I agree with HA, 1500 doesn't seem like much. This was not a big name hire? Zach, like Brent, could have used a little more seasoning, or mentoring under a more experienced coach. I realize that club parents are weighing in, but this one surprised me.

Wow! Big win for K2 in the coaching wars. BB wasnt he the club coach of Catholics top young player? Doesn't he coach club with this player's mom? So much for a "search."

I am not affiliated with K2 nor have I ever said that. I have had ties with the club, but I do not own it, work for it or speak for it. I respect what they are doing for Knoxville volleyball.

BBV, I am surprised you left the Anderson County coaches off of the list. I don't know any of them except Coach Randi, (who I think is an amazing club coach and great person) also there are people who come thru UTs mens program that don't work with a club, but who are quality volleyball people.