JeffCoPatriots2

What about questions defensively? Even though we had a solid defense last year running the 3-3-5, we're losing alot of seniors on that side of the ball as well, some of them three-year starters. Look for experienced SR DE Zach Massey, DB Evan McFall, LB Brandon Smiley, and DB Trey Dodson to help lead the Patriots defense this year. My questions are A: We have an experienced quarterback and runningbacks. But will a new, inexperienced line be able to protect them well enough to succeed? B: Will our defense be able to reload with the same firepower as last year? Or will they be forced to instead rebuild to break in the new starters? Either way, some JR's will have to step up and contribute to the team. C: With a good pocket passer who has a great arm, will the JCHS offense stick to the veer or move towards a more pro-style look? Even though the veer is traditional, our offense may be also very well-suited for a pro-style/one-back look. Will we work on more of a pass-oriented offense with a veteran quarterback? Or will we stick to our guns and grind it out on the ground?

This will be ugly. Maryville by 21

Call me crazy, but this is my UPSET ALERT of the week. CAK played Alcoa at their place pretty well earlier this season. The kickoff TD took some of the wind out of a CAK offense that was gashing Alcoa's defense. I'm not saying that I expect CAK to win, or that I think they will win, but so far my upset picks have been accurate enough. I just think this will be closer than alot of people think.

I would really like to be able to play Rhea but unfortunately our schedule's fixed for the next few years. Maybe sometime in the future we could revisit an old rivalry. If you look in the record books, JC and Rhea have had some great games in the past. Good luck with your next season.

I'm not trying to sound negative, but Devrin is MUCH improved from his junior year, let alone his sophomore year. His jr. year, when we finished 5-5 and played him, we held him to 107 yards, 63 of them coming off of one run. However, we come back to Knoxville this year with a much better team, and he ran ALL over us. He broke a single game rushing record playing barely into the second half. Although he broke his own record again the next game, it was still a great showing against us. I take back my comment of him being the ONLY thing Bearden has. They have some good linebackers and a good offensive line. It's just hard for anyone to stand out next to Young. I really like the matchup of Bearden and DB. DB is a running team, and Bearden has a good run defense. Bearden, needless to say, runs the ball very well, and Devrin makes people miss, but DB is very good at wrapping up and making tackles. I'm not going to predict a winner because anything can happen.

To clear something up, I'm JCPatriots1987 on a new screen name..forgot my password. What I mean is NOT that I disrespect Sevier County, or that I love East. Traditionally, we have been bitter rivals with Sevier..not in the friendly way either. Maybe respect was the wrong word to use. Maybe a better word would be sympathy. I've played against Sevier on multiple occasions, as have I with East. My sympathies lie more with East because of our rivalry with SC. No disrespect was intended against Sevier, they have a great program. Sorry to hear about Farragut. Us and DB didn't go well either. The IMAC needs to represent better next year!

CO-Champion. Overall record factors into the playoffs, not conference standings. Personally, I would like it to be decided by margin of victory, but obviously I'm biased there

Elizabethton fans, please don't jump all over me for this, especially since I'm not a fan of either team, but I have to give the edge to AE. I may be a little biased since AE is much closer to Jeff Co than Elizabethton, but I think that AE is just too fast and athletic for the Cyclones to handle. Being better-coached and having a home field advantage, I think Elizabethton will make it close, very close, but in the end I have AE. This may be because I've watched AE this year and not EHS. Hope for a good game.

I've seen them kick to other players..they just lateral to Young every time. no joke. it's on his highlights

I'd just like to give my input on the DB-Bearden game with no discussions about the JC-DB game. So please don;t attack me for being on here. I only want to be able to talk football even though my team's done. But obviously Devrin is the only thing Bearden has. Contain him, and you'll win and go on to play Maryville. If he has running room, you better hope that you can outscore him because he'll light the scoreboard up. He's fast, agile, has great vision, hard to bring down, and, maybe most frustrating of all, rarely goes down after initial contact. Look up his highlights, they're unreal. Good luck on your trip to Murfreesboro.

If they were so great, why did they get beat by DB?

Back in the 80's and 90's, Jefferson County was a legend. At one point, they were ranked as high as 4th in the nation. It was nearly impossible for a team to come into Dumplin Valley and emerge victorious. However, due largely to the head coaching situation a few years ago, the Patriots have been skidding since the departure of Coach Meadows (Now at Knox Catholic) and the arrival of Coach Marty Euverard. This staff change was almost the death of the program, and Jefferson County hasn't been the same since. After the hiring of Anderson, however, Jefferson County has begun to rebuild and work its way back into the spotlight. This year's senior class is the last class left from Anderson's first season with the Patriots, which resulted in a solid season for the Patriots, including a playoff appearance. The next year had alot of talent, but was unfortunately plagued by some injuries that hurt the Patriot's season. The year after that, the Patriots had a very young team that started out rocky but won five of their last six games to finish 5-5. But that's not the goal for this season. An experienced coaching staff and the majority of starters returning both offensively and defensively, the Patriots are looking to capitalize on their talent for a strong postseason run. If this high octane group can lead the success-hungry Patriots to the state playoffs, it could mark the turnaround of the football program and command the respect of the entire state. Only time will tell if this year is the one for Jeff County, but I believe that it will be.

Last I checked, returning 18 starters doesn't usually spell a tough year for a talented football team. We are much improved from last season with a new offense that fits our personnel better. Last year was our first season running the 3-5-3 defense, so our defensive unit is much more familiar with how to effectively run this defense than they were this time last year. I'm not saying that the Devils aren't an excellent team and a legit state title contender. Because they are. But don't count JC out. They're a much better team than most people expect. It's very possible that Jeff Co comes out with a big win.

Last I checked, returning 18 starters doesn't usually spell a tough year for a talented football team. We are much improved from last season with a new offense that fits our personnel better. Last year was our first season running the 3-5-3 defense, so our defensive unit is much more familiar with how to effectively run this defense than they were this time last year. I'm not saying that the Devils aren't an excellent team and a legit state title contender. Because they are. But don't count JC out. They're a much better team than most people expect. It's very possible that Jeff Co comes out with a big win.

That all depends on the execution of JC's offense. After struggling against Heritage to punch it in from the red zone, the coaches are working to assure better efficiency from the offensive core. I think an X-Factor of this game is the amount of hype Greeneville has. Although they have excellent athletes, I think that there is a slight chance that they might come into Patriot Stadium thinking they already have the game won. Last year's game was a little closer than the score showed. We had two touchdowns called back for holding. If that doesn't happen, the score is 28-17. Hardly a blowout. And let's not forget that the year before that, the Patriots came into the Devil's home stadium with a hostile crowd and heavily favored opponent, coming out with a 42-28 win. JC is even more improved from last season, with a new offense that fits our explosive personnel well. The defense was completely dominant against Heritage, but Greeneville is a much more high caliber team than the Mountaineers. I'm very interested to see how this matchup plays out. I know that the Patriots, who hate Greeneville very much, are extremely psyched to stop Greeneville's road to glory the very first game. I'm not sure, however, what the excitement level for the Devils will be. They're already at the top of the food chain, not in front of their home crowd, and matched up against a team THEY think they should easily beat. Could that factor be the deciding one in an excellent win for the Patriots?

We matched up against Heritage pretty well. The defense scored two touchdowns and played extremely well. However, from watching the offense, they had some issues with stalling on the 20 or 30 yard line. That's a fixable problem. DK had a few great runs and shows promise as an immediate impact player at tailback. We had a little trouble passing the ball, but not due to the quarterback situation. After Bible took over for Goins at the QB position, he has shown promise and poise in the pocket. He's not as athletic or mobile as Goins, but I think that moving Goins to all-purpose back was a smart move because he's a mismatch nightmare for the defense, and Bible will get the experience he needs to become a solid two-year starter. Bell, our starting tight end, did not play last Friday, so that's one explanation for not utilizing our tight end. Our biggest problem, in my opinion, was a large amount of both false start and offsides penalties, which can break a great team. However, this is easily remedied and I know that the team is working on making sure that these type of penalties won't affect the Pats. Younger players ae getting some snaps, and I see alot of promise in some of them. If the defense can keep its resilience, and the offense can click play after play without stalling, the Devils may have something to be concerned about coming into Patriot Stadium.