mothball

Blitzinbuc....you make me laugh. Your "facts" actually support the argument that Bradley Football is back and heading in the right direction. Lets see if I can get you thinking logically instead of emotionally. Facts: 1. The Teams bradley Beat had a combined 38-49 record. Well imagine that Bradley beat the weaker teams on its schedule. Isn't that what a good team should do? But not only did Bradley beat them, in most cases they dominated those games as they should have. Most of those games were over at halftime, again what you would expect from a good football team. 2. The teams Bradley lost to had a combined 21-12 record. Bradley had 3 losses, all to playoff teams. 2 of the losses were by a total of 5 points and could've gone either way. I am not making excuses but learning to win those close games is part of the process of getting to the next level. I don't think anyone is arguing that Bradley is a state contender in 2010, but there is no shame in losing to other playoff teams. 3. Bradley wasn't even the best team in the county and just barely the second best team. I'm not sure what "fact" you are trying to argue here. Bradley got beat by Cleveland when we had 2 starters out with injuries, the QB couldn't run because of a leg injury, and we lost two other defensive starters during the game to injury. Not making excuses, but that game may have been very different if it was played when Bradley was healthy. The second part of the statement is just too ignorant to respond to. 4. The first team Bradly beat in the playoffs had 8 losses on the season. Again I'm not sure what point you are trying to make. Bradley can't help who their first round opponent was, but they did what any good team would do and that was dominate that game and make sure it was over at halftime. Isn't that what good teams do? 5. Bradley got into the playoffs because the district was the weakest it had been in decades. This doesn't bode well for McMinn, Ooltewah, Walker Valley etc... If the district was weak and those 3 teams were not even competitive then it may be a LONGGGGG time before we see them challenge Bradley, Soddy, and Cleveland in the district. I would think that in a weak distict a good program would be competitive even in a rebuilding year. The fact that McMinn and Ooltewah were not even competitive this year may be a sign that these programs will be doormats for years to come. 6. Bradley lost to a rebuilding Oak Ridge team.....I don't think there is any shame in losing to a traditional power like Oak Ridge. I am not sure if you saw that game, but if you asked the Oak Ridge team I bet they were happy to get out of town with a win in a game in which they were outplayed and had NO answer for the Bradley offense. I think the difference in that game is one team has playoff experience and the other was on a bigger stage for the first time in a decade. I think your "facts" actually support the argument that Bradley football is back and on a path that will have them contending in the state playoffs in the next couple of years. The coaching staff has had to start this program over from nothing and build the foundations that will keep this program competing for district titles for years to come. I don't think anyone has said the 2010 Bradley football team was the greatest team in TN, but they are well on the way to being a team to be feared. I have a few "facts for you to consider Blitzinbuc..... 1. Bradley returns 14 starters next year! 2. Bradley's JV team went undefeated this year and had 3 teams cancel their game so they wouldn't be embarrassed by the Bears! 3. Bradley's freshmen haven't lost a game in 4 years! The future at Bradley is bright. You don't have to like it, but you WILL have to DEAL WITH IT!!!!!!!!!!

http://tssaa.org/Handbook/football.pdf Per the handbook from the above link: If at any point when the following tie-breaking procedures are applied, one team has beaten all other teams that are tied for a play-off position, that team shall be rated above the others. Bradley and Cleveland would be tied and we have beaten them; thus, making us #1. This is a VERY interesting scenerio in the "new" handbook. My take on this is that "head to head" doesn't mean anything when using the tie breaker system put in place by the TSSAA. When you have two or more teams tied with the same district record you have to follow the "tie-breaking procedures" in the handbook. There are 7 tie-breaking procedures that should seperate the tied teams. As you go down the list of these 7 tie-breakers, "If at any point when the following tie-breaking procedures are applied, one team has beaten all other teams that are tied for a playoff position, that team shall be rated above the others". This sentence means that you don't have to go thru EVERY tie-breaking procedure to find a winner. Once a team beats all other teams that are tied, they are rated above the other tied teams. The first tie-breaking procedure is best overall record. In This first criteria, Bradley beats Cleveland and such is rated above Cleveland. There is no reason to move down the list of tie-breaking procedures because one team, Bradley, has broken the tie by winning the first criteria. This means Bradley is #1 in the district. Now does that mean Bradley is the distric Champs? I can't answer that, but based on the TSSAA handbook and their own published district standings it would appear that Bradley is #1 in the district and Cleveland is runner-up!