ArtVandolay

I agree that our D was way better last week but our problem before - amoung many - was that we "pass rushed" every play even when it made 0 sense. Every. Time. WTH. I think they were going for a loss in the back field but the result was by the time the 2ndary got into the back field, the ball was past the line making them try and play catch-up - and leaving nobody home. Stack the line, leave 3 deep and stay home. You won't get that 5-10 yd loss but you won't give up 20-30 yd gains with great freq. 3 and out works just fine for me,

That's what I figured. 2-3 RBs at 1 time and 0 QBs. I hope we understand this and stack the line.

hmmm...I guess if there was ever any thought of airing it out, that just disappeared. http://www.clevelandbanner.com/view/full_story/20363872/article-Wildcats-back-with-new-face-under-center?instance=main_article I still think it will be a good game. Our D better show up and Reese better hit the numbers in stride when he's called upon.

What I have a hard time understanding is people who live on the mountain, had their kids grow up on the mountain, sent them to elementary school on the mountain, had them play rec ball with other mountain families and then turn around and trash the mountain and their families. I guess the part about judging others was ripped out of the Catholic bible.

You know what the difference is between a Baptist and Methodist? A Methodist will say hey to you in the liquor store.

Let's see if I can spell this out for those still hatin'. 3 guys CAME up because their parents cared enough to get them out of a babysitting environment and into a learning program. Remember, when they came up we were a brand new program and they only had a 2 years to play V (and 1 year of JV). Do you really think if football was their focus that a new SM school was their #1 pick? HAHA. No one on the mtn thought that. I can't imagine that someone off the mtn thought any different. 1 other has parents who own property up on the mtn - which is totally legal. A couple of others came up later but they only play JV or when the mercy rule is in effect - if then. The rest of that army was all SM home grown boys. Do you really think SM covered it up? I mean if they had that kind of power why not continue to keep it under wraps? You want to come up and look for WMDs while your running through your conspiracy theories? I still hold my head high for SM. There were more than those boys strapping on a helmet and what they did as TEAM was AMAZING. If you ever saw us play you'd KNOW that it was WAY more than just 1 or 2 boys that earned that gold. And those boys by the fire that night...I'd still be proud to call them my son. They are good kids from good families.

Ditto on Zack. He is the 1 player that I would regret meeting up with in the open field whether he's playing FB or LB. He punches some nice holes for the RBs. And his carries usually go for 2 yards more than anyone elses in traffic. And sometimes those 2 yards are critical. Donnie Garner is another. I only saw bits and pieces of Donnie during the season. Partially because of the lopsided scores (pulled in the 1st qtr) and partially because of the number of talented ball carriers we have. The ball carrier crew all sang his praises for the job he does blocking for them when his number is not called. He also does a pretty good job on returns. State Champ Offensive MVP - and he earned it - and we had more than player with 100+ yards of O. But what I didn't notice (too many moving parts) this season was how good he also plays D. The display he put on yesterday was a big part of why we could keep such a good lead in the 2nd 1/2. He was put on #26 who was tearing us apart in the 1st. With the pressure on #1 from Zack and Relle with Donnie's coverage on #26 pretty much shut down their passing game. Some beautiful tip/knockdowns that would have been TDs help us keep our distance and momentum. His parents had to be busting with pride watching their son yesterday.

Fact - we just got enough enrollment to move to 3A at the beginning of the year. Fact - we are only a 2 year old varsity football program. Hate away.

Well I must admit I was nervous in the 1st qtr but Signal finally woke up. I really didn't think TCA was a 1 man O show. I've never seen an O with no backs in the backfield other than a qb. I expected something like SP - a good team with an outstanding player who played both sides. Whoever said stop Washington and you win was right. Put some pressure on #1 with some decent coverage and you put an end to TCA scoring. I've never seen a 1 man O. Not sure how they got this far. I mean he is good but not Hale good. In fact if I was the AL recruiter, I'd be scouting for a replacement. Sure looked like he quit on the team when the game was winding down but still time left. Maybe that was frustration and pain. I noticed his ankle taped up pretty heavily after 1/2 time. Also noticed that he was not happy with some of the play calling. And speaking of that - what's up with set, get play, reset and snap? NEVER seen that before either. Like baseball/football hybrid. Odd. Very odd. Signal let the 6-headed monster out of the closet this season. Each back had their game that got us here. Donnie was the man tonight - a man that wouldn't be denied and couldn't be stopped. Donnie earned his MVP honors. How's that over-rated D6 looking now W TN? How many gold balls are heading west? Oh and to counter your sour grapes - saying you didn't play your best and we weren't the best you saw - you weren't the best team we faced this year. SP and TC were by far the best we saw and FC gave us our biggest scare. You gave us the best 1st qtr but there are 4 qtrs in football. If you can't bring your 4 qtr "A" game to the Championship game - you should just stay home. But don't feel too bad - you seem to be quite the texters. That talent paid you a nice grand.

When you get to this game, you better have the "won't be denied" attitude. SP as a team came in with that attitude. I think last year's loss made them more hungry and a little mad which gave them that attitude. I hope Signal has the same attitude. Congrats to South Pitt. You earned it - you deserve it.

Yes he did quite a bit this season, last season, the season before... But maybe that just because locally, we all know what he can do. It's hard to register HS popularity outside the local realm. I was surprised about the Mr Football. I'd like someone to explain what happened on Polk Co sometime. Somehow he wasn't effective that game.

Normally I wouldn't give out any of my 2cent tips because I'm all for SP but since it won't matter now... Not sure you can stop him but you can tire him out. He plays both sides. You have to make him work on chasing WRs on long patterns. If you do that, by the 4th qtr he'll slow down. But this game may be over by then.

I'm a realist. I don't over-rate teams and I don't over-exaggerate by saying Baylor was overrated. If that is true, Ensworth was WAY overrated. Baylor had their chances and let them slip away. I'm pretty thick skinned (and headed) and can take trash talk all day long but I don't respect people that don't at least show some form of respect for the other team.

Gotta admit...he not only deserved to be on the list, I'd have him winning.

Sr. And yes he is a baller. He can carry a team with a little help. With everyone we've played, he'd be my #1 pick. Contain or counter is about the best you can do.

I must admit that the forecast of rain concerns me. Speed is one of our tools as well as no/low TOs. A wet field is sure to have some neutralizing effects on speed and a wet ball is harder to hold on to. Still looking for a W but not sure this will be a typical SM game. I'm looking forward to the game but I’ll be glad when it’s over.

Ah yes - Ensworth totally dominated the whole game and exposed that overrated region 6 team as posers. Baylor was the biggest underdog of the 3 and yet Ensworth didn't have a lead until the very last seconds - on a controversial TD to win the game. And that 1st down on their last drive was inches short - still scratching my head on that one. Baylor lost - no doubt but Ensworth needed a little help from the refs. Not sure what they are teaching you out in W TN but you may want to crack that dusty dictionary of yours and lookup the word overrated.

Go cheer on the other 1/2 of our mountain boys: Matthew & Patrick Oellerich, Joe Wolf, Heath Belcher, Spencer Craig, Nic Bullard, David Brody, Baker Bell, James Bird, Robert Stagmaier, etc...Then there are those that went to McCallie... Maybe one day we can keep all our mtn boys home.

All the other programs I've been envolved in have been losers including my Iowa State Cyclones. People don't trash talk them too much...well...except for their own "fans". But now I'm starting to see the truth in that statement. oh and...much better than the import/export business in this economy.

I know it's been said before but I thought Coach Grider's comment was very appropriate - With success comes jealousy.

I know our principal and I think every SM parent could say as Roy would say, I garuntee that if that conversation would have happened, he would have called a meeting with the students to discuss. Dr. McCullough did not have any such meeting. I think your P is in major CYA mode. The costume was $1800 and it was it's first time out. I doubt the EZ pilon is even close to that amount even if your supplier is the US pentagon. But let's back on to football and let the Ps and TSSAA handle this.

There was but it was it doesn't excuse what happened next.

Taking Butchie's advice... I've got to say that I thought Coach Price did an outstanding job of play calling and adjustments. He came prepared and didn't let his emotions call the plays. Awesome job Bill. I've got to hand it to TC too as they made it tough to get the passing game in full swing. Secondary was better than advertised. A lot of that was because of their D sets. Good job by them to take away some of our bread-n-butter plays. Hogan did a great job of adjusting though. Didn't get too risky and throw anything into coverage he shouldn't have. 0 ints. In a game like this, 1 int could be killer as TC found out on their 1 TO. He also did a great job on reading coverages and scrambling for yardage when that is what was given to him. Very smart player. And Zack - you are THE man. I know this is a team sport and there were game changing plays made by more than a handful, but I love to see 32 in there. Good things always seem to happen at the right time when you are on the field. Reese - I tip my hat to you that not only are you the only one that plays FT on O and D, you made HUGE plays on both sides that resulted in or setup 3+ TDs. The fact that you've only been playing cb for your 2nd week and had 1 pick 6 and another pick almost 6 is amazing - and against top talent teams. Put that on top of the fact that you are a sophomore means more years of good Eagle football. Defense - You rose up when you HAD to and came up with some game winning stops. Summary: You all exceeded my expectations.

Let me spell this out for those too hungover to keep up. We. Did. Not. Try. And. Place. Our. Flag. In. Your. Field. Seriously people. Do you really think it's EVEN POSSIBLE to stick an 2.5" piece of PVC pipe that is completely flat on end into the ground? Your strongest player couldn't do it. Do you think our mascot is up to that task??? Your Coach and "fans" need a reality check. Too many years of no-helmet football causing that crazy thinking? You have no excuse for the loss. It was just a hard fought battle where someone had to lose. But that is the SORRIEST excuse for your poor sportsmanship. I respect your players but I'm going to have to stop there. Don't trash up the respect they earn on the field with your sore loser attitude.