It's quite amazing that you seem to know everything that goes on in Putnam county despite living two counties away and whining on CoachT every waking hour. The only advantages Upperman has are coaching, community support, and last but certainly not the least, a championship work ethic. This did not happen over night; every team in the Upper Cumberland has been getting out-worked by the Bees for over a decade. It is 100% home-grown talent. Coaches like Gabe Villarreal (now at Smyrna) instilled in us the mentality of a champion, and although he wasn't with the team long, he was instrumental in the development of players such as York and Ely. We still had that championship mentality even when we were 1-9 back to back seasons and only 19 players remained, and Coach Derek Samber was the scout team QB just so we could hold practices. We still had that mentality when we could only beat Pickett Co and were one of the worst teams in the state.
Pieces began to fall into place when Herron became head coach and rallied the community and got more students to show up. It wasn't a fluke when York and company dominated nearly every team they came across that year, and little ol' Baxter set national and state records against a team that could pull players from Chattanooga (over 40 times the population of Baxter btw), and beat a private from the same city. And when that same boy ends up on the front page of the Tennessean, the team is the talk of the town, standing room only at home yet even the mayor is there, kids who have never had a passing thought about football all of a sudden want to put the pads on next year. All because someone told them YES, they can in fact win in football. That was the beginning of a burgeoning culture at Upperman.
Success breeds success, and nowadays when kids and parents can just google "what's the best football team in Putnam" before moving here, we don't have to do anything. Same guess for coaches like Caine. They just show up on our doorstep. It's like stealing candy (or players) from a crybaby. They certainly aren't moving to a school where all they can do is whine about how it's not fair. Players in my class moved to Gordonsville and Smith Co because we sucked. Both good players, one a hard hitting LB and the other probably the biggest lineman to come through Upperman. Both could've made a huge impact on the field. But I didn't come crying about it on the T. I put in more work in the off season.
"B-but Upperman fans cry too when they lose!", you exclaim. I've never accused teams like Alcoa of recruiting/cheating/etc, just salty about getting trounced deep in the playoffs. The people who choose to shift blame to things out of their control (refs, other teams) are just sore losers. It's been over 10 weeks yet you're still butthurt about your 1 loss to the U. You don't actually want to win, you just want your ego satisfied. If you did you'd work harder the next week. When the Tornadoes came to Cookeville years ago and I saw them play, I thought "They're the team I have to beat to win state". You on the other hand see a team like them and think "they're cheaters!" You've got the same mindset as the kids that quit the team because we didn't win but one game, or because the workouts were too hard. Simply put, you're a quitter who pouts and stamps your feet when things don't go your way. I don't know why the Tigers haven't forfeited this game already. Its apparent no one in Lafayette believes they can win. Just go ahead and turn your pads in. If you can't even beat Baxter, what do you think's gonna happen against Anderson Co, Greeneville, or Pearl-Cohn?
And Cookeville players? They couldn't hold our jockstraps until they learn how to play football like an Upperman Bee. Ain't it funny how one or two players from a mediocre 6A school can turn little ol' Baxter into a program Cookeville can only dream of. The Bees would go 10-0 with the Cav's schedule. Surely it can't be the coaches? Or maybe a winning mentality that has been developed over the years? Naw, must be those superstars we get from the other side of Willow Ave., they just turn into 5-Star recruits when they walk into Baxter city limits.
The fact that you continue to denigrate the team and the players who have put so much blood, sweat, and tears into building a championship-level program, only to be accused of behaving like Lipscomb Academy or Brentwood Academy and attributing all of our success to a school that couldn't win a coin flip with a marble, is quite telling of your low moral and mental aptitude. All of this and we haven't even won a single state championship, much less make an appearance in a championship game. Pathetic! No doubt this crybaby loser mentality infests the rest of Macon County. Maybe try a powder puff league for a start? That might be a more appropriate talent level for the Macon Co. Tutu-wearin' Tigers
