kamerb

I think you all have a good shot at winning your region this season, so I anticipate a great scrimmage, and a great season from Fulton in general. Definitely looking forward to meeting you in a scrimmage. I was there the last time you guys played Rhea County in the regular season. Definitely earned my respect. I think this will be a competitive scrimmage from all three teams, and I am excited to get these scrimmages rolling so we can get to the regular season.

I think Cookeville is a great team. I had a cousin graduate from there and both of his parents are business owners and his mother is on the Rotary board. Cookeville slept on Rhea when we first came to the district in 2013, but proved that you have to play all 48 minutes in 2014 when it took a miracle touchdown from the late Jacob York to win it. I am rooting for the Cavaliers to win their region this season, and look forward to facing them Friday. I am just excited about some football.

I'm simply saying that I see Rhea coming out with more points. You guys have a great program that I have always respected and I look forward to watching. Should be a great learning experience for all three teams.

Rhea County is definitely the favorite against both of these. They have a smashmouth formation, the top two rushers from last season returning in Cody Bice and Mason Stephenson, deep talent at the halfback and fullback positions, an o-line that will boast an average height of around 6'1 and weigh around 250 lbs that can drive the ball down the field, and an experienced and explosve front seven. Cookeville can compete well, but I think Rhea handles them pretty well. Fulton is a power in 4A almost year in and year out that is expected to fall off a bit this year, but it has yet to be seen how far they will fall if at all. I think they play Rhea closer than Cookeville as well, but I think the Fulton/Cookeville portion will be a great one.

It would definitely be a clash of two different styles of play. With Clemson commit Tee Higgins at wide receiver, Oak Ridge will more than likely be tossing it around a lot with a few handoffs to Jordan Graham, while Rhea County's Mason Stephenson, Cody Bice, and Eddie Davis will make up a three-headed rushing monster that will feature a few passes to Memphis commit Jared Edwards at tight end. Edwards and Higgins each played huge roles the last time the Wildcats and Eagles met on the field and now they are seniors committed to D1 schools. Would certainly make for one heck of a game that could decide the East Tennessee representative in Cookeville if these two teams live up to preseason expectations with Oak Ridge at #2 and Rhea County at #3 in the Murphy Fair coaches' poll.

Agreed. I personally see Mason as the better of the two at being a general running back, but Cody is by far the best all-purpose back in the region. He can run like a bullet, has great hands, and was a second only to Noel Patterson at returning the ball on special teams. If I could redo my list, he would be my all-Region APB.

Post Spring Prediction 1. Rhea County 2. Walker Valley 3. Ooltewah 4. Cleveland No one escapes the region with a perfect record. I agree with RCfan, though. Spring ball is not an accurate predictor of the season, but if I could pick it right now, this would be my prediction. Rhea has the most favorable region schedule with the game at Cleveland being the most troublesome. I picked Walker Valley at #2 because of the returning talent and how competitive they played last season. They had Ooltewah on the ropes and kept the game with Rhea interesting. Ooltewah and Cleveland are the wild cards in the top four. They are both talented teams that could finish higher that #3 and #4 if the cards fall their way. I also have my preseason all-Region team that I would like some feedback on: Offense QB- Kolten Gibson (WV) RB- Cameron Turner (OOL) RB- Mason Stephenson (RC) T- Avery Black (OOL) G- Owen Vice (SD) C- Gage Keahey (SD) G- Ethan Maggart (WC) T- James Moore (MC) TE- Jared Edwards (RC) WR- Skyler Davis (CLE) WR- Jaden Holcombe (SD) Defense DE- Tyler Brown (RC) DT- Xzayvier Beckingham (MC) DT- Rondarius Wash (OOL) DE- Isiah Alston (WV) LB- Eddie Davis (RC) LB- Chandler Kaylor (RC) LB- Justin Rowland (WV) CB- Corey Morgan (OOL) S- Logan Stutzman (CLE) S- Xavier Abernathy (MC) CB- Treasure Johnson (CLE) Special Teams K- Alexsander Toser (OOL) P- Seth Garcia (CLE) Returner- Bryce Nunnelly (WV) Let me know what you guys think. This is from the perspective of someone who has watched each of these players, minus the Rhea County and Ooltewah players listed, once live and the rest on highlight reels. I may have missed better talent at their postions. Feel free to disagree with my picks.

It is with great sadness that I tell you all that Jake has passed away. Please keep his family in your thoughts and prayers in the days ahead.

I have just received word that Jacob York, a former Rhea County fullback that was a big part of the 2014 team that went 13-1 was struck by lightning today while he was working in Alabama. He is currently at UAB medical center and is unresponsive. Please keep his family in your prayers.

Rhea County has never won state. We have been the runner up twice in 1981 and 1985 under Coach Horton. The first time at state we lost 0-3 to John Overton High, and the second time was a 2-28 loss to Hillcrest.

I honestly felt we held up really well against Oakland. I went in to the scrimmage anticipating a blowout, but Rhea County kept it pretty interesting, although Oakland pulled out with more points after it was all said and done. Oakland is talented, well coached, and well positioned to make a deep playoff run this season. Definitely a serious contender for the gold ball in 6A.

http://rheareview.com/rhea-county-football-summer-update/

Definitely excited about this season. I just read an article on Rhea Review that gave good insight on the team. I couldn't agree more. Pemberton and Pendergrass are very capable QBs. The line is close to a 300 lb average (According to the Chattanooga Times Free Press), but just as athletic. The running backs are deep and talented. I can't wait for the opener at Baylor that is now only 60 days away!

Other than Braxton and Logan, I know that Zion Goins, Ridge Boofer, Riley Patton, Colby Prigmore, and Garrett Smith are no longer with the team.

Big recruiting news to share. Jared Edwards has verbally committed to Memphis. Also, has anyone heard the latest from Dimitrius Patterson (Class of 2014)? Last I heard, he had decommitted from the University of the Cumberlands and was planning on walking on with the Vols.

Depth analysis QB Probable starter: Zach Pemberton, SO. Current Backups: Logan Hall, JR. Personal evaluation: 1st team Freshman QB from 2014. Played RB in 2015. Currently starting at corner. Logan can manage the offense fairly well. His former position at RB gives him a slight edge in the event of a pocket collapse, but pressure in game-time situations could be a factor in his position on the depth chart. Hayden Frasier, SO. Personal Evaluation: Back-up to Zach Pemberton for the Freshman team in 2015. Holds a position on special teams as a place kicker. Great arm, but seemed to have trouble when pressured. He can escape the pocket when he's focused, but needs to learn to hone in on that if he plans to stay at QB for Varsity. Ross Pendergrass, FR. Personal Evaluation: Rhea Middle QB from 2015. Big time arm and great skills with footwork in the pocket. He mastered the Wing-T in middle school in his 1st and only year as the starter, so the new formation should not be that difficult for him. Probably has the best talent of the group, but has never taken a high school varsity snap. He has great potential, but I have seen many have promise only to succumb to the pressure of high school football and bow out after a year or two. Should be interesting to see where he goes before he graduates. Kyle Carr, FR. Personal Evaluation: Spring City QB from 2015. Prior to 2015, Carr was third team QB behind Ram Stulce and Aubrey Smith, but was thrust into starting action for his 8th grade year. Spring City out performed expectations last season and made it for its 4th straight appearance in the CVC championship, but fell for the second straight year, posting a record of 6-3, only losing to Kingston, Rhea Middle, and (I think) Oliver Springs in tight matchups. Carr could surprise, but he needs to improve as a passer and with footwork to compete. What are everyone's thoughts on the depth situation at QB and other positions and the current players you think could solve their position group's depth issue?

Agreed. 2016 looks like our best chance at state considering our student population is over 1500 and growing with each successive class, making us one of the largest schools in 5A. If we are going to Cookeville, this needs to be the year. I'm not saying we couldn't win in 6A, but the road would get exponentially tougher overnight if we moved to 6A, especially with the juggernaut of Maryville that has always been the silencer of Rhea County's playoff hopes when they were in the same class.

It definitely will. I look forward to seeing where this team goes this season, and can't wait for the game at Baylor. Baylor is still undefeated against Chattanooga area public high schools since Rhea County beat them way back in 1999. I am definitely hoping the Eagles of 1999 and 2016 become the bookends of that streak! This team, in my opinion, has the talent to make the state championship game, but talent is not the issue. Depth and determination are. Does this team have what it takes to make it a third straight season in the semis? Definitely. Can they achieve what the 2014 and 2015 teams could not and get penciled in for Cookeville? That remains to be seen.

Post spring 1st team: (These are my own personal opinion. Feel free to disagree) Offense QB- Zach Pemberton RB- Eddie Davis/Cody Bice FB- Mason Stephenson TE- Jared Edwards/Chandler Kaylor C-Ty Goodwin G-Tyler Brown/Parson T-Justin Tucker/Zach McCarthy Defense DT- Bradley Evans/Tyler Brown N- Zach Swafford OLB- Mason Stephenson/Eddie Davis MLB- Chandler Kaylor/Jawan Martin CB- A.J. Velasco/Cody Bice S- Aubrey Smith/Chris Sturgeon

Agreed. Braxton has been doing most of the backup duty for the last season and a half (All of it in 2015 and swapped duties at backup with Seth Stulce in 2014), and his experience at the position will be irreplaceable considering, if I'm not mistaken, Pemberton and Frasier never took a snap on varsity last season. They are both great players, but never taking a varsity snap could lead to a few hiccups when they first hit the field.

I honestly think Pendergrass is the quarterback of the future for the Eagles. I don't see him passing Zach Pemberton on the depth chart, but not too long ago, I was banking on Seth Stulce and Braxton Dieckhaus to be duking it out for the starting job right now, but it looks like neither of them are going to play this year, so him being named the starter wouldn't be as far fetched as first thought. While I don't think he will be the starter this year, a few outstanding summer performances from him and some lackluster performances from Pemberton could change that. From the little I watched him play, he has a great arm with surprising accuracy for such a young player, and he is a threat with his legs. He has more dual-threat potential than any other quarterback I've seen at Rhea County in a very long time. Rhea Middle seemed to have many designed QB-keeps to the weak side of the defense that accounted for a number of big-time plays for them, including a touchdown or two from 10+ yards away. We will no doubt know by the game with Baylor who will be taking snaps with the first team offense. I just enjoy the intrigue of a talented QB battle.

Summer workouts started today! The 2016 Rhea County Golden Eagles are officially together and have started the march to the football season! I am very excited to see this team hit the field as soon as possible, and I feel great things are in store for them! From what I heard from my little brother, a lot of incoming freshmen were present today. Any thoughts on the the youngest class of Eagles for 2016? The only one he was able to see long enough to identify was Bradley Goodwin, the starting fullback from Spring City last season. Any others that anyone knows about?

Post spring analysis: The new offensive formation seems to be able to move the ball at an consistent rate. The jamboree scrimmage against Oxford and the Varsity/JV scrimmage with Oakland spoke volumes to me about how well our offense can sustain drives. Both Varsity and JV moved the ball very mechanically against Oakland, and both groups seemed packed with more than capable playmakers at o-line, quarterback, running back, and tight end. Zach Pemberton has gone from third string quarterback to challenging for starter as a rising sophomore. It should be interesting to see how the battle between him and Braxton Dieckhaus shapes up during the summer if the senior backup from last year decides to come back. The running back position behind Bice, Stephenson, and Davis looks talented and deep enough to make some noise come the game at Baylor with Christian Simon, A. J. Velasco, Chris Sturgeon, and Gavin Morrison being more than capable backing up Bice and Davis while Barger, Doug White, Jawan Martin, and others can back up Mason Stephenson. Tight end looks really impressive. Jared Edwards and Chandler Kaylor are backed up by Bradley Evans, Jared Kamer, Mason Reynolds, Peyton Samples, and Dakota White who all have played very well at the position throughout the spring and in the scrimmages. The offensive line played impressively in both scrimmages and proved that Rhea County's most depleted unit from 2015 is still capable of sustaining drives and setting up the skill position players to score. The defense was another animal entirely. At Jacksonville State and on our own turf, the defense was good, but not as good as last year's unit which is understandable considering the massive losses of Pendleton, Downey, Aikman, Ortega, Sharp, and Patterson. I am sure that Coach TO and the position coaches will have their guys ready to go come the regular season kickoff. The defensive line was fairly impressive, but could use some work. I still think this unit has the chance to be the most talented unit on the team, but they need to figure out a rotation that'll keep the players fresh and ready to play which should be easy considering the depth and talent on the line. The linebackers to me are the biggest question mark. Talent is not the issue, but the arrangement is somewhat concerning. Eddie Davis and Mason Stephenson are excellent, but they are needed on offense as well. The rigors of the football season could cause issues later due to them playing both sides of the ball, and, although there is plenty of talent behind them, it could be devastating to one of those two guys if playing both sides of the ball produced the all too often serious injury. The secondary looked well prepared for the scrimmages and should be pretty good heading into the 2016 season. A welcome sight to me was seeing height and speed of the corners and safeties. Sevier County exposed the height and speed issue we had with our defensive backs last year as they exploited the mismatch they had with their receivers for four passing touchdowns. Logan Hall and A. J. Velasco both bring speed to the CB position and so do Aubrey Smith, Colby Prigmore, Jaden Austin, and Chris Sturgeon at safety. Austin, Prigmore, and Hall are all around 6ft tall or better, and the others looked very well equipped to play their positions as well. I look forward to this upcoming season, and I think the coaches will have the team ready come the clash at Baylor in August.

I was very impressed with the way our offense moved the ball on Oakland. They had a great defense, so it spoke volumes for how well our offense will do come football season. Wide receiver is currently wide open (no pun intended), and the battle for the starting job will most likely be between Colby Prigmore (Sr., #80) and Jaden Austin (Jr., #4). Austin played JV defense the entire scrimmage and had an interception. Both are fast and should provide good depth. An even better scenario would be if Darius Moses, an upcoming senior who ran track, joined the team and was placed at WR. He is possibly going to join in the summer. My prayers definitely go out to Shy Ezell and his family. He is a great athlete and I hope he has a speedy recovery. The kicker position is facing something it hasn't faced in the entirety of Mark Pemberton's time in Evensville. We have no proven starter. 2013, we had Maerki. 2014, we had Hatlem and Buffenbarger. 2015, we had Buffenbarger. 2016? We have no kickers with varsity experience, but Hayden Frasier (#1, SO.) and Dakota White (#48, JR.) both had prior experience kicking for the freshman and JV teams, and White and Jawan Martin have been fairly decent at punting.

I agree with the tight end play. Edwards and Kaylor looked monstrous at the position, and Bradley Evans, Dakota White, and Jared Kamer looked like solid backups. Having that depth at tight end is huge in the new offensive set that we are running this season. I am not sure about the situation with Garmany and Ezell, but Samples played in the scrimmage. He may have been wearing a different number that still had the player who wore it last year's name on the back. I am definitely looking forward to the scrimmage on Saturday. All of the exposure that Oakland is getting from the upcoming Michigan satellite camp and the time they spent at Tennessee's facilities in Knoxville should definitely have many eyes watching the Patriots when they travel to Evensville on Saturday.