JJrebel2010

And there’s the difference. Majority of Maryville people respect Alcoa and root for them outside of the Maryville game. Most Alcoa fans, like you, have no respect. And that’s fine. I would be sour too if I had only won 25 games against a team in 92 tries. That’s tough.

Okay buddy. Whatever helps you sleep at night. It’s crazy some fans care more about “sticking it to Maryville” than they do their own teams’ success. Just enjoy your team’s success and stop whining about everything.

Yeah having all those state titles is really tough to take in. Thanks for chiming in.

I was referencing Maryville fans. There are some that have said that throughout the years, sure. But that’s not the majority. Alcoa is obviously one of the best teams in the state, regardless of class. They have been for some time.

2019. 17 total, with most of those being since 2000. So yeah, I would consider that a championship program. Thanks for playing along though.

No one is saying that. Alcoa is a great team and a big favorite tonight. You’re trying to create a “narrative” that isn’t there. They’re in 2 completely different classes, so there will always be comparisons. That’s part of the rivalry. But no one is discounting what Alcoa has done. How bout we just enjoy two big time championship programs that are a couple miles apart getting to battle each other every year.

Are these new injuries? I know they had an O-lineman go down last week, but wasn't aware of other new injuries. Hopefully they aren't longterm.

Going to be a really tough game obviously. Maryville has dealt with a lot of adversity this year and has gotten in its own way a lot too, in a lot of ways. Last week was very encouraging though as they put together their best all around game. If they scheme like they did last week, call plays aggressively, and execute, they have a chance to make it interesting. Hoping for a great game.

Yep, such a simple thing and it made a huge difference. They pressured the quarterback all night and were able to contain him with 4 down lineman, giving two DE’s to drive upfield and keep him in the pocket while having two interior guys man the middle. That’s the defense they have ran for years and been so successful at it. It never made sense to go away from it.

The future is definitely bright. I was really glad to see some new wrinkles in the offense, and they called plays aggressively. Defense had its most dominant performance on the year. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that it happened the same night the 3 man line went away.

I’ve been waiting to say this all season and was starting to wonder if it was going to happen, but THAT was Maryville football. Great all around team effort. The Freshman QB is a stud. Defense was awesome. Just a great win.

Definitely. I appreciate the kind words, and I enjoy your posts and insight as well. Would love to meet everyone next time I can make it to a game. Might try to make it to the Farragut game. If I do, we can definitely try and make that happen. I’ve heard nothing but great things about @BroadwayBarberShop’s legendary tailgates and food too. Would love to stop by there sometime as well.

With their style of offense and talent, yes. They’re averaging around 35 ppg. I think if Maryville’s defense can hold them under 25, that would be considered a pretty solid night. My guess is Maryville will try to run the ball, shorten the game, and give Cleveland less possessions.

This is going to be a tough game. Cleveland has a lot of talent and run a very fast paced offense. I think Maryville will need to score 30+ to win this one. They need to open up the playbook a lot more than they did against Bearden to win this one. The Freshman QB has proved he can make the throws. Let him loose and see what happens. You're never going to win anything playing timid.

I'll never understand why they're running a 3-man line like they are, Stars. It just doesn't make sense. I've never seen anyone at any level run it they way they do. Only 3 down lineman, and most of the time the linebackers are at least 5-7 yards off the ball. You're putting the defense at a huge disadvantage from the start. I agree on a few linemen going both ways. I'm not saying all the time, but in certain situations like the goaline situation you mentioned, that would make a huge difference. Instead, they're content with just giving up walk-in TD's or gimme first downs on any short yardage plays.

There's a zero percent chance they will make a change, and they definitely don't need to IMO. They need some changes with the coaching staff, though. And they need to make some philosophical changes this offseason. Coach Hunt is a great guy and very smart football mind. He's a lot like Quarles in many ways, but it's asking a lot for anyone to replace the greatest high school football coach of all time. This is neither here nor there, because he's not coming back. But let me just say this in regard to the comment on the region being tougher...GQ would have zero problems absolutely running through this region. He was on another level and always was 10 steps ahead of opposing coaching staffs, no matter the talent. Not sure how many more championships they would have right now, but I can confidently say he would not have lost any region games if he would have stayed.

Mike White is still the freshmen coach, correct? He knows more about GQ's offense than anyone on that staff. He needs to be more involved in the offense on Friday nights IMO. Just by watching, it's pretty obvious that he's not. Especially the last couple years.

One of the most beautiful play calls in Maryville high school football history. I’ll never forget it.

I’m impressed by the young core of talent Maryville has and how they’ve adjusted replacing Ladue. My issue is that they have more than enough talent to do more than they’re doing schematically. There’s a reason Maryville has lost more games the past 2-3 years than they have the last 10 prior years combined. They’re becoming easier and easier to prepare for each week. They just don’t do much offensively to put pressure on defenses. The last two weeks before Bearden they started opening it up and being aggressive, and they had the two best offensive games they’ve had all year probably. Then last night they went back to being vanilla and not being aggressive. I’m all for running the ball, but it can’t be all that you do. Especially in big games. They can’t have game plans like they did last night if they want to make the playoffs. You have to keep defenses guessing or at least keep them honest, something that Maryville teams have always done. But the past 2-3 years, they have become more and more predictable. Which IMO is why they’ve lost more games.

My thoughts exactly. I was expecting something with at least a little misdirection. Not just a straight run out of the rhino package.

Not sure what to even say. Very disappointing loss. Maryville threw just 2 passes in the second half by my count. I’m also so tired of seeing 3 down lineman and the linebackers playing 8 yards off the ball when everyone knows they’re going to run it. Just makes zero sense. Very disappointing offensive gameplan. Felt like play calling was very timid all night, especially in the second half. Not being aggressive will get you beat nearly every time. And it seems like the past few years, the bigger the game, the more timid the playcalling gets. I don’t mind going for the win at the end, but I hated the play call. Everyone in the stadium knew what was coming with the Rhino package coming out. Just very disappointing all around. With the upcoming schedule, it might be tough to make the playoffs at this point.

This team has shown some real promise the last two weeks. Jones looks like a stud at QB, and lots of other underclass men making plays too. This staff has done a good job of making adjustments the last two weeks. I don’t know what will happen the rest of this year, but the future looks bright for sure.

That’s great to hear. I know there were rumors about them doing away with the program when Scott West left, so I’m glad to hear they have a RFL running the program. I hope the game broadcasts will start improving.

I completely agree with all of this. You’re 100% spot on. Forcing Coach West to resign was one of the biggest mistakes they could’ve made for both athletics and the media classes. He built the media production program from the ground up. Now it’s basically nonexistent. I agree on the football front as well. Coach Hunt is a great guy and a great football coach. But he does need to reevaluate everything this off-season. They have to get back to the roots of what Maryville football used to be a few years ago in order to get back to playing for championships.

Agreed. Fight song was a good call as well, just didn’t execute. As you said, it’s the little things. And they add up quickly.