Vol9093

Who are the 2 returning starters?

Completely agree with Blaze. It all comes down to coaching. Blackman has some really good players. Blocking can be coached, Gap integrity can be coached, physicality can be coached, and tackling can be coached.

In my opinion, there are guys playing out of position on defense. 11 should play Mike, 5 should play Will, 90 should play Jack, and 1 should play Sam.

I don't believe this system will work at the high school level. It works for Pulaski Academy but they are stacked with players. You have to be 2 deep at every position. Great idea, but really hard to execute throughout the course of the season. Probably why they got worse as the season wore on.

Coach Rice had his team ready to play. Sound and disciplined team. Blackman was not prepared and ready to play. Blackman looked much better week one against Brentwood than they do now. They've actually gotten worse as the season has gone on. Good luck to both teams going forward.

I couldn't agree more! When Luker hired Rice it was a home run hire. As good as he is a coach, he's an even better human being. I'd give the coaching advantage to Rockvale and player advantage to Blackman. Should be a heck of a game.

A lot of good players on both teams. Let's agree that they are equally matched and this will come down to the coaches. Fair?

Rockvale's best player transferred to Blackman in the off season. I've seen both teams play this year. Blackman is bigger, faster, and stronger than Rockvale. Having said that, Rockvale is a well coached team. It will be up to Tygard to get the win for the Blaze. I believe that he can do it.

Rockvale is a mix from Riverdale, Blackman, and Eagleville. This is a must win for Tygard and staff. Blackman hasn't missed the playoffs in over a decade. I predict Blackman wins in a close one.

Does it go workout saying that this is a must win game for Blackman. Win, and you go to the playoffs. Lose, and season is over?

Why isn't #1 playing? He was a really good player last year. He was supposed to have a breakout year?

Yes, Rockvale is a lot better. They have 2 QBs that are really good. The Meyhew kid can spin it and it's very accurate with the ball. The sophomore running back, Smith, is really good too. Their defense though will have a hard time defending the spread attack of Blackman.

Yes, Rockvale is a lot better. They have 2 QBs that are really good. The Meyhew kid can spin it and it's very accurate with the ball. The sophomore running back, Smith, is really good too. Their defense though will have a hard time defending the spread attack of Blackman.

No, you are correct. That was the first season that I can think of that at least 2 sophomores didn't start. I guess my point is that there is talk of how trash the Blackman program has been the past couple of years but the reality is that just two years ago, Blackman made it to the quarterfinals and ended the season #6 in the state. Last year was a disaster for sure, but people need to stop talking like this is some horrible program that's going to take years to rebuild. Blackman has reached the playoffs for ten years straight. Made it to the semifinals once and the quarterfinals 4 times. I believe Tygard will get it back to what the fans expect.

Going forward Blackman will be the favored team. Should win the rest of their games and make it to the playoffs.

Didn't Blackman make it to the quarterfinals 2 years ago? I think they finished the season #6 in the state.

Blaze45 is right. Hartsfield rarely played backups. Even when up by 40 points! I hope that Tygard started playing backups tonight once the game got out of hand or he'll have the same problem in two years.

You are right. When it matter the Patriots got it done! First quarter though, Oakland only got 91 yards compared to Lipscomb's 207 yards. That was mainly because Lipscomb's line was so big and athletic. Lot of D1 talent

Totally agree. Lipscomb was chewing up clock. They had the ball for over 10 minutes in the third quarter. Those two plays that I mentioned took no time off of the clock and netted 14 points points for Oakland.

I was at the game. Lipscomb was a lot bigger than Oakland. Oakland O line couldn't get a push, which is not like them. DL ran 68 plays for 371 yards. Oakland ran 36 for 277. 75 yards was the long run for James. Dilfer had a great game plan. Ran a ton of misdirection in the first quarter. Pulled guards one way but ran the opposite way. Next quarter switched to power. LBs didn't know which keys to follow which slowed them down a step. 2 plays won the game for Oakland, the strip and score and James 75 yard run.

I'm curious, what do you guys consider a young team? Blackman currently starts 2 sophomores, the rest are Juniors and Seniors.

I don't believe that the players quit. If you run this type of offense then you must have a 2 deep rotation on defense that is solid. Defense was exhausted in the 3rd quarter. Never rotated in back ups. Defense played played well in the first quarter when rested. HC needs to recognize this and slow down when needed. Also, losing 3 onside kicks and not converting fourth downs put the Defense in a bad spot multiple times.

Depending on the county you live in, I believe that position groups could possibly start meeting in June. Full team practice after the dead period.

Sorry Hardtackle, didn't mean to offend you or anyone for that matter. Just saying that the elderly and people with some disabilities are at a much higher risk from Covid19. They should not be attending large events. It is my opinion that football players are some of the healthiest people in our communities and are at a very low risk of developing severe symptoms from Covid19. Their season should not be taken away from them.

The current IHME models state that Tennessee will have zero new deaths per day starting May 12th. At that point, temperatures will be above 80 degrees. Is it possible that it might return in November? Sure. But no way you cancel High School football with zero deaths, probable treatments, and a bunch of possible scenarios. Also we are finding out that Covid19 is not as deadly as previously thought and that there might be herd immunity by August anyway. One more thought, if you are on Social Security, Medicare, or Disability, you can always quarantine yourself as you are at a higher risk. Playing football and attending games are not mandatory.