Norman Dale

Great win for Maryville. Anderson gets all the pub- deservedly so, he is the MVP of district, IMO- but Gale is as good of a pure shooter as I have seen at Maryville. When those two are hot and knocking down 3’s, they can beat anybody on a given night. Bearden had 12-0 and 13-0 runs in the game and still lost. They are very talented but they lose focus on both ends of the court and have too many intensity lapses for a team with their experience, imo. As for officiating, Red Rebels is exactly correct about the crew. When one particular ref who will remain nameless shows up like he did last night, the officials always seem to be the center of attention, regardless of what teams are playing. IMO, it’s not a good thing when the officiating crew is so noticeable and when this particular official is there, officiating always seems to be VERY noticeable.

IMO, when Bearden makes up their mind to play and kicks it into high gear, nobody in ET has a chance to beat them but sometimes they coast for a half or so. Case in point- WB had them down by 4 at halftime @ Bearden but Bearden ended up winning easily by 20 points or so. They were obviously ready to roll from the opening tip vs. Farragut. As a UT fan and for the young man as an individual, I am concerned about Drew Pember’s foot injury. That is a scary injury for anyone- especially a big man. That said, I think Shamarcus Brown and Roman Robinson are back on the court for Bulldogs so they have more than enough firepower to continue to win in regular season. I do think having a healthy Pember helps their chances to win AAA state title immensely.

Maryville’s 3 point shooting is unreal this year, most notably by Anderson and Gale. Coach Eldridge has always been and continues to be well ahead of the curve compared to his coaching peers on understanding the importance and having the coaching guts to structure your offense to shoot a lot of three point shots by design and how that is the most efficient way to play offense. He has taken it to another level this year it seems like. That said, I give Coach Higgins and his Farragut team a lot of credit for coming into Maryville and battling hard for 32 minutes.

Another Oakland interception sets up a short field for Patriots, Oakland now leads 17-0, 2:10 left in first half. Oakland defense looks unreal good at the moment.

Pick 6 for Oakland off a tipped pass, Oakland 10, Maryville 0, 5:03 left in first half.

3-0 Oakland in second quarter, defenses are dominating are so far. Oakland had a beautiful post pattern TD pass called back on an illegal motion penalty.

Just my opinion, but I can’t see Kingston cracking the top 3 in 4-AA.

It really is surprising to see how D-B’s football program has become so mediocre. Apparently, excellence in football really isn’t that important to them or else it would get fixed. Unlike the majority of schools, D-B has the talent pool and resources to be a perennial state top 5 team in 6A .

Derek needs to keep the pedal to the metal and get the running clock starting ASAP to get the MHS players, coaches, and fans back at a somewhat decent hour on a Thursday night.

Incorrect.

NM.

It looks like Maryville and Alcoa are literally in a league of their own in ET- no one else appears to be even remotely close. Won’t be much suspense this year for the Rebels and Tornadoes except maybe when they play each other.

Losing Lomax at PG to graduation is a bigger loss for East than Lawson, IMO. East still has the bigs to win state but do they have the guard play? That is the question.

You are correct - definitely a bad spot, it appeared that Cobb easily had the first down after he broke the tackle attempt but fortunately the bad spot didn’t cost Maryville the first down.

It was a bitter loss for Oakland, no doubt about it. I can understand the frustration expressed by Creasy. When I think about that game, it was incredibly evenly matched. The biggest one play that I will always remember in that game was the Maryville RB ( I think it was Cobb) breaking the tackle on the 4th down screen pass and barely getting the first down late in the fourth quarter to keep the drive alive for the winning FG. Oakland had the play defended perfectly and just didn’t wrap up and make the tackle to get the 4th down stop. Game would have probably gone to OT if not for that play- game was that close. IMO, it didn’t come down to coaching or officiating- Maryville just made one more play physically. Both teams were very talented and well coached. I suspect it will be the same this year.

Saw this morning that Oakland CB Woodi Washington committed to Oklahoma.

According to his twitter page, AJ already has a P5 school offer (Indiana) plus a few other offers. I agree he will be adding many more. Tee and AJ are both definitely very special talents. Very good to see Pruitt make an early evaluation on Tee and pull the trigger on the offer, unlike what Fulmer did with uncle Randall. When you have high major talented, high character local kids, there is no reason to dilly dally on offers. Tee’s size, 4.47 40 yard dash time @ UK camp, plus his proven production on the field as a sophomore shows that he is very deserving of this offer.

Very true, stars.

Hodge is the thoroughbred of the RB’s, IMO. Others are very nice players but Hodge is the man- let’s be real.

Very sad news indeed. While I did not know him personally, I always was impressed with how he handled himself in interviews with newspapers, TV, etc. I'm sure a lot of former players, coaches, teachers, and other members of communities where he has served are in mourning for his family today. My prayers are with his family and friends.

Has some pretty good wheels as well.

I love Hodge and Davis. MHS has been a great program for a long time but I don't recall two players in the same class at MHS with their kind of explosive athletic ability. They are both big time difference makers.

QSouth- looking ahead to next year in 4-AAA, will Akeem Odusipe be playing for Catholic? I saw him play a couple of years ago for Knox Christian and he looked like a big time high major D1 prospect in the making. Don’t see many kids in the Knoxville area with his combination of size and athleticism.

The poor little guys from little ole Knoxville more than held their own in first half.

Thanks Qsouth- no problem on disagreeing some. FYI, I absolutely loved Penny as a player so my opinion is nothing personal against Penny. He played with incredible passion and was truly gifted as a player. IMO, he would have been a sure fire NBA Hall of Famer if not for injuries. He also seems like an outstanding person and you have to give him credit for being a great mentor to the young men he has coached in high school. I just think Memphis could hire a more proven head coaching commodity than Penny. I think the Tubby Smith debacle has empowered their athletic department hierarchy to go in a completely 180 degree different direction with a totally unproven college coach. It is a risky move but it could potentially be a gold mine if Penny works out- we shall see.