JtDL

The calls were bad all around, but #7 and #8 on Fulton were big enough and fast enough to turn any separation into a touchdown. I had hope after we drove down and scored early, but I guess there was only one drive in the tank.

I might go to this game, and I haven't been to a GP game in almost ten years. Do we have any big hitters on defense now?

I graduated in 2002 and the Greene Co. schools were not on the schedule while I was there. Pigeon Forge, Rutledge, and Claiborne aren't even in GP's current region. I think I remember playing Cumberland Gap once, but I might be thinking of Happy Valley. Basically, what I'm saying is that in four years most GP students won't even remember this change, but they'll have shorter trips and get to play schools they've heard of and go places somewhat familiar for games. Two of the teams you remember GP playing aren't guaranteed as it is, and the Greene Co. schools were added somewhat recently. I would like to see Seymour back on our schedule, but Pigeon Forge is a good start. EDIT: Here's a list of GP's schedules since 2000: http://www.hsfdatabase.com/tn_gatpitt2000.htm Looks at the seasons I was there (2000-2002) compared to the ones from your years - we shared a region with Rutledge, but none of the other teams you mentioned as rivals were even on our schedule not very long ago. In the last three years, GP has not even played Seymour, and they were our biggest rival while I was there. The new students will remember these closer teams as rivals, and will save gas, time, and money doing so.

Gatlinburg-Pittman 2007 schedule: Fri Aug. 24 Tellico Plains Fri Aug. 31 at Sequoyah Fri Sep. 7 Chuckey-Doak 60.9 mi ??“ about 1 hour 45 mins Fri Sep. 14 Pigeon Forge Fri Sep. 21 at Happy Valley 119 mi ??“ about 2 hours 11 mins Fri Sep. 28 at Rutledge Fri Oct. 5 at North Greene 81.3 mi ??“ about 1 hour 35 mins Fri Oct. 12 South Greene 52.4 mi ??“ about 1 hour 26 mins Fri Oct. 19 at West Greene 69.8 mi ??“ about 1 hour 24 mins Fri Oct. 26 Cumberland Gap 82.5 mi ??“ about 2 hours 6 mins The games in bold are the region match-ups. Under The Tennessean's lineup, we instead will have: Pigeon Forge 13.3 mi ??“ about 26 mins Carter 34.4 mi ??“ about 1 hour 0 mins Austin-East 43.5 mi ??“ about 1 hour 7 mins Gibbs 49.8 mi ??“ about 1 hour 18 mins Fulton 45.3 mi ??“ about 1 hour 7 mins Not only are the new region opponents closer, but students in Gatlinburg are more likely to care about them. Most people in Gatlinburg spend a good bit of time in Knoxville; other than high school sports, I can't recall ever going to wherever those other teams are. I'm glad to see the change, although it's unfortunate that some schools are now put in the position that GP has been dealing with. Driving for two hours to play some school of which you've never heard is annoying, and it's more so when the games are typically lopsided. I used Google Maps to get the distances and estimated times from high school to high school. The time may not be accurate, but they should be relatively correct so the comparison still works. I'm assuming that we will choose non-region opponents in the same way we have been, so I didn't concern myself with those distances.

"Gatlinburg" is misspelled, but otherwise I like our new matchups. I'm tired of driving to Chuckey-Doak and Sullivan Co. I'm pretty sure this was put together by The Tennessean, but it should be close enough to let discussion start.

I'm hoping G-P can pull it off - I don't think we've played a complete team yet this year.

Gatlinburg-Pittman's is easy to pick: Benny Hammonds. Have we even had anyone else?

I just moved from Gatlinburg to Memphis for law school. Although my free time is pretty limited, I'd like to get out and see a high school football game or two this season. Anyone out there have a recommendation as to which game(s) would be the best this season? I'm not very familiar with the teams out here, so assume I know nothing.

A team here that I also won't mention was practicing as well, so perhaps it is ok.

OK. Is there a link to the forum rules so that I don't miss anything else? I'd pm you, but I'm not authorized to do so.

I agree with the majority here - restrictions on coaching by the government are just stupid. And, as you know from having watched the play-offs last year, if a GP alum can say that anyone can. EDIT: I removed the profanity.

The addition of Pigeon Forge High School to the county lessened the student body at GP significantly. I graduated from GP in 2002 - when we played PF that year (who had no senior class yet) we were loud enough to mess with their formations. That year, there were a good 20-25 loud students who travelled everywhere with the team. In the three games I have attended since then, the stands were almost as embarassing as the performance on the field. In short, Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg-Pittman together make one student body - until the schools grow some, neither team will travel well, and for some reason GP can't even pull a crowd at home.