BigDaddyDave

They had 1 6A team and 2 2A teams. I looked it up. One of the 2 A teams (Smith Co) had a good season at 10-3. The other 2A team (Fayetteville) was 6-6 and the 6A (Lebanon) was 5-5. By no means were any of those schools on par with a Science Hill, Dobyns Bennett, Alcoa, Knox West, Powell or Bearden. All of those 5 and 6A teams (except Alcoa, and all know about that) were on the schedules of Elizabethton, Greeneville or Anderson County. Listen, I am not knocking the Bees. Just stating facts. If they want to take the next step, they need to play tougher opponents. There’s no shame in loosing to a better team playing up or down in class. That tough competition prepares you for the goal. And that perfect record isn’t the goal. It’s winning the last 5 games of the year, and those games all being in the playoffs! If you want to beat the best you have to play that hard schedule. And I’d like to see them move in that direction. I’m from Elizabethton, but I love watching good high school football teams. If we can’t move on in the playoffs, then Greeneville. If not Greeneville then Anderson Co. If not AC, then Upperman. I’ll pull for whoever is representing our Region, Quad or the East. But I’ll admire good football and acknowledge it when I see it.

I wonder why?! LOL

It’s always Elizabethton, Greeneville or Anderson County from Quad 1. And it’s never an easy game. Each Battle tested for sure. They all have to play 5A & 6A teams because other 4A teams will not schedule them. Heck, some upper classes won’t either. When you talk about dominant football programs in Region 1, Elizabethton and Greeneville are tops. And that’s with huge 6A schools like Science Hill and Dobyns Bennett in the mix. They can’t hang with us. I’d like to see Upperman schedule more 5A and 6A opponents and ditch the 2A and 3A teams from the past. They played two 2A schools and one 6A. That will get you wins and look good on the stats but doesn’t prepare you for the playoffs. My daughters boyfriend would have been a senior this season at Upperman if his family hadn’t had to move to Elizabethton. So I’ve had my eyes on them since before we played them in 2021. They are strong and have a solid program. It’s time for the administration to stop playing around and get rid of that crappy stadium and field and build one for a winning program. I think those young men have done good and NOW is the time to take it to the next level. Good luck to both teams. I will be at this game with the aforementioned boyfriend, so he can maybe visit his friends. He’s got a couple of rings (one gold and one silver) so maybe they can get a shot at one too?!

George never played against Bryson Rollins. That dude is rolling down there for the Scott’s!

Good move. With the trouble Lipscomb is having and the success his current team is having, he’s in the right place.

I’ve said the exact same thing on this site over and over again. When DB, Science Hill and Elizabethton are rolling, it brings attention to the area. You can throw TN High and Crockett in as well to a degree. But the “Big Three” are catalysts for the area. Unfortunately, for now, it’s just Betsy. And two of the top 7 biggest high schools in the state cannot compete. It’s not for the lack of talent. It’s not because they don’t have the numbers. It starts with the administration and trickles down to the coaches. You fix that problem, and get people in there who care, and the community will rally to the cause.

Not one clue!

I think they’ve tried the high school coach thing and will probably back off of that. Not seeing him nor Shawn in the mix. They want someone with college experience and a proven ability to recruit. Shawn has the coaching experience and Jason has the NFL connections and that experience. Either would make great position coaches and could gain experience that would lead to the college coaching ranks. I just don’t see Jason uprooting his family. And I may be totally wrong, but that’s just my opinion.

JC will not be fired or forced out of the Model City because, to the administration, football isn’t that important there. As long as he plays the political game and doesn’t upset the puppeteers pulling the strings, he will be a lock. I’ve seen coaches come in and rock the boat. It doesn’t always go well. One story of when it did, “back in the day” when Dave Rider was hired at Elizabethton, they story goes, he asked for New Jerseys for the team since the ones they had were at least 4 years old if not older. He was told there was no money in the budget for it. So, he took all the jerseys and burned them. They found the money! He always said if the players look good, they’ll feel good, and play better. Imagine if he didn’t do that. Where would Betsy football be now?!

Just like last week, this matchup comes down to the play on the line. Skill positions are great at each school. The line will be the key. Keeping a passing QB clean, establishing the run OR stopping the run and forcing a QB to beat you with his arm. The chess match begins!

Not sure.

I’m late to the conversation. Had a busy day. The 2019-20 Betsy teams had a bunch of bully’s on the O-Line. In my opinion, that was the biggest plus for them. They kept a young Rollins clean and made running the ball easier. 2021 had a good line and now a Senior, Rollins was such a dual threat that, even when plays broke down he could salvage something from it. Witten will always get the most out of his players. But not having a dominant line to keep the QB clean is always a problem. And they got exposed last night by the D Front of AC. I thought EHS needed to roll out more, throw more quick hitters and slants, and for the love of potato, why don’t we EVER use the tight end in the passing game? Can anyone remind me who our most famous football alum is? You’d think……oh well. Good luck Mavs and G-Men. Represent Quad 2 and let’s try to maintain that dominance. BDD out!

Thanks. Stay warm. The joke used to be, if we can get the students to save up all of their beer cans, maybe we can recycle them and finance the building of a dome at the school.

You know, it never gets old being on the toughest side of 4A in the state. Or maybe all classifications? Upperman keeps improving. They probably own Quad 2 at this point unless Red Bank can figure something out. And Quad one is always up for grabs between the Three Headed Monster! And I really like North Ridge. They will make Region 1 even better. Now, we just need for AC to gain about 200 more students and get bumped to 5A. I bet 5A would hate for that to happen. BTW, the forecast is looking better for tomorrow with rain over night and ending around 2-3pm. Rain chances are about 5% at kickoff and looks steady all night with temps around the lower 50’s to upper 40’s. (This weather forecast is brought to you by Elizabethton Federal Savings Bank. Call BigDaddyDave for all things TSSAA Football. You’ll be new when you do, and a friend when you go. BigDaddyDave, the ONLY Carter Countian approved by Greeneville’s own D4. And that’s saying something!)

If it doesn’t rain, there should be a ban on fireworks due to the high fire risk. Let’s stay safe out there people! LOL

The cooler weather and possible rain showers might ease things up a bit.

I heard people were starting fires in Anderson County to try to keep us out of there. But seriously, how’s everything going with that? Is it improving?

It’s all just speculation that I can tell. I’ve spoken to officials at EHS and nothing has even been said about it at this time.

Betsy at Anderson County. Both defensive units are legit. Betsy struggled a couple of weeks ago with Greeneville. Note: Betsy was down a receiver that night. He’s back and at 100%. This group took AC to the limit last season and other than the Firebirds, gave them their best games. I hope you’re right on every single pick, but that one.

The air quality in Knoxville isn’t good either from what I’ve been reading. But with rain moving in it may calm everything down.

The QB wasn’t familiar with the system or personnel yet, Moog was out, and there was a hangover from loosening a good group of seniors, especially Martinez, that had to wear off. But, once they got healthy and things started to click on offense, it was a different story. The Mav’s Defense has been solid all season. The Offense just couldn’t help them out any. The Betsy Defense has been legit all season too. But! When the Offense puts you in bad situations with turnovers, inability to flip the field and not sustaining drives to allow the Defense time to rest, even the best D will falter. I’m hoping for a different outcome this week with our full complement of receivers healthy. And No overwhelming Senior Night or Homecoming festivities to distract them. Maybe playing on the road will be better for this bunch? I feel Greeneville didn’t get our best shot. And knowing how close we played the Mavs last season and how hungry this bunch is for this game, I don’t think we have to worry about that. All they can do is be prepared, focused, and go out and execute the plan to the best their ability and accept the results with grace. I just hope we can gracefully accept a win! LOL

And with that, anyone looking to relocate, there are some homes available in my area.

Hello! Me too.

They lost early on. While Moog was out, the QB was just learning the system (he arrived 3 weeks before the season started) and they played some tough competition. Powell, Science Hill and Bearden the first three games. With Moog they play better. And the loss to Knox West (7-6) whose only loss was to Alcoa, is not really bad competition. Don’t sleep on this team. They slept on us last season and we almost pulled off the upset. They’re not that different from us back then.

Their kicker consistently puts the ball in the end zone. Starting field position can play a part in this game too.