Farragut, Bearden, Karns...

[RASSEGA]

I always wondered why? about Karns myself.

I played there from 80-83 0-10 4-6 3-7

 

growing up we always played for the league championship in the rec leagues

Farragut and Cedar Bluff (which merge to Farragut) were the big rivals for the trophy

maybe the toxic beaver creek water has something to do with it

 

I think Campbell County should be added as well...pretty large school

 

The football PROGRAMs vs. football TEAMS have alot to do with it

the good ones have year round focus on weight room, 7 on 7 passing leagues etc

the football teams show up in AUG and depend on a few weeks of 2 a days to get in shape and install a scheme

[JeffCntyRes4Life]

Jefferson County also has over 2,000 students. Jeff County middle schools have dominate football programs. So what's wrong with the high school? I started a thread about Jeff County. You should check it out and post your opinions on the Jeff Co. thread

[RASSEGA]

Jefferson County also has over 2,000 students. Jeff County middle schools have dominate football programs. So what's wrong with the high school? I started a thread about Jeff County. You should check it out and post your opinions on the Jeff Co. thread

 

Jeff County used to rule a few years ago

[Bulldog_Blocksma]

As for Bearden and Farragut, the questions you raised are certainly valid. Bearden has not had alot of help from the administrators in the past, but more importantly is the loss of talent. Its hard to have a strong program when the best players in your area end up moving into another schools zone or going to a private school. Bill Wilson has certainly gotten Bearden back on the right track as well as a very strong Junior class which won the area Midget championships and stayed together to Bearden. The futures of all three schools may be in jeopardy though with the building of Hardin Valley, which will pool from all three and will likely pull alot of athletes. Who knows, maybe Hardin Valley will become the West Knoxville version of Ravenwood. West Valley Middle is the primary feeder for the new high school and it has had alot of success in its short future. It will be interesting to see what happens in the next few years.

[osunut2]

As for Bearden and Farragut, the questions you raised are certainly valid. Bearden has not had alot of help from the administrators in the past, but more importantly is the loss of talent. Its hard to have a strong program when the best players in your area end up moving into another schools zone or going to a private school. Bill Wilson has certainly gotten Bearden back on the right track as well as a very strong Junior class which won the area Midget championships and stayed together to Bearden. The futures of all three schools may be in jeopardy though with the building of Hardin Valley, which will pool from all three and will likely pull alot of athletes. Who knows, maybe Hardin Valley will become the West Knoxville version of Ravenwood. West Valley Middle is the primary feeder for the new high school and it has had alot of success in its short future. It will be interesting to see what happens in the next few years.

Good point about Ravenwood, Hardin Valley could definitely fill in that role.

[rigger101]

Regarding a previous post made in the Science Hill-Karns thread, a question was mentioned regarding the lack of success regarding the Karns football program. I'm still not sure why the Beavers can't put together a decent football team. When was the last time this team had a winning record? They've only made the playoffs 3 times (all in the last 10 years, each time with a losing record) and they lost each of their 1st round games. I lived in Knoxville as a kid, and recently moved back here, and I don't understand how a school with the location and enrollment of Karns could be so inept when it comes to playing football. It's very difficult to build a program when you don't have a lot to build on in the first place, but guess I just don't understand why the talent pool in Karns is so thin.

 

As far as football goes, I've always wondering this same thing about Farragut and Bearden. Bearden had one pretty good year back in 1995 (made it to the state quarters), but other than that, they too have had a lot of losing seasons, and anytime they made the playoffs, it was usually as a #4 seed and a losing record. Farragut had a solid team in 1995 as well (made it to the state semis), but again, the Admirals have had trouble establishing themselves year in and year out, especially in the past 10 seasons. Don't get me wrong, Farragut had a strong program through the 80s and early 90s, but what happened? This school has more kids than any other high school in east Tennessee, they should be able to put together a playoff-worthy team every season (and one with a winning record), and yet they haven't been able to do that. Bearden is also a large school, and shouldn't have any trouble putting together a winning football program, and they have had a lot of trouble doing so since the mid 90s. I'm happy to see that both Bearden and Farragut have put together great seasons this year, and I hope that it carries over to next year and the following seasons. If that's the case, then I can retract this entire post.

 

I'd love to hear everyone's thoughts on this post. Do these teams struggle because the talent pool isn't as good as one would think? Are their region opponents just that much better than these 3? Do these schools lose football talent to other schools because of better coaching and better football elsewhere?

 

Here's my view on the schools. I've lived in the W Knox area since 2000. During that time Farragut and Bearden has dominated spring sports winning 5 State Championships and 2 National Championships.

 

Since 2000 Farragut has won 6 Team State Championships which is tied with Houston for the most Team State Championships in public schools.

Farragut has had 59 individuals/teams either is the Championship game/match/event over the last 10 years.

 

There seams to be a thought that kids need to specialize in one sport.

I had this pressure put on one of my kids so he gave up the sport. With the number of Champions Farragut has had in the other sports these kids could have or should have been able to put some of those skills on the football field.

Some of the other football powers in our area (except OR) seam to only be a power in one sport.

In my day we were expected to play more than one sport to stay in shape. Now most programs expect you to play that one sport and work on it all year.

 

Also the lack of middle school programs, private schools and Coaching is the other factors.

 

If my kid was a great football player he would be at a Maryville, Alcoa or OR because these programs or dedicated to winning at football.

 

However Football isn't everything and GOD gives many young men and women different gifts. That's why we have more than football as a TSSAA sports.

 

But I love the game and feel that a School with the success and size Farragut has should be able to be a football power every year and beat OR every other year (However other large Schools like McGavock have only won 5 team Championships in the schools history)

 

I've enjoyed watching and getting to know the parents and athletes from all 3 schools. Great kids and parents in those communities.

 

Good luck to all and hope to see you in the future.

Edited October 17, 2006 by rigger101

[ihavenofriendzz]

Farragut has 3 soccer players on the team and 1 former player. they are kickers.

Edited October 18, 2006 by ihavenofriendzz

[cooterhooter]

 

Here's my view on the schools. I've lived in the W Knox area since 2000. During that time Farragut and Bearden has dominated spring sports winning 5 State Championships and 2 National Championships.

 

Since 2000 Farragut has won 6 Team State Championships which is tied with Houston for the most Team State Championships in public schools.

Farragut has had 59 individuals/teams either is the Championship game/match/event over the last 10 years.

 

There seams to be a thought that kids need to specialize in one sport.

I had this pressure put on one of my kids so he gave up the sport. With the number of Champions Farragut has had in the other sports these kids could have or should have been able to put some of those skills on the football field.

Some of the other football powers in our area (except OR) seam to only be a power in one sport.

In my day we were expected to play more than one sport to stay in shape. Now most programs expect you to play that one sport and work on it all year.

 

Also the lack of middle school programs, private schools and Coaching is the other factors.

 

If my kid was a great football player he would be at a Maryville, Alcoa or OR because these programs or dedicated to winning at football.

 

However Football isn't everything and GOD gives many young men and women different gifts. That's why we have more than football as a TSSAA sports.

 

But I love the game and feel that a School with the success and size Farragut has should be able to be a football power every year and beat OR every other year (However other large Schools like McGavock have only won 5 team Championships in the schools history)

 

I've enjoyed watching and getting to know the parents and athletes from all 3 schools. Great kids and parents in those communities.

 

Good luck to all and hope to see you in the future.

Good post Rigger! I agree with you, most high school athletes today are encouraged to specialize. At Ooltewah, there are several two sport athletes every year but a three sport athlete is vary rare. In my day, most athletes played three sports, you moved from one right into the other. The way most coaches today have some type of off season work outs athletes get behind and don't feel they can keep up with more than one sport. In my opinion, basketball and football seem to be the worst. Both seem to require tons of time especially in the summer. If you are a baseball player also, your summer is near impossible. There is really no way to play all three in todays system, especially in a high profile program.

[Dagan81]

Hello! This is my first post, so I hope I don't sound too offbeat here. One thing we should keep in mind is that the inner city schools (AE and Fulton) do very nicely. Knoxville-Central builds solid football teams nearly every year and usually make it into the quarterfinals at state, and they have a student body of rough 1,200. I think the part about Farragut, Bearden and Karns only concentrating on certain sports is very accurate. Also, at schools like Fulton and AE, the population geographics are considerably different in that you have, say, more gifted black and Hispanic athletes who are capable of being great athletes while schools out in the county (Farragut, Karns and Powell) do not. Osunut will be the first one to tell you that when Powell competed for state championships back in the late 80s/early 90s, they bused in a lot of talent from the inner city (Rudy Stinson probably the best example), and thus they had a nice mixture of talent which they don't enjoy now that transfers are not allowed at Powell High School. Also, these schools, for these reasons, cannot recruit players as easily as city schools like Oak Ridge, Maryville and Dobyns-Bennett.

[osunut2]

Hello! This is my first post, so I hope I don't sound too offbeat here. One thing we should keep in mind is that the inner city schools (AE and Fulton) do very nicely. Knoxville-Central builds solid football teams nearly every year and usually make it into the quarterfinals at state, and they have a student body of rough 1,200. I think the part about Farragut, Bearden and Karns only concentrating on certain sports is very accurate. Also, at schools like Fulton and AE, the population geographics are considerably different in that you have, say, more gifted black and Hispanic athletes who are capable of being great athletes while schools out in the county (Farragut, Karns and Powell) do not. Osunut will be the first one to tell you that when Powell competed for state championships back in the late 80s/early 90s, they bused in a lot of talent from the inner city (Rudy Stinson probably the best example), and thus they had a nice mixture of talent which they don't enjoy now that transfers are not allowed at Powell High School. Also, these schools, for these reasons, cannot recruit players as easily as city schools like Oak Ridge, Maryville and Dobyns-Bennett.

Good point Dagan, Powell did enjoy their early 90s success due to their diverse student body, even though some of those players were definitely not home grown.

[ole_boi]

Regarding a previous post made in the Science Hill-Karns thread, a question was mentioned regarding the lack of success regarding the Karns football program. I'm still not sure why the Beavers can't put together a decent football team. When was the last time this team had a winning record? They've only made the playoffs 3 times (all in the last 10 years, each time with a losing record) and they lost each of their 1st round games. I lived in Knoxville as a kid, and recently moved back here, and I don't understand how a school with the location and enrollment of Karns could be so inept when it comes to playing football. It's very difficult to build a program when you don't have a lot to build on in the first place, but guess I just don't understand why the talent pool in Karns is so thin.

 

As far as football goes, I've always wondering this same thing about Farragut and Bearden. Bearden had one pretty good year back in 1995 (made it to the state quarters), but other than that, they too have had a lot of losing seasons, and anytime they made the playoffs, it was usually as a #4 seed and a losing record. Farragut had a solid team in 1995 as well (made it to the state semis), but again, the Admirals have had trouble establishing themselves year in and year out, especially in the past 10 seasons. Don't get me wrong, Farragut had a strong program through the 80s and early 90s, but what happened? This school has more kids than any other high school in east Tennessee, they should be able to put together a playoff-worthy team every season (and one with a winning record), and yet they haven't been able to do that. Bearden is also a large school, and shouldn't have any trouble putting together a winning football program, and they have had a lot of trouble doing so since the mid 90s. I'm happy to see that both Bearden and Farragut have put together great seasons this year, and I hope that it carries over to next year and the following seasons. If that's the case, then I can retract this entire post.

 

I'd love to hear everyone's thoughts on this post. Do these teams struggle because the talent pool isn't as good as one would think? Are their region opponents just that much better than these 3? Do these schools lose football talent to other schools because of better coaching and better football elsewhere?

 

 

 

 

I can't speak for bearden and karns, but I know exactly why farragut cannot consistently compete for state in football. I was a starter on that '95 farragut team. One major reason for the the downfall of farragut is the rezoning that started in 1992- that rezoned a lot of kids(talent) to bearden. Rezoning marked the decline of farragut in the middle 90's. When I was a sophmore, you pretty much knew you'd never see the field on friday night because there were so many talented jr's and sr's above you (unless you had some serious talent). Our JV had as many jr starters if not more than sophmore starters. By my senior yr. in 1995, our Varsity had very little depth accross the board and JV was thin with talent also. I just recently moved back to knoxville and I attended farragut during the spring and the fall practice because I still have some ties to the program. The one obvious reason why farragut can't compete now is that it seems like there is a lack of direction in the program. I love coach Courtney, but it seems like every since he's been the HC the programs been on decline. It's funny because he was one of my best coaches. Another reason is that the old offensive coordinator is no longer coahing...he had a good offensive mind, but...he gave it up and refuses to come back. Lack of talent is not why they are not competing, it's little johnny's daddy(with a long pocketbook) who thinks his boy should be playing wr, rb, qb, etc...you get the picture. the funny thing is, there are good kids who have given up playing for this reason. it's like you can have all the talent in the world, but if your parents aren't up at the school politicing for you to play...then you don't. I know this isn't the case 100% of the time, but i'd say about 30-40%

Edited October 18, 2006 by ole_boi

[FHS_Admiral]

Regarding a previous post made in the Science Hill-Karns thread, a question was mentioned regarding the lack of success regarding the Karns football program. I'm still not sure why the Beavers can't put together a decent football team. When was the last time this team had a winning record? They've only made the playoffs 3 times (all in the last 10 years, each time with a losing record) and they lost each of their 1st round games. I lived in Knoxville as a kid, and recently moved back here, and I don't understand how a school with the location and enrollment of Karns could be so inept when it comes to playing football. It's very difficult to build a program when you don't have a lot to build on in the first place, but guess I just don't understand why the talent pool in Karns is so thin.

 

As far as football goes, I've always wondering this same thing about Farragut and Bearden. Bearden had one pretty good year back in 1995 (made it to the state quarters), but other than that, they too have had a lot of losing seasons, and anytime they made the playoffs, it was usually as a #4 seed and a losing record. Farragut had a solid team in 1995 as well (made it to the state semis), but again, the Admirals have had trouble establishing themselves year in and year out, especially in the past 10 seasons. Don't get me wrong, Farragut had a strong program through the 80s and early 90s, but what happened? This school has more kids than any other high school in east Tennessee, they should be able to put together a playoff-worthy team every season (and one with a winning record), and yet they haven't been able to do that. Bearden is also a large school, and shouldn't have any trouble putting together a winning football program, and they have had a lot of trouble doing so since the mid 90s. I'm happy to see that both Bearden and Farragut have put together great seasons this year, and I hope that it carries over to next year and the following seasons. If that's the case, then I can retract this entire post.

 

I'd love to hear everyone's thoughts on this post. Do these teams struggle because the talent pool isn't as good as one would think? Are their region opponents just that much better than these 3? Do these schools lose football talent to other schools because of better coaching and better football elsewhere?

 

No way I would lump Farragut's football program together with Karns or Bearden. Farragut has always been way better than Karns ever thought of being in football, and Farragut is also usually a better team than Bearden. Yes Farragut has probably underachieved somewhat in football considering the size of the student body, nevertheless, Farragut has made it to the playoffs numerous times (14 times) in its history going back to 1978 it's first appearance. Farragut has had 3 state semi-final appearances and 3 quarter-final appearances as well. I can't even remember Karns being in the playoffs, perhaps they have once or twice. Bearden has been to the playoffs 9 times and only has 1 quarter-final to show for it. Farragut, while they are not the powerhouse that is Oak Ridge, or Kingsport D-B, they still have had a pretty decent football program since the late 70's, and of course Farragut's record overall in other sports is fantastic.