Sequoyah Football

[BlueQB12]

I went in confused and left a little more informed. I understand what he wants but still do not know how to do it without hurting the little leagues.

 

That's what I'm hearing from just about everyone I talk to. If it is something that can't be done without affecting the LL's in a bad way, I wouldn't be for it either. My impression going in was that the LL's could survive with 3 teams, but I have been told otherwise. There has been too much work put in to step back now. It has taken years,lots of money,and lots of sacrifice from many to put the LL's in the shape they are in now. My suggestion going forward from here would be a coaching seminar with the LL coaches to get the system put in place,at least on the JRS.,maybe to a smaller extent the cutters. I have encountered a lot of opposition wherever I have been to talk about middle school ball,and I don't think this is something we can do without the support of everyone.Unfortunately,we just don't have the numbers to support both. There is another meeting Tuesday night at 6:00 p.m. at Countryside if anyone can attend.

[dumdum]

Lets keep it clean. Hated to see that last thread get closed, 95 pages wow. There was a great conversation going about the youth league stuff. Still would like to hear more thoughts on this issue.

 

Hey does anyone know if there has been any new developements in the Middle School idea?

[slobber knocker]

A middle school program ain't the solution to the problem. You guys need to put your energy into something more productive. You win at the high school level and the kids will start to come out to play. Next year's team is crucial in the development of a good high school program, this team needs to be successful in order for changes to start happening and faith not to be lost in the payed coaching staff. With the number of returning starters on this team they should definitely be in the mix for a playoff spot.

 

THIS WILL MAKE YOU ALL VERY HAPPY, BECAUSE I WILL POST VERY LITTLE FROM NOW ON, IF I POST AT ALL. I WILL BE WATCHING FROM THE SIDELINES BECAUSE I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THIS PROGRAM TURNED AROUND AND BECOME A FORCE IN REGION 3-3A.

[dumdum]

A middle school program ain't the solution to the problem. You guys need to put your energy into something more productive. You win at the high school level and the kids will start to come out to play. Next year's team is crucial in the development of a good high school program, this team needs to be successful in order for changes to start happening and faith not to be lost in the payed coaching staff. With the number of returning starters on this team they should definitely be in the mix for a playoff spot.

 

THIS WILL MAKE YOU ALL VERY HAPPY, BECAUSE I WILL POST VERY LITTLE FROM NOW ON, IF I POST AT ALL. I WILL BE WATCHING FROM THE SIDELINES BECAUSE I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THIS PROGRAM TURNED AROUND AND BECOME A FORCE IN REGION 3-3A.

 

Just curious Slobber, how come you didnt show up at the meeting with Summey?

[Old Warhorse]

It is interesting that the other teams in the Sequoyah conference are having the same problem. Sweetwater, Lenior City and Tellico could have middle school football also. Has anyone checked the Rhea County situation wiht middle school football. I believe they have 3 middle school teams (Spring City, Dayton, Rhea Central) that all play in the Sequatchie Valley Conference with South Pitt, Dunlap, Marion, Grundy and Bledsoe. The LL has three age groups and does very well.

 

I remember from my LL days that by the time the junior game came around, the crowd was much smaller. Most of the revenue was generated by the smaller teams and cheerleaders . I think it is just think its folks not wanting to change.

 

Wish we had the same opportunity in McMinn County but alas NO MIDDLE SCHOOLS which goes back to folks having a problem with change. Hope middle school football happens in all of Monroe County.

[dumdum]

It is interesting that the other teams in the Sequoyah conference are having the same problem. Sweetwater, Lenior City and Tellico could have middle school football also. Has anyone checked the Rhea County situation wiht middle school football. I believe they have 3 middle school teams (Spring City, Dayton, Rhea Central) that all play in the Sequatchie Valley Conference with South Pitt, Dunlap, Marion, Grundy and Bledsoe. The LL has three age groups and does very well.

 

I remember from my LL days that by the time the junior game came around, the crowd was much smaller. Most of the revenue was generated by the smaller teams and cheerleaders . I think it is just think its folks not wanting to change.

 

Wish we had the same opportunity in McMinn County but alas NO MIDDLE SCHOOLS which goes back to folks having a problem with change. Hope middle school football happens in all of Monroe County.

 

Its not going to change unless the head coach just steps up and does it himself. He is getting very little support from folks in Vonore and a little more at Madisonville. But at the same time the LL's have gotten very little support from the high school with their imput on what they need. Just alot of "old timers" here that just dont want change. I believe everyone in the Sequoyah Conference will soon have middle school programs, and I think we should go ahead and head into that direction but I'm only one person. I was really suprised that McMinn didnt go with a middle school program. The biggest argument in region 3 3a is these schools dont have middle school programs and that is one reason this region is weak. If there is anything you can say to change some minds around here, please do.

[BlueQB12]

Its not going to change unless the head coach just steps up and does it himself. He is getting very little support from folks in Vonore and a little more at Madisonville. But at the same time the LL's have gotten very little support from the high school with their imput on what they need. Just alot of "old timers" here that just dont want change. I believe everyone in the Sequoyah Conference will soon have middle school programs, and I think we should go ahead and head into that direction but I'm only one person. I was really suprised that McMinn didnt go with a middle school program. The biggest argument in region 3 3a is these schools dont have middle school programs and that is one reason this region is weak. If there is anything you can say to change some minds around here, please do.

 

Middle school football would work,and it would be easy to see if so many minds weren't already closed to the idea. I,too,believe this is the future,and we may as well get on board. I do agree success in high school will increase participation at all levels,and we have to start somewhere. Unfortunately,I am probably the lone voice from Vonore for this,and I don't see it changing. Most of the folks I talked to were already dead-set against it without ever hearing what Coach Summey had to say. I also don't believe we will ever be the force in 3-3a slobber was talking about without this commitment. Well,no use beating a dead horse,move on and do the best we can without it for now. GO CHIEFS!

[Sequoyah SID]

Just to answer an earlier post--Vonore and Madisonville combined for 22 wins last year. Since 2001 they have won 183 out of 394.

 

Torseq-James is a good coach and works well with the kids, so does PJ at Vonore, but neither one of them would be the answer. Could they be assistants? Possibly, but the head coach needs to be someone either currently on the coaching staff or does not currently have any ties to either program. You know as well as I do if either of the two were named head coach one side would cry foul. Personally I think coach Black would be the best choice and before anyone calls me on it, I know he is from Madisonville, but coach Black has proven for many years he is all about the kids regardless of were they are from. Someone may have a different opinion of him than I do, but I did say personally. I also believe that the head coach needs to be a paid assistants position, and coach Black is well on his way to making that happen. To shuck the corn down to the cob, we continually talk about how everyone needs to come together and forget this whole Vonore/Madisonville thing, but let's face it, it is still there and maybe stronger than it has ever been, just not as obvious. I still here all the mumblings and grumblings under the breath from both sides. And just like how I started this, we still make examples why we shouldn't do something because of this or that and then turn around and say I want what is best for Sequoyah. The Vonore/Madisonville thing is still here, has been and probably always will be. We need to quit trying to fool ourselves and figure out how to work through it. I will be True Blue til the day I die, but the support I gave to Vonore High School now goes fully to Sequoyah and has since the doors opened. Vonore and Madisonville men and women can unite in marriage and live happily ever after, but we can't seem to make a silly thing called sports work. For shame, for shame.

[BlueQB12]

I dont see the kids making a big deal about Vonore vs Madisonville. My boy never came home complaining about Vonore kids getting special treatment. He never acted like he thought Madisonville kids got special treatment either. He did however on several occasions mention times when he felt like a few players got special treatment or recognition because of who there dad was. He told me about one player who cussed the line out in the huddle during a game and used the "N" word on a regular basis but nothing happened to him. I didnt hear any of this first hand and dont know if he did or if it was just common knowlege among the players. Ive been told that the reason a lot of good football players didnt come out was because they were tired of the favoritism. Some were not allowed to come out for various reasons. The Elliot kid wasnt allowed to play because he quit track. But he quit track because he wanted to play football (spring practice) so much. Turns out that its a school rule but then the coach didnt allow him to play in the fall. Man his height, speed, and good hands could have really helped us on passing on both sides of the ball. But if we would have won more games last year, more pressure would have been on the coaches to win this year. We only won 2 of the 6 games that we should have won last year and that measures up pretty well with the recent past. If we only win 3 this year, thats still an improvement so maybe it was a good decision to not let some of the athletes on the team. These coaches will eventually turn this program around and get it headed in the right direction. One more year of so-so football and then well see the changes; provided the hired coaches stay. If they leave then here we go again. Hopefully though, a lesson has been learned about "daddy coaches". Lets leave Madisonville and Vonore out of it and deal with the real problem. Even Torseq2 recognizes that "daddy ball" is something that should be eliminated. No matter what, as long as my boy wants to play for SEQUOYAH, Ill be there cheering for SEQUOYAH. Todays the last day of free talk so it will be a while before I post again or maybe Ill just leave it to you guys. I really didnt mean to post this much to begin with anyway. I just couldnt stand by and let Slobber Knocker get kicked around anymore when I know that there are many of us who feel the same way.

 

The grumbling don't come from the kids. It comes from old predjudices of the past in parents and grandparents. Every slight(imagined or real)is brought up time after time. The fact is,as I have stated so many times,Sequoyah is our school now,like it or not! We should always make the best of what we have. I wouldn't trade my days at Vonore High for anything,they were some of the best days of my life,and I dearly loved pulling on that blue-and-white jersey. I don't have to forget that just because we are Sequoyah now. My passion is RED-AND-WHITE now,and I want to see my son and your son be successful! If we want to keep these "hired" coaches,we better be a little more willing to cooperate. My day has passed,it belongs to these kids now,and they deserve our best effort to make it worth their effort. I agree,Sid,I think coach Black would be a great choice to head up a middle school program. But like you said,old bitterness stands in the way. We would do well to learn from our kids,who have no problem getting along.

[slobber knocker]

Step one should be eliminating the parent coaches. Then we could start to work on some of the other problems. If this was a winning program I would be way off mark. But, part of the problem is the favortism and it needs to be eliminated. If this team is not successful next season then we will see another drop off at Sequoyah and that is a fact.

[Sequoyah SID]

Sequoyah is almost poping at the seams. Vonore, as a town, is growing more and more every year. The way I understand it, Sequoyah cant be added on to. The unit (Sequoyah) without the unity and support of both communities will never be successful. I doubt that combining the middle schools would magically bring unity to all. More likely it would create more problems. Maybe it would be best to drop the idea of combining the middle schools and jump on the idea of building a high school in Vonore. Is this not a good idea. Change Sequoyah to Madisonville, (Its still a new school and its in Madisonville) and build a new school in Vonore. Madisonville was always competitive in single A ball and Vonore had some good years as well. If the county wouldnt do it; maybe the City of Vonore could build their own high school. That just might make everyone happy and solve the overcrowding problem at Sequoyah without adding a bunch of those tacky outbuildings that are soon to appear for the classrooms that will soon be needed. (IMO) Would the people of the two towns get behind this? Just a final thought before time runs out on free posting.

 

 

Sequoyah can be added onto. A building does not always have to go out to expand, it can also go up. It doesn't matter how many people get behind the idea, this county, and as the town of Vonore has already found out, cannot financially support another high school. There is more to it than just throwing some bricks together. It has to be staffed among other things. The obvious solution is to add on, but if you have followed the school news, the county is struggling to make improvements to existing schools as it is. It is interesting that you would bring this option up, interesting and also confusing. You say you fully support Sequoyah but the idea you offer up is to split again. While I am at it, in my earlier post I thought I was clear but apparently wasn't. I was talking about the adults carrying on the Vonore/Madisonville thing, not the kids. If the schools did split, Madisonville would not go to Single A like you suggested. When Madisonville was a high school they competed in AA and I think (not sure) they competed on AAA the last few years. Vonore would be pushing it to stay A if we went back to it. Many people say that building Sequoyah was a mistake, but why compound that mistake by going backwards? Don't get me wrong, I would love to see a new high school in Vonore. My kids wouldn't have so far to go to school for one. I would only like to see it if it is financially able. The only way for that to be possible right now is for our taxes to go through the roof. If you are prepared to do that, let the County Commissioners know.

[dumdum]

Sequoyah is almost poping at the seams. Vonore, as a town, is growing more and more every year. The way I understand it, Sequoyah cant be added on to. The unit (Sequoyah) without the unity and support of both communities will never be successful. I doubt that combining the middle schools would magically bring unity to all. More likely it would create more problems. Maybe it would be best to drop the idea of combining the middle schools and jump on the idea of building a high school in Vonore. Is this not a good idea. Change Sequoyah to Madisonville, (Its still a new school and its in Madisonville) and build a new school in Vonore. Madisonville was always competitive in single A ball and Vonore had some good years as well. If the county wouldnt do it; maybe the City of Vonore could build their own high school. That just might make everyone happy and solve the overcrowding problem at Sequoyah without adding a bunch of those tacky outbuildings that are soon to appear for the classrooms that will soon be needed. (IMO) Would the people of the two towns get behind this? Just a final thought before time runs out on free posting.

 

I personally have never seen the kids bickering about Madisonville/Vonore, its just the adults around here who cant let go of their "Glory Days", comments like this one Foreal put up is just STUPID, this is SEQUOYAH HIGH SCHOOL, THE HOME OF THE CHIEFS, get on board or shut up, that goes for anybody who tries to say that there is trouble between the kids because of where they come from. I'm not saying dont be proud of your town, be very proud, but be even prouder of your school, your classmates. Sequoyah will be very competitive in the up and coming years and the longer Sequoyah is here the better it will get. The upcoming classes are smaller than the usual numbers Sequoyah is use to seeing, so the "seams" should hold just fine. GO CHIEFS!!!