Red Boling Springs

[VolunteerGeneral]

Ok...leave it to me to get something going on here. The following comes from the RBS thread on on the football board. (just1np...my apologies to you for reposting this.)

 

One thing is for sure...at sometime in the past somebody at the top must have liked football...the stadium at Macon County still to this day is one of the best we (Smith Co.) have played at. But its pretty clear by the past 20 yrs that the person who was in charge is not now. I could be wrong...Im on the outside looking in. But I think their is no reason Macon Co. is not a power in football. I know the athletes are there. We have played against you guys for years in Jr. High and you are always one of the best. But they all seem to disappear in High School. What is the problem? You inside guys know Im sure...share it with us.

 

Fan

 

Let`s examine what fan said. "....no reason Macon County is not a power in football." "I know the athletes are there."

 

Now am I just crazy or have I been told that 1A rural schools have no athletes? If I`m just crazy, then I wish someone (like ELA since you have already posted on that thread) would mozy on over there and tell fan that he is wrong. Gosh knows how many times I`ve been told I was wrong on this board. How about a little consistency from some of the "whiners"? Will anyone go over there and tell fan he is wrong?

 

Just wondering...VG

[ELA]

MACON COUNTY is not a 1A school! The FAN was talking about Macon County High School, where the remaining football players would go, if they couldn't play in Red Boiling Springs.

 

RBS is a tiny K-12 school in the Eastern Part of Macon county. They don't even have enough players to field a team this year (rumor has it) and they have never had a winning record (that I know of). They are simply a very small rural school that barely has enough boys to keep football alive, and I hope they find a way to field a team and keep their football program going. Rival school, Pickett County will begin playing JV football for the first time in over thirty years this fall and it would be a shame for RBS not to stick around to play them!

[Edited by ELA on 7/15/02 11:25P]

[VolunteerGeneral]

Well, there I go not reading again... :^(

 

Ok let me ask you this...If They have the athletes, then why aren`t they...

 

1.playing

2. performing like they should be

 

I think it is coaching. What do you think?

[TheEgoHasLanded]

How come Tredwell, Westside, Overton, Southside, Carver, Raleigh Egypt, Manassas never win? You guys refuse to answer those questions, but it can be done...Melrose does it, East does it, Trezevant did do it...and recently Kingsbury has done it...They have superb athletes, a heck of a lot better than any other ones...PERIOD...I don't care about the athletes from rural areas, on the whole they are NOT better then the Memphis kids, yet the Memphis kids lose...and lose BAD, yet no one wants to address that, they just want to address how their school isn't winning cus of lack of athletes, yet when I show schools that aren't winning and HAVE athletes, then no one says anything.

[ELA]

There may be enough athletes in Red Boiling Springs to make a good team (who knows), but in years past, there hasn't been much cooperation between the various coaches! The top basketball players always refuse to play football (it is a basketball town), and so the three major boys sports (football, baseball, basketball) divide what talent is there and they all suffer! If you think it is coaching, then they haven't had a great coach (ever), but I think it is a combination of a lack of overall talent, no required weight training, no required attendance policy, and very little support from the administration. Part of this would be the head coaches responsibility, but if the administration doesn't back the head coach up and force the other coaches to allow the kids to play other sports, you can't have a winning program.

 

Let me give you a hypothetical example: Let's say you are hired to be the new football coach at school XYZ. You meet with the team in late May (just before school is out for the summer) and you have 10-20 kids "sign up for football." You mail out letters to every boy in the school and you schedule practice dates. Only 3-5 show up for weight training throughout the summer and when the season rolls around you notice the best athletes refuse to play football because they don't want to get hurt before basketball season! You meet with the basketball coach and he tells you it is up to the boys, but they simply don't want to get hurt! School starts and you see two or three more athletes walking the hall and you find out they either play golf, or baseball and refuse to play football for the same reasons. You plead your case but still can't get the better players to come out and play. Later in the year, you find out that in fact, some of the other head coaches in your school have told their players not to try out for football because they will get hurt. You go to the administration and they refuse to do anything about it! All you have to work with is about 22 kids... none have speed, strength, or very much athletic ability. You can be the greatest coach in the world, but you will be lucky to win one game! THAT IS A FACT!

 

I'm not saying all of this hypothetical scenario applies to Coach Caddle, but some of it does. I play them every year, and he always does well with what he has. But everyone tries to pin the blame on him, when in fact, any coach would have a tough time winning with what he has to work with! Unless the principal sits down with the head basketball and baseball coach and forces them all to share the talent, nothing new will change! It is almost like a "Catch-22" situation (if you remember that movie).

[VolunteerGeneral]

ELA....I still think the biggest part of that burden falls on the coach. If that new coach comes to that school with the history of participation in football that you described then he`s the one who has to find a way to change it. He has to be a good motivator. He has to beleive in what he is doing and sell it to the kids. It might be getting every ninth grader he can to come out and get them started early. He may have to go to the high schools` feeder middle schools and developing relationships with them while they are still in middle school. He may have to go to the parents and convince them that football will forever be a positive influence on their kids lives. He might have to tell them how good a rb, qb, tackle or whatever that their kid can be. That`s all about being a good coach, being a leader and motivator. Let`s take this hypothetical... Let`s say Phil Fulmer took the head coaching job at XYZ high school. Do you think he would have problems getting kids to play? If you were a parent at XYZ and Coach Fulmer came to you and said I`d really like your son to play ball for me. I think he`s got a lot of potential and I can make him into a good ball player. Do you think you`d try to get your kid to play? I`m not dismissing the fact that the powers that be might not care one bit about football, but I feel that ultimately the success of any program falls on the coach.

[TheEgoHasLanded]

haha also a good post VG...I still side with ELA, just cus their aren't many Fulmer's that are going to take a job at School XYZ...why would you?

1-the school must have been losing in the first place.

2-your an outsider, need a house, move, etc.

3-if your so good, probably takin a pay cut

4-might be startin over from scratch

5-if your so good, why would you take that job?

 

But still well said.

[ELA]

Volunteer General... I had to do the same exact thing when I took my current job, and I am happy to say I didn't have any problems with my administration or coaching staff; in fact, up until this year, I coached both the Middle School and High School programs! The BIG DIFFERENCE, is the current administration and staff in place at RBS isn't geared for that sort of control. Here is what must happen if they are to turn there program around: We will begin with a HUGE assumption, that they might go out and look for a new coach (something I don't like to discuss online because this team is in my region and I make it a policy not to talk bad on CoachT about my fellow head football coaches). The new guy would have to insist on the following things:

 

1. A five year contract (not effected by tenure, i.e. state budget short-falls).

2. Complete cooperation with all other head coaches (enforced by the principal and school board)

3. Control of the junior high program (either head coach or making one of his assistants the Middle School Head Coach).

4. Plead, beg, and coerce Coach Owens (B-BALL) and Coach Elrod (baseball) to be the key assistant coaches, giving them some autonomy over some aspect of the football program, thereby, allowing them to personally have some ownership in the outcome of the season!

5. A percentage of the concession receipts and the net of the home gate(s).

6. A promise to allow him to go out and hand pick at least one assistant coach within two years (based on availability and teaching slots available).

7. An understanding (A Gentlemen's Agreement) with the Macon County Head Coach that each team will not recruit the other teams players and will support the efforts of the youth football teams.

8. Establish a permanent link with the local youth football coaches and their association(s).

9. Go on a ten month public relations campaign to change the attitude about football in the Eastern Half of Macon County!

 

Even after all of this is said and done, there is no promise of a region championship or even a playoff birth if all of your competition is loaded with more talent than your team has on the field!

 

I think I understand some of what Coach Cadle is going through and I wish him well! I want to publicly state that I am not endorsing the idea of his removal because I think he deserves some credit for the wins they had last year! Those decisions must be made by the people of RBS... however, under no circumstances, should they consider giving up on football!

[Edited by ELA on 7/16/02 5:43P]

[ELA]

EGO has hit the nail on the head! No local housing to speak of... a huge cut in pay... but a really great challenge for the right guy! A long term contract would be required for the right coach (something small school districts are afraid of)!

[nonews]

... do not take those types of jobs (nor do they have to)...

 

...and BTW, VG you MIGHT try doing a little research into Tennessee high school football, it's an interesting subject that neither begins nor ends with USJ...

[Edited by nonews on 7/16/02 8:57P]

[ELA]

There are some guys who take those kinds of jobs! Some are coaches near retirement who want one more challenge before they go out! Others are young energetic coaches who are looking for that first head coaching job! Finally there are guys like me, who have retired from one career, went back to college, coached around the state for a decade before landing a head coaching job at a very small school! There are all kinds of reasons for people taking a cut in pay to take a job like the one at RBS. Monterey wasn't a great program until just a few years ago. Granted... there aren't many success stories of schools being turned around, but it does happen. One thing is for sure, it will take the right coach, and the right group of talent to make the difference. No coach can win without talent!

[VolunteerGeneral]

ELA...I agree with what you are saying,and in essence I think you are agreeing with me as well. It ultimately falls on the head coach to turn things around. He does need help, but he has to be the one who must be able to get kids out for the team.I wasn`t saying that they could hire a great coach like Fulmer, I just used that example to show that the right man can get the job done. I would imagine that there are a lot of eager young coaches who would be up to the challenge. If you can make in roads at a school like RBS, then that will certainly open doors down the road. Maybe a better example would be a youth director at a church. I`ve seen some churches that really don`t have good youth participation (I`m talking about high school age) and I`ve seen some churches that have huge turnouts for all kinds of events and Wed. nights as well. They have kids that go to other churches that will come on Wed. nights, because that`s where everyone wants to be. A good youth director much like a good coach knows how to attract kids. They know how to relate to them and make them want to be involved. It`s sad if they don`t get more administrative help there. It`s also sad if the other sports programs don`t help each other out. At the 1A level, public or private, it is a necessity to have kids playing more than one sport. It`s really kind of dumb that those coaches can`t get together and come up with some sort of summer workout program for their kids. It would be for the benefit of all their teams.

 

nonews....I have no idea what you are talking about. But feel free to keep posting.