Brentwood Academy @ Olive Branch, MS

[TraderB]

Olive Branch 31 Brentwood Academy 20 FINAL

 

Convincing victory by OB!!

 

Kudos to BA for not quitting at halftime. Excellent effort.

[shakinthefat]

Keys to victory for BA:

 

-- Do not give up the big-play!

-- Focus on stopping the run

-- (Expect bad shot-gun snaps)

-- Win the field-position battle

-- Patience offensively = control the clock

-- Good kicking game

-- I repeat: Do not give up the big-play!

 

Quick Summary: Olive Branch had absolutely too much speed and athleticism for BA. Plus, it's massive OL dominated BA!

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Keys to victory?: BA failed miserably to do the KEY things necessary to win:

 

1) They repeatedly gave up the big-play

2) They could not stop the run (OR the pass!)

3) (OB had only 1 or 2 bad snaps = non-factor )

 

4) lost the field-position game--they couldn't move the ball, consistently.

5) Could not control the clock & keep OB's offense off the field (see #4)

6) kicking game = non-factor.

7) Again--the big play DESTROYED BA!!

 

 

8) Allow "Home Cooking" by the local Missiaaippi Officials.

a) At least 4 plays OB had 12 to 13 players on field when ball was snapped.

BA stops run on 1 yd line at half until tainted officials confer and call it a TD 45 seconds after play was over.

c) Have BA 70 yd TD called back on a very questionable holding call in front of OB bench.

d) Call push in the back penalty on a fair catch

 

Not impressed with OB. MUS will have a field day next Friday.

[TraderB]

 

 

8) Allow "Home Cooking" by the local Missiaaippi Officials.

a) At least 4 plays OB had 12 to 13 players on field when ball was snapped.

BA stops run on 1 yd line at half until tainted officials confer and call it a TD 45 seconds after play was over.

c) Have BA 70 yd TD called back on a very questionable holding call in front of OB bench.

d) Call push in the back penalty on a fair catch

 

Not impressed with OB. MUS will have a field day next Friday.

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8a) I agree! OB repeatedly had too many men on field @ snap....I recall only once, that it was flagged! Very suspicious, indeed.

 

THAT was a VERY suspicious series of events.... On that same TD plunge, OB actually had broken the huddle with 12 men. It was not called.

 

c) It's hard for me to say that holding did NOT occur. I was sitting on BA's upper 50yd line and, honestly, did not have a clear line of sight. Plus, my eyes were glued onto the ball-carrier as he raced for the endzone!

 

d) Again, it was hard for me to say that it did NOT occur.

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The above things were not responsible for BA's loss to OB. BA simply could not match up with Olive Branch! That is ultimately the reason for BA's loss.

 

While I full understand your position about OBs team, I feel the complete opposite: OB's team speed, athleticism, size, play-makers, offensive balance, overall defense and adequate (not the best in the world) execution actually make them an awfully difficult team to outplay for 4 whole quarters, then defeat. These key attributes simply cannot be overlooked and casually dismissed, as you appear to be doing. This combination is a REAL nightmare for opposing teams, particularly if that opponent is NOT Championship-quality! It is a fallacy to think otherwise.

 

I'm really curious -- What exactly were you NOT impressed with, about Olive Branch, that makes you think that MUS will have a "field day?" I interpret this to mean that you forsee a MUS blowout of OB--correct?

 

For the record....I was cheering and pulling for BA to defeat OB, just as I did for Mphs East a few weeks ago. I will also be cheering for MUS to defeat OB!

 

Having seen Olive Branch twice this year, I have seen their best and worst qualities: While their passing game has improved dramatically, their pass-defense, still needs to improve. Plus, they tend to gamble too much and lose their defensive discipline. This is where their (arrogant/cocky) over-reliance on their speed and athleticism become a detriment. This is usually why, IMO, a disciplined, Championship-quality team like South Panola (a team that always matches up with OB's strengths) consistently defeat Olive Branch. MUS' overwhelming execution and adequate speed affords them a similar opportunity, but to lesser extent.

 

Brentwood Academy is NOT a Championship-quality team this year, from what I observed! They simply could not match up with Olive Branch. That is a reality that cannot be dismissed, despite any questionable officiating.

 

I hope you're right about MUS having a field-day vs Olive Branch. My gut tells me, however, that MUS will have its moments.....BUT so will Olive Branch! I expect that this game will come down to turnovers and execution. Advantage MUS..... It will be a lower-scoring game than BA-OB.

 

MUS by 4 points.

[shakinthefat]

Traderb - I cannot disagree with you on your observation of the game and BA's performance.

The offense was not clicking at times and the defense had trouble with the counter play up the middle.

The 14 point swng with OB intercepting on the BA goal line then scoring 4 plays later was a big difference in the game.

I do not like to think the officials were impartial to OB.

But....... IF they had called the 4 illegal substitutions (20 yards worth), made the no TD call prior to the half (even OB parents on the sticks said he didn't get in), and no holding call (pushing, right in front of OB bench) on the BA TD, it could have been a different outcome.

I know alot of "what ifs........" but that is what you think about after a game.

 

OB is a very good team, not great. Their big men are soft and slow. The QB is average and the defensive backs are weak. Their running game and running back quickness is their strength.

Which brings me to my prediction that MUS will enjoy a 3 TD win next Friday. The MUS QB will exploit that OB secondary all night long.

I would hope OB would return the favor and travel to BA next year where the officials there can count to 11.

I enjoyed reading your post Traderb.

[EHSfan04]

I took the trip to Olive Branch this past Friday and the officiating was disappointing. In a loss, a lot of the "what if's" cross your mind. I do believe that Olive Branch may have been the better team, but as far as being too athletic and too fast for BA, I didn't see it. The holding call happened on a 80 yd TD in which Tate (who is BA's third fastest running back) out ran Olive Branch's whole defense to the end zone. OB's fastest guy broke a long run and was chased down by #7 after juking him at the 20. The next play, BA's safety recovered a fumble and ran 98 yds and no one came close to him. BA could have easily won that game, but mistakes and OB's dominating offensive line was too much. I hope we can play Olive Branch sometime in the near future, because we are even more athletic than BA (Just ask MBA)!!