Big Games in Memphis ... Week 13 (Quarters & Semis)

[Spartansfan]

I'm seeing both sides to this arguement. I totally understand the Gold Ball criteria....after all, that's exactly what each team is after at the beginning of the season. But kwc also makes a valid point. Just because west Tn doesn't have the Gold Ball count, doesn't mean they are inferior to the middle and east teams overall.

 

Perhaps an example might help show what I'm thinking on this......Let's say Oakland is this years best team, and they ultimately win the Gold Ball. According to some, that's one more for middle Tn, and proves your superiority point. But add into the playoff format a method that mixes up Oaklands' path to the Gold Ball. Let's say all the playoff teams names get thrown into a hat and drawn out, creating the matchups. Perhaps Whitehaven sees Brentwood in round 1, WS goes to Farragut, Oakland hosts Hunters Lane. WH, WS, Oakland all advance. Round 2 sees WH defeat Ooltewah, WS drops beats Franklin, Oakland moves on after beating Riverdale. Round 3 sees WS drop out, WH and Oakland make it to round 4. WH loses in round 4, Oakland goes on the the championship game and defeats Maryville. So there's Oaklands new path to the Gold Ball. Reason to say middle Tn is best....? Yet in this senario, west Tn had 2 teams play, and advance vs middle and east teams. So just because they didn't make an appearance in the championship game doesn't mean they are inferior to the other areas. It just means they weren't the "BEST" team of that year.

 

I think my example shows how it could possibly turn out if the playoffs had a statewide matchup instead of the current system. Now for my disclaimer.....I'm not assuming WH or WS would beat Farragut, Franklin, Brentwood, etc. Teams were selected simply based on my familiarity of their existance. I do think West Tn teams, especially the better ones, would eliminate some east and middle tn teams in earlier rounds IF the system had that kind of mix to it. The "best" West team may not be as good as the "best" middle team....that may be consistently true. But that certainly doesn't mean West can't compete, or defeat teams from other parts of the state.

[BMack]

The "best" West team may not be as good as the "best" middle team....that may be consistently true. But that certainly doesn't mean West can't compete, or defeat teams from other parts of the state.

 

Then why don't they? They get at least one shot every year.

[BlackHavenSenator]

GREETINGS FROM DA HAVEN

 

Honestly, reading this banter has been more than exhilarating, however, I must come back to this one point in my own mind and heart... ALL IT TAKES IS 4 US (Da Haven) to win one and all of you will have to RESPECT DA HAVEN

[TraderB]

GREETINGS FROM DA HAVEN

 

Honestly, reading this banter has been more than exhilarating, however, I must come back to this one point in my own mind and heart... ALL IT TAKES IS 4 US (Da Haven) to win one and all of you will have to RESPECT DA HAVEN

 

Whitehaven's coaching staff had better open up that offensive playbook, Friday vs White Station, if they (realistically) expect to win one more game.....

 

A conservative, offensive approach will NOT be enough to defeat White Station!!

[kwc]

Whitehaven's coaching staff had better open up that offensive playbook, Friday vs White Station, if they (realistically) expect to win one more game.....

 

A conservative, offensive approach will NOT be enough to defeat White Station!!

 

TraderB:

 

You dance with the girl you brought to the dance. Whitehaven has been a conservative offensive team all year. You may throw in a few wrinkles ... but you are who you are. WH will do what they do best ... run the ball and play defense. They will throw on occassion to keep the defense honest ... but they will NOT change their stripes now. That would be suicide at this point in the season.

[Spartansfan]

The "best" West team may not be as good as the "best" middle team....that may be consistently true. But that certainly doesn't mean West can't compete, or defeat teams from other parts of the state.

 

Then why don't they? They get at least one shot every year.

The one shot they get every year is in the semi-finals. Losing a semi finals game to the team that wins, or loses the state championship game certainly doesn't mean their not able to compete with teams in other regions.

[TraderB]

Whitehaven's coaching staff had better open up that offensive playbook, Friday vs White Station, if they (realistically) expect to win one more game.....

 

A conservative, offensive approach will NOT be enough to defeat White Station!!

 

TraderB:

 

You dance with the girl you brought to the dance. Whitehaven has been a conservative offensive team all year. You may throw in a few wrinkles ... but you are who you are. WH will do what they do best ... run the ball and play defense. They will throw on occassion to keep the defense honest ... but they will NOT change their stripes now. That would be suicide at this point in the season.

 

Man, that is sooooo true.....but very UNFORTUNATE for Whitehaven.

 

Whitehaven's season will most likely come to a brutal, dead end-- Friday nite!!

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Unless White Station turns the ball over multiple times in its own territory-- giving Whitehaven repeated short fields, White Station will likely easily outscore Whitehaven again.

 

As a matter of fact, if the final score is as lopsided as the 1st meeting (and WH's offense is conservative and/or inept), I fully expect many frustrated Whitehaven fans to start grumbling openly....to get a new Head Coach!

 

Nevertheless, good luck to your Tigers, kwc... Hopefully it will be a great game with no major injuries.

[fourthree]

I agree with KWC in that Whitehaven should not change their offensive scheme at this point in the season. Whitehaven can win a low to moderate scoring game against White Station, with limited turnovers and mistakes on offense and special teams; and solid, physical, and smart defense- think White Station/CBHS. They have the athletes to do so Do they have the coaching I will give my predictions later.

[BlackHavenSenator]

Whitehaven's coaching staff had better open up that offensive playbook, Friday vs White Station, if they (realistically) expect to win one more game.....

 

A conservative, offensive approach will NOT be enough to defeat White Station!!

 

TraderB:

 

You dance with the girl you brought to the dance. Whitehaven has been a conservative offensive team all year. You may throw in a few wrinkles ... but you are who you are. WH will do what they do best ... run the ball and play defense. They will throw on occassion to keep the defense honest ... but they will NOT change their stripes now. That would be suicide at this point in the season.

 

Man, that is sooooo true.....but very UNFORTUNATE for Whitehaven.

 

Whitehaven's season will most likely come to a brutal, dead end-- Friday nite!!

---------------------------------

 

Unless White Station turns the ball over multiple times in its own territory-- giving Whitehaven repeated short fields, White Station will likely easily outscore Whitehaven again.

 

As a matter of fact, if the final score is as lopsided as the 1st meeting (and WH's offense is conservative and/or inept), I fully expect many frustrated Whitehaven fans to start grumbling openly....to get a new Head Coach!

 

Nevertheless, good luck to your Tigers, kwc... Hopefully it will be a great game with no major injuries.

 

GREETINGS FROM THE HAVEN

 

FIRST OFF THANKS 4 THE EXTRA MOTIVATION! WE NEED IT SINCE WHITE STATION IS SO GREAT... I ONLY HOPE WE CAN STAY IN THE GAME AND NOT GET BLOWN OUT LIKE WE DID WHEN WE FIRST PLAYED THEM... When dam-near a THIRD of our team was sick that week Mainly # 3 and #8 I don't know if we should even be on the same field as the GREAT SPARTANS I sure hope they just give the game away because I just don't know what we can do Offensively...

 

Thanks once again 4 the love Trader B U SHO KNOW WHAT 2 SAY

 

RESPECT DA HAVEN

[TraderB]

I agree with KWC in that Whitehaven should not change their offensive scheme at this point in the season. Whitehaven can win a low to moderate scoring game against White Station, with limited turnovers and mistakes on offense and special teams; and solid, physical, and smart defense- think White Station/CBHS. They have the athletes to do so Do they have the coaching I will give my predictions later.

 

I agree--Whitehaven clearly has the athletes to defeat White Station (and many other top teams, for that matter). I just think that the offensive tactics fail to optimize the use of their abilities. Therefore, Whitehaven underachieves, IMHO.

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Ridgeway gave Whitehaven one offensive blueprint on how to beat White Station, way back during week two: Put your QB under center and hit 'em traps, counters, quick-hitters, etc..... Yet, WH did not employ any of those successful tactics, during its blow-out loss to White Station. Instead, WH ran their offense out of the shotgun most of the night. When they did put the QB under center, they ran sweeps and other slow-developing plays.

 

CBHS then provided another blueprint, apparently-- from what I read on this board: strait-up power football! I take that to mean-- the inclusion of a FB as a lead blocker, among other things...... Well, WH certainly did not do that anywhere near enough vs White Station. If they did attempt it, it was in concert with that slow-developing stuff.

 

Whitehaven's coaching staff has one last chance to demonstrate that they remember the past (failures) and have learned from it. Two proven blueprints are already there, on what they need to do to defeat White Station. The athletes and talent are certainly there...

 

IMHO, there is no reason that a team as talent-laden as Whitehaven should EVER be as impotent offensively and get waxed as badly as they did, by White Station and Melrose. It is truly an enigma!

 

My gut feeling tells me that Whitehaven's performance vs White Station will be heavily scrutinized, by many Whitehaven faithful....especially if WH loses! I suspect that the coaching staff will be their central focus.

[TraderB]

FIRST OFF THANKS 4 THE EXTRA MOTIVATION! WE NEED IT SINCE WHITE STATION IS SO GREAT... I ONLY HOPE WE CAN STAY IN THE GAME AND NOT GET BLOWN OUT LIKE WE DID WHEN WE FIRST PLAYED THEM... When dam-near a THIRD of our team was sick that week Mainly # 3 and #8 I don't know if we should even be on the same field as the GREAT SPARTANS I sure hope they just give the game away because I just don't know what we can do Offensively...

 

Thanks once again 4 the love Trader B U SHO KNOW WHAT 2 SAY

 

RESPECT DA HAVEN

 

Please don't get it twisted, BlackhavenSenator.

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Since you're pretty new to "CoachT," please allow me to give you a quick Bio:

 

I am not a "smack" talker; I'm just a long-time fan of Memphis-area High School sports. I'm a neutral observer-- I don't care who wins. I just call 'em like I see 'em.... I support all of our Memphis area (and West Tennessee) representatives.

 

Secondly, I am not bashing Whitehaven! I am certainly not saying that White Station is the next coming of Super-Team (Lord knows-- they have their weaknesses). That is not what my comments were about....

 

Whitehaven needs to minimize its own weaknesses and maximize its strengths. If WH fails to do just those two simple things, tactically, then they have a low-probability of defeating White Station Friday night.

 

Those are just my unbiased observations. That's all I was saying, BlackHavenSenator--nothing more, nothing less.

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Good luck vs White Station.

[fourthree]

 

My picks:

 

Melrose has enough 'D' and 'O' to beat Mitchell ... 24-21

Whitehaven gets revenge in a defensive fight ..... 21-17

ECS overwhelms a roadweary Knox Webb ........... 30-17

MUS demonstrates why they are the best in TN ... 35-10

 

Yes ... I'm a Whitehaven homer ... so sue me ... RESPECT DA HAVEN!

 

Now, I want to see what/who everybody else is going to pick.

 

My picks:

 

Melrose- 28

Mitchell- 18

 

As Trader B has said, Melrose is a much improved team from early season. I think the most improved thing is the offensive line play, which is allowing us to now see the talents of their fine young quarterback, the skill and sure hands of their recievers, and a solid running game. And though their defense is not as dominate and physically imposing as in past years, it is still better than most and capable of keeping this game/scoring within reach of their offensive.

 

Whitehaven- 14

White Station- 31

 

Whitehaven's coaches must have their team ready to play solid defense. This means sure tackling, limited penalties, good discipline, and smart controlled aggression. Whitehaven's defensive line must outplay White Stations's offensive line so that the LBs can drop into coverage and/or spy or easily get to the QB. Whitehaven must have solid play in its kicking game and not turn the ball over on offensive. Whitehaven's defense must set the tone for this game, particularly its defensive line. Will Whitehaven coaches take this approach and have their kids ready to execute it is the question? The answer is NO! If NO indeed turns out as being the answer, given the talent, numbers, limited obstacles (as compared with other inner-city schools), and support that this coach has had while at Whitehaven, the Whitehaven fans will want Saulsberry replaced; as based on what I heard in the stands at the Wooddale game.

 

ECS- 34

KW- 24

 

The better team will win.

 

MUS- 38

Father Ryan- 10

 

MUS is just on another level.