Northeast Tennessee Conference Alignment

[RebelConvert]

Taking all things into consideration, what is the best alignment to go with? It's my understanding we go by school size. The larger schools say that the smaller ones in the area do not prepare them for the playoffs. Some of the schools classified as larger schools can not compete with the other programs in their division. Obviously you have to consider economic times and travel expenses, too. So what should be looked at when aligning the conferences? Just curious as I know many of you have varing opinions. I definately would like to hear from some of you that think its a disadvantage come playoff time. Also wouldn't mind to know the opinion of the so called cellar teams.

[dbFAN91]

Taking all things into consideration, what is the best alignment to go with? It's my understanding we go by school size. The larger schools say that the smaller ones in the area do not prepare them for the playoffs. Some of the schools classified as larger schools can not compete with the other programs in their division. Obviously you have to consider economic times and travel expenses, too. So what should be looked at when aligning the conferences? Just curious as I know many of you have varing opinions. I definately would like to hear from some of you that think its a disadvantage come playoff time. Also wouldn't mind to know the opinion of the so called cellar teams.

Ok, here it is. All the one and done crap from people about DB is a direct result of playing tuff teams early in the year and then finishing with weeker big eight schools. The reason... The speed of the game in our area is a lot slower than other regions. It's a fact. We just don't have the quanity of athletes. We might have a few but not the number as these other schools. I would like to see DB realigned in conference with Jeff County, Bearden, Sevier County,Science Hill, Farragut, Maryville and Oak Ridge. Is that a super conference or what? I believe who ever wins this conference would play for a gold ball every year. Just because the level of competition would elevate each teams game. I realize we would have a hard time winning this conference, but it would improve our program greatly. Anyone agree or disagree? Roll Tribe!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[THSVikings2004]

Ok, here it is. All the one and done crap from people about DB is a direct result of playing tuff teams early in the year and then finishing with weeker big eight schools. The reason... The speed of the game in our area is a lot slower than other regions. It's a fact. We just don't have the quanity of athletes. We might have a few but not the number as these other schools. I would like to see DB realigned in conference with Jeff County, Bearden, Sevier County,Science Hill, Farragut, Maryville and Oak Ridge. Is that a super conference or what? I believe who ever wins this conference would play for a gold ball every year. Just because the level of competition would elevate each teams game. I realize we would have a hard time winning this conference, but it would improve our program greatly. Anyone agree or disagree? Roll Tribe!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I agree to certain extent, but I wouldn't blame the Big 8 schools unless you lose in the first round this year. The '06 and '08 losses weren't due to the Big 8 schools and the '09 loss was because you played a buzzsaw in the first round.

 

In my opinion the problem is a geographic one. DB and Science Hill are on their own little island. Both of them are the only 6A schools near here. Tennessee High, South, Boone, Crockett, Volunteer, and Central are on a slightly larger island consisting of legitimate 5A schools. Central and South probably won't be there much longer and two of the remaining schools have way below average football teams. The rest of the teams in this area are smaller schools. Prior to expanding to 6 classifications, Tennessee and South were basically 4A teams playing in a 3A conference. Now, the same can be said for DB and Science Hill; they're bascially 6A teams playing in a 5A conference. In the regular season, DB plays 3 6A schools. Every now and then it will probably hurt them if they run into a team that plays 7 or 8 6A schools year in and year out.

Edited September 9, 2010 by THSVikings2004

[The Hill]

I agree with both of you guys . . . Unfortunately economics will always rule the decision making process. Not just the travel expenses for the schools, but visitor gate revenue would also suffer. D-B and Science Hill will just have to find a way to raise their level of play where we can compete with the rest of the state. I believe D-B for the most part is on the door step most every year. They just need to make that step. And Science Hill is two or three steps away.

 

There is a serious focus on the football program at Science Hill that I have NEVER seen before. So maybe Science Hill can rise-up and together with D-B attack the rest of the state of Tennessee and make some noise and bring home that elusive gold ball to Northeast Tennessee.

[compusatman]

Our NET area is not quite as rural as some parts of the state. West TN for example. We have no choice but to use census as the primary factor in classification. When one looks at a particular school and deems it a football or a basketball school then it is largely a coaching consequence. In our area it is many times the smaller schools (census wise) that have the superior programs. Numbers do call the shots but coaching puts the icing on the cake. The Centrals and Volunteers of the world are not condemed to football Hades because they don't have sufficient numbers. Contrar, they have numbers and as well they have historical dominance on the GridIron. When Central lost Colonial Heights to South it seemed the end of their football success. But Volunteer has no excuse because Church Hill was a powerhouse in the Upper Lakes Conference in the 60's and 70's. Why, combining them with Surgoinsville ruined them? You can say what you want but coaching is everything. Yes, administration is usually nothing more than a stick in the mud. But a great coach can cause them to get off their dead rear end and do something. It speaks for itself. Shawn Whitten, Coach Norris, Stacy Carter, Don Woods, Greenville, Hampton, Cloudland. South is a perfect example of what a quality coach can accomplish in short order. And with inferior numbers. It's all about the coach people. You can cry about the classification, the schedule all you want but it's all about the coach. You say there is more speed west of Morristown? I tell you all you have to do is look in the state record books and you will find that the speed resided in NET in the early 70's. Where did it go? We got soft. From one end to the other we got soft. It takes hard parents to make hard children. Too much ice cream and soda pop...not enough yes sir and no sir...that's what the problem is.

[ChurchHillFootballFan]

Ok, here it is. All the one and done crap from people about DB is a direct result of playing tuff teams early in the year and then finishing with weeker big eight schools. The reason... The speed of the game in our area is a lot slower than other regions. It's a fact. We just don't have the quanity of athletes. We might have a few but not the number as these other schools. I would like to see DB realigned in conference with Jeff County, Bearden, Sevier County,Science Hill, Farragut, Maryville and Oak Ridge. Is that a super conference or what? I believe who ever wins this conference would play for a gold ball every year. Just because the level of competition would elevate each teams game. I realize we would have a hard time winning this conference, but it would improve our program greatly. Anyone agree or disagree? Roll Tribe!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

This is only the second year the Big 8 has even existed in its current incarnation. IIRC, D-B was part of a Big 10 and a Big 8 back in the 70s/80s before the state went to 5 classifications in the late 80s/early 90s and then 6 last year.

 

DB's conference until '08 included Jeff County, Sevier County, and Science Hill, and they tried to schedule Oak Ridge and schools like Farragut and Bearden in non-conference games every year. They were still one and done. It's not about a weak schedule failing to prepare them for the playoffs. It's because they've always gotten the luxury of cruising through a cake conference and get OVERRATED every year by fans and media who watch them blow out mediocre teams! If they were in the Knoxville, Nashville, or Memphis areas, they'd be a 3rd or 4th seed at best and miss the playoffs around 50% of the time. Just like how they always get destroyed by a good Knoxville area team in the playoffs every year.

 

The current system's not perfect, but I actually like it because it preserves and encourages natural rivalries that've been there for decades, yet seperates teams out in the playoffs so that things are slightly more even. It's as close to the "best of both worlds" as you'll get. The only tweaks I'd like to see would be to take a page from European soccer's book and let the worst team in the conference have the option to drop down to a lower class for the next season, while the top team gets the option of moving up. Actually, I don't think soccer makes it optional: they just make you do it.

 

As CompUSAtman wrote, it's not about the size of the school, or even "the athletes," so much as it is the coaching (and the administrators who can either make or break a coach's plans). Central belongs in 4A by their current enrollment and the state admitted as much. Volunteer has been one of the worst coached teams in NETN for the past 3 seasons, rivaled by only Central, the Greene Co schools, and Unicoi County for sheer ineptitude. They've got athletes, but no one to show them how to play football and make a team out of them.

 

Science Hill had a nationally ranked basketball team throughout the 90s when George Pitts was there. Now they're merely "one of the best in the Big 8." Did that talent just disappear? No! But the coach did.

 

D-B typically has one of the state's best track teams and probably has as many guys in the NFL right now as any other HS in the state. Since they run the track program as a side business of the football program, you'd think all those great athletes would guarantee them state dominance, but it doesn't work like that.

 

Maryville, OTOH, doesn't send that many guys on to big time colleges. The Morristown schools, D-B, and Tennessee High all have more top tier talent and more BCS schools recruiting their kids than Maryville's ever had. Yet Maryville's one of the nation's best HS football teams. That whole community is obsessed with football, Quarles' staff is wonderful at developing and polishing the skills of the players they do have, and those kids work at it year round in a way that your typical D-B (or any other NE TN) athlete would find unthinkable.

 

That's the secret to winning a championship, and also the reason why most NE TN schools fail in the playoffs when they run up against a Maryville or an Alcoa. Only Greeneville and South have an inkling of what powers those schools, which is probably why Greeneville were 4A champs last year and South made the final 4. It's all about the coaching and having a supportive administration who understands and values football.

Edited September 9, 2010 by ChurchHillFootballFan

[BatmanDB]

I don't buy the schedule is making DB soft.A good year to go by is 2004.We played three easy teams and than hung 48 on Oak Ridge.Who gave us our only loss that year.Injuries,depth and a lot of factors can get you beat at playoff time.Alcoa doesn't slow down when they get into their 3A schedule after the early Maryville game and so on.

[crashomatic]

I don't buy the schedule is making DB soft.A good year to go by is 2004.We played three easy teams and than hung 48 on Oak Ridge.Who gave us our only loss that year.Injuries,depth and a lot of factors can get you beat at playoff time.Alcoa doesn't slow down when they get into their 3A schedule after the early Maryville game and so on.

Give Stacy Carter 2 years at Science Hill and DB will have a good way of getting ready for the other schools down the line. I will bet they will not be a push over

[The Hill]

This is only the second year the Big 8 has even existed in its current incarnation. IIRC, D-B was part of a Big 10 and a Big 8 back in the 70s/80s before the state went to 5 classifications in the late 80s/early 90s and then 6 last year.

 

DB's conference until '08 included Jeff County, Sevier County, and Science Hill, and they tried to schedule Oak Ridge and schools like Farragut and Bearden in non-conference games every year. They were still one and done. It's not about a weak schedule failing to prepare them for the playoffs. It's because they've always gotten the luxury of cruising through a cake conference and get OVERRATED every year by fans and media who watch them blow out mediocre teams! If they were in the Knoxville, Nashville, or Memphis areas, they'd be a 3rd or 4th seed at best and miss the playoffs around 50% of the time. Just like how they always get destroyed by a good Knoxville area team in the playoffs every year.

 

The current system's not perfect, but I actually like it because it preserves and encourages natural rivalries that've been there for decades, yet seperates teams out in the playoffs so that things are slightly more even. It's as close to the "best of both worlds" as you'll get. The only tweaks I'd like to see would be to take a page from European soccer's book and let the worst team in the conference have the option to drop down to a lower class for the next season, while the top team gets the option of moving up. Actually, I don't think soccer makes it optional: they just make you do it.

 

As CompUSAtman wrote, it's not about the size of the school, or even "the athletes," so much as it is the coaching (and the administrators who can either make or break a coach's plans). Central belongs in 4A by their current enrollment and the state admitted as much. Volunteer has been one of the worst coached teams in NETN for the past 3 seasons, rivaled by only Central, the Greene Co schools, and Unicoi County for sheer ineptitude. They've got athletes, but no one to show them how to play football and make a team out of them.

 

Science Hill had a nationally ranked basketball team throughout the 90s when George Pitts was there. Now they're merely "one of the best in the Big 8." Did that talent just disappear? No! But the coach did.

 

D-B typically has one of the state's best track teams and probably has as many guys in the NFL right now as any other HS in the state. Since they run the track program as a side business of the football program, you'd think all those great athletes would guarantee them state dominance, but it doesn't work like that.

 

Maryville, OTOH, doesn't send that many guys on to big time colleges. The Morristown schools, D-B, and Tennessee High all have more top tier talent and more BCS schools recruiting their kids than Maryville's ever had. Yet Maryville's one of the nation's best HS football teams. That whole community is obsessed with football, Quarles' staff is wonderful at developing and polishing the skills of the players they do have, and those kids work at it year round in a way that your typical D-B (or any other NE TN) athlete would find unthinkable.

 

That's the secret to winning a championship, and also the reason why most NE TN schools fail in the playoffs when they run up against a Maryville or an Alcoa. Only Greeneville and South have an inkling of what powers those schools, which is probably why Greeneville were 4A champs last year and South made the final 4. It's all about the coaching and having a supportive administration who understands and values football.

 

GOOD POST!

[Quasar]

 

DB's conference until '08 included Jeff County, Sevier County, and Science Hill, and they tried to schedule Oak Ridge and schools like Farragut and Bearden in non-conference games every year. They were still one and done. It's not about a weak schedule failing to prepare them for the playoffs. It's because they've always gotten the luxury of cruising through a cake conference and get OVERRATED every year by fans and media who watch them blow out mediocre teams! If they were in the Knoxville, Nashville, or Memphis areas, they'd be a 3rd or 4th seed at best and miss the playoffs around 50% of the time. Just like how they always get destroyed by a good Knoxville area team in the playoffs every year.

 

 

As CompUSAtman wrote, it's not about the size of the school, or even "the athletes," so much as it is the coaching (and the administrators who can either make or break a coach's plans). Central belongs in 4A by their current enrollment and the state admitted as much. Volunteer has been one of the worst coached teams in NETN for the past 3 seasons, rivaled by only Central, the Greene Co schools, and Unicoi County for sheer ineptitude. They've got athletes, but no one to show them how to play football and make a team out of them.

 

 

D-B typically has one of the state's best track teams and probably has as many guys in the NFL right now as any other HS in the state. Since they run the track program as a side business of the football program, you'd think all those great athletes would guarantee them state dominance, but it doesn't work like that.

 

Maryville, OTOH, doesn't send that many guys on to big time colleges. The Morristown schools, D-B, and Tennessee High all have more top tier talent and more BCS schools recruiting their kids than Maryville's ever had. Yet Maryville's one of the nation's best HS football teams. That whole community is obsessed with football, Quarles' staff is wonderful at developing and polishing the skills of the players they do have, and those kids work at it year round in a way that your typical D-B (or any other NE TN) athlete would find unthinkable.

 

 

 

You have got to be kidding. For one, DB was in the same conf as Bearden. But to say that Maryville has never had as much top talent as DB is a load. DB gets some impressive players but ones that are legit D-1 talent are rare for them. Maybe one every 4 years, tops. And Sensabaugh is not D-1, too small for a RB, too slow for a Defensive back. Maryville always has D-1 talent and to say they haven't or don't is ridiculous. DB teams are traditionally undersized to be honest. IMO, its why they made the switch to the 3-3 stack. Large defense lineman have usually been in short order for them and until this year, so have large, road grading offensive lineman. Along with having duran ferguson and lamon williams, its why they made a switch from the veer to the spread offense in 2003. However, I do completely agree with you about DB becoming overrated. As freshman they get over-hyped about their potential. Several times I have heard "That sophomore class is something special" and what seems like what happens is you get inflated egos from accomplishing NOTHING. Now having some swagger is good and I'm not saying every player is like that, but too much arrogance has ruined some outstanding DB teams. Many times losing one of those out of conf games early is good. In 2002, they lost to MBA and Greenville to start the year 1-2. That team went 8-2 knowing that nothing would come easy and lost to the eventual state champs, riverdale in the semis by special teams snafu. Which was oddly enough, committed by a junior with an overinflated sense of accomplishment. That year was also the last time they had two large run stuffing DTs. Not D-1 talent, but great for 5A (now 6A). The stack has been good to them, but I think its feast or famine nature doesn't lend itself to success in the playoffs when the competition level drastically rises.

[BatmanDB]

You have got to be kidding. For one, DB was in the same conf as Bearden. But to say that Maryville has never had as much top talent as DB is a load. DB gets some impressive players but ones that are legit D-1 talent are rare for them. Maybe one every 4 years, tops. And Sensabaugh is not D-1, too small for a RB, too slow for a Defensive back. Maryville always has D-1 talent and to say they haven't or don't is ridiculous. DB teams are traditionally undersized to be honest. IMO, its why they made the switch to the 3-3 stack. Large defense lineman have usually been in short order for them and until this year, so have large, road grading offensive lineman. Along with having duran ferguson and lamon williams, its why they made a switch from the veer to the spread offense in 2003. However, I do completely agree with you about DB becoming overrated. As freshman they get over-hyped about their potential. Several times I have heard "That sophomore class is something special" and what seems like what happens is you get inflated egos from accomplishing NOTHING. Now having some swagger is good and I'm not saying every player is like that, but too much arrogance has ruined some outstanding DB teams. Many times losing one of those out of conf games early is good. In 2002, they lost to MBA and Greenville to start the year 1-2. That team went 8-2 knowing that nothing would come easy and lost to the eventual state champs, riverdale in the semis by special teams snafu. Which was oddly enough, committed by a junior with an overinflated sense of accomplishment. That year was also the last time they had two large run stuffing DTs. Not D-1 talent, but great for 5A (now 6A). The stack has been good to them, but I think its feast or famine nature doesn't lend itself to success in the playoffs when the competition level drastically rises.

Thank goodness we have very good speed on defense.I disagree about Chris and think he will go D1.As for the road grading,I wouldn't say we have enough big O-lineman to clear an interstate by no means,but again we have speed on the offensive side of the ball.

[WaCoJaCo]

This is only the second year the Big 8 has even existed in its current incarnation. IIRC, D-B was part of a Big 10 and a Big 8 back in the 70s/80s before the state went to 5 classifications in the late 80s/early 90s and then 6 last year.

 

DB's conference until '08 included Jeff County, Sevier County, and Science Hill, and they tried to schedule Oak Ridge and schools like Farragut and Bearden in non-conference games every year. They were still one and done. It's not about a weak schedule failing to prepare them for the playoffs. It's because they've always gotten the luxury of cruising through a cake conference and get OVERRATED every year by fans and media who watch them blow out mediocre teams! If they were in the Knoxville, Nashville, or Memphis areas, they'd be a 3rd or 4th seed at best and miss the playoffs around 50% of the time. Just like how they always get destroyed by a good Knoxville area team in the playoffs every year.

 

The current system's not perfect, but I actually like it because it preserves and encourages natural rivalries that've been there for decades, yet seperates teams out in the playoffs so that things are slightly more even. It's as close to the "best of both worlds" as you'll get. The only tweaks I'd like to see would be to take a page from European soccer's book and let the worst team in the conference have the option to drop down to a lower class for the next season, while the top team gets the option of moving up. Actually, I don't think soccer makes it optional: they just make you do it.

 

As CompUSAtman wrote, it's not about the size of the school, or even "the athletes," so much as it is the coaching (and the administrators who can either make or break a coach's plans). Central belongs in 4A by their current enrollment and the state admitted as much. Volunteer has been one of the worst coached teams in NETN for the past 3 seasons, rivaled by only Central, the Greene Co schools, and Unicoi County for sheer ineptitude. They've got athletes, but no one to show them how to play football and make a team out of them.

 

Science Hill had a nationally ranked basketball team throughout the 90s when George Pitts was there. Now they're merely "one of the best in the Big 8." Did that talent just disappear? No! But the coach did.

 

D-B typically has one of the state's best track teams and probably has as many guys in the NFL right now as any other HS in the state. Since they run the track program as a side business of the football program, you'd think all those great athletes would guarantee them state dominance, but it doesn't work like that.

 

Maryville, OTOH, doesn't send that many guys on to big time colleges. The Morristown schools, D-B, and Tennessee High all have more top tier talent and more BCS schools recruiting their kids than Maryville's ever had. Yet Maryville's one of the nation's best HS football teams. That whole community is obsessed with football, Quarles' staff is wonderful at developing and polishing the skills of the players they do have, and those kids work at it year round in a way that your typical D-B (or any other NE TN) athlete would find unthinkable.

 

That's the secret to winning a championship, and also the reason why most NE TN schools fail in the playoffs when they run up against a Maryville or an Alcoa. Only Greeneville and South have an inkling of what powers those schools, which is probably why Greeneville were 4A champs last year and South made the final 4. It's all about the coaching and having a supportive administration who understands and values football.

 

Its funny, you make a few good points in this post but like a good little DB Hater you've got to bash the Tribe. What I don't understand is why do you think you can just make up this garbage, post it here, and not have a DB fan call you out on it. To start with you screen name "ChurchHillFootballFan" tells us that you know very little about football. You need to stick to breeding goats and killin' coons and leave the football talk to the people that actually have a team in the playoffs more than once every 15 years. But let me just point out what parts of your post are lies. DB did not just "try" to schedule teams like Farragut & Oak Ridge, they "did" schedule them. We played teams like that every year and beat them more times than not. We lead the series in wins against Farragut, one of Knoxville's better teams, and I believe we're one up on Oak Ridge, one of the states better programs. DB has played toe to toe with MBA, one of if not the top private school in Tennessee. Beating them in Nashville on their own field when they were ranked #16 in the Nation and ending their 36 game win streak. Losing to them at J. Fred the next year in three overtimes. DB has not had a good playoff record the past 5 years, but you try to make it look like its always been this way. DB has had more success in the playoffs than most of the Knoxville teams, and for sure most of the local teams. South and Science Hill have more first round playoff loses than DB so Your one & done label that you try to stick on DB makes you look foolish. DB isn't even in the top 20 in the state as for as losing in the first round. You are living in a dream world. Who are these Knoxville teams that have destroyed DB every year? Are you smoking crack? I think we have some people that are just upset that DB didn't stay down after last year as they were predicting. Well welcome to the real world.

 

ps: That last paragraph was a real laugh. And im pretty sure Greenville didn't win the 4A championship last year. You need to find a new hobbie there goat roper.