Karns coach Derek Witt resigns

[HTV]

Hardin Valley certainly isn't helping now, nor is Grace Christian. I was just thinking back before HVA and GCA opened. You are certainly right about the lack of support. Karns is a great community, but when you don't have a very strong community backing or more parental support, you are going to struggle. At the Powell-Karns game last year, excluding coaches, I think there were twice as much auxiliary/radio/support staff for Powell in the press box than there were for Karns. I understand that now all Knoxville-area schools have a radio broadcast, but where were their stat guys, video guys, etc?

 

I see a couple of issues at play with Karns.

 

First of all, it's a community that is kind of in a "no man's land". It's not West Knoxville, and it's not the northern sector where there are strong community ties in Powell and Halls. Karns doesn't really have a "business support" area like Powell and Halls do to support the football program financially.

 

Another issue is that the school is located in an industrial park, again, taking away a "community" feel from it. The school itself is a good building, but the surroundings aren't exactly attractive. It's just not a place that is visibly appealing to the eye.

 

It hasn't helped that there has been so much turnover in the administration and the coaching staff recently. The lack of stability is as much a factor as anything.

 

And another factor that I have seen is that for whatever reason there are very few athletes who play football and either basketball or baseball. In a school the size of Karns, while you can have a few "one sport" athletes, for a football program to be successful because of the numbers needed it needs to get those multisport guys out, and Karns hasn't been able to do that. The Beavers have a "reputation" of being a baseball and basketball school first when it comes to boys sports.

 

Compound that now with the opening of Hardin Valley, and the emergence of both Grace Christian and CAK, and the renewed commitment at Catholic and it makes Karns still one of the really tough jobs in the area.

 

The plus, if you will, is that Karns is dropping down from 6A to 5A due to lower enrollment. Unfortunately for the, however, is that Oak Ridge is also dropping down to 5A and a couple of other 5A school in 3AAA - namely Anderson County, Campbell County, and Central are seeing significant improvement in their programs right now.

 

I know the new Principal, Kim Towe, very well. I can promise that she understands how important a good football program is to the overall sports health of a well rounded high school. She'll do everything she can to make the right hire and try to build some stability in that program.

[wingman10]

Good luck to Coach Tipton

[jammin01]

All those are great points but, its the total support thing, heck you have teachers telling kids they shouldn't play football because the team is terrible, Not sure if any of you have been to their practices since coach Witt resigned but, I can tell you things look to moving in a good direction with some things and Mrs, Towe has stepped up getting the place looking better.

[SweetScience]

It's hard for teams like Karns, Campbell County and the like to have a real good football team because they have gone so many years losing and they have no tradition to build upon, etc.It just becomes a vicious cycle after so many years of it being that way. Kids just can't get excited when they know that everytime they go out to play they are pretty much gonna get it handed to 'em on a platter. Just speakin' the truth. Have to start somewhere though, i guess.

Edited July 19, 2013 by SweetScience

[qb#7]

It's hard for teams like Karns, Campbell County and the like to have a real good football team because they have gone so many years losing and they have no tradition to build upon, etc.It just becomes a vicious cycle after so many years of it being that way. Kids just can't get excited when they know that everytime they go out to play they are pretty much gonna get it handed to 'em on a platter. Just speakin' the truth. Have to start somewhere though, i guess.

Just takes the right guy!

[osunut2]

It's hard for teams like Karns, Campbell County and the like to have a real good football team because they have gone so many years losing and they have no tradition to build upon, etc.It just becomes a vicious cycle after so many years of it being that way. Kids just can't get excited when they know that everytime they go out to play they are pretty much gonna get it handed to 'em on a platter. Just speakin' the truth. Have to start somewhere though, i guess.

Good point, the lack of a winning tradition doesn't help but qb is also right, sometimes it just takes the right guy. Just look at what Clark Duncan is doing at South Doyle.

[NextLevelRecruiting]

When u drive up Western Ave towards Karns all u see is road construction that seems to be yrs from being completed and IMO is the Biggest eye-sore in Knoxville! Then as u pass by Grace who has its own McDonalds and stop light not to mention One of the best looking sports complexes maybe? In the area? Then u enter the Karns area. There's a stop light and a Hardee's and a few mom and pop shops then u have to enter a Buisness Park to get to Karns HS. With this said, Hardin Valley is just on the other side and Catholic,Webb and CAK are just a few minutes away? Karns may have the worst geographic location to have to compete with all the surrounding High Schools. It's really a Hard Sell to get a Quality related program back at that school. I think Hardin Valley was the Biggest downfall for Karns. It basically split and decided a program who was at that point still struggling! I'm an underdog though and I'm hoping that Karns can bring back the glory days of old back to its community!

[SweetScience]

When u drive up Western Ave towards Karns all u see is road construction that seems to be yrs from being completed and IMO is the Biggest eye-sore in Knoxville! Then as u pass by Grace who has its own McDonalds and stop light not to mention One of the best looking sports complexes maybe? In the area? Then u enter the Karns area. There's a stop light and a Hardee's and a few mom and pop shops then u have to enter a Buisness Park to get to Karns HS. With this said, Hardin Valley is just on the other side and Catholic,Webb and CAK are just a few minutes away? Karns may have the worst geographic location to have to compete with all the surrounding High Schools. It's really a Hard Sell to get a Quality related program back at that school. I think Hardin Valley was the Biggest downfall for Karns. It basically split and decided a program who was at that point still struggling! I'm an underdog though and I'm hoping that Karns can bring back the glory days of old back to its community!

Karns actually has a "glory days"? News to me.

[SweetScience]

Good point, the lack of a winning tradition doesn't help but qb is also right, sometimes it just takes the right guy. Just look at what Clark Duncan is doing at South Doyle.

South Doyle has been struggling since 1991, Karns since 1969, but yeah i see what you mean.

Edited July 19, 2013 by SweetScience

[osunut2]

Karns actually has a "glory days"? News to me.

You beat me to the punch on that one.

[HTV]

South Doyle has been struggling since 1991, Karns since 1969, but yeah i see what you mean.

 

Not really. There was a time there early under Swafford when South Doyle had a lot of success and some very good football players. They just happened to play in a region with Maryville, Powell, Central, and Halls. Then in Swafford's later years South Doyle zoned kids starting going to Alcoa and other schools and South-Doyle took a nose dive.

 

It took Clark 2 years before he was able to show the fruits of the labors of keeping those kids at home and getting many of the athletes who were only playing baseball or basketball out for football.

 

Plus, Clark is a proved football coach and he put a good staff together. All of those factors put together are why South-Doyle is winning now.

 

I just don't see the same thing happening at Karns. With HVA next door and more parents in the Karns zone having the means to send their kids to Grace and Catholic, it's not going to be such an easy job to turn it around at Karns.

Edited July 19, 2013 by HTV

[SweetScience]

Not really. There was a time there early under Swafford when South Doyle had a lot of success and some very good football players. They just happened to play in a region with Maryville, Powell, Central, and Halls. Then in Swafford's later years South Doyle zoned kids starting going to Alcoa and other schools and South-Doyle took a nose dive.

 

It took Clark 2 years before he was able to show the fruits of the labors of keeping those kids at home and getting many of the athletes who were only playing baseball or basketball out for football.

 

Plus, Clark is a proved football coach and he put a good staff together. All of those factors put together are why South-Doyle is winning now.

 

I just don't see the same thing happening at Karns. With HVA next door and more parents in the Karns zone having the means to send their kids to Grace and Catholic, it's not going to be such an easy job to turn it around at Karns.

South Doyle's best year they went 10-3. Every other year has been mediocre at best.