It’s the first week of district competition in Tennessee high school football circles, and no Friday game could be bigger than Bledsoe County’s 7-AA visit to Signal Mountain.
Bledsoe’s Warriors are coming off a 39-38 loss at surprising Marion County, and the host Eagles are 0-2 for the first time in school history. The two were predicted to finish 1-2 in the district over younger Sequatchie County, younger Notre Dame and winless Chattanooga Christian.
Bledsoe has the makings despite losing all-star candidates quarterback Cody Holloway and versatile running back Brandon Smith. The Warriors gave up three touchdowns on miscues in their season-opening win over Cumberland County, then allowed 39 points to Marion.
Signal’s talented youngsters are suffering through the bane of all young teams and have succumbed to more experienced teams the first two weeks, that despite the presence of quarterback Reese Phillips, a Kentucky commitment.
Although he didn’t throw a TD pass in last Friday’s loss to Tyner, Phillips did complete 22 of 33 passes. He obviously took to heart the words last week of coach Bill Price, who questioned whether he had the talent to get an offer from an FCS school, much less an FBS member of the Southeastern Conference.
The Eagles also have high hopes for running back Diamez Franklin, but they need vastly improved play from the offensive line and most definitely a defense that has surrendered 88 points in losses to East Hamilton and Tyner the first two weeks.
• There are other top-flight district games this week, including South Pittsburg at Lookout Valley in 6-A, Rhea County at McMinn County in 5-AAA on Thursday and Boyd-Buchanan at Silverdale Baptist in 5-A and Cleveland at Ooltewah in 5-AAA on Friday.
• On the subject of Thursday/Friday games, there seems to be a consensus among coaches that Fridays should belong to high schools. That debate arose after it was announced that Tennessee’s Volunteers would play North Carolina State in Atlanta this Friday. The game is being televised by ESPN.
Word out of Knoxville – unofficial because the source didn’t want to be named – is that when UT signed the contract the game was to be on Saturday. So don’t fault Vols coach Derrick Dooley, who has been accused of being insensitive to in-state schools.
Is that last statement too hard? Well, the guy did the unspeakable and took the scholarship of an in-state kid who was a great youngster and could have helped UT before he graduated. He definitely would have helped the team’s APR.
Now, while I’m not a big Dooley fan – and I’ve never even met the guy – the notion that he should be fired if the Vols falter this year is ludicrous. Look at the mess he inherited from Lane Kiffin. Truly, it has been a program in disarray since the days I covered the Vols under both Johnny Majors and Phillip Fulmer. There is an old and proven adage that any college coach should receive at least five years to show what he can do. I agree wholeheartedly.
Now, back to colleges playing on high school football night. It brings to mind the uprising a few years ago when Big East member South Florida played two Friday games.
In a letter to then Big East Conference commissioner Mike Tranghese, the Florida Athletic Coaches Association expressed its dismay and disapproval and former FACA head Earl Garcia, at the time coach at Tampa Hillsborough, made it clear he had very strong feelings about the issue.
“The NFL waits until [the] college season has ended to play any games on Saturdays. It’s like scheduling a varsity game on a junior varsity night. I feel like the Big East is biting the hand that feeds them, and I don’t think that sends a good message,” he said.
In the letter it sent to the Big East, the FACA said the scheduling conflict shows “a complete lack of consideration” for high school football. The letter, reported the Tampa Bay Times, also said coaches were threatening to ban Big East coaches from their campuses.
But again as one local coach said, the NCAA sold its soul for a lucrative TV package, and SEC teams reportedly will each receive $30 million.
Rhea County coach Doug Greene said when discussing that report, “If they gave me $30 million, I’d play my games at 9 o’clock on Monday mornings.”
It should also be noted that perennial state power Maryville already has had one Saturday game, played on Sunday at noon and has two Thursday night games, meaning its fans are guaranteed just six Friday night games.
Maryville fans are among the most loyal in the state, and there are few teams in the Chattanooga area whose fans are going to show up whenever they play. It’s bad enough that they agree to Friday night TV games with little if any financial remuneration.
• Red Bank coach E.K. Slaughter wasn’t interested in handing out any gold stars after his Lions lost to Soddy-Daisy in a shootout. The offensive line looked a little soft and the running backs tentative, and quarterback Hagen Wilkey threw high on a couple of crucial passes late. And as he would agree, the defense made Trojans running back C.J. Blue look like an all-pro. Probably half of Blue’s 117 yards came after contact with a Red Bank defender.
Too, the Trojans ran 65 plays and picked up two first downs at crucial times on fourth-down tries. They also tackled the Red Bank punter in the end zone for a safety.
• Don’t want to harp too early on Wilkey’s ability, but he throws the fade route as well as Signal’s Phillips, and he is awfully tough to bring down when he takes off and runs. Something for college recruiters to note: He’s the kind of kid who’s a definite quarterback prospect, but he could also play middle linebacker, tight end, defensive end or perhaps even fullback. He’s strong, doesn’t mind playing physical and the 6-foot-3 1/2-inch, 220-pounder possesses great grades.
If anybody looked good on the Lions defense Friday, it would have to be senior linebacker Vincent Gordon, followed closely by defensive back Elias Baker.
• Best player I have seen thus far this season is Bradley Central offensive tackle Austin Sanders. Shouldn’t say offensive tackle, though, although that’s what the 6-foot-6, 300-pounder will play at Tennessee. He’s playing both ways for the Bears.
Keep Polk County fullback/linebacker Zach Miller on your “must see” list, along with Baylor linebacker Colton Jumper, Baylor running back George Porter, Signal’s Phillips and Tyner’s prospect-loaded defensive line led by big David Powell.
• Holding judgment on Signal Mountain, which got embarrassed at East Hamilton and outpunched at Tyner, but I still think the Eagles will wind up being a Class 4A state title contender. I have seen them in some 7-on-7s and a scrimmage but will get a first real look, I think, this Friday.
If there were specific areas when they need to mature quickly, it’s in the offensive line, at linebacker and in the defensive secondary. Three players they definitely miss are running back/linebacker Zach Bowman and receivers Jon Patton and Will Queen.
• Logan Jackson’s first goal this season was for his East Hamilton team to win District 6-AA, but second on the running back’s list was to get another 1,000-yard season.
He’s well on the way – 185 in the opener and 249 in Friday’s three-point loss to Ooltewah. That means he needs to average just 70.76 yards for the next eight games to reach his goal by the end of the regular season.
Jackson just missed it last year, getting somewhere around 970 before missing most of the last three games due to ankle and shoulder injuries. He did reach 1,000 as a sophomore.
• And finally, how about Silverdale Baptist? Al Rogers has the Seahawks on a roll, and if they should get the upset against Boyd-Buchanan this week, the 2012 team would be the first group of Seahawks to start a season 3-0.