Madaris Best of Preps Kickoff ClassicWhat: Cleveland Blue Raiders vs. McCallie Blue TornadoWhen: Tonight, 7:30 p.m.Where: Finley StadiumAdmission: Tickets available at the game
McCallie coach Ralph Potter: “It (7-on-7s and two-a-days) is always a long process, and I think everybody is always looking forward to getting the season started. I don’t know how we’re going to be, but getting the season started is a reward for the kids for their hard work, so we enjoy it.”Cleveland coach Ron Crawford: “I think it’s going to be neat for the kids to experience playing in a college stadium. Finley is a cool stadium – I remember when the I-AA championship games were played there – and even though the kids are familiar with the venue from playing in the jamboree, they’re even more excited to be playing there [tonight].”McCallie ones to watch: Quarterback JaVaughn Craig could be poised for a big season with a slew of playmakers around him, including fullback Alex Trotter. Keep an eye on defensive back Nigel Edmonds, who has more than a dozen scholarship offers before he plays the first game of his junior year.Cleveland ones to watch: Austin Massey is a load and has a ton of experience, even if this is his first year as the full-time starter. Massey is blessed with an offense that has speed and power, considering T.J. Parker returns after rushing for almost 1,300 yards last year and the Blue Raiders have five senior starters across the offensive line.Home-Finley Advantage: Cleveland has never played at Finley Stadium. McCallie, however, has been involved in a number of the greatest high school games played on Gordon Davenport Field.
Fall is officially a month away, when the equinox tells us that cooler weather is coming.
Forget the calendar. This is the real world, and for everyone in the tri-state area whose next three months revolve around Friday nights and the clear visions of green grass striped with chalked lines of truth and the sweat-stained smells of pads and passion, the fall starts tonight.
When McCallie and Cleveland take to the Finley Stadium turf tonight in the inaugural Madaris Best of Preps Kickoff Classic, the promise of potential and the preseason pronostications no longer matter.