Nash Central Names Their Man

Having not won a football game in over two seasons  Nash Central  has taken their time in order to pick the right man for the job to bring Bulldog football back to respectability.  Their pick is a BW Holt protege  from the era when Holt at Rocky Mount.  Today Nash Central has named Chris Lee as the new head football coach of the Bulldogs.

Lee spent six years on the staff of BW Holt and served as head JV football coach.  He ran the offense while now  Gryphon Baseball coach Kent Cox ran the defense.  Their six years together under the Holt regime the JV team at Rocky Mount won 54 games while losing but 5.

Any coach worth his salt and hoping one day to be a head coach has to make decisions.  Lee having applied at Louisburg High  thinking that Holt would never leave Rocky Mount took the job and has spent six years at Louisburg posting a 36-35 record.  Little did he know that in less than six months Holt would leave Rocky Mount and if still at Rocky Mount a real possibility  that he would have been the leading candidate. Lee still attends church in Red Oak and has many friends and family in the area.

Many in our area today are in mourning, with the loss of former UNC basketball coach Dean Smith.  Many of the ways to play the game of basketball are on display every time you watch a game can be attributed to Dean Smith. 

Team huddles at the foul before foul shots, diving on the floor going for loose balls, pointing at the passer after you made a basket from an assist from your teammate.  The main one was the college time clock.  Yes the famed four corners which Rocky Mount's Phil Ford ran to perfection can be see coming from Coach Smith.  Not because they just stood and held the ball because the Tar Heels scored so easily from it. During the height of the four corners North Carolina always lead the nation in scoring and today with a time clock scoring is way down to those four corner days.

Throughout my career I interviewed many famous coaches but Dean Smith was not one of them and I only met him once in my life.  I use to work for a gentleman that when you enter the Smith Center has his name is on that plaque where donors who gave money to build the Smith Center.

He had eight ticket on the eighth row across from the Carolina bench. Those eight seats stretched from the midcourt to the foul line  He also gave me his parking pass which at the Smith Center there are not many parking spots close to the entrance. His pass was on the left side on the hill beside the Smith Center.  As  we unloaded  my mini-van about an hour an a half before a game with Clemson we were trying to figure out how  to get down the hill and a gentleman who had parked two spaces beyond where we were standing goes by and it is Dean Smith.  We spoke and as we walked down the hill together, he was wearing a Carolina warm up suit had idle chit chat about the weather.  I didn't want to lay on him an interview as we walked and hour and half before a game.

We went toward the main entrance and he went in a side door but as we were walking in I said to my wife Pat that he didn't have his own private parking space  either in the building or right beside a private door.  I have always thought since that day maybe 25 years ago Dean Smith didn't consider himself special.

He just thought of himself as a teacher and coach.

The Finish Line Is Clearer

There was that outrageous possibility that after Friday night's action the boys Big East basketball could have been heading into the last week with a six way tie for first or last depending on your view at all teams 4-4.

Some normalcy resulted in Friday's action as all the 4-3 teams beat the 3-4 teams so as we head to the final week  of the regular season for the first time this year we know that Rocky Mount, Nash Central and Southern Nash cannot win first.  How do we know that?  Three teams are tied at 5-3 and Tuesday Northern Nash Fike play each other and then on Friday Fike and Hunt play.  Somewhere along the way at least one team has to be 6-4 or better eliminating RM, NC and SN from first.  We head this week for the first time knowing that teams when they line up this week will be playing for position for the tournament and just maybe for any playoff hope.

Rocky Mount  3-5 10-7 @ Southern Nash 3-5 11-10:  Rocky Mount at one point was 2-1 in the league but has lost four of last five.  Southern was 3-2 and just 10 days ago looked like best team in the league.  There is a very good chance the loser of this game fails to make the playoffs.  Would it be right to say this will be a dog fight?

Northern Nash 5-3 8-11 @ Fike 5-3 15-5:  This  is the Tuesday game for first place.  One of these two will be no worse than a tie for first depending on the Hunt outcome.  Northern has won 5 of 6 and is this week lead team as being the best team in the league. Fike has the league's best over all record.  This game still leaves the loser in jeopardy of falling back into the second division.

Hunt 5-3 13-8 @ Nash Central 3-5 12-9:  Hunt seems to get the easy game of the night as they watch
Northern Nash and Fike fight it out at Fike.  A victory by Hunt and they for sure play for the top seed Friday pending the Fike /Northern Nash outcome.

Rocky Mount girls 4-4 9-8 @ Southern Nash 0-8 0-21.  Facing Northern Nash Friday this is the game the Lady Gryphons can clinch 3rd in league play if they can count on help from Northern Nash.  Southern playing Rocky Mount and Nash Central  this week is last hope for a victory during regular season.

Northern Nash 8-0 19-0 @ Fike  4-4 9-12:  an undefeated regular season will have to happen will have to happen with the final two games of the season on the road and it starts at Fike.  Northern gets both the 4-4 teams battling for playoff position.

Hunt 6-2 16-5 @ Nash Central 2-6 11-9:  Don't look now but one of the best women's basketball teams besides those named Eastern Wayne and Northern Nash is Hunt.  Right now Nash Central is a bubble team at best standing fifth in the league.