Slim Schedule This Friday

There are only a couple of high school games on the schedule this week but boy is one of them the game of the year or what?

Little bitty Tarboro Vikings 4-1 will play host to Southern Nash 5-0 the preseason Big East 3-A
favorites and they have done nothing to make any one think they can't win the Big East.  Don't feel sorry for the five straight 2-A finalist Vikes.   Already having beaten two Big East teams and with almost every other school in the area off expect an over flow crowd.  This game has all the makings of the best game of the year.  Tarboro in beating Northern and Nash Central had trouble moving the ball.  I would suspect that will prevail again in this one.  Frankly I don't expect Southern to score much either.  SN 20 Tarboro 14 .

SouthWest Edgecombe who took last week off heads to the beach as they take on East Carteret.   SWE has played one of the toughest schdules in the area needs together back on the winning trail.  I think they will. SWE 26 East Carteret 14.

The final game in the area has Rocky Mount Academy heading to Lasker.   Those who don't know the area and if you hear someone from that area say where they are from everyone thinks they said  Alaska.  That part of Northampton County has several big time names like Milwaukee.  Northeast Academy sits right beside Valley Pine Golf Club.  Interesting that Chris Daughtry who's grand parents live just down the road from the school actually did a concert on the baseball field right after he was on American Idle since my step mother lives a half mile down the road the Doughtie's were there for that.  I think Northeast is having their best football season in years but I think RMA is on a mission. RMA 52 NEA 12.

After last week   7-1 my over all guessing runs my record to  43-8 .

Finally The East/West All Star football which is sponsored by the NC Coaches Association will be returning to Grimsley High in Greensboro where the all star game has been played every year since  1949 until last year.  Grimsey had summer construction going on and the game in 2013 was played in High Point.

Gainey Wins NCHSAA Regional Award

Last week during the NCHSAA Regional  3 meetings Rocky Mount High Athletic Director and head basketball coach  Michael Gainey won the regions Distinguished Service Award.  Gainey who as basketball coach has won two state basketball titles during his tenure as head basketball coach has taught and held several coaching positions in his career at Rocky Mount High.  The award was given for his efforts serving the NCHSAA?

Also last week in another regional meeting long time Greenville Rose supporter Marvin Jarman was given a Special Persons award in his support of Rose High School.  Those close to any school that plays Rose knows Jarman sits on the bench, stands  on the sidelines or sits in the dugout of every Rose sporting event in football, basketball and baseball game.  He told me several years ago if a football and basketball game were played the same night he would go to the most important game first. Jarman graduated from Rose in the early 70's and has never missed a football game and not more than ten total misses in basketball and baseball combined.  Surly if there was ever a special person Marvin is it.

College Basketball practice started yesterday and we are about 40 days before the first college basketball games of the year.  I don't understand why basketball needs 40 days of practice while football only gets about 25 days before their first games.  Seems to me that football you have a lot more plays to learn than basketball so should've the practice time be reversed?

The  longest winning streak in NC high school football has ended.  Northern Guilford who had won 31 straight games  had to forfeit their win of their game on September 13th after having play too many JV players on varsity

Have you heard this that the Franchise Harlem Globetrotters has been sold to a Corporation that owns several amusement parks.  No it is not Disney but the company that owns Dollywood and several more.  I bet you thought Dolly Parton Owned Dollywood but not any more .t

Carolina Is In Trouble

Do you get the feeling that Carolina fans are still ticked over being prodded into buying those enzone seats and then upper Carolina management fired Butch Davis after the seats were sold.  Don' t know why but the Carolina faithful just do not seem to have too much patience with thisCarolina team.

Carolina has several things wrong.  First they are slow on defense.  It is hard to tackle when you are an arms length away when you are trying to make a tackle.  On the offensive side they are trying to run the hurry up with a drop back qb.  Those two factors alone lead you to believe Carolina will give up a lot of points a every game and with and average offense they will have a tough time keeping up. Tbe Duke - Carolina  game the loser may score 60.

I wish I could tell all you ECU fans that this win will catapult you on to a super season but I don't think you beat anybody when you put 55 on the Heels.  Like I said one day last week who cares how good Carolina is.  The history books forever will show 55 points in 2013.

State also trying to hurry up with a drop back qb has a much better defense than Carolina an can afford being average on offense because their defense will keep them in the game.

Both Duke and Wake will have a hard time stopping any body but Duke can stay I every game if they can score 50 per.  Wake just doesn't have it this year.

Glad to see that two former Gryphons have such good days in their old stomping grounds Saturday during down east Classic.  Keith Strickland had over 100 yards receiving while Marquavious Alston had almost 70 yards rushing for the Broncos.

You know this game is so successful it might be time to expand visitors side of the stands.

Rest Time For Most

Southern Nash and Tarboro high light this week's Big East schedule as both have taken a week off earlier in order to meet up this week.   First of all I don't like the 11 game regular season. With the week off everyone takes along the way it takes 12 weeks to complete the regular season and then for the really great teams five weeks of playoffs.  I would love to see football over by the end of November all other fall sports do it why can't football?  Let us look at the preseason picks and where they could finish up.

I picked Southern Nash as the preseason number one and they stand 5-0.  I am concerned that all their injuries that they can not live up to their potential without at least one A number one back.  They are getting the job done with defenders and jv's running the ball and none are all star level runners.

Picked Northern Nash second and the reason was Northern always has talent but having a captain to guide the ship has been missing.  They have that captain in Randy Raper and you can see his influence taking hold more every day.

I picked Hunt third and after watching them this past Friday I think third is about right.  Any team that relies on power running needs a break a way back and they don't have one.  Also they don't have a quarterback that can get them eight yards with  a throw and they don't have that either.  They do have a solid defense and will be hard to score  lots of points on.

I picked Rocky Mount fourth but if you remember I said 2-3-4 could all switch as the season unfurls.  Look ok,Jason Battle is 13-4 as the head man of the Gryphons and when he has had to doesn't mind putting the ball in the air when the running game stalls.  The last two weeks they have been able to win when the running game sputtered.

I picked Nash Central fifth and they are heading that way fast.  Simply they can not move the ball to help a halfway decent defense.

After picking Fike for last they look like my big embarrassment of the season!  Still their schedule is questionable so I am still not sure they are as good as their 6-0 record.

There are several teams that need two weeks to heal up before the conference rush.  The team that uses the next two weeks the best will win the Big East this year.

We The Society Of Right Now

It can't be worth any thing if I can't  have it right now and what I want to know is who is the best football team, offense or player and when you give me your answer I will assume your answer will be correct for ever.

All the world is  so impressed with the wide open let's run as many plays as we can in a game cause if we run 100 plays we will win.  There is only one problem with the hurry up offense is that all that hurry up offense and ran ten plays and punted in two minutes puts their defense right back on the field and a tired defense can't stop anybody.

The  Philadelphia Eagles were the NFL rage for one half with their hurry up offense but by halftime the sorry Redskins had figured out how to stop them.  There is a few things that are basic in football.  Run fast, tackle and hold on to the ball.  The main purpose of holding on to the football is the longer you hold it the less likely the other team scores.

The NFL a league where the worse team is only six points in any game from winning they have seen everything there is to see and if they haven't a little film study will solve that.   Colleges where the top teams are still better than the average Joe's hurry up works when they play out manned team, in fact any offense beats those teams.

These wide open offenses will not last in the NFL because they require running QB's but when you look around show me one run and gun quarter back that has lasted all 16 games of the NFL season.
We the people who love bright shiny toys  fell for this gimmick offense.  If you look right now heading into week three the top two qb's are those old timey drop back in the pocket guys Peyton Manning and Philip Rivers

There are many things invented everyday that can change the world over night.  The reason they change the world is they come up with an idea that nobody else thought of.  In the world of football until someone comes up with an  idea where you  don't run and tackle the game will always be basic. The team that runs the fastest tackles better and holds on the the ball will win 99 per cent of the time.

Oh What A Night

This Summer I committed two Friday nights this fall to high school football.  I was at  Beddingfield for WHIG-TV covering Hunt at Beddingfield.  It was
also the first conference game of the year for Campbell volleyball as they traveled to High Point.  Campbell has a 15 game conference Losing streak dating back to the last conference game in 2011 and all 14 games last season.  Tonight in five  sets Campbell  is in first place in the Big South as they beat  High Point 15-10. So far  season Campbell has won all six of their five set matches and stand 10-7 on the season.

Unbeaten Triton travel to Rocky Mount and a barn burner  as Rocky Mount's early fumble gave Triton an early 7-0 lead.  Rocky Mount two plays tie the score on a Smith to Kearney 40 yard pass. smith and Kearney teamed up in the second quarter to give the Gryphons a 14-7 lead but Triton  got an 81 Yard run on a reverse to tie.  Micah Varnell gave the Gryphons a  17-14 halftime lead.

Neither side scored  in the third quarter but with 8:17 to play Triton scored to take the lead  21-17.   Triton who tried on side kicks all night made one work and had the ball but the gryphons held for one last shot.  The Gryphons score on a read option with under three minutes to play. Triton Fumbles to the Gryphons give the ball up with 58 seconds to play but Broderick Caudle puts a PPP topper on this one with an int.  Gryphons 24-21.

The cross county rivalry at Beddingfield saw two teams slug it out  at Beddingfield scored first but the extra point hit the left post to lead 6-0.  Hunt drove down to lead at the half. 7-6.  Beddingfield out slugged Hunt with a huge fourth quarter at they drove the ball the field to take a 12-7 lead and add a field goal l5-7 with 1:58 to  play but with 12 seconds to play Hunt hits a 68 yard pass to cut the lead to. 15-13 and on the 2 point try Beddingfield is offside to make the 2 pointer just a yard in a half away.   Beddingfield comes up with the defensive play and makes a tackle in the back field and win 15-13.

other scores tonight
Northern Nash 24   Smithfield Selma 7
Hillside 40 Nash central. 0
Fike 35 South Johnston 21.  Thursday night
Southern Nash 28 Ayden  Grifton 13
North edgecombe 40 Kipp Pride 24

Big East Report Card Halfway Point

Football hasn't played their first conference game yet while  all other sports have come to the halfway point and starting the second go round in conference games.  So far Northern Nash boys cross country team seems to be the class of the conference with  Steven Whitehead  as the top runner.  Rocky Mount's girls head the girls cross country with Barkley Browder the top 5k runner.

Hunt, Rocky Mount and Fike  seem to be a step ahead of the field in tennis.  Fike and Hunt are  the cream of the crop in soccer.  Hunt, Fike and Northern Nash head the field for the playoffs in Volleyball.

Before the first conference football game Hunt, Fike,Rocky Mount, Northern Nash  and Southern Nash  will be fighting and any one seems good enough to win the title and anyone could go 1-4.  Nash Central's defense is just good enough on the night their offense clicks somebody just might fall to them.  To say the least the Big East has the reputation of being the most balanced league in the east and it looks that way again this year.

Here's this week's college picks:
Clemson/Wake.   Tigers 38 Deacs22
BC/FSU. Not much of a game if FSU shows up 44-19
VA Tech/Georgia Tech. Forget this was Thursday you will have to take my word GT 24 VT17
Miami/SFLA The Hurricanes are back  35-16
C michigan/N C State if defense plays like the Clemson game they win big 31-13
Troy/Duke Devils had better be ready. Duke 41 Troy 28
N C Wesleyan/Averitt. battling Bishopswin their first 22/19
ECU/NC. This could really be a ball game.  This could go down to the last play. NC28-27
Rocky Mount is host to The Down East Football Classic When Elizabeth City Stat 0-3 play host to Fayetteville St 1-2.  I think ECSU gets in the win column with a 26-21 win.

Tonight I will be joining Edward  Green on WHIG TV for their game of the week.