Sportsmanship Should Come First

We have become a me-me me society.  The only important person is me and what ever I have to do to get me what I want I will do.  During the state championship 3-AA game Northern Guilford had established that they by far were the better team and late in the game lead Charlotte Catholic 57-26.   UNC Five Star recruit T J Logan had shown the world that Carolina was getting a football player that indeed just might step in next year in Chapel Hill and replace Gio Bernard should he decide to turn pro this spring.

Logan had rush for 430 yards and tied the state record for touchdowns in a game at seven when Northern Guilford faked a punt  late in the game and let Logan go 80 yards for the state record in touchdowns in a game and also giving him over 510 yards rushing in one game.

Boo birds rang down  and I am sure most of those boos were coming from the Charlotte Catholic side of the field.  After the game the Northern Guilford coach explained that they wanted Logan to get the record.  You know I don't have any problem getting a record when it is in the coarse of winning the game.  In this case the game had already been won.  It is more important to me to put every player I have that has worked hard to help get our team to this point to have their turn to say I was part of a state championship game.

The final score will not be remembered two years from now but I can bet you that every time some one hears the name North Guilford for the rest of eternity all they will think about is the team  who ran up the score for a record.

Somewhere in  our society has forgotten about our fellow man.  Every team that lost in the state championship games yesterday had worked their tails off to just get there.  Some won and some lost.  There is that old adage "It's how you play the game".

Despite how much the coach may have wanted a record for a player he wanted that record for himself.  It wasn't enough to just say we are state champions.  He wanted to be able to say I am a state championship coach and we set a record to get it.  All the while he smeared Charlotte Catholic face in the mud.  He tried to embarrass them just so he could get a record to go on his resume'.

Our only team that played yesterday lost a heart breaker in the 2-A finals.  Thank God  we had a coach representing us who gave credit to the other team and didn't put the blame on his teams failures.  I don't think or let me say this I know of no instance in the three Tarboro State championships where Jeff Craddock tried to embarrass the other team.  Between Rocky Mount's two basketball titles Mike Gainey and Pat Smith's baseball title I know of nothing that would embarrass us about the way they  acted in victory.

Sportsmanship should always come first in victory and defeat.

Tarboro Meets Their Match

The Tarboro Vikings quest for their 4th straight state title fell short  at the hands of the Mustangs of East Lincoln 24-20.  Tarboro fumbled four times in the first half and lost three of them  and then once again in the second half which they lost also.

Two of those first half fumbles cost the Vikings at least 12 points because one occurred at the five yard line and the other at the nine taking away what would have been enough points to win the game.  The four fumbles in the first half were more fumbles than what the Viking had put on the ground in their previous four playoff games.

The Mustang quarterback Garrett Young complete 12 of his 18 tosses in the first half and every one seemed to be bigger than the one before.  Garrett's two touchdown tosses enabled the Mustangs to lead 17-6 at the half.

The Vikings played the third quarter the way they have played every other playoff game this year and had regained the lead 20-17 by the end of the third quarter.  The Viking Defense held Garrett to only 2-12 passing in the third quarter but after the Vikings took the lead Garrett had one more drive left in him and took the Mustangs for the winning touchdown with 7:55 to play going four for six passing on the drive.

The Viking made two fourth down plays on their final drive that started at their own 27 but were faced with a fourth and two at the Mustangs 20 yard  line with 1:15 to play and Quinton Roberson was stopped in the back field and the Viking dominance of the 2-A state titles was over.  Roberson had 27 carries on the day for 205 yards.

Sure did look like Tarboro was on their way after a bad snap from the shotgun went out of the endzone for the Mustangs and Tarboro cut the lead to 17-8 early in the third quarter.  The only drive that East Lincoln had in the third quarter resulted in a Tarboro interceptions which they brought out to their 21 yard line. In quick order Tarboro took it to the house to cut the lead to 17-14 but Young threw another interception in which Tarboro Tarboro returned 40 yards.  That set up a Tra Marshall touchdown run and Tarboro was in the lead .

The Vikings lost four fumbles in the game.  Missed all three of their two point conversions.  I don't care how good you are four turnovers against a very good football team is hard for anybody to win.  The Tarboro Vikings sandwich three state title between two state title losses as East Lincoln is the 2-A State Champs a 24-20 winner over Tarboro.

First One Ever

 Tonight Rocky Mount High School played their first basketball games ever in the new gym and just like last year they won the last games at the old one and they are perfect in the new gym as Rocky Mount High sweeps Hertford County.

The Lady Gryphons go to 3-0 on the season as J'Kyra Brown  scores 33 to lead the Lady Gryphons to a 71-44 win.  Carman Richardson scored 18 while Kelsey Daniels  was the only other double digit scorer for the Ladies with 10.

Rocky Mount boys also go to 3-0 on the season as they beat the Hertford County boys by a 71-55 score.  Donte Battle lead the way for the Gryphons with 16 and M J Gainey who seems to have made an excellent recovery from his season ending knee surgery last season had 13 points.

I say season ending remembering the tearful layup made by M J at the end of the State Championship game in Chapel hill last year when dad Mike Gainey put M J in the game in the final minute as he put every player in the game to enjoy the spoils of victory in the State Championship win and to be able to score as the buzzer sounded couldn't have been a better ending .

Tonight New Bern representing the East in the 4-A state champions game in Chapel Hill scored with 26 seconds to play in the game to beat Porter Ridge  39-38.  The Bears finish the season at 15-0

The Tarboro Viking football team goes for their fourth straight 2-A football championship Saturday morning in Winston Salem.  East Lincoln stands in the Viking way. You can watch the game on the internet at News14.com.  That's the Time Warner cable state wide news channel.    Once the home page pops up I am sure it will be easy to click on the game.

Tarboro Viking fans I am sure will try to get to a TV set after the state championship game.  Todd Gurley  former Viking and the Georgia Bulldogs play for the Southeastern Conference Championship and if they beat Alabama in Atlanta should get a shot to play for the National Championship in January.

I don't know what the final score was but I heard during the night that Northern Nash girls were beating SouthWest Edgecombe by nearly 40 points in the third quarter and the Lady Cougars at that point had scored only four points.  They had a similar fate last week when they played Nash Central.  Theses are some tough times for the Lady Cougars and Sandra Langley.  I don't care how good of a coach that you are when you don't have the players it simply not easy to coach.  This years senior class at Northern had a tough freshman year and Pam Gainey at Rocky Mount has had a season this century that she won only single digit games for the season.

The Matchup

Tarboro High School goes for their 4th straight 2-A state football title Saturday in Winston Salem where they will meet East Lincoln High School.  It will be the third meeting in four years of the Eastern Plains conference(Tarboro) and the Southern Piedmont.  The Vikings met Lincolnton last year and Mountain Hertitage in 2009 who also represented the Southern Piedmont. 

East Lincoln is located in Lincoln County population 78,000.  East Lincoln High is in the unincorporated town of Denver population 13,000 which is located 25 miles west of downtown Charlotte.  Tarboro population of 12,800 of course is located in Edgecombe County populations 58, 000.

Tarboro's five visits in a row to the state championships this is the second time they will face off against another team that comes into the game undefeated.  The 2010 game against Carver they were 14-0 and East Lincoln will be 15-0 at game time.  East Lincoln  beat Lincolnton in conference play this season 13-8 and of course Lincolnton and  Tarboro had a classic 39-36 game last season for the state title.  Lincolnton finished the season this year 7-6.

 Here is one of those meaningless stats that is a fact.  East Lincoln played on their schedule this season three of the four teams that Tarboro has faced in the last five championship games.  Newton-Conover, Mountain Hertitage and Lincolnton.  The only team missing off of East Lincoln schedule is Carver.

This games looks to be a game where it should be and offensive show. East Lincoln has score 629 points in fifteen games and is averaging 41.3 points per game.  In their fourteen games Tarboro 42.3.  The defense just might be where this game is won and that will be which team stops the other once in a while.  East Lincoln is giving up 16.4 points per game while the Vikings 15.7.

If stats can give us any indication at all this one could be a high scoring nail biter just like last year if not even more scoring if that is possible.  I am of the opinion that of the five teams  in a row that Tarboro has sent to the state title games that this team is the best of the bunch.  That does not however guarantee  victory.    I have to say this any team that has won 23 in a row since their last lost and have won in the past five years 23 of 24 playoffs game it will be hard to bet against.  I'll take the Vikings 42-34 over east Lincoln. 

GO VIKES

Power House ACC Basketball?

Don't look now but ACC basketball could be just as bad as football if the ACC/Big Ten Challenge and the first couple of weeks are any proof about the future.  The ACC loses four out of six to the Big Ten last night and Duke host Ohio State a team that drubbed them in the challenge last year.  However the game is in Cameron this go round.

I honestly don't see Carolina being much more than a 20-12 type team.  I don't like what I see in their guards and missing this year is that man standing back at the goal ready to swat every shot going to the basket.  State on the other hand has played their first five and a half games like teams were suppose to lay down when they stepped on the court.  Finally the second half last night they played like I would like to see every game.  Also remember my goal for this team was to have single digit losses when the season was over so I didn't think this team was quite ready to make it to the final four.

This morning the ACC asked Louisville to join the conference and they accepted.  The ACC will have 14 full time member still when Maryland pulls out.  Heard this on the David Glenn show today that Louisville will be the first ACC member ever that is not ranked in the top 100 of academic institutions in America.

Last night Northern Nash opened it's basketball season playing at D H Conley.  The boys lost by only five and after having won only one game all  last year when they hardly ever stayed in any game as close as five points this is a really good start for them on the road and almost winning.  The girls you know are preseason Big East girls favorite and they beat Conley some where around forty points.

The Tarboro Vikings are heading to their fifth straight State Championship game Saturday in Winston Salem and the rumor mill is hot and heavy about Jeff Craddock leaving Tarboro at the end of this year. Some are saying what does he have to prove with Tarboro going 1-A next year.  I have even seen he was going to be on the Ohio State staff next year.   Let's let him win his fourth championship Saturday and then we will decide where we want him to go.

Finally The Big East /Halfway

Today the Pirates of ECU got their wish and moved up in the football world leaving Conference USA for the Big East in football only.  If you remember in my article last week about TV sets rule then you could ask the question why did the Big East take Tulane in all sports?  The answer the city of New Orleans despite having lost 100,000 that left town because of Hurricane Katrina they still have 377,000 in New Orleans and 3/4 of a million in metro New Orleans.  All other sports the Pirates will stay in C-USA.

The way the world of college football is heading and if there are only four super conferences and those conferences wind up being football only then ECU just might be ahead of the game being in what ever Big East football becomes in the future.  Sure does look like before most of our life times are over State, Carolina and Duke might be in a Super football conference and the ACC will be all other sports.  I hope that is not where we are heading but it sure does look like it.

Bubba Cunningham  Athletic Director at North Carolina announced today that North Carolina is not considering moving to any conference other than staying in the ACC.   Today the office of the ACC sued the University of Maryland claiming that they will have to pay the full $50 million to get out of the ACC.  I don't see that the conference has any choice but to do this.  If they let Maryland go for say 20 million whats going to stop Florida State or Clemson getting out at a cheaper rate too. 

What is the state of ACC football this year?  David Cutcliffe was named ACC coach of the year and his team lost their last four games in a row to end the season.  We do how ever understand that Duke winning six games in football is like the Carolina Panthers playing in the Super Bowl.  Great job by coach Cut.

Speaking of the Panthers they won on Monday Night Football last night.  Speaking some more about a former Panther,  Campbell University name Mike Minter their new football coach today.  Minter the former Panther safety has been the special teams coach at Liberty this past season.  Just where Campbell is they probably got a good coach with name recognition who hasn't  proven himself yet to even be considered by N C State but he just might be a great pick for the Fighting Camels.

N C State has called  for the Board Of Trustees to meet at 4:30 Wednesday afternoon to discuss a football matter.  Lord have mercy has Debbie Yow got a coach already?

Five Star Over Three Star

Just a couple of weeks ago while eating dinner at one of my favorite places ran into a parent who was telling me about her five star student.  I was amazed to here that her son who had made a 98 on a recent test had asked to retake it to get a higher score.  He did by the way make a 100 the next time. When I was in school as a three star student if I got 85 or better I knew I was getting about all I could get.

Debbie Yow dismissed Tom O'Brien as the head football coach of N C State on Sunday and reading between the lines she feels that State can get it's share of five star athletes who call North Carolina their home instead of watching them go out of State.  Tom O'Brien liked to recruit three stars athletes and try to mold them into fours and fives.

A five star athlete most of the time can run a forty yard dash in say 4.3 seconds. When he is having a bad day he may drop down to a 4.45.  A three star athlete just might run a 4.5 on his very best day and then on those days his  body can't get 100% he runs a 4.7.  On his worse day a five star still is better than a three star at his best.  That equates just like that five star student  bad day makes a 98 while a great day for me was above 85.

That just might explain  why N C State could beat a Florida State once in a while and turn right around and lose to Virginia the next.  The threshold of the average players is not as high as those that are great.  This might also explain why the ACC got drubbed this weekend by the SEC in every football game they played against each other.

Boston College is looking a new coach and Wake Forest has a news conference at 6pm so something is up there.  All of this talk about conference realignment and who can pay for this coach and that State is looking for a football coach early but will they have the same problem finding a coach like they did in basketball when all the big names went else where. 

What we have found out is graduating all of your senior class doesn't mean as much as 1,000 less season ticket holders.  Going to a bowl game is not what Joe Average University is looking for these days.  Where ever State goes to a Bowl game they will probably need to sell 25,000 tickets to break even and if only 12,000 go then the bowl game is a bust.  BCS games baby is where the money is and until Carolina and State can get there  8-4 and 7-5 is no longer a good football season.