3a west contenders
- Thread starter ShadesMcgrades
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Yeah I know mv qb is a good athlete and can throw the ball,there rbs will be good also. How is Phoebus and James Monroe gonna be?
I'll go with a top 8 since 16 teams make the playoffs. I'll throw in a sleeper pick as well.
1. Magna Vista
2. Lord Botetourt
3. Heritage
4. Abingdon
5. Staunton River
6. Brookville
7. Western Albemarle
8. Rustburg
Sleeper: Blacksburg
All starts with the state finalists. Two-time defending champ Magna Vista loses a lot of talent but the cupboard won't be bare. They won't be as dominant as the past two years but I see no reason why they won't be playing deep into November and probably Dec. Lord Botetourt returns a great nucleus from their finals appearance and should be as formidable up front as anyone in 3A.
After that I'm going with Heritage-Lyn. They were very young last year and played well at times in the playoff loss against Magna Vista. Bradley always has his kids motivated, I'd expect them to be a legit contender this year. Carrington Anderson, remember the name.
Abingdon (along with LB) were probably the sleeper team last year to folks outside of those communities. They've got the QB back who'll likely be the best passer in 3A-West. They schedule does them no favors for points playing so many smaller schools, not sure if the new points changes will benefit them or not.
Staunton River if they can keep Overstreet from jumping ship to county rival JF, should be primed to build off last seasons record breaking season. That single wing is sure fun to watch when they get it clicking.
Brookville is here because they've always got talent. They looked like a contender early in the year last year but tapered off losing 4 of the final 7 games. Ryan Perry is a beast at WR/DB. Meeks will have them in the conversation if he finds a QB to run the show.
Western Albemarle is like Bville. They've built the program to the point that they'll always be solid. Lost a lot of talent but return DL Tenuta and Crutchfield and ATH Derek Domecq. Interesting to see if they put Domecq at QB or leave him at WR.
Rustburg loses Mike Jones but they return enough young talent and had a solid JV from what I'm told. Baker has things on the upswing in East Campbell County. District schedule plus Altavista won't do them any favors.
Blacksburg is my sleeper. They had a young RB Tiquest Terry that should become the focal point of the offense this year. They've been average at best for the past decade. Lost a close game against Abingdon last year. I'd picking them to get over the hump this year.
Conspicuous by their absence is Northside. I'd say talent wise, they are top 8 but with no coach hired and no word on if any players will leave, I decided to keep them off the list. With the right hire and buy in from players, they'll easily be a top 8 team. With the flip of that coin, they could also have their worst season in a long time. Schedule is tough with LB, Byrd, River district and Salem & Pulaski non-district. If they don't come to play, thats 5 losses right there. I wish the program luck because they've been great for a while. If I was betting man, I'd bet the community will rally the kids no matter who the coach is and they'll be the same ol' Northside in a year or two.
It's quite early but I don't think the West will be as formidable as in previous years. For sure it won't be as deep as it has been. Wouldn't at all be surprised to see an East team win the title next year (James Monroe & Hopewell jump out). I'm pretty confident the two West state semi-finalist will come from the top 6.
I think Hopewell has got to be considered one of, if not the top, east team.
Rumor has it that Monroe will be down just a bit.
Until such time as Phoebus proves me wrong, I think they are no longer a factor. There is just too much internal strife.
gwb can shed more light on this, but I think Poquoson is a top east team.
And, I'm not sure what they lost to graduation, but I seem to remember some significant talent on the Park View team.
Rumor has it that Monroe will be down just a bit.
Until such time as Phoebus proves me wrong, I think they are no longer a factor. There is just too much internal strife.
gwb can shed more light on this, but I think Poquoson is a top east team.
And, I'm not sure what they lost to graduation, but I seem to remember some significant talent on the Park View team.
Great summary, one man.
As I was reading your post, I actually thought "Northside is conspicuous by their absence." Then I got to the sentence, "Conspicuous by their absence is Northside." Pretty funny. I happen to agree with your take on the Vikings. They might be in for a year or two of upheaval and adjustment; I'll be very surprised if they sail along without missing a beat this season.
LB, I'm still not sold on. Not as a perennial final four caliber team, anyway. I guess I just saw too many bad LB teams for too many years. Harless has undeniably elevated the level of the program. I just think the loss of two or three key guys will keep the Cavs from advancing past the playoff's second round.
I have no complaints with 4A West, or how Salem has fared the last three years against those teams. However, 3A West still feels more like "home" to me. Most of Salem's traditional and geographical rivals are in that region. I guess Pulaski, Byrd, and Amherst are the exceptions, and Byrd just moved up from 3A West last year.
I agree Spartan, "one man" does a heck of a job explaining the facts about teams.
I'm usually embarrassed by my feeble little post, after reading his expert analysis.
I'm usually embarrassed by my feeble little post, after reading his expert analysis.
If Blacksburg can protect the QB and block for Terry & Beck then they should be a playoff team with a chance of sneaking up on people. The QB should be the younger brother of Isaac Johnston who has great size (6'4" 190) and a good arm. Their dad was a QB at WVU. The OL will be the key to their season. If they have a good one look out, if not nothing better than last year.
Thanks maroon. Don't know how I forgot to mention them. Phoebus will always be a contender in 3A, much like James Monroe. Its in the genetics of the neighborhoods that they'll always put a solid product in between the lines on Friday nights. Football is important in those communities.
Terry was a kid I made a mental note of when I first saw him in 8th grade when they played Andrew Lewis. He helped keep the game close. He's a good runner. Last year as a Fr they put him at WR. They would throw him little screens which were basically runs because he'd catch the ball around the line of scrimmage and turn it into a 6 yard gain. I think the QB will be the younger brother to last year's QB, Isaac. Their dad is Chad Johnston, who played at WVU. The youngest Johnston is 6'4" 190 as a Sophomore. Blacksburg has to replace some of their WR, but if they can block they have some good talent at the skill positions.
Northside has a QB that I also made a mental note of in 8th grade, Jabari Allen. He's a Sophomore this year, I'm not sure if he'll be the starter, but he's got a lot of potential. He's 6'2" throws a good ball and can run it. There are a lot of question marks surrounding Northside till the year starts, but as always they have good players. They will likely be contenders for a 3A West playoff spot, but we'll have to see who they hire as the coach.
You know, for somebody from Dinwiddie, you sure do think you know a lot about Phoebus' program. Phoebus is not going through any turmoil. They just came up short last year against a very good Magna Vista team. They have our respect as well as many other 3A schools.Last time I checked Poqouson came up short against Phoebus. Phoebus will lose some talent to graduation but so does every one else. Idk if you're still salty because Dinwiddie has never beaten Phoebus in the past but you should get over it. These kids are good hardworking kids that want to succeed. To answer the question correctly, I honestly don't know how things are going to shake up this year for Phoebus. I'd expect them to bounce back strong because we usually do.
I saw a very talented, but undisciplined team lose to MV last year. Was MV the better team? Yes, but mainly because they played team ball. Phoebus didn't. I suggest that this is a sign of something systemically wrong.
I make no bones about it, it sticks in my craw that three times we have played Phoebus, and three times we have lost. I give the devil his do, but that doesn't mean I like it. But that has zilch to do with my assessment.
I will admit, I very well might be wrong, but that is why I stated it the way I did. "Until they prove me wrong", I do not believe they are in the elite class any longer.
I make no bones about it, it sticks in my craw that three times we have played Phoebus, and three times we have lost. I give the devil his do, but that doesn't mean I like it. But that has zilch to do with my assessment.
I will admit, I very well might be wrong, but that is why I stated it the way I did. "Until they prove me wrong", I do not believe they are in the elite class any longer.
Well your bitterness towards Phoebus makes your opinions about the program very much flawed. I agree that Phoebus isn't what it once was in Div 5 but that doesn't give any speculation that the program is in turmoil. The MV game had nothing to do with discipline. I don't recall any personal fouls or ejections. It was a clean hard fought game that both teams displayed nothing but sportsmanship afterwards. We lost and made no excuses. I was actually impressed with how those kids fought back after being down 28-0 late in the second half only to lose 28-23. Coach Blunt has done a great job with the program considering the turmoil that he walked into 4 YEARS AGO. He really doesn't deserve the speculation that you are implying on his program. I know for a fact that he is working around the clock to ensure that his kids are becoming better young men on and off the field. He is doing all he can to help them get into college and further their education. Phoebus has the uppermost respect for Billy Mills and the Generals. Instead of having disdain for Phoebus, you should thank us for helping elevate Dinwiddie's program into the what it has become. The Phoebus games only made y'all better. I think it's time to bury the hatchet on this hate. These are sum good kids at Phoebus. And trust me, we'll be elite sooner than you think. They are working extremely hard this off-season and there is a level of excitement there that i haven't seen in a long long time.
I hope you are correct. Because ultimately what we all want to see is that our kids get the best we can give them.
Phoebus will always be in the mix but, for a long time, there was a fear factor. Other teams were afraid of them. Grant it, they had some great teams and great talent but as one Coach said a few years ago "They won because they're Phoebus". LT has been the same the past few years. But now, for both those teams, the fear factor is over.
Phoebus will probably never be the dominant force they once were but they will always be good. LT will also be good but teams know they can be beaten. They won't win just because they're the Titans anymore. Salem proved that to everyone. No fear.
But these guys will be back almost every year as a top ten team. Excellent programs who will continue to do well. GL to both.
Good luck to every school this upcoming fall. I'm hoping it's every bit as exciting as it was last year.
LOL!!!Just gotta keep our names in your mouth huh? We won games because we out executed teams and won. We didn't execute and lost the game. Had nothing to do with fear...Ya'll fans get all caught up in that.
Yeah, Salem and LT need to take this up on the 4a board lol. Do I smell a trilogy this time at William & Mary?
Game plan was fine. But of course you were on staff at Salem correct? Their game plan was the same as they showed all year. Again didn't execute and that's all. Not going to cry over it, but we missed some blocks that could have made 3 yard gains bigger. Also the QB didn't take advantage of some runs but that's from experience. Shiheem exploited every running lane that was given Tyrek didn't. He's a year better this year. So game plan wasn't the problem.
I agree about the QB running, or the lack thereof. I didn't know if that was conservative coaching, missed reads by the QB, or better containment by the Salem ends. Tyrek will be tough this year, considering he was just a Sophomore last year. He was already bigger than Johnson last year so he'll be a handful the next 2 years for opponents. He's also got a pretty good arm and did a good job getting the ball to his playmakers. Another year of working in the veer system and in the weight room and he'll be even more formidable.
Both teams missed blocks and didn't execute perfectly. At least part of the reason each team didn't execute to perfection was because of the opponent. Both team's defenses did a good job of containing their opponent's offense.
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Respectfully disagree here. If you oppose the idea that there are games won before the opponent ever steps on the field, you're welcome to that opinion.
Maybe Salem was the one that didn't "execute" the first time they played LT. But I'll go out on a limb, and bet you don't look at that way, though.
That poor kid just had a bad game. The zone often gives HS QBs fits and Salem stopped the run enough to force them to throw. The kid had an arm but i don't think he threw more than one or two good balls all night. To me, those were the keys to the game. Titan's couldn't move Salem off the ball to successfully run and the QB couldn't fill the offensive gap with his arm.
There does have to be some regrets by LT here and I can understand it because IMO, Titans still win that game nine out of ten times. No disrespect intended.
Ok...I don't recall me coming up here and questioning Salem's gameplan after we beat them the year prior. He questioned the gameplan and I said we just didn't execute. Pretty sure Mags thought his gameplan was a good one in 2014 as well. But ok its getting closer to football season, so now the Salem faithful are coming out in full force. SMH
Just FYI, Redzone4us is not a Salem fan. I'm not positive which team he supports, but he's just as quick to antagonize Salem fans as anyone else. He was probably trying to pull you into a discussion because he missed you.
actually, I was just curious. devils basically said that the reason LT lost to Salem was because LT didn't execute. ( at least that how I understood it). So I was wondering couldn't Salem have said the same thing the year before? Or maybe that only applies to LT, that is if they happen to lose a game, it was because they didn't execute, and if they win, if was because they flat-out beat you. comments are welcomed.
Not specifically jumping on Redzone4us or Devils, but here's my 2 cents for what it's worth:
Salem had some missed opportunities, key injuries in '14, etc... and maybe if everything went just right & Salem executed better they might have been within 10-14 points, but I think LT was just better 2 years ago imo. The biggest difference that year was the play of the Sr QB Shiheem Johnson. He ran their offense nearly to perfection. He threw the ball well, knew when to hand it off, and when to keep it. I think the field general was the reason LT won in '14. If Salem would have executed better, had more success running the ball, and controlled possession and the clock, the game would have been closer, but I don't think it would have changed the outcome. Salem really didn't seem to have a defensive answer for LT's well run offense. LT was just better in '14.
As far as last year, LT had some amazing players, but Salem played well as a team especially on defense and that was the difference between the 2 outcomes. In any close game it's easy to point to a few plays, or maybe even just one play, where if things played out differently, be it from lack of execution or whatever you want to call it, that was possibly the difference between winning and losing. The bottom line is LT won in '14 & Salem won in '15. So it doesn't really matter how you choose to characterize it, the results are what they are. If someone wants to say IF this or that happened THEN the results would have been different, it doesn't really matter now, because that didn't occur. It doesn't matter what anyone's opinion is about who they think the better team was, the results are what they are, who cares how they characterize it?
Salem had some missed opportunities, key injuries in '14, etc... and maybe if everything went just right & Salem executed better they might have been within 10-14 points, but I think LT was just better 2 years ago imo. The biggest difference that year was the play of the Sr QB Shiheem Johnson. He ran their offense nearly to perfection. He threw the ball well, knew when to hand it off, and when to keep it. I think the field general was the reason LT won in '14. If Salem would have executed better, had more success running the ball, and controlled possession and the clock, the game would have been closer, but I don't think it would have changed the outcome. Salem really didn't seem to have a defensive answer for LT's well run offense. LT was just better in '14.
As far as last year, LT had some amazing players, but Salem played well as a team especially on defense and that was the difference between the 2 outcomes. In any close game it's easy to point to a few plays, or maybe even just one play, where if things played out differently, be it from lack of execution or whatever you want to call it, that was possibly the difference between winning and losing. The bottom line is LT won in '14 & Salem won in '15. So it doesn't really matter how you choose to characterize it, the results are what they are. If someone wants to say IF this or that happened THEN the results would have been different, it doesn't really matter now, because that didn't occur. It doesn't matter what anyone's opinion is about who they think the better team was, the results are what they are, who cares how they characterize it?
Said it before and it bears repeating, a great game to watch. I thought LT's young signal caller did ok given his experience and the stage he was on. I know he wanted to play better and I am sure he will be better in the future. Question for Devils is whether Salem's defensive adjustments/game plan took away the quick game or LT just thought they could get other things. Given Davis' athleticism as well as other receivers and the youth of the LT QB I was a little surprised they didn't use more quick throws just to get their athletes in space as well as to relieve some of the responsibility on the young QB to make other reads and potentially more difficult throws. Again, a great game to watch and would love to see Round 3 next year.
I think people are quick to jump to the notion of "same old Northside" but since BT was there for awhile they forgot he was what turned them into said Northside. Northside pre-BT was a totally different program. Torrance made Northside, not the other way around. Without him they could be struggling to stay afloat for some time.
Burt Torrence is not half the coach or man that Jim Hickam is! Coach Hickam may have stayed too long or was unwilling to change with the times when he was coach but Coach Hickam had some great teams at Northside. Was Jim perfect? NO.
For you to suggest that Burt made Northside into a football power is comical! Out of all the high school football programs in Roanoke County, Northside has predominately been the strongest program. In other words, they typically have had the BEST and MOST abundant football talent of all the Roanoke County schools.
Burt had a losing record for his first three seasons at Northside. Also, people seem to forget that great players make average coaches look good. Northside has always had great players.
There are several different reasons why Northside is the only Roanoke County school to ever win "multiple" state championships in football. The combination of Frank Dent and Burt Torrence and the unethical things they did to win football games will never allow Burt Torrence to be placed into the category of a Jim Hickam or even a Jeff Highfield.
In all fairness, Burt did some really good things for Northside and the kids at Northside but now he has a lawyer and is being investigated by the state and county police...... That will be Burt Torrence's legacy at Northside.
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Listen, don't take it as Northside was nothing before Torrence but take it as he clearly raised their game. Jim Hickam was a fine coach but he also averaged a 7-5 record in 32 years at Northside and few seasons of truly great success. Torrence's early losing seasons are no different than many other coaches but Burt's 81-40 record with 2 titles in 10 years is decidedly better.
I'm a bit puzzled at your statement of great players making average coaches look good and that Northside has always had great players. What is that saying about Hickam?
Burt changed the culture at Northside. Northside looks and acts like a football now(we'll see what the future holds). They travel better, I'd be amazed if the home attendance isn't markedly better, it's not entirely night and day from years past but it's pretty close.
Don't take this as a real defense of Burt. I don't like the man, I don't like the coach, but he did a lot of good for Northside and made them a hell of a lot more respectable as a program on a year-in, year-out basis.
I'm a bit puzzled at your statement of great players making average coaches look good and that Northside has always had great players. What is that saying about Hickam?
Burt changed the culture at Northside. Northside looks and acts like a football now(we'll see what the future holds). They travel better, I'd be amazed if the home attendance isn't markedly better, it's not entirely night and day from years past but it's pretty close.
Don't take this as a real defense of Burt. I don't like the man, I don't like the coach, but he did a lot of good for Northside and made them a hell of a lot more respectable as a program on a year-in, year-out basis.
If you believe that Northside is more respected today as a Football program by other coaches, players, fans, and administrators then - WOW! Just because they had a new or different uniform for every game, ran out under a big inflatable Viking at the start of each game, and would win does not always equal respect.
As I said, Burt did do some very good things. He was a great supporter and promoted his kids as well as other local high school football kids to the next level. Yes, Burt motivated his kids and they played hard for him and they had success.
However, Burt did not practiced what he preached. Look at how he has handled his resignation. I have spoken to a lot of older, well respected, and well known former Northside football players and most of them have been ashamed of the way Northside has won over the past seven years - not because of anything the kids were doing but all in how Burt and Frank were conducting themselves.
Finally - I agree - Jim should have won more football games than he did. If he would have adjusted to his talent offensively then they would have. In my opinion, Jim was a GREAT fundamental defensive coach. As he got older he may have lost touch with the younger generation, but Jim was a better coach and set a better example than Burt did. Also I know that Jim Hickam would not have allowed nor done the things that Frank Dent and Burt did to win a few more football games - legal or illegal.
I wish the kids and community at Northside all the best! They have been and will always be better than Frank, Burt, and all the other folks that were complicit - just to win a few more football games.
To mention Torrence in comparison to Hickam is a huge insult to Coach Hickam and shows a fundamental lack of understanding in to how those coaches went about their jobs and exactly what each did for the program, in my opinion. It is true Torrence brought some state championships to Northside, however, the manner in which he and Dent went about it ultimately did more harm than good to the Northside community, in my opinion as an observer. The investigation is ongoing and best to let it run its course but, the old adage where there is smoke there is fire is relevant. I will defer to the longtime Northside fans such as leftovers(if he is lurking) to provide a much more knowledgeable perspective than I can bring, however, I will say that, in my opinion, if choosing between Torrence and Hickam I would take Hickam every day of the week and twice on Sunday.
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