Bird/Dinwiddie/Henrico jamboree
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Bird is the real deal again. I think this was the best Bird team I have ever seen. Completely balanced in all aspects of the game. Line play was disciplined on both sides of the ball. Their QB is headed to ND for a reason, he can play.
Henrico is improved from last year. A more balanced attack. Their QB threw a pretty ball and was accurate. Their running game, which was the strongest part of their offense last year, will only be better with an effective passing game. The one issue I saw with Henrico was their medium to deep pass coverage. Time and again our receivers got behind their coverage. They looked confused in pass coverage.
Dinwiddie did not look very good. Part of our O line was having trouble. So that affected everything we tried to do on offense. We still had our positives, but it was inconsistant. QB Bryce Witt is as advertised, much improved. Reads the field well. Smart about his throws. When he scrambles he sets quickly and throws with good form instead of just slinging the ball. Pope is the player he is advertised to be. There is a reason he had D1 offers as a freshman.
Part of the reason we were not as effective as we almost assuredly can be, was because we had several key players out. All are expected to play next week with one exception. A defensive starter had hernia surgery Thursday. No timetable for his return. I was told we did not have a good week of practice, which culminated in a sub-par performance Thursday. It has been a very intense last three weeks for the boys. Now that that part of practice is behind them, and the focus can be on preparing for our first opponent, James Monroe, I look for everything to come together. I'm not making excuses, but when you look at the team's we scrimmaged, you can see why you may not have seen the true Dinwiddie. A lot of the reason we didn't impress is because of who we played. 6a #1 Ocean Lakes, #5a 7 Indian River, Herritage NN, a perennial playoff team, 5a #1 Bird, Henrico, which I think Rod and company should have included in the top ten in 5a. That's a bunch of really good teams.
The boys will get their break this weekend. Film sessions will not be pretty. Changes will be made. Decisions about who will start will be made, and we will be ok. Scrimmage is two things. Evaluate execution, and evaluate players. Yeah, you want to dominate and win, but that is very much secondary to the first two. And Dinwiddie embraces this as much or more than many teams. So, it's never unusual that we don't look impressive in our scrimmages.
I'm sorry I don't have play by play information, and player names and numbers. I had the intention of logging everything so I could give a detailed report. But, I found myself sitting with a group of folks that I had not seen since last season, so I ran my mouth and missed a lot of details on the field. Furthermore, two James Monroe coaches were sitting nearby scouting us, (our first opponent). Two terrific guys. We talked at length about everything football. I'm really looking forward to the series with them. You just know that Coach Serbay will bring a well prepared team, and it should be a great game.
Bottom line, I would grade it like this.
L C Bird, "A" overall, "A+" on Offense, a strong "A-" on Defense
Henrico, "B-" overall, downgraded because of their pass defense.
Dinwiddie, "C", maybe, truthfully better than that, but I was hoping to see us equal to Bird. But that isn't fair, really. Bird is dominant team again. Truthfully, we didn't look as good as my expectations, and Bird and Herico were the reasons why. Often when you don't look good it's simply because the other team is that much better.
Sorry guys that I don't have a detailed report the way most of you post. But again, I'm not a coach, and certainly don't have a coache's eye. And I was running my trap the whole time instead of paying rapt attention.
Henrico is improved from last year. A more balanced attack. Their QB threw a pretty ball and was accurate. Their running game, which was the strongest part of their offense last year, will only be better with an effective passing game. The one issue I saw with Henrico was their medium to deep pass coverage. Time and again our receivers got behind their coverage. They looked confused in pass coverage.
Dinwiddie did not look very good. Part of our O line was having trouble. So that affected everything we tried to do on offense. We still had our positives, but it was inconsistant. QB Bryce Witt is as advertised, much improved. Reads the field well. Smart about his throws. When he scrambles he sets quickly and throws with good form instead of just slinging the ball. Pope is the player he is advertised to be. There is a reason he had D1 offers as a freshman.
Part of the reason we were not as effective as we almost assuredly can be, was because we had several key players out. All are expected to play next week with one exception. A defensive starter had hernia surgery Thursday. No timetable for his return. I was told we did not have a good week of practice, which culminated in a sub-par performance Thursday. It has been a very intense last three weeks for the boys. Now that that part of practice is behind them, and the focus can be on preparing for our first opponent, James Monroe, I look for everything to come together. I'm not making excuses, but when you look at the team's we scrimmaged, you can see why you may not have seen the true Dinwiddie. A lot of the reason we didn't impress is because of who we played. 6a #1 Ocean Lakes, #5a 7 Indian River, Herritage NN, a perennial playoff team, 5a #1 Bird, Henrico, which I think Rod and company should have included in the top ten in 5a. That's a bunch of really good teams.
The boys will get their break this weekend. Film sessions will not be pretty. Changes will be made. Decisions about who will start will be made, and we will be ok. Scrimmage is two things. Evaluate execution, and evaluate players. Yeah, you want to dominate and win, but that is very much secondary to the first two. And Dinwiddie embraces this as much or more than many teams. So, it's never unusual that we don't look impressive in our scrimmages.
I'm sorry I don't have play by play information, and player names and numbers. I had the intention of logging everything so I could give a detailed report. But, I found myself sitting with a group of folks that I had not seen since last season, so I ran my mouth and missed a lot of details on the field. Furthermore, two James Monroe coaches were sitting nearby scouting us, (our first opponent). Two terrific guys. We talked at length about everything football. I'm really looking forward to the series with them. You just know that Coach Serbay will bring a well prepared team, and it should be a great game.
Bottom line, I would grade it like this.
L C Bird, "A" overall, "A+" on Offense, a strong "A-" on Defense
Henrico, "B-" overall, downgraded because of their pass defense.
Dinwiddie, "C", maybe, truthfully better than that, but I was hoping to see us equal to Bird. But that isn't fair, really. Bird is dominant team again. Truthfully, we didn't look as good as my expectations, and Bird and Herico were the reasons why. Often when you don't look good it's simply because the other team is that much better.
Sorry guys that I don't have a detailed report the way most of you post. But again, I'm not a coach, and certainly don't have a coache's eye. And I was running my trap the whole time instead of paying rapt attention.
Thanks DP, I thought after seeing Bird last week that they were the real deal again, but didn't wanna say too much in case it was just my Lions looking bad on defense. After seeing Louisa yesterday I can confidently say Louisa will be fine and Bird is indeed the real deal again. Louisa came so close to sacking Eliot so many times, then he just made them look silly and those plays just turned into touchdowns. And I didn't know MLB Rayshard Ashby was state player of the year last season as a sophomore! He popped Louisa RB Job Whalen on a run up the middle and made his helmet fly off, haha.
That was one thing that was frustrating. You would be close to making a stop, and they seemed to get away and turn a play into a big gain or TD. So darn fast getting to the side and turning the play up field.
And you know one of their hallmarks is dinging you just as the play ends. Borderline cheap shots, but they have perfected it. They rarely get the call, but they darn sure get the benefit of a flag on the retaliation once or twice a game. I hate it, I think it is wrong at this level to teach it. But, it is what they do so it is one more thing you have to prepare your team for. Ashby and the others smacked our guys a few times too.
It they get beat this year, it will have to be by one of the big boys from NOVA that we just don't know much about yet. I don't know of anyone they play regular season that will be any problem for them, and not really anybody else in the playoffs until the Championship game. And even then I wonder who could hang with them.
And you know one of their hallmarks is dinging you just as the play ends. Borderline cheap shots, but they have perfected it. They rarely get the call, but they darn sure get the benefit of a flag on the retaliation once or twice a game. I hate it, I think it is wrong at this level to teach it. But, it is what they do so it is one more thing you have to prepare your team for. Ashby and the others smacked our guys a few times too.
It they get beat this year, it will have to be by one of the big boys from NOVA that we just don't know much about yet. I don't know of anyone they play regular season that will be any problem for them, and not really anybody else in the playoffs until the Championship game. And even then I wonder who could hang with them.
Thanks Springer. I may stop by your office Monday. I have to go to Richmond in the morning and if time permits I was going to swing by. If they come running back to your office saying there is a guy out front that is irate and raising hell about the order that never got shipped to him, just smile and tell them, "I'll take care of it personally".
DP how you think yall will do against JM? going to be a good one! got to do tv in the local area with courtland playing massaponax or I would be there! saw the jackets in the scrimmage this week and was impressive against a good much larger mt.view school team so I look for it to be a good one.
I think JM will pull the "upset", they look pretty special again and Dinwiddie's defense looks smallish in the videos I've seen. I think JM can handle them up front and their balanced attack will do some damage. If it turns into a shootout, that favors JM even more.
I don't know. Of course I have confidence in Coach Mills and his staff solving most of our miscues. But Serbay and staff will darn sure come ready to play. If both teams play good against each other, it could come down to depth. I do not know how deep JM is, but I do on Dinwiddie's side. Receiver wise, we have a remarkable group of about eight legitimate threats. QB, Bryce Witt has improved so much since he was thrust in the starting roll by the first game last year, that there is little doubt that he will get the job done. We have four distinctly different types of ball carriers. If either the running or the passing game get established, the opposite will flourish. We have starters from last season that have lost their starting spots to sophomores and and a junior. We have good players on the sidelines that can easily fill the "next man up mantra". JM may have this too. I just don't know.
I wouldn't read a lot into a perceived smaller defense. You could easily point to Reggie Williams and ask how is that little guy going to stop anyone. Let me just say this, Reggie has been playing varsity ball for four years. You just can't get the fellow off the field. He is fast, athletic, and smart. He is one that the cliche was written for. "He plays a lot bigger than his size". This is pretty much the case with the entire defense. They may not be college size, but they are physical.
There are some heavy hitters on defense. And Cecil Parham is one of the best of them, and he is the complete package. Strong as a bull, smart as a whip, and provides leadership and guidance whenever he is on the field. From what I've seen, defense will not be weakness that hampers us.
Not knowing a lot about JM, it's impossible for me to say we are superior than them in any aspect of the game. But I will say, we have good team speed. On both sides of the ball. Any runner that doesn't get wrapped up at the line is a legitimate threat to break it for the TD. Same on defense. Not every player in the defensive backfield has that blazing speed that makes us say "WOW". But several do. JM might get a player out on the corner a few times, but it does not mean they will take it to the house.
The bottom line? Don't be deceived by the scrimmages. I don't think it will come down to a shootout. I just don't think JM can contain our offensive potential all game long. There are just too many weapons. And if we can get up, and JM has to try go to the pass to score quickly, they play into one of our strengths. We should win. Good Lord I hope so. That opening loss last year to Monacan still haunts us.
But, hey. Remember that we are dealing with harnessing the brains and brawn of 15, 16, 17, and 18 year old teenagers. What a crazy way of making a living, theses coaches have chosen!
I wouldn't read a lot into a perceived smaller defense. You could easily point to Reggie Williams and ask how is that little guy going to stop anyone. Let me just say this, Reggie has been playing varsity ball for four years. You just can't get the fellow off the field. He is fast, athletic, and smart. He is one that the cliche was written for. "He plays a lot bigger than his size". This is pretty much the case with the entire defense. They may not be college size, but they are physical.
There are some heavy hitters on defense. And Cecil Parham is one of the best of them, and he is the complete package. Strong as a bull, smart as a whip, and provides leadership and guidance whenever he is on the field. From what I've seen, defense will not be weakness that hampers us.
Not knowing a lot about JM, it's impossible for me to say we are superior than them in any aspect of the game. But I will say, we have good team speed. On both sides of the ball. Any runner that doesn't get wrapped up at the line is a legitimate threat to break it for the TD. Same on defense. Not every player in the defensive backfield has that blazing speed that makes us say "WOW". But several do. JM might get a player out on the corner a few times, but it does not mean they will take it to the house.
The bottom line? Don't be deceived by the scrimmages. I don't think it will come down to a shootout. I just don't think JM can contain our offensive potential all game long. There are just too many weapons. And if we can get up, and JM has to try go to the pass to score quickly, they play into one of our strengths. We should win. Good Lord I hope so. That opening loss last year to Monacan still haunts us.
But, hey. Remember that we are dealing with harnessing the brains and brawn of 15, 16, 17, and 18 year old teenagers. What a crazy way of making a living, theses coaches have chosen!
I agree with you 100% DP. They say if your offense is ahead of your defense this time of the year that's your going to be in trouble. But this is the hand we are dealt with this year then so be it.
The offense is going to have to carry us until the defence catch up. Hopefully they be there by mid season.
I take my my hat off to Bryce you can tell he put in work in the off season he looks good. I
am really impressed with his long ball.
All in all I think we will be okay. We have one of the best coaching staff around so I know they will have these guys ready to play at there highest level come Friday.
The offense is going to have to carry us until the defence catch up. Hopefully they be there by mid season.
I take my my hat off to Bryce you can tell he put in work in the off season he looks good. I
am really impressed with his long ball.
All in all I think we will be okay. We have one of the best coaching staff around so I know they will have these guys ready to play at there highest level come Friday.
DP and Gen4ever you are both correct; however, the Generals have never had a defense with a ton of size. Coach Mills utilizes team speed to his advantage. How many times have you seen the defense make solo tackles? They tend to bottle opponents up and swarm. I will admit this game does concern me. The Generals have not tackled well, but hopefully this will change with a few healthy bodies back in the lineup. One thing is for sure the JM coaches did not see our full offense. Coach ran the same 6 plays in both scrimmages. Two good teams. Should be fun. Good luck to all this weekend.
Dinwiddie will not lose to JM . JM a great 3A team, with athletes. But this Dinwiddie team is top 3 or better in 4A and they are much deeper in talent. My prediction is Dinwiddie 35 JM 21
Probably in no other game of the year do penalties and turnovers loom as big as possible game changers as in the first game of the year. Which team will make the least mistakes. Which team can take advantage of the other teams mistakes? Two very well coached teams. Dinwiddie has a knack for exploiting mistakes. And like "Navy" said above, the defense will be a lot better that what has been seen in the scrimmages. I give the nod to Dinwiddie.
Welcome back Bleeding Navy. And Jamie agreed to sell raffle tickets. That ought to be a show within itself!
"First Down" selling raffle tickets? Could be fun, but I hope he continues to keep the crowd pumped up. Is it Friday yet? Aside from our game I will be following the Sherando/Louisa game. That would be a fun game to watch. I am sure it will be a physical hard hitting affair. Look forward to Hoos and Hamspears commentary. Both are knowledgeable and on point. Will see you on the forty.
Yep, ole "First Down" himself. Don't worry about him being engaged with the crowd. Doing this is like giving him a license to steal. Now he has the whole home field side to work with.
I'll be with you on following Sherando, Louisa. Hammy, will you be able to text me updates? If so, I'll share with Bleeding Navy.
I'm sure Mike can keep us updated on Amherst, Salem? That will be interesting to follow, too.
I hope I can get updates on Heritage, Lake Taylor, but I think we all know how that is going to turn out. Devils will probably be too busy on the sidelines, but if you think you can Devils, I'll send you my number by e-mail.
Two others I'm curious about are Ponnax, Cortland and Kings Fork, Smithfield. I believe the Courtland game is Thursday night?
Hang tight guys, only a few more days.
I'll be with you on following Sherando, Louisa. Hammy, will you be able to text me updates? If so, I'll share with Bleeding Navy.
I'm sure Mike can keep us updated on Amherst, Salem? That will be interesting to follow, too.
I hope I can get updates on Heritage, Lake Taylor, but I think we all know how that is going to turn out. Devils will probably be too busy on the sidelines, but if you think you can Devils, I'll send you my number by e-mail.
Two others I'm curious about are Ponnax, Cortland and Kings Fork, Smithfield. I believe the Courtland game is Thursday night?
Hang tight guys, only a few more days.
I'm in the Press Box never been one for the sidelines. Allows me to see what's going on and the OL/DL can tell by how fast I get to them how the night is going.
Devils, was introduced to a fine man today who I believe may be your father. Same name with Sr. attached We are in the same business. I also saw a picture of you as a JV player. Coach Simon spoke well of you. Good luck this weekend.
If your speaking of the Captain that is my pops. Very good man if I can be half of what he is then I'm on the right path. Lol man idk where that picture is but you should have burned it for me. Coach Simon really helped me out a ton when I was in the 8th grade with focusing and working on the little things. I had a bad temper coming up so he held me very accountable when I played JV.
Yes, it was the Captain. Growing up with a dad in our business is not very easy. My daughter often complains about the structured standard she has to live by. Coach Simon is still providing the tough love. He is proud of the man you have become. We are bouncing around ideas to hopefully offer positive alternatives to the current preferences of the youth in Hopewell. Have to get the salty veterans involved. Lol....
My parents divorced when I was 5 years old. My dad stayed in me and my brothers lives throughout the whole process. Never turned his back on us or took the easy way out. I respect him for that because he had every opportunity to leave us behind like so many do. I honestly don't come home but once every 3-4 months because it is sad. A lot of the same people doing the same things they did when I left, and it's a sad continuous cycle.
Just saw a 1998 Hopewell HS central district championship team picture. Impressive! four members are now coaches. Tiller-Meadowbrook, Henderson- Monacan and Whittington - Lake Taylor, coach Mutacio - Cosby. Coach Parker has some fine lineage. Devils #61 lb/c.
98 season lost a heartbreaker to PH-Ashland at Merner field. We were looking forward to a matchup the next week with Huguenot for the regional title, but it didn't work out. Huguenot would go on to the state semifinals and get DESTROYED by Mondo Curry and Hampton as they would win their 4th title in a row. I did have a good season however in 98 all district, region, metro, state. But would have traded all that win for a title. As ugly as that number was there was a reason I wore it. There was an older gentleman that played at Hopewell that would go and fight in WWII he played the same positions and I was truly inspired by his story when I heard it as an 8th grader that I got the number. Kept it from then on.
Hopewell's offensive coordinator Brock Parker (Marshall's son) was also the QB on that team.
Hoos, you are correct. Did not know he was still coaching there. Thanks for the info. Even more impressive. Hope everyone understand there us more to many of us than our post reveals. Devils, can be brash at times, but his entire family has dedicated their lives to helping others. I never question anyones passion, but i do enjoy unmaliciously poking fun. Wish I could see the Louisa vs. Sherando game, but we have enough on our plate with JM. Hope your prediction is wrong. Lol.
Sorry longestyard. I misread the sender. Still getting used to the new format. Are you a Central District fan?
