Graham at Union
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Will no doubt be Union's toughest test to date. Graham has athletes everywhere. Richlands was the best defense they've seen, wasn't even close, and I don't expect Graham's D to be as good, but it will be a challenge for Union's D to stop all of those playmakers.
Graham lost a very good defensive player last week, if he’s out this week they could be in trouble. Graham will make some big plays, always do, but I expect Union to control the LOS. Graham has an excellent pass defense but has struggled defending the run, and it’s very tough to win at Bullit Park, I’ll take Union 28-17 in a tight one.
It's hard to tell how this game is going to play out. 2 very different style offense facing off against each other.
Union is bigger, stronger, and will run the ball right at you. Graham will spread you out with 4 or 5 receivers, let the QB run, and throw the ball for the big play.
Union will move the ball on Graham, there's no doubt about that, so Graham's best shot will be to get a stop or turnover, score early and often, and make union play from behind.
Union's best shot will be to control the ball and keep Graham's offensive speed on the sidelines.
I wouldn't be surprised if Union won by 2 scores, but if Graham wins I expect it to be much closer.
Come on out to Big Stone Gap, VA at 2:00 on Saturday and watch a couple of D1 players and 2 really good teams face off in what I expect to be one of the better games of the year.
Union is bigger, stronger, and will run the ball right at you. Graham will spread you out with 4 or 5 receivers, let the QB run, and throw the ball for the big play.
Union will move the ball on Graham, there's no doubt about that, so Graham's best shot will be to get a stop or turnover, score early and often, and make union play from behind.
Union's best shot will be to control the ball and keep Graham's offensive speed on the sidelines.
I wouldn't be surprised if Union won by 2 scores, but if Graham wins I expect it to be much closer.
Come on out to Big Stone Gap, VA at 2:00 on Saturday and watch a couple of D1 players and 2 really good teams face off in what I expect to be one of the better games of the year.
I am sticking with Graham since I picked them to advance to the state semi's in early August after watching them scrimmage Glenvar. For Graham, they would be trying to advance to the semifinals after 2 years ago advancing to the final 16 and losing, and last year advancing to the final 8 and losing. They've improved by 1 game in the playoffs the last 2 years, so if they win, it's right on point with another 1 game improvement in the playoffs. For Union, they are trying to advance to the state-semi's for what would be the 2nd time in 3 years. This game comes down the first quarter, and unlike many games that are decided late. If Graham jumps out with explosive plays early and gets 2 early touchdowns, I think Union is in trouble as the confidence for the QB will build and Union will have to drop back more defenders against the pass allowing Graham to run it some or at least get a short passing game going. If this game is even or within 3 points either way at halftime, I think Graham's in trouble. The physicality of Union's line can really take hold like most lines do in the second half, but the one thing for Union that is different than their previous competition is the speed of Graham's back 7 on defense. Union is likely not going to get those explosive break away-long running plays with Mitchell or their running back. They may get some big chunks running, but this is a game in which the 75 yard touchdown run that would normally be housed only goes for 40 due to a Graham defender running down the Union football carrier which will force Union to carry out sustained drives instead of long bust out running plays.
I think this game comes down to the accuracy of Graham's QB and the ability to throw downfield. I heard he has improved as the season has progressed. Graham's WR's are fast and they will get separation, and it comes down to whether or not the QB throws the ball accurately. There's a huge difference in the outcome of the game decided only by inches, and in this case, imagine a Graham 2nd and 6 with a wide open WR only to be overthrown or underthrown or intercepted versus hitting the guy on the money and a touchdown. In order to win this game, Graham will have to have an accurate downfield passing game early on. They are not going to be successful with the QB taking a snap and rolling out and then outrunning the defense to the corner and getting big runs due to the QB maybe not making a great downfield read, but against a slower team like Marion, this may work, but against a team like Union that not only has good speed, but they have the defensive tackles to get penetration and blow up the line of scrimmage. This game is decided early, and whether or not Graham completes the passes downfield in which WR's will be open early in the game. If the QB throws the ball accurately, Union will get beat. If he doesn't, Graham's in trouble because they are not going to run the ball consistently in long sustained drives on Union's defense. Union will have success running some on Graham that will eat up the play clock, and this will give Graham limited possessions with that explosive and fast offense, which is why it's more critical for Graham to have the QB throwing the ball accurately early on in the game.
Should be a good one. I don't think this game will be that close either way, unlike most games with 2 good very close matched rich teams. I think Union is the kind of team that wears you down, and Graham still kind of has that mentality of imploding mentally if they are down, and Union could win this by 17 points. On the flip side, if the QB is on early, the WR's will be open and that explosiveness could account for a big lead requiring Union to play behind, and they are a run happy offense, and it's hard to play catchup if you are down early and are forced to start putting it in the air more than you would like, especially against a Graham secondary that is probably the fastest in the state. I think a 17 point win either way, and not a close game, or at least as close as we think. I'll pick Graham since I picked them in early August.
I think this game comes down to the accuracy of Graham's QB and the ability to throw downfield. I heard he has improved as the season has progressed. Graham's WR's are fast and they will get separation, and it comes down to whether or not the QB throws the ball accurately. There's a huge difference in the outcome of the game decided only by inches, and in this case, imagine a Graham 2nd and 6 with a wide open WR only to be overthrown or underthrown or intercepted versus hitting the guy on the money and a touchdown. In order to win this game, Graham will have to have an accurate downfield passing game early on. They are not going to be successful with the QB taking a snap and rolling out and then outrunning the defense to the corner and getting big runs due to the QB maybe not making a great downfield read, but against a slower team like Marion, this may work, but against a team like Union that not only has good speed, but they have the defensive tackles to get penetration and blow up the line of scrimmage. This game is decided early, and whether or not Graham completes the passes downfield in which WR's will be open early in the game. If the QB throws the ball accurately, Union will get beat. If he doesn't, Graham's in trouble because they are not going to run the ball consistently in long sustained drives on Union's defense. Union will have success running some on Graham that will eat up the play clock, and this will give Graham limited possessions with that explosive and fast offense, which is why it's more critical for Graham to have the QB throwing the ball accurately early on in the game.
Should be a good one. I don't think this game will be that close either way, unlike most games with 2 good very close matched rich teams. I think Union is the kind of team that wears you down, and Graham still kind of has that mentality of imploding mentally if they are down, and Union could win this by 17 points. On the flip side, if the QB is on early, the WR's will be open and that explosiveness could account for a big lead requiring Union to play behind, and they are a run happy offense, and it's hard to play catchup if you are down early and are forced to start putting it in the air more than you would like, especially against a Graham secondary that is probably the fastest in the state. I think a 17 point win either way, and not a close game, or at least as close as we think. I'll pick Graham since I picked them in early August.
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Very insightful look into this game of two talented teams. Bullitt Park will be electric on Saturday at 2pm. Come early or you won't find a seat!
I so wanna see this game. If graham plays with the 4-5 spread. That will be a challenge for appo, ive see the O that union has, it will not beat appo. Its too one dimensional.
You can see the type of offense graham likes to stay in when it's doing well. They run pistol and I-Form too but the spread lets them have their athletes in space. In this video they didn't throw deep a lot because Grayson seemed to be scared of getting beat deep and played back so there's a lot of short throws and QB runs.
I've wanted to see how Graham's athletes could match up with Appomattox. In my opinion Appomattox would have the better all around team but Graham would have the athletes to play with them if it turned into a track meet.
Graham will be damn lucky to make it past Union though. The matchup doesn't favor Graham and home field advantage is real for Union, which is why I would put my money on Union if I was forced to choose. *IF* Graham does win I'm sure they'd hope for a Glenvar upset since they've scrimmaged Glenvar the last 2 years so they should be somewhat familiar with them.. plus it would save some drive time.
Just going off what i saw from last yrs O. If that is all yall got to offer on O. .. its gonna be another long night. Both of us have hard games in front so lets talk about this next week hopefully
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So, you're basing your opinion of Union's offense on what you saw a year ago with different players and a different scheme? Even if it was the exact same O, still different players.
Just thought you had actually seen Union play this year, and was curious, if that was the case, which game because they have used a few different schemes due to the opponent and injuries.
I'm really torn about this game. Would Like To See Graham win cuz I think they would match up better with Appo if Appo wins. It would look to be a great matchup. On the other hand I would love to see Appo come to bullitt park in far SWVA. Either way I hope region D brings it home. Gonna be tough though.
I hope Graham wins, only reason is because if we (Appo) beats Glenvar, then Graham has to come to us by the way the power points show. But if we gotta go to Union thats 4 1/2 hrs. Woowee... But just hope yall get to see a good game and its injury free. Bless both teams. #GoRaiders
"Graham will be damn lucky to make it past Union though. The matchup doesn't favor Graham and home field advantage is real for Union, which is why I would put my money on Union if I was forced to choose. *IF* Graham does win I'm sure they'd hope for a Glenvar upset since they've scrimmaged Glenvar the last 2 years so they should be somewhat familiar with them.. plus it would save some drive time."
There is some scary speed in that clip you showed. Not just the QB, but the WR's (all of them) look like they have some serious wheels.
There is some scary speed in that clip you showed. Not just the QB, but the WR's (all of them) look like they have some serious wheels.
Thx, i just watched it... had to wait until i got home. Yeah...i wish it had more O on that clip. I wanna see qbs arm.
Yeah there wasn't many downfield throws but you can see 3 of them at 1:16, 1:48, & 2:25. The last two were dropped perfectly between 2 defenders.
Here's his profile. There's probably 8 or 9 games on there since he missed some time with a sprained ankle early in the season. The Fort Chiswell one is a Good one to watch.
http://ww.hudl.com/profile/6221437/cameron-allen
Would love to watch this game should be a great game , after going up to graham last season to see them and seeing union in Appo . Great fan base for both teams !! Graham in a close one 24-21!!
As the game draws closer, I keep thinking how this game may come down to who executes better and avoids the turnovers. Graham can score in a hurry, but I don't believe they have seen a defense like Unions. Graham had close contests with Giles and Richlands. They had the Giles game in control until injuries to their QB, RB and a couple of linemen happened in the 2nd half. Somehow they hung on and pulled that one out. The Richlands game was a grind and Graham was up by 10 with only 3 minutes to go. A field goal and an on side kick got Richlands to a tie, but again Graham willed their way to a win. Their only loss came to an undefeated Bluefield team playing in the WV state semis on Saturday. Bluefield is the real deal. Graham was on top most of that game until a pick 6 put them behind the 8 ball late in that one. Graham showed resilliance and came back to appear to score the game winning td, only to have the ball stripped as the runner was going into the end zone on what turned out to be an excellent play by Bluefields Mookie Collier. What I'm trying to say is that Graham has been battle tested and has faced some adversity and I think it has prepared them for this moment. They also lost to Richlands at this stage last year and the team doesn't think they put up a good showing in that one and were better than the product that was on the field on that day, so they have that motivation also. I think Graham comes ready to play in this one. But if either team comes out flat, it could be a long night.
Union’s defensive front could cause graham a ton of trouble, they’ll be the best graham has faced. Their O’line is very physical too, if graham can’t stop the run then it’s gonna be a very long day. I don’t see a blowout either way.
Graham is pretty decent their line play. They held their own with Giles, Bluefield and against Richlands O Line. Richlands defense was able to get pressure on the QB, but a lot of that I Blame on Graham's O coordinator for continuing to use Allen as a drop back QB and not adjusting to the pressure that Richlands brought up the middle. Graham needs to roll Allen out more, get those big linemen moving side to side and wear them down, if not for Allen's big play ability against Richlands, coaching would have lost that game for them. Graham was much more talented.
The game will come down to one thing. If the Graham QB accurately throws the long ball, Graham will win. Union's defense is solid, but their secondary can not cover the speed of Graham's WR's, and that includes Mitchell who I understand plays some safety, and is a four star, but he's not playing that position in college, and even he can not run with Graham's Cooke. Union will get pressure with that DL, but the speed of Graham offensively will create separation, but can the QB throw the ball accurately with some pressure to WR's that will be open on seam, fly, and post routes. If you are a Union fan and you see these completions early, get ready for a long day. If you are a Graham fan and you see a "near miss" with a short ball or overthrow, or a drop by the WR, get ready to lose. Graham will have many 3rd or 2nd and longs in this game, but they can strike from anywhere, but the difference in a long incompletion or catch will be the difference in a touchdown or a punt which gives the ball back to Union's physical offense which kills more clock, and limits a Graham possession.
31-0 with five minutes to go. I said when richlands fell short that Union would “cruise” thru region D, they have done so in convincing fashion. Union has ran the same 3 plays all day, they absolutely dominated Graham’s front 5.
#5, Taymon Cooke.
Union did a great job limiting him, keeping a deep S and sure tackling on jet sweeps and bubble screens.
