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Graham vs Appomattox State Semifinals

I've never traveled from SWVA to Appomattox. Those that have been from this end of the state, do you have any suggestions as to the best route to take? Shortcuts? GPS has me going I-77 to 1-81 to 220 then 460. I was considering going 460 then pick up 81 in Christiansburg. I despise I-81 thorough Wythe County especially & not that fond of it, period to be honest.
 
I've never traveled from SWVA to Appomattox. Those that have been from this end of the state, do you have any suggestions as to the best route to take? Shortcuts? GPS has me going I-77 to 1-81 to 220 then 460. I was considering going 460 then pick up 81 in Christiansburg. I despise I-81 thorough Wythe County especially & not that fond of it, period to be honest.
Hey brother, I’d go 77 to 81 (until I get to Christiansburg). I always go 460 through Shawsville and Salem and I’d take 460 all the way to Appomattox. Yeah the traffic lights in Roanoke and Salem are annoying but so much better than DANGEROUS 81.
 
I've never traveled from SWVA to Appomattox. Those that have been from this end of the state, do you have any suggestions as to the best route to take? Shortcuts? GPS has me going I-77 to 1-81 to 220 then 460. I was considering going 460 then pick up 81 in Christiansburg. I despise I-81 thorough Wythe County especially & not that fond of it, period to be honest.

You’ll get a nice view of Liberty U as you come through Lynchburg.
Try to catch a view of the stadium and the indoor football practice facility. It will be on your left as you’re traveling east.
 
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I've never traveled from SWVA to Appomattox. Those that have been from this end of the state, do you have any suggestions as to the best route to take? Shortcuts? GPS has me going I-77 to 1-81 to 220 then 460. I was considering going 460 then pick up 81 in Christiansburg. I despise I-81 thorough Wythe County especially & not that fond of it, period to be honest.
Your first route was the route i used most often when i was going to college at Bluefield Baptist.
Both of your routes are within a few minutes travel time, i just did not like 460 from christiansburg to bluefield.
 
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I go 77 to 81 North, take exit 150 on 81 North (don't know the route number-go about 5 miles on that route). It intersects with 460 and take 460 East the rest of the way to Appomattox.
 
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220 south is that road for able 5 miles.
I would like to take this time to wish all four teams in 2A the best of luck tomorrow. Two will win but two will lose. Hope there are no serious injuries on the field nor accidents traveling. And remember this. A former coach told me that what you have [ successful football team ] can be lost very quickly. It is a thin line between a great program, mediocrity and cellar dwelling. I am a Gretna person and I have seen cellar dwelling, mediocrity and greatness and it can be fleeting. So enjoy what you have because it can escape so easily. Play ball.
 
I would like to take this time to wish all four teams in 2A the best of luck tomorrow. Two will win but two will lose. Hope there are no serious injuries on the field nor accidents traveling. And remember this. A former coach told me that what you have [ successful football team ] can be lost very quickly. It is a thin line between a great program, mediocrity and cellar dwelling. I am a Gretna person and I have seen cellar dwelling, mediocrity and greatness and it can be fleeting. So enjoy what you have because it can escape so easily. Play ball.
He was a wise man , thankyou for sharing.
 
Question for the Graham folks.

Watching hudl on your game vs Bluefied I guess.
Not far in the game when Bluefield gets the ball it looks as though they all take a knee and hold their one hand up and then some of the Graham players do the same and then a penalty is thrown.

What was up there??
 
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Question for the Graham folks.

Watching hudl on your game vs Bluefied I guess.
Not far in the game when Bluefield gets the ball it looks as though they all take a knee and hold their one hand up and then some of the Graham players do the same and then a penalty is thrown.

What was up there??

Bluefield had a player to pass away this year during the offseason. Tony Webster was his name and he wore the number 5. They took a knee, got the delay of game penalty which is a 5 yard penalty. Great young man that was friends with many of the kids on Graham's team as well.
 
That's awesome that the teams did that!!!

Sorry to hear of the loss of the young man.
 
Bluefield had a player to pass away this year during the offseason. Tony Webster was his name and he wore the number 5. They took a knee, got the delay of game penalty which is a 5 yard penalty. Great young man that was friends with many of the kids on Graham's team as well.
Graham declined the penalty by the way, that first play was for Little Tony. Both teams have dedicated their seasons for him. He was good friends with many Graham players as well. Outstanding young man and a huge loss for the Bluefield community. A different player wears #5 each week for Bluefield in his honor. His best friend Devin Lester of Graham changed his jersey # to 5 for Graham and has dedicated this season to him as well. Interesting enough, the charter bus for Bluefield heading to Wheeling was bus #5.
Bluefield WV and Bluefield VA is one ccommunity with a state line running through the middle of it. We are all family, bitter rivals in game 1 but best friends the rest of the way.
I went to Graham. I have one child who went to Graham and one to Bluefield. There have been years where literally it was brother vs brother.
 
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There will be parking at Appomattox elementary and a shuttle will be provided after 12:30 tomorrow. If that lot fills up, there will be a shuttle and parking at Appomattox primary.
 
Graham declined the penalty by the way, that first play was for Little Tony. Both teams have dedicated their seasons for him. He was good friends with many Graham players as well. Outstanding young man and a huge loss for the Bluefield community. A different player wears #5 each week for Bluefield in his honor. His best friend Devin Lester of Graham changed his jersey # to 5 for Graham and has dedicated this season to him as well. Interesting enough, the charter bus for Bluefield heading to Wheeling was bus #5.
Bluefield WV and Bluefield VA is one ccommunity with a state line running through the middle of it. We are all family, bitter rivals in game 1 but best friends the rest of the way.
I went to Graham. I have one child who went to Graham and one to Bluefield. There have been years where literally it was brother vs brother.

That's awesome!!!!!!!!
 
There will be parking at Appomattox elementary and a shuttle will be provided after 12:30 tomorrow. If that lot fills up, there will be a shuttle and parking at Appomattox primary.

Here is what they sent the school employees so,......

Good afternoon,
We are expecting a very large crowd tomorrow, so I wanted to let you know that ACHS will be offering satellite parking and a free shuttle bus to and from the game on Saturday. There will be two satellite parking locations. The first will be at Appomattox Elementary School (176 Kids Place). Once the parking lot at Appomattox Elementary is filled, the second location will be at Appomattox Primary School (185 Learning Lane). The shuttle will start bringing people to the game around 12:30 p.m. and will continue to shuttle people to the game until approximately 2:30 p.m., or later if needed. The shuttle will begin to bring people back to the satellite parking locations about the beginning of the 4th quarter of the game and will continue until approximately one-half hour after the game is completed or later if needed.

Also, since this is a state-level game any child under the age of 7 will need a ticket. Children 6 and under are free with a paid adult ticket.


Correction to this email. Any child age 7 and up must purchase a ticket.
 
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That's awesome that the teams did that!!!

Sorry to hear of the loss of the young man.
Both Bluefield and Graham are playing for Lil' Tony this weekend! Graham's QB & Lil' Tony were best friends since childhood. Devin even switched his jersey number from 4 to 5 this year in honor of Lil' Tony.
 
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Handicap needs for Graham.
Your section will be located at the scoreboard (East) end of the stadium. You’ll have to enter and go around the track on the right hand side and go all The way past the visitors bleachers
 
Truth be known, semi finals should be held in venues that can handle a big crowd. No offense to appomattox, but they do not have facilities to host semi finals. Having to shuttle fans in on bus is not good. There's probably a long line at the concession stand right now. Same for restrooms. I wish game was at Graham. Much better venue.
 
It is what it is. Appomattox has earned the right to host. Had Graham beaten Union the first time around, they would be hosting. I do believe in the future that the state semis and finals should be at a neutral location, however. Not because of this game, but I just feel that it is hard to base home field advantage on power points when the teams play in different regions. Sometimes one region may be stronger than another and the power points don't exactly tell the story.
 
Truth be known, semi finals should be held in venues that can handle a big crowd. No offense to appomattox, but they do not have facilities to host semi finals. Having to shuttle fans in on bus is not good. There's probably a long line at the concession stand right now. Same for restrooms. I wish game was at Graham. Much better venue.
Wish in one hand and ahhhh see which fills up the quickest.
 
It is what it is. Appomattox has earned the right to host. Had Graham beaten Union the first time around, they would be hosting. I do believe in the future that the state semis and finals should be at a neutral location, however. Not because of this game, but I just feel that it is hard to base home field advantage on power points when the teams play in different regions. Sometimes one region may be stronger than another and the power points don't exactly tel

I really think the loss to Union helped motivate the GMen. Once it gets to the state semifinals, a neutral site would be best. Nothing against Appomattox (I’ve never been to their stadium) but at state level you should have facilities that can accommodate large crowds.
 
I don’t have a problem with a neutral site as long as it’s equidistant.....we’ve had to travel to Union ,Giles,etc. so playing in Bedford or Roanoke wouldn’t hurt my feelings. But Appomattox has much better facilities than Gretna and they’ve hosted some big games in the past...
 
I really didn't think Appo's facilities were bad. Could definitely use larger visitor stands for a semifinal, but from the looks of the HUDL clips, it looks like they're plenty big enough for regular season games.

Bathrooms and concessions were good too. And parking would be a premium at any HS for a semifinal.
 
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I'm old school and have a different take on where games are played. I prefer the much older formula.

For semi finals, throw out power points. Rotate from one year to the next who hosts. For example, Region C this year, then Region D next year, etc, etc. For the state title game, eliminate neutral sites. Rotate who hosts, East and West from year to year. I would eliminate all neutral sites.

The above was how it was done in the 70s, 80s, and 90d. We won't go back to it.
 
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The way technology is going the players will be wearing a sensor suit and line up at home. There will be no actual contact and everything simulated electronically. Suits are being used now to give data to coaches in the nfl. How would you like that for parking problems HR6?
 
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Looking for a good game today and hoping no players get hurt and i wish that for all 6 classes. Hope everyone has a safe trip no matter if only a few miles or several hundred miles. If i can assist anyone for the Appo/ Graham game let me know. If others would like to meet up at the game i am open to that also as i have met many fans from opposing teams over the years and we stay in contact with each other today.
 
The way technology is going the players will be wearing a sensor suit and line up at home. There will be no actual contact and everything simulated electronically. Suits are being used now to give data to coaches in the nfl. How would you like that for parking problems HR6?
Did you know that online gaming is being piloted this year as a VHSL "sport"?

No travel. Stay at your school and compete against the other schools. No travel.

https://www.vhsl.org/esports/
 
I will make the voyage to Appomattox today. I will give a full critique of facility tonight.
We pretty much heard it already, you will probably repeat what you said previously. Every year ...you say the same thing and others on here about Appomattox facility.

You are a Gretna fan. Gretna is not the best either. Yall might have a little more seating than we do.

Did you still feel same way about having a neutral site to play when Vic Hall was doing his thing?
 
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When Vic Hall was playing, like the coach said, it doesn't matter whether we were at home, on the road or playing in a parking lot somewhere.
I will admit gretna doesn't have good facilities, but we never had to run shuttle buses, and we had some big crowds.
 
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