JF information
- Thread starter wikki
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I wish this article had come out about 10 days ago & maybe my post about JF improvements wouldn't have taken such a negative turn. Thanks for posting Wikki, this is what I was looking for, just an update on the progress of the stadium improvements. Congratulations to Ben Martin on the AD position, I was wondering where he had gone after stints at Appomattox & Glass. Good luck to the fundraising efforts for the improvements to Sabre Stadium. Looking forward to the end result, I really like the turf & the weight room renovations and upgrades. There is no classier coach than Coach Christmas. Nothing but praise for the opponent in defeat, and nothing but humility when they win. He's a tremendous role model for the young men he's trying to teach, about football and life. I have great respect for him as a coach and as a man.
I've said it before, but the Seminole District is just top to bottom the best football district in the state imo. For one, every team has a football championship to its credit: EC Glass with (4) in '30, '33, '38, & '88, Amherst with (3) '95, '06, & '07, Brookville with (3) '99, '11, & '12, Rustburg with (3) '90, '93, & '00, Jefferson Forest with (2) '92 & '93, Heritage with (1) '02, & Liberty with (1) '02. Even newcomer LCA has (7) football titles, albeit at the VISAA level (obviously not on the same level as the VHSL) in '92, '04, '05, '07, '11, '12, & '13.
Coaching-wise it doesn't get any better- Christmas at JF, Woody at EC Glass, Bradley at Heritage, Watts at Liberty, Phillips at Amherst, Meeks at Brookville, Baker at Rustburg, and next year C.Rocco at LCA.
A team that finishes 5th or 6th in this district oftentimes makes the playoffs, unfortunately that record usually pits them against a top 3 seed, which makes it difficult to get the upset. Generally speaking though, a 4-6 SD team is better than a lot of 7-3 teams from other districts.
I believe the SD will be wide open for the taking this year. After 5 straight seasons of 1 team running the SD gauntlet undefeated (Brookville, Brookville, Heritage, JF, and JF) I believe there will be a legitimate opportunity for 3 or 4 teams to contend for the top spot- imo Amherst, Heritage, Brookville, and JF will fight it out. If Coach Woody can get his guys to the field and buy into his system they could be another contender soon. I hope he'll get them pointed in the right direction, EC Glass used to be one of the best teams year in and year out.
It's like when Bo Henson left they can't find the coach or the talent to get over the hump. The battles in the old Western District were legendary. I used to go to the games on Friday nights and then when I got home tune into see Friday Football Extra with Mike Stevens. (no relation) The coaches were the real deal back then from Henson at ECG, "Killer" Miller at WF, Hicks at Pulaski, and White at Salem, plus many others. 30 years or so down memory lane, the good ol' days!
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I'm actually pleased with the timing. True colors were shown.
I never was a fan of Ben Martins offense. I HATED IT! Glad he left when he did. He thought Appo didn't have any crop coming up so he jumped ship. He took all his coaches with him. Doug Smith did a great job at building Appo into a powerhouse. Martin left at the right time. I wish him the best, but just wasn't a fan of him.
Kind of a quiet guy. He was under Abel of course who proved he was a great coach
I wouldn't call Appo a powerhouse. Prior to last season's special run, they were 4 - 6, 6 - 5 and 7 - 5. No one could have foreseen 15 - 0 in 2015.
Most would've jumped from Appo to EC Glass, my opinion it had more to do with administration than talent level of kids coming up. Appomattox wins one year and now they are a powerhouse?!
Appo gonna have another great year and then a strong year after. then it drops off. sad to say it. plus we gonna lose onebof the most athletic kids in 8th grade. he is going to gretna, mom got married to a gretna man.
Not a powerhouse, I stand corrected.
Ben would not have done what Smith had done with this group of kids. His offense sucks and centered around a QB that has most talented & fastest kid. Matt Page would not have been QB if Martin was at Appo. Plus he put up with too much attitude from players (especially star players).
Dews, Henderson and Page are gone. Major losses. But the Defense should still be decent. Replacing these offensive guys at a 2A level is hard. This is not Salem.....yet. Appo has a lot to prove. They have to show an ability to reload but in 1A and 2A, it's the special players that are the difference between winning and losing. Appo loses many of them so expect the doubters.
Best of luck but there's no easy road here. Relish 2015 because a repeat is one of the hardest thing in sports to do. Just keep expectations real. If it makes you feel any better, I didn't think Salem could recover from their 2014 losses either. Shows how much I know.
I recall Appo having some good backs along with Scott who was a stud and anyone would've been stupid not to let him run with the ball. You can hate the offense but Neal Thomas and Joe Reed of I'm remembering correctly played a huge roll in that offense! You have no idea what Martin would've done with this group, sometimes someone usually paves the way and the next guy comes in and drives!
ur from appo, dont know who u are. u might be Martin for all I know. u know too much. u dropped Joe Reed? people on this board dont know him, he was a sophomore getting letters from Syracuse and Notre Dame before he got in all the trouble and quit football. He was my next door neighbor for a few. he was a great kid and had the chance to help him in some decisions he was making.
Martin would have destroyed this crop of kids. Smith has discipline. Martin let Josh Wilson talk on the sidelines with Mom for 15 minutes during halftime. He had no control over the kids. Thankfully Scott, Reed, and Thomas had discipline. Not gonna get on st. john and his attitude he showed on the field (and basketball court). Scott is the only one that amounting to anything and I know he comes from a great family. He came back to coach last years state team. he is now coaching a VA Central Prep School out of Lynchburg. He will not be with Appomattox this year. LOL, he took his ring and ran. LOL.
I like Ben Martin but I believe that Smith made the team what they are as well
I'm a fan of high school football, definitely not Martin but I hate when fans throw coaches under the bus or complain when they only see what happens on Friday and not what coaches do for kids year round. Btw, that was Martin's first gig and this was Smith's second. Smith had that same talent if not more at HHS, glad he has continued to grow in the profession!
Some just said not a fan of his style. The players loved him but he was a quiet coach and high schools kids need some toughness , doesn't mean he was not a good person or what he didn't do for the kids off the field
He said he didn't like the system because the qb ran it all the time, I stated otherwise. I think everyone can disagree with something without using the word hate. Hate is a very strong word. Btw, I'm sure advocate can stand up for himself. Some didn't say it just him in which I responded, I don't care for Martins style either but it is who he is and he stuck to it, hooray for him.
I think quiet is fine. Tony Dungy and John Wooten are Coach's that never raised their voice or swore. They did all right.
Hey Antagonistofmany434, how did you turn a JF info thread into a personal attack on Martin. Who cares? Who cares about what you think of his offense from 5 years ago? It obviously worked for him, the players (not to mention Amherst and W&L) and the team. I want info on stadium updates, not what you THINK you know about coaches, players, discipline, etc. Congrats to Appomattox on the 2A title, but I have to imagine you are like the rest of us on here and had little to nothing to do with it. Save the coaching for the coaches, the playing to the players and TRY to be an "advocate" not an "antagonist".
I was on the staff with Smith at HHS and Appo and trust me, we did not have the same talent at HHS those years as Appo had this year. Not trying to slight anyone that I had the privilege of coaching at HHS, just stating what I feel is a qualified opinion.
Quiet is fine as long as you have one that is tougher and a motivator. I never believed they should curse at them
So a coach can't motivate by being quiet or he isn't tough because he doesn't yell? I would disagree. There are tons of examples in every occupation of leaders who are quiet, tough, and can motivate.
Good point, I know a coach who rarely raises his voice and has been very successful. If you are a coach and you do nothing but scream and holler every day, sooner than later the kids consider that the new normal. I think the best coaches are great at reaching the individual player and getting the most out of them at the high school level. Doesn't mean they are screaming. Lots of kids go home to screaming every night.
A leader leads by example, not by force.
That's not what she said but, with all due respect, I've seen lots of Coachs. Each seems to have their own style, most of which has been inherited from where they have been. Sometimes that's good. Sometimes that's bad.
What I continue to come back to is these HS Head Coachs, on average, don't get much more than $3600 per season. You want the job, the criticism and the responsibility for that money, be my guest. They don't even get close to minimum wage. Is there any question why some teams can't get good, experienced Coachs?
i agree with you, but some school's boosters will help out with that salary. i know that goes on at JF. Not saying its wrong, just informing you that these coaches make money other ways.
You right, this wasnt the thread to post my thoughts about Martin. i apologize for that.
Nope im not a coach, im a fan, but i try to support my raiders in anyway. especially now that they have a coach to believe in.
As a fan I have every right to discuss poor decisions by coaches and mismanagement of players as i have seen in past. So dont tell me what i can do as a fan. If i want to talk about a poor play called with a fan on the bleachers, dang it I WILL! At the end of the day, dont my tax dollars pay his coaches stipend?
Your tax dollars go to all of education, have you been to any forensic or drama performances? How many classes have you sat in? Attitudes like that is the reason coaches complain about parents. You can disagree all you want with a coach but how I took your question "don't my taxes pay his stipend", just doesn't sit well with me. Not that my opinion means anything to anybody!
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Slow down Antagonistofmany, I never "told you what you can do as a fan", by all means pay the ticket, eat popcorn and talk to all your buddies about the game. I merely said "Who cares?" And I stand by that.
Our tax dollars pay for a lot of things, does that give me the right to sleep in a courthouse because it's air conditioned? Drive a cop car? Take a cruise on a battleship? C'mon man, keep your 1st amendment right, but at least don't insult us with some lame "I pay his salary and that gives me the right" garbage.
Also, you mentioned someone was from Appomattox b/c they "knew Reed" but then said ND and Syr were looking at him...so apparently only Appomattox, ND & Syr know the kid???? What???
How are you going to call out the Wilson KID on a post when he had nothing to do with the post? (Advocate of whom?) Did you find out what the "15 minute conversation" was about? Or just assume you knew?
"Scott, Reed & Thomas had discipline." Then you threw Scott under the bus saying "he took his ring and ran." That's the first negative I have ever heard about that kid from anybody. (Advocate of whom?)
"We will have a drop off in talent..." That's a heck of a way to talk up the program and get more talent involved (Advocate of whom?). "Martin thought Appomattox didn't have a crop coming up so he jumped ship." Wonder how much longer Smith will stay when this crop dries up? The Seminole is calling...JF? Glass? (that would be a shame to lose 2 coaches to Glass) Bees? Liberty? Amherst? Rustburg? All have been pretty stable for several years, but all could be opened up in the next several years for various reasons. Stay tuned.
Our tax dollars pay for a lot of things, does that give me the right to sleep in a courthouse because it's air conditioned? Drive a cop car? Take a cruise on a battleship? C'mon man, keep your 1st amendment right, but at least don't insult us with some lame "I pay his salary and that gives me the right" garbage.
Also, you mentioned someone was from Appomattox b/c they "knew Reed" but then said ND and Syr were looking at him...so apparently only Appomattox, ND & Syr know the kid???? What???
How are you going to call out the Wilson KID on a post when he had nothing to do with the post? (Advocate of whom?) Did you find out what the "15 minute conversation" was about? Or just assume you knew?
"Scott, Reed & Thomas had discipline." Then you threw Scott under the bus saying "he took his ring and ran." That's the first negative I have ever heard about that kid from anybody. (Advocate of whom?)
"We will have a drop off in talent..." That's a heck of a way to talk up the program and get more talent involved (Advocate of whom?). "Martin thought Appomattox didn't have a crop coming up so he jumped ship." Wonder how much longer Smith will stay when this crop dries up? The Seminole is calling...JF? Glass? (that would be a shame to lose 2 coaches to Glass) Bees? Liberty? Amherst? Rustburg? All have been pretty stable for several years, but all could be opened up in the next several years for various reasons. Stay tuned.
“Slow down Antagonistofmany, I never "told you what you can do as a fan", by all means pay the ticket, eat popcorn and talk to all your buddies about the game. I merely said "Who cares?" And I stand by that.”
You said let the coaches coach because I expressed how much I despised Martin’s O. Im a fan expressing my observations as a fan and you told me sit back and let the coaches coach. That’s enough about Ben, I don’t want to use this board to express negativity and I was wrong about it earlier about Martin.
“Our tax dollars pay for a lot of things, does that give me the right to sleep in a courthouse because it's air conditioned? Drive a cop car? Take a cruise on a battleship? C'mon man, keep your 1st amendment right, but at least don't insult us with some lame "I pay his salary and that gives me the right" garbage.”
Of course I cant do the things you insinuated, but do tax payers vote when they do not approve of something people in charge are doing wrong? I have seen too many times in my past Appomattox keep coaches in place that don’t need to be there. I have seen them railroad a great coach (Gary Ferguson) out of Appomattox, then he went on to win 2 state championships at Brookeville and almost had another one this year. As a tax payer of this county for years, where is my voice that this county and school system is doing the right thing with our sports programs. Oh…your answer, its not my lane, stay out of it and it will work out? SMH
“Also, you mentioned someone was from Appomattox b/c they "knew Reed" but then said ND and Syr were looking at him...so apparently only Appomattox, ND & Syr know the kid???? What???”
I know who CatchTDS is personally now after I thought about it long enough and yes he is from Appo. I tried to call him up today to further discuss the tax payer comment, he was bent out of shape about it. I don’t know what you are trying to convey here though? I was simply saying, CatchTDS must be from Appo because no one really knows Reed unless you from Appo. Reed told me that he had letters from these colleges, not a coach. I think Reed is playing for Hill City Stampede now? I had someone mention that to me a couple weeks ago.
“How are you going to call out the Wilson KID on a post when he had nothing to do with the post? (Advocate of whom?) Did you find out what the "15 minute conversation" was about? Or just assume you knew?”
This was a regular occurrence and I expressed it because I was sharing the actions of some of the players on the team that would not get corrected by staff because he was a star player. I seen it on the basketball court as well. If it was joe snuffy that didn’t get much playing time, coach would have been down his throat for not being in locker room with his team.
"Scott, Reed & Thomas had discipline." Then you threw Scott under the bus saying "he took his ring and ran." That's the first negative I have ever heard about that kid from anybody. (Advocate of whom?)
Mr. Tiger, YOU’RE A JOKE!!!! This one actually angered me. I have mad respect for Scott, I seen him in the gym 2 weeks ago and laughed about this with him, I told him to his face joking that he “took the ring and ran.” This was a joke! The opportunity Scott has now is a great choice for his future. This was nothing more than a joke (reference the LOL before and after the comment), pull your butt cheeks apart a little, you a little tight.
"We will have a drop off in talent..." That's a heck of a way to talk up the program and get more talent involved (Advocate of whom?). "Martin thought Appomattox didn't have a crop coming up so he jumped ship." Wonder how much longer Smith will stay when this crop dries up? The Seminole is calling...JF? Glass? (that would be a shame to lose 2 coaches to Glass) Bees? Liberty? Amherst? Rustburg? All have been pretty stable for several years, but all could be opened up in the next several years for various reasons. Stay tuned.”
It is what it is, I follow youth league up to high school in Appo. I knew this crop of athletes were going to be special when they got to high school. They went undefeated in youth, loss one game in middle school, undefeated JV, and undefeated Varsity. IT IS WHAT IT IS!!! Good coaches can make something out lack of talent. I know coach smith had a great weight training program and this may change some things, but this younger group of kids will have some hills to overcome. I know what is coming up through the system, our middle school team only won 1 game last year. Do I suppose to ignore that? I call it the way I see it. I could be wrong….
His wife’s family is from Appo, so he has roots here. His church is in appo as well. He told me to my face that he is “getting old” and he don’t know if he has it in him to “build a program from scratch again.” Now will that stop him? Coach is well aware of what is coming up from middle school and feeder programs, he knows it will be a task to get these guys in shape to play on another level. If he decides to leave for a Lynchburg school, I wouldn’t fault him. He lives in Forrest and that is a big hump daily to come to Appo. I know if he does decide to leave, I will be the first one devastated by the news because he is a great man.
The good part here is that Appo, like countless others, will be gone after this season. Some wailing of unfair and coulda', shoulda' woulda', but gone.
I'm the joke? Haha, good one!!! "Pull my butt cheeks apart." You are the one angry over WHAT YOU SAID! I actually peed my pants a little laughing at your post.
Enough of this pointless talk I just want JF info! (Who's replacing Navy? Stadium updates? Upgraded defense?)
Enough of this pointless talk I just want JF info! (Who's replacing Navy? Stadium updates? Upgraded defense?)
I'm not from Appo and you didn't try to call me. No clue what you are talking about! I would think the "Director of Football Operations" wouldn't just spew out stuff. GL to
JF this year hope to get to a game or two and see improvements or non improvements with team and stadium.
JF this year hope to get to a game or two and see improvements or non improvements with team and stadium.
My bad....thought i knew who you were....you throwing me off with the "DOFO." hmmm....
DOFO??? Stop, Advocareformany is DOFO?!?! You are kidding right?!?! I thought he was just a bandwagon jumper, he is part of the organization and posting all that stuff on here. Hopefully it isn't a paid position. Wait a minute...if it is a paid position, and my tax dollars are going to it, doesn't that mean I can show up and bash him and his job?
Listen, Tigger the Tiger, I dont know what the heck you are talking about? CatchTDs gave a blended message as if he wanted me to know who he was in last post. There is a guy that runs around appomattox people (jokingly) call the "Director of Football Operations." Im not him, Im nothing but a fan of Appo sports. Many people in area know who I am.
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