Just who is this team? They spank a James river team that just spanked chancellor. Was it the short week that caused the let down for JR or is Monacan a force to be reckoned with in the 4A East. IMO without seeing Monacan they are a team that can upset someone come playoff time. I know you really can't put much into it with common opponents but this just makes me think Monacan could beat down a chancellor or Fredericksburg area team come playoff time.
Monacan
- Thread starter OCBoy
- Start date
From what I saw at the Monacan/Bird game, Monacan was intimidated. On the first drive they moved the ball well, throw a pick. Second drive they fumble.. By Monacan's 3rd drive, Bird is already up 14-0. Monacan then gets all the way down to the Bird 1 yard line and doesn't get in. Bird scores again.. Monacan finally scores with 18 seconds left in the 1st half off of a pick 6, but gives up a 100 yard TD return via LC Bird to make it 28-7. I didn't see ANY fight in them. Bird really intimidated them, which is an understatement. Fludd may be one of the toughest QBs I've seen in a while (same category as Clayton Cheatham) and #8 Austin Snellings, and #20 Deandre Williams are MEN! All 3 played really well on offense, but that's all I was impressed with. Maybe I caught a bad game..
Please don't let the the Bird game fool you. There are not many teams in 4a who could move the ball consistently against Birds defense.
Monacan is very good offensively and will stretch you out. Fludd can throw and run with best. Defense may be Monacans achilles hill. A physical team with a sound running game will could give them trouble. They defend the pass well, so ground and pound should be the attack plan.
OC Boy I too now question Chancellor. The Chargers offense is very similar to Monacan, and on paper they more studs?????? Even on 4 days rest James River should have been prepared for this game Could it be the Battlefield and Chancellor is overhyped or is Monacan for real? Probably a little of both.
Not trying to be critical or negative, but with the exception of Chancellors win against Massaponax the Battlefield teams have not beat a solid playoff contender all year.
Monacan is very good offensively and will stretch you out. Fludd can throw and run with best. Defense may be Monacans achilles hill. A physical team with a sound running game will could give them trouble. They defend the pass well, so ground and pound should be the attack plan.
OC Boy I too now question Chancellor. The Chargers offense is very similar to Monacan, and on paper they more studs?????? Even on 4 days rest James River should have been prepared for this game Could it be the Battlefield and Chancellor is overhyped or is Monacan for real? Probably a little of both.
Not trying to be critical or negative, but with the exception of Chancellors win against Massaponax the Battlefield teams have not beat a solid playoff contender all year.
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Yeah, other than Dinwiddie, I don't think any 4A team could hang with the Skyhawks this year. Bird's defense is NASTY. Monacan will make a nice run in the playoffs barring a bad draw.
The Bird Game is not a good measuring stick for Monacan. Bird is the one type of team that Monacan is not going to be able to beat just because they are so much smaller. They have some good athletes out there,but over team size is small. Bird has a 245lb tailback. The last 2 times Monacan played Bird it was in a mud bowl which really hurts a speed and precision team like Monacan and helps a power football team like Bird. Also, the last 2 meetings against Bird... The amount of fumbles and mistakes by Monacan were ridiculous. I don't think Monacan can beat Bird on a dry track but it would be a better game. As far as 4A, Monacan can make a big run. They can score from anywhere on the field, offense is quick strike. The real measuring stick for Monacan is going to be Manchester. That game could be interesting but I think Manchester wins it. Dinwiddie had to fight to beat Dale... Dale got crushed by Bird. Midlothian hung around with Manchester for a while tonight. James River damn near beat Manchester... Manchester beat Bird... Bird Blew out Monacan... and Monacan just destroyed James River... Go Figure! Sometimes high school kids just don't show up and sometimes they do. To sum it up I think at this point Monacan is the 2nd best 4A team in the region and at the back end of the top 10 in the region regardless of conference. I will also tell you I don't have any stock in James River or Cosby for D6 playoffs. Do we even have more than 5 D6 teams in the area? It's hard not to make the playoffs.
All due respect, I didn't think Bird was all that. They had immaculate field position all night thanks to Monacan turning the ball over. Herm and HS are way better than Bird. The big RB Bird has ate Monacan up. Ashby and Bird's defense was good but definitely not as good as they have been in the past. In my best Stephen A. Smith impersonation, I'm not buying Monacan being a contender!
I understand the mitigating circumstances but I look at effort as a factor. When it's the 5th-6th game of the year and you see a team on the sideline dancing, taking plays with off and not focused, you're in trouble IMO..
Do you mean you don't think they will be state champions or a contender in the playoffs?
You must not be looking at 4A teams in the area.. Name me four 4A teams in the central region that are better than Monacan? Dinwiddie... then what?? Don't think you can do it. That means they are in contention to make a run... I don't think they are gonna win states in 4A but they are certainly going to be a contender. You must be lumping 4A and 5A in the same conference.
And Hermitage and Highland Springs are way better than Bird? Hold on. There is not a team in VA that is way better than Bird. If they are better it would be a good game. I'm not sure that they are better at all. We shall see in about 5 weeks.
You must not be looking at 4A teams in the area.. Name me four 4A teams in the central region that are better than Monacan? Dinwiddie... then what?? Don't think you can do it. That means they are in contention to make a run... I don't think they are gonna win states in 4A but they are certainly going to be a contender. You must be lumping 4A and 5A in the same conference.
And Hermitage and Highland Springs are way better than Bird? Hold on. There is not a team in VA that is way better than Bird. If they are better it would be a good game. I'm not sure that they are better at all. We shall see in about 5 weeks.
I respect your opinion for sure and though I'm no expert, I wasn't impressed at all with Bird. I wasn't all that sold on Bird last year but I thought they were a lot better than what I seen the other night. We'll see just how for real both Manchester and Herm is when they play each other Friday to support my claim, but from seeing Bird the past couple of years, this year's team isn't as good IMO.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, Bird people have been hearing that from sports writers since 1978. They just keep winning and winning and winning. I could fill encyclopedias with posts like this from sports writers and casual fans. They always are going to lose in the state championship to some Loudoun County team or some beach team or some NOVA team. Every year is the year they finally go 4-6 before the season starts. Everybody picks against them in the pick 'em contests in crazy numbers. If I could just get everyone to have bet me 1 dollar every time this happened.
The evidence that Highland Springs and Hermitage are better than Bird is quite scant this year, you may be right, but you did have to name two teams ranked in the top 5 of any ranking of 5A teams in Virginia (and Monacan is 4A).
Bird beat Meadowbrook 49-7 in a game they were ahead in by 42 at half time.
Herrmitage beat them 41-13 in a game that never got to a running clock.
Highland Springs lost to Meadowbrook 8-7.
Bird beat Thomas Dale 33-0
Dale only lost to Dinwiddie by 28-20 (or something like that).
Interesting fact about Bird. They have not lost a game to a team that was worse than 6-4 in the regular season since 1981! That's a freaking nutty statistic. You might be able to drum up a team to beat them every year, but it's going to be somebody who is 9-1 or 10-0.
I suppose it is possible that Bird is "not all that good" and they simply beat a 5-0 team 42-7 off of luck and the fact that the referees love them so much (oh, never mind that second part is not possible--just off of luck).
The number of 4A teams capable of beating Bird in a given year is not zero, but it's probably limited to teams that are very, very serious contenders for a state title.
The assumption that Monacan is not a contender is probably true, but I don't think the evidence of that lies in the fact that Bird handled them. I think it lies in the fact that there are some better 4A teams in Virginia.
Again, the people at Bird think this is almost as good of a team as the awesome squad 2013 and they've seen a few teams over the years:
Bird is 35-27 in the playoffs and remember most of that was as a division 5 size school having to play in division 6 due to all the Richmond area schools playing up. The are a crazy 319-62-2 in the regular season. Since the school was built in 1978 I have seriously been hearing how they're not all that but you'll have to forgive me if I believe Bird will be in the game with Hermitage, Highland Springs, or Brooke Point just as much as I believed they'd be in the game with Ocean Lakes, Briar Woods, and Tuscarora when 3/4 of the people on these boards were saying, "they're not all that."
One last comment: CalPreps rankings have
Dinwiddie as the number 1 team in 4A, Bird as the number 1 team in 5A, and Manchester as the number 1 team in 6A. It's tough around Richmond this year.
Oh I agree with you on that. They aren't as good as last year but I think that can be said for Hermitage and HS as well and a lot of top tier teams. Last year was a special year for the region especially in D5 in the 804. I think Dinwiddie and manchester are the only teams that are better than last year. HS has everything you could ever want on paper but that loss to Meadowbrook was a bad baaaad loss! To some degree that hurt hermitage as well. Looking forward to the Herm vs Manchester matchup for sure!
Yeah, but saying they're not as good as three teams that actually won state championships is a lot different than saying a bunch of 4A schools would be able to beat them.
Gilliam thanks for the facts. I don't doubt that Bird will contend for the 5a, but I thought Herm and HS looked better, just my opinion. I thought Monacan was good, I never questioned the talent from either team, however I stick to my story that Monacan layed down. I won't bash them because they are young men, but I was disappointed in the focus and effort I seen. First week is bad, understandable thought...Week 5, no sir! Monacan had every opportunity to compete with Bird and after a rough start, Monacan threw in the towel.
I have to agree with Gilliam. Bird is a phenomenal team, again. Are they as good as last year, or 2013? Who gives a rip. This is 2016. I had the privilege of being on their sideline during our scrimmage, (I was an emergency replacement for a member of the fence crew). They have truly gifted athletes, led by a very veteran coaching staff, all blessed with the quiet confidence that comes with past victories and championships. Bedwell is one of the best coaches in high school football in the state of Virginia.
And this is coming from a guy that really doesn't even like L C Bird. I make Bird a favorite for the state championship again. HSHS is getting their act together, but at this time my money is on Bird.
And this is coming from a guy that really doesn't even like L C Bird. I make Bird a favorite for the state championship again. HSHS is getting their act together, but at this time my money is on Bird.
Gilliam, I agree with everything you said in your post 100%. I do think Monacan is a contender in the central region. Don't think they are the best 4A team in the state at all. I'd grade them 5th or 6th in 4A right now state wide and 2nd in the central region.
