OK. Is it time for the way to early top 10 in 4a?
- Thread starter southbottomU
- Start date
Let's move on to the next 4a team. Keeping with the plan of going alphabetically, alternating between West and East, next up is Caroline.
Poor Caroline. They haven't won a game in the last two years. They scored a total of 20 points in the last six games of the year last season, while giving up a whopping 301 over the same period.
Obviously a program in disarray. Haven't they had something like five different head coaches in the last seven years?
What is wrong? I've heard that the boosters impart a lot of pressure on the coaching staff, to do it "this way or that way".
Any chance we will see any improvement this year? How about it Shaunty or Skynard, this is close to your stomping grounds, what have you heard?
Poor Caroline. They haven't won a game in the last two years. They scored a total of 20 points in the last six games of the year last season, while giving up a whopping 301 over the same period.
Obviously a program in disarray. Haven't they had something like five different head coaches in the last seven years?
What is wrong? I've heard that the boosters impart a lot of pressure on the coaching staff, to do it "this way or that way".
Any chance we will see any improvement this year? How about it Shaunty or Skynard, this is close to your stomping grounds, what have you heard?
Sorry DP , didn't see that you guys were going in order. Love what you guys are doing it gives us insight on some teams we don't hear a lot about . Please continue !
Thanks. I kind of kidnapped SouthbottomU's thread. I hope I haven't stepped on his toes?
Yeah, Mike and I talked a little about doing something like this, but we never did much. The topic of this thread was too inviting for me to pass up.
And no problem chiming in with information on any team, at any time. I just figured by taking them one at a time, no one gets overlooked. And hopefully a few members that seldom post will jump in with some information.
And, after all, it feels like football weather again. So why not talk about our favorite sport?
Yeah, Mike and I talked a little about doing something like this, but we never did much. The topic of this thread was too inviting for me to pass up.
And no problem chiming in with information on any team, at any time. I just figured by taking them one at a time, no one gets overlooked. And hopefully a few members that seldom post will jump in with some information.
And, after all, it feels like football weather again. So why not talk about our favorite sport?
The Warriors are a top shelf program. They'll be in the mix and the playoffs every year.
Thanks to you DP, SouthbottomU, and CRF4DAN, for putting ideas out there that have inspired more off-season talk. Sorry DP I kind of dropped the ball on our idea, thanks for bringing it to fruition.
Idk anything about Caroline, but based on their history it's pretty safe to say they likely won't be making any monumental leaps and probably won't garner much discussion or attention.
Hammy, I know Millbrook will be discussed in time, but I was curious about your thoughts on them this year. They smoked my alma mater in the playoffs 65-18 & played with a good JF squad for a while, losing 35-21. They barely lost 31-28 to Woodgrove & they kind of snuck up on people most of the year. What are their prospects for this year?
Completely unrelated team, but William Byrd really surprised some people last year with a breakout year from Sophomore RB Larry Basham. They went 6-4 just missing the playoffs, but 3 of their losses were by a combined 7 pts to Magna Vista (41-40), Lord Botetourt (17-14), & Northside. (10-7) These teams were a combined 35-7 & were state champions, runner-ups, and solid playoff teams respectively. Their other loss was to Salem, but in doing so they put up more points on the Spartans than anyone. (21, tied with JF that also scored the same against Salem in the playoffs) Anyone have any idea what to expect out of these guys this year. Sorry DP to break order, but these were 2 teams that popped in my mind and I wanted to see if anyone had any thoughts.
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I don't know any more about Byrd than you do, but I can offer my thoughts. Basham should be back for his junior season, and he'll probably be the best back Salem will face during the regular season. Byrd is following their typical pattern: a good/really good year, followed by three or four years to build back to that same point. Highfill does a great job of building unremarkable but tough and competitive teams around one, maybe two really good players. Basham provides an excellent starting point.
Like Amherst, I think Byrd has an excellent chance of flipping at least two of last year's losses - most likely LB and Northside - into wins, to finish no worse than 8-2. I think Byrd should have a great chance at a top eight seed in 4A West.
I know they lose Culicerto. (Sr QB that transferred from Northside) As you said Highfill is a master of getting the most out of his players. I have no clue what they'll have other than Basham, but it seems as if the Blue Ridge will be tight and up for grabs again this year with Northside, LB, Byrd, and SR fighting it out.
Do they use Basham on offense? Or exclusively on defense?
(And you guys were keeping some mighty late hours last night!)
(And you guys were keeping some mighty late hours last night!)
Mike , only know a little about Millbrook from what I hear. I think they will decent this year, but will have some challenges . They return Kier a D1 RB and a few starters from last year however challenges for them would be replacing Nazeeh Johnson( athlete) and (Paxton) QB from a year ago. I do not know who the replacement QB will be. I see them as being a solid team , but not better than last year. They graduated some significant talent, the JV team I saw last year looked very green.
Since this thread is getting so long, I'm going to continue our discussion of 4a teams tomorrow with a fresh thread.
The usual suspects is easy and 8 out of 10 will be right. Better question is, who will surprise?
MillBrook was a surprise last year. Will they be back?
Seems lots of folks have been mentioning Chancellor here. They have plenty of returnees who have started since they're Freshmen. Lots of experience. Very little Senior turnover. At least two players With DI level talent and offers. A QB that can really sling it. A defense that's always top shelf. But the record isn't good, they play in the Battlefield and have a tough schedule. James Monroe, EV, Massaponax, Courtland, KG and Riverbend. Tough to break the top 10 like that. This is no Lafayette or GW Danville schedule. But they will be a heck of a 7 - 3 or 8 - 2 playoff team. Very dangerous for anyone. These guys will be very good. Maybe a top 10 by the end of the 2016 season.
Any ideas on Courtland this year Shauntclair? They generally reload, but a lot of talent graduates.
They lose a lot of talent. That's correct. But I've watched this many times. They simply reload and will be strong again this year. Doesn't matter who they put out there. That's just the program JC Hall has put in place. Probably another top ten team by the end of the season. I mean, they start with a team (Masaponax) that's almost a guaranteed loss. Salem would be in the same situation here if they started the season with a Briar Woods, Broad Run, Tuscarora or a similar team at a higher level that's undefeated in the regular season for the last three years.
Disappointing that last year's squad didn't get to the final. They had the kids but they did what has become, unfortunately, a Courtland trend. They don't show up in the first half of big games and have no offensive creativity at all. A top ten but another season where they cannot get over the hump.
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In a sense, yes. They have a target on their back and everybody has this one on their calendar. But you still need a Christian Laettner before you get to Duke status.IMO Salem is the Duke of high school football in Virginia
They might have decided to pick up LCA this since they will be required to play them in district/conference play anyway starting in 2017. Maybe a "might as well" mindset. There is no risk involved in playing them this year.
I would think a more accurate comparison would be Notre Dame football in the 60's
Understand but everyone knows how I feel about them, only play them if you have to
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