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Tazewell to travel to Riverheads to open spring 2021 season

swva_havok_fan

VaPreps Varsity
Feb 23, 2016
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So, this was kind of unexpected. Tazewell is making a long road trip to Riverheads to start the 2021 spring football season. Tazewell is projected to possibly give Richlands and Graham a run for their money in the 2A Southwest District this season. And of course, we all know who Riverheads is. Would love to get @longtimerhsfan thoughts on this as well.
 
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At your service! This is the first I am hearing of this, and as you say, it is "unexpected." But I am sorry to say I will not be able to give you any inside scoop on it.

In general, I will simply say I am surprised because my understanding had been that the shortened season, not to mention the overall impact of the virus, would more or less force schools to schedule only their closest rivals, such as their district members and anyone else that would not involve much travel.

For that reason I assumed that Riverheads would have its five district games and finish out the schedule with somebody nearby like Waynesboro or East Rock, where there was already a history. Therefore I have no idea what led to this decision.

As for the game itself, Coach Casto has always said that he will play anybody anywhere so I feel certain he will approach it as "the next game on the schedule" and will prepare for it accordingly when the time comes. As for a fan perspective, I was just this morning reading a detailed story about the VHSL and how attendance will be handled...........specifically that crowds will be limited to 50% capacity or 250 people, whichever is greater.

Under normal circumstances, Riverheads fans would fill the hill for this home game and any other, and assuming that there will be a return visit to Tazewell in the future, we would do our best to represent that night as well. So that will be another interesting subplot of the whole situation, i. e. who can attend games and who has to sit them out?

So as you say this news is "unexpected" but then again, you have to admit that word pretty much describes the entire world right now and all we can do is roll with it and hope that things return to normal one of these old days. Thanks for letting us know about this.
 
Awesome. Lets hope that Ralph will let the season happen. As a Graham fan, Im glad to hear about the 50 percent capacity thing. Our stadium holds 10000 Since Graham is not playing Bluefield (WV), which typically brings 10,000 or more. I'm sure 5000 will not be approached. However, Graham and Richlands played in front of about 7500 a few years back at Mitchell Stadium. Grahams stadium does however lie on the West Virginia side of the State line, Im wondering if that will be an issue if the season does in fact move forward.
 
I have to correct something I said yesterday that some of you perhaps picked up on. When I was talking about fan attendance, I said that it would be limited to 50% capacity or 250 people, whichever is greater.

After consulting with our local sportswriter, who is very much on top of things, I now realize that it is 50% capacity or 250 people, whichever is LESS. As you can see that is a horse of a different color.

I don't know about you guys but I am not sure I have ever been to any football game anywhere that had less than 250 people on hand, so that would pose a problem for any school, not just the ones that are famous for their big crowds. He did say that he had heard somewhere that it might be a limit of 1,000 or less for outdoor events, but he had not been able to verify that. Even that would be problematic for most of the schools out there I would think.

But the biggest caution of all that our guy gave to me was to emphasize that as long as we are in Phase III, there might not be any football AT ALL, spring or otherwise. So we will just have to watch and listen, hopefully better than I did the first time around!!!
 
I have to correct something I said yesterday that some of you perhaps picked up on. When I was talking about fan attendance, I said that it would be limited to 50% capacity or 250 people, whichever is greater.

After consulting with our local sportswriter, who is very much on top of things, I now realize that it is 50% capacity or 250 people, whichever is LESS. As you can see that is a horse of a different color.

I don't know about you guys but I am not sure I have ever been to any football game anywhere that had less than 250 people on hand, so that would pose a problem for any school, not just the ones that are famous for their big crowds. He did say that he had heard somewhere that it might be a limit of 1,000 or less for outdoor events, but he had not been able to verify that. Even that would be problematic for most of the schools out there I would think.

But the biggest caution of all that our guy gave to me was to emphasize that as long as we are in Phase III, there might not be any football AT ALL, spring or otherwise. So we will just have to watch and listen, hopefully better than I did the first time around!!!
We knew what you meant.👍
 
I have since read that the outdoor limit is already 1,000, so that will help I guess. Although we have to keep in mind that the teams, administrators, officials and other essential personnel have to be counted first, and THEN the fans.

That means that basketball with its current limit of 250 will be the first testing ground, unless of course the allowed attendance figure is raised, which the VHSL is trying to promote.
 
I have a feeling that a lot of teams will be re-scheduling those friday evening games to saturday afternoon games.
 
If Riverheads is still Riverheads, i believe they will run at will on Tazewell.
You may be right, but this isn't your typical Tazewell team. They will be a good opponent this season, if indeed the season happens. They have had more than their fair share of injuries for the past 2 seasons, taking away multiple key players. They will have plenty of talent this season for a school their size.
 
They definitely have some good skill players but their d-line and defense in general are weak unless they made a tremendous jump. Guess we'll see, hopefully.
 
Tazewell is supposed to have its best team in over 30 years from what I've read on SWVA Sports by one poster, and the others have stated they are supposed to be really really good. I would not be surprised if this game is much tighter than many expect. I don't know much about Tazewell and Region D, other than Bluefield, WV, and Graham, but a few have written that if this team stays healthy, they may very well be a contender at the top of that region. This is only what I've read. That's high praise for a region that has Union, Ridgeview, Central, Richlands, Graham, and Gate City. For a team from the Southwest District coming over 3 hours away to the perennial 1A elite powerhouse, it should make for an interesting contest.
 
They definitely have some good skill players but their d-line and defense in general are weak unless they made a tremendous jump. Guess we'll see, hopefully.
Tazewell returns their entire D-Line. They lost a couple of good linebackers, but return most of the offense and the defensive skill positions. They have a very solid QB, big experienced O-line and 2 or 3 very dangerous playmakers.
Anybody have any info on what Riverheads lost-returns?
This should be a very good Tazewell team. Best on 30 years?...big stretch, but definitely have the athletes to be very good. The mind-set will be key for Tazewell. They have Graham, Riverheads and Richlands on their schedule. They could have a very good team but still go 3-3. If they beat Riverheads they go 5-1. If they lose it will be 4-2 or 3-3.
 
The gladiator fans will chime in but what I know about Riverheads is they lost a really good center, and a really good defensive lineman. They should be every bit as good this year as last year. Their JV team had two 250lb plus lineman that were really good. They return all world Smiley rb/lb, their best offensive lineman is back, and they have a deep stable of backs to make up for the baseball kid also. Remember, they thumped the 2A state runner up. They thumped everybody last year except the state championship. The state championship game will not be as close this year in 1A. This is as big and as fast a Riverheads team that I have ever seen.
 
To add to BG's comments, the stable of running backs this year might be the best ever at Riverheads, at least the deepest. Not only do they have at least five that I can think of off the top of my head that can take it to the house from anywhere on the field, but there were two JV players (although I believe one was only an 8th grader and therefore might stay down this year) who look like they will make their own marks before all is said and done. Also the quarterback, who will only be a sophomore this year, stepped in and started the first four games last year and handled the job beautifully. Therefore, as scary as this sounds, they might even be capable of adding a substantial passing game this year. I am not as acquainted with their defensive side, other than to say that they will definitely have SIZE with a capital S.
 
You go on hiatus for a month or more and come back to this discussion, lol. Like most, I am just hopeful we will get to witness games starting in late Feb.

As mentioned, there is potential for additional passing to occur but that is likely to still be limited regardless of the QB/WR talent. The name of the game in G'ville has and will continue to be ground and pound with a significant amount of size relative to what the norm is on the roster. I also look for an improved D this year with several of the underclassmen that have played big roles, showcasing even more refined skills.

As with any game with an unknown opponent, the team that imposes their will, wins.

Speaking of attendance at these games, I think this is a good time for teams to look at digital media options. Live streaming through a pay per game service could be an avenue to explore. Its silly to think that in this day and age we may have significant numbers of fans that will only be able to follow through tweets and news reports of games. In the end I think if we have football, we will be able to consider ourselves blessed.

#RollPride
 
You go on hiatus for a month or more and come back to this discussion, lol. Like most, I am just hopeful we will get to witness games starting in late Feb.

As mentioned, there is potential for additional passing to occur but that is likely to still be limited regardless of the QB/WR talent. The name of the game in G'ville has and will continue to be ground and pound with a significant amount of size relative to what the norm is on the roster. I also look for an improved D this year with several of the underclassmen that have played big roles, showcasing even more refined skills.

As with any game with an unknown opponent, the team that imposes their will, wins.

Speaking of attendance at these games, I think this is a good time for teams to look at digital media options. Live streaming through a pay per game service could be an avenue to explore. Its silly to think that in this day and age we may have significant numbers of fans that will only be able to follow through tweets and news reports of games. In the end I think if we have football, we will be able to consider ourselves blessed.

#RollPride

I’m curious to see how the VHSL handles streaming video of the games. I know they used to charge a $2,000 fee per state tournament game to broadcast live video. Does anyone know what their plans are for this season?

With how easy the Facebook live options are to use most schools should be able to broadcast games with little to no issues. I have a family member that has been doing it for his school in WV and all he does is hooks his camera directly into the usb of his computer and then plugs a gaming headset in to do the play by play and then goes live on Facebook. The biggest issue there will be internet access, especially with the rural schools.

Of course schools are going to lose money with lack of attendance & concessions but the schools that get out in front of this with Streaming paywall options, in game broadcast donation links, sponsorships, etc. should be able to recoup a big portion of what they would be losing.
 
These are all good observations and questions but at least we will have basketball season first to sort of test the waters and see what the attendance will be like, what the rules will be, etc.
 
@eh31, I agree completely about schools being able to recoup much needed athletic budget money if they aggressively pursue other avenues that are readily available. I am hopeful that this will be tested and refined during the basketball season since they are much more limited in the number or fans allowed.

To be clear I am all about going to stand in the freezing cold but if I am not allowed based on an arbitrary number that is established, I would hope there are other avenues to support the school and stay engaged in the sport in real time. No broadcast will take the place of being there but it would be better than just seeing scores and a blurd here and there over social media (all due respect to the local reporters and fans that keep the masses updated).
 
Rockingham County has installed the video cameras that film and broadcast like Hudl. I am certain other schools have those. Secure the network and charge a season fee.
 
lots and lots of schools use the NFHS network. some places even broadcast middle school sports and have been for several years.
 
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