Thats the exact response you have when you have no comeback. Hopefully you're good enough to see us in person.
What Storylines Are You Following This Season?
- Thread starter CRF4Dan
- Start date
Trash comment. I’ll save this post for Dec….
I agree “fellow future inmates” comment was uncalled for, don’t judge everyone in SWVA by one person please. Trash talking like that often comes back to bite ya as they say. He may be eating crow.
Whether Graham makes it back to Salem or not, the program is definitely praiseworthy and deserving of accolades. Best of luck to them this season! However, I honestly wouldn’t be shocked if Union, Graham, Glenvar or someone totally unexpected ended up in Salem. Too many variables and unknowns at this point, by beginning of November, every region will have a better idea of who the top dawgs will be going into the playoffs. I’m interested to see how each region is going to handle the seeding for playoffs this season.
Keeping it in the family if from Bluefield VA was the true racist remark made FIRST.
To be the best, you gotta beat the best. The GMen are top Dogs right now and I go with the physical and athletic nature of the GMen to get it done again in Class 2. Let's keep it civil guys. Can't we all get along?
Like last year, the top 3 this year is Graham, Glenvar and Union. All 3 from the west would have beat Strasburg (Graham did, but so would Glenvar and Union) and Strasburg beat Poquoson, who beat KW. This year ain't no different. Graham could easily lose, but if they lose, it will be to someone in the West like Union or Glenvar. So, the story line I'm following is whether anyone can knock off the GMen. You don't want to go to war with the GMen.
To be the best, you gotta beat the best. The GMen are top Dogs right now and I go with the physical and athletic nature of the GMen to get it done again in Class 2. Let's keep it civil guys. Can't we all get along?
Like last year, the top 3 this year is Graham, Glenvar and Union. All 3 from the west would have beat Strasburg (Graham did, but so would Glenvar and Union) and Strasburg beat Poquoson, who beat KW. This year ain't no different. Graham could easily lose, but if they lose, it will be to someone in the West like Union or Glenvar. So, the story line I'm following is whether anyone can knock off the GMen. You don't want to go to war with the GMen.
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I hope we can get to the point where new programs will step up and make the semifinals and finals. And this goes for all classifications.
Currently, there’s a lot of stagnation in the sport and much of that has to do with the structure. And for the programs who have been able to do well in a six-classification setup…good for you.
And I’d love to see weird, never-before-seen matchups that we thought we’d never see in the state round. I hope we get to that point someday. For fans of successful schools, of course I understand why you would want to hold on to your spots.
That being said, it’s hard to avoid repeats when the system is watered down with a rough average of 55 schools per classification. The only hope is that a program which moves up or down can make a statement in their new classification.
Very off-topic I know…but give me some Thomas Jefferson vs. Ridgeview for a state title. Or Brentsville District vs. Allegheny. Or Mountain View vs. Fairfax. (I picked random teams on the opposite sides of the bracket and have no clue if any of them will be good but I wanted to highlight my point.) I think it would be good for those programs or any programs which haven’t seen much success at the state level.
One can only hope that things will change someday.
Currently, there’s a lot of stagnation in the sport and much of that has to do with the structure. And for the programs who have been able to do well in a six-classification setup…good for you.
And I’d love to see weird, never-before-seen matchups that we thought we’d never see in the state round. I hope we get to that point someday. For fans of successful schools, of course I understand why you would want to hold on to your spots.
That being said, it’s hard to avoid repeats when the system is watered down with a rough average of 55 schools per classification. The only hope is that a program which moves up or down can make a statement in their new classification.
Very off-topic I know…but give me some Thomas Jefferson vs. Ridgeview for a state title. Or Brentsville District vs. Allegheny. Or Mountain View vs. Fairfax. (I picked random teams on the opposite sides of the bracket and have no clue if any of them will be good but I wanted to highlight my point.) I think it would be good for those programs or any programs which haven’t seen much success at the state level.
One can only hope that things will change someday.
You might see it in 1A with Grundy. Grundy might be the best in the West in Class 1 this year. GW and Grayson will be good, but Grundy might be able to beat them. Don't matter though, because Essex, Riverheads, and Rapp will all be 1,2,3 best this year in Class 1 and all of em from the East.
Ridgeview is always good, but tough to get past Union and Graham, and if they do, teams like Glenvar, Appo, and Radford stand in the way in the semis.
Do you think that maybe Grundy might play a bit more inspired this year considering it’s the last year of their school? I would certainly hope that the coaches of all affected schools in that part of the state would use consolidation as a motivating factor to get their kids to play well.
I think so and the Golden Wave is also timing things well. They just happen to be riding the wave of a solid senior and junior class this year with lots returning. Best team on paper for Grundy in many many years. We'll see if that translates to the field. I think we'll be seeing much more consolidation in SWVA in the future as the population is declining.
I think they will and I think Southern Gap HS will be a formidable opponent in Class AA next year. They certainly have a solid coach in Greg Tester.
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“Future inmates” Wow
You're correct, and I agree. Until you dethrone the champion, everything is just a lot of talk. However, I can say this. I recall that years ago, the 757 and 703 had a lock on 5A until L.C. Byrd and Highland Springs completely took over that class. All I'm saying is that my friend is that the two teams coming into Region A have the talent, athletes, and coaches to challenge C/D.
Don't disagree with ANYthing you wrote.i don't question those 2 teams talent or coaching. Never did, but I did write what you echoed, Graham is top dogs right now and until they lose, they are top Dogs, and I can assure you, they equally have talent and coaching. As for whether the 2 coming down from C3 to 2 can "challenge" C and D, I would bet they can. But I'm still betting the GMen win. Might be a challenge, but I'm not picking against Graham. Union challenges Graham a lot and Glenvar certainly did also, but Graham is rolling right now.
I'm not saying the Gmen can't lose. They can lose and get beat bigtime. But, if I'm going to pick a team to win it preseason, Graham is my pick.
...so will VHSL and Fairfax County play the book hard on transfers?
Maybe the answer is, "Yes," with this landing in the Fox 5 News (DC) yesterday... Fairfax HS Coaches Accused of Paying Nearly $8K to Recruit Football Player
Maybe the answer is, "Yes," with this landing in the Fox 5 News (DC) yesterday... Fairfax HS Coaches Accused of Paying Nearly $8K to Recruit Football Player
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8K for a single player at Fairfax high? That's insane in like twelve different ways.
I’m out of the loop. I assume Grundy and some other school are merging into a new school?
What will the name be and What Class level will they be at?
Grundy,Hurley, and Twin Valley combine to make class 2 Southern Gap high school in 2026. They will be in Region D and in the SWD.
Oh rats, unless I make the trip this year, I’ll never get to see a game at Hurley. I let the same thing happen to me at Haysi.
FYI, our long term assistant football Coach, Dave Davis, is a graduate of Hurley.
Thank you sir.
1st and foremost that was a pathetic comment and very sad on your part. Secondly imo, I’m putting Armstrong ahead of all the Class 2 teams. They are huge in the trenches they just have to remain disciplined. A they would be inexperienced in a championship environment vs Graham but with what they have in the trenches I think if they play mistake free they’ll win. It remains to be seen but November will be here before you know it
I agree, it was a pathetic comment made first by the TJ fan about stereotyping people in SWVA and Bluefield regarding keeping it "in the fam" which was a pathetic dig at "inbreeding" which was actually a racial-based comment. I agree with you. So, You are saying that Armstrong has to remain disciplined? That right there is why Armstrong ain't getting trophies. That word "remain" ain't happening for 5 games in the playoffs. It's exactly why a team like TJ lost on it's home field to Poquoson in it's 2 or 3 year ago last stent in Class 2. Over a 4 or 5 game stretch in the playoffs, they ain't got the discipline or physicality to rumble and ramble with the G-Men. You wrote that if Armstrong plays mistake free football, they will win. That holds true for most football contests across the world. It's kind of a "No Duh" statement. But, if Graham brings its A game and Armstrong brings its A game, Armstrong is going home as runner up.
Don’t get caught up in posting foolish reply’s that you may regret. Do like you always do, be gracious and considerate.
Richmond City football being back is something that is exciting to see. Last few years have been fun to watch and I looking forward to seeing it again this season. Armstrong and TJ are very good and Armstrong got absolutely jobbed in their playoff loss last year IMO. C&D have had their run over the last 15 years in the lower enrollment classes but as far as I am concerned those were different times. (Not taking a jab at C&D for the record, they should be proud of the success they have had). Right now, other schools such as the aforementioned are absolutely real threats and they play a good and exciting brand of football. What I respect the most, is those are organic football teams that are not the result of area all stars uniting. Got to respect and root for those teams to have success. @TJVikings804 - if you are connected to the program or just a fan... well done and good luck this year!????? I am so sick in tired of these preconceived notions and stereotypical stigmas that Black public city schools get labeled as."Not Physical "/"Not Discipline "/"They got athletes but not coach well " - I can't wait to put this trash to rest. Bro stop. Graham is an EXCEPTIONAL 2A Virginia powerhouse historically, with that being said Graham does not have the "athletes" to match up with a TJ or Armstrong. If I'm not mistaken that 2021 Graham team WAS LOADED, and lost to a King William team that really only had a two headed monster with Desmond Claiborne and a athletic QB 48-21. There is NO 2A team in the State of Virginia that has a harder strength of schedule. We talking about a program that has an enrollment of 520 kids in the building, and=we play against Four 5A teams. Four 3A teams, Two 2A teams. Make it make sense!
Other story lines. Riverheads and Essex. Essex brought a fairly young team to Salem and kicked butt. Just smashed G. County with their physicalality. My thinking says Essex is probably the favorites to repeat in Class 1, but.............there's Riverheads that has been a thorn in the side of Essex. That would be another great matchup if both make it out of their regions. Preseason, I think I would go with Essex to get over the hump and beat Riverheads, but you never know.
See this is why I know you are out of touch, and lost with today's words of expression and slang. I said verbatim "If you from Bluefield, VA just say that fam lol ". Fam is an expression for "Bro or Homie". I was also implying that you are obviously someone from Bluefield or Graham Alumni being that you are defending them so adamantly.
So none of that implied as a racial slur. You are REACHING to get these other bloggers to side with your racial distasteful comment. And honestly speaking on here. That just gave me our kids that much motivation to GET there and DETHRONE the current 2A Champs. LIKE I SAID! I ain't taking nothing about away from an exceptional program like Graham and all of their success. I remember when Ahmad Bradshaw was there in my era of high school football, but I refused to let you discredit our kids, make blanketed statements using wordplay like "physicality", and do an comparison analysis on skill level. We ah revisit this conversation come December.
Does Essex still have good size with a nice balance of power and speed? That's what jumped out at me last year when I saw them in the playoffs against Rappahannock.
Talked to some of their fans and had some beers with them pregame. Great bunch. Told me the bulk of the team is back and they had a freshmen, I think he's upcoming sophomore who is major D1. Essex is big and fast. Has good athleticism and physical. They will be legit again. Great coaching defensively. Need to get their athletes in space a little more on offense. I think they beat Riverheads with what they return. Don't know for sure though. Essex is a Class 1 team with top 5 Class 2 talent and top 12 Class 3 talent. Great program they got going. Good coaching too
Nobody is "discrediting" your kids G. And yes, we can revisit in December if I say so. I make the calls. I decide. We are the champs. You are not. But if I decide to revisit, we may do it in November when you play Poquoson or KW again. The bottom line, we were having a discussion about football and you went personal first with a right stiff jab. I connected with an uppercut that was in jest, but of course in "keeping up with today's times," anything in jest is considered "racist," by little sensitive dudes.
Well see come fall. I hope we play in Salem. Can't wait to see it.
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For me, on the local front, I will be watching to see how a few of the new Coaches in our area will do.
The Amelia Coach sure seems to be a ball of fire. Can he translate this to better performance on the field?
Clover Hill has no where to go but up. Danny explained to me how much improvement he made at Midlothian, so I hope and expect to see similar results.
For our good buddy mbonape1, I sure hope the coaching change brings Monacan back into the serious playoff contender realm.
I’ll also be watching Prince George to see if Coach Hall is able to work his magic and make PG a serious threat.
A little further out, I’ll be watching both King George and Spotsylvania to see if the coaching changes have the affect that most of us anticipate.
Will Caroline be for real and continue their vast improvement. I personally think so.
I’ll be watching Hurley in this last year for Hurley High School. Will it motivate them to do great things?
I’ll be watching the performance of the superstar at Louisa to see if he is as dominant a player as has been reported.
Naturally, I’ll be watching everything about 4B.
I’ll be watching to see if transfer violations get reported to the VHSL, and the VHSL aggressively enforces the new transfer rule. Before everyone takes a hammer to the VHSL, remember, they can only act on information they receive, with respect to violations, from Principals, or their appropriate designated representative, (usually their AD’s). The information submitted to them HAS to contain facts that can be verified, and it cannot come from an “anonymous” source.
I’ll be watching to see if the Regions properly handle the calculations and posting of the standings per the Rating System. I expect some Regions to do a great job, but I’m afraid that many will drop the ball.
I’ll be watching to see if the officials uniformly enforce the rules that were made part of the “ Points of Emphasis” for this season. Specifically, proper wearing of the uniform and ALL required protective equipment. Also, I’ll be watching to see if the officials go to the extreme to try to protect players that may be considered unprotected and vulnerable.
Plenty to keep my attention again this year. How about you? What will you be looking for?
The Amelia Coach sure seems to be a ball of fire. Can he translate this to better performance on the field?
Clover Hill has no where to go but up. Danny explained to me how much improvement he made at Midlothian, so I hope and expect to see similar results.
For our good buddy mbonape1, I sure hope the coaching change brings Monacan back into the serious playoff contender realm.
I’ll also be watching Prince George to see if Coach Hall is able to work his magic and make PG a serious threat.
A little further out, I’ll be watching both King George and Spotsylvania to see if the coaching changes have the affect that most of us anticipate.
Will Caroline be for real and continue their vast improvement. I personally think so.
I’ll be watching Hurley in this last year for Hurley High School. Will it motivate them to do great things?
I’ll be watching the performance of the superstar at Louisa to see if he is as dominant a player as has been reported.
Naturally, I’ll be watching everything about 4B.
I’ll be watching to see if transfer violations get reported to the VHSL, and the VHSL aggressively enforces the new transfer rule. Before everyone takes a hammer to the VHSL, remember, they can only act on information they receive, with respect to violations, from Principals, or their appropriate designated representative, (usually their AD’s). The information submitted to them HAS to contain facts that can be verified, and it cannot come from an “anonymous” source.
I’ll be watching to see if the Regions properly handle the calculations and posting of the standings per the Rating System. I expect some Regions to do a great job, but I’m afraid that many will drop the ball.
I’ll be watching to see if the officials uniformly enforce the rules that were made part of the “ Points of Emphasis” for this season. Specifically, proper wearing of the uniform and ALL required protective equipment. Also, I’ll be watching to see if the officials go to the extreme to try to protect players that may be considered unprotected and vulnerable.
Plenty to keep my attention again this year. How about you? What will you be looking for?
I will be reading the stories and watching the highlights shows from afar. Looking to get back in the States at the end of the regular season or for the start of the playoffs. Family would kill me if I wasn't home by the holidays but staying in Europe for two Champions League/Europa League/Europa Conference League MatchDay Weeks in November is awfully tempting.
For officials (if any of you belong to any officiating associations, please read this and pass along),..PLEASE stop playing with your IFBs before you make a call. The mechanics have gotten extremely sloppy. And instead of hustling to a play to make AND sell a call, you're too busy looking confused playing with your electronic gadget on your belt.
I will be looking to see how departing schools step up in their final year (the three in Southwest Virginia closing shop this year to form Southern Gap next year). Maybe there will be one miracle run in the playoffs and give people an underdog to pull for.
And staying with that area, I will be curious to see how Graham does in their new on-campus stadium along with playing home games at other locations. I can't wait to see highlights of Graham in their new stadium. I hope the place is packed and loud and has a sense of atmosphere which makes it a future destination for us high school football nerds.
On the flip side, I will be looking to see what happens in the Commonwealth District; especially the Stafford-centric schools since this may be one last chance for a run for a little while considering their sixth high school (Hartwood/Falls Run) opens in 2026 and the county's talent is diluted.
For the Battlefield District, I think this may be an exciting year to see which team emerges as the district champion. The district sees a little more balance this year with emerging teams trying to level the playing field against traditional favorites.
I am also curious to see how Louisa County performs. Let me rephrase. They will most likely run through the Jefferson District again with little to no resistance. Will that district prepare them for the playoff gauntlet which is Region 4B? The Jefferson certainly hasn’t done Louisa County well in helping them prepare in most years and didn’t help them last year in Class 5 either.
And not to be a Debbie Downer, but I will also be following which schools decide not to complete their seasons. Things have been relatively quiet (probably in large part due to not everyone coming over to the new forum yet), but I certainly hope each school stays healthy enough to remain true to their scheduling commitments and therefore, not take any memorable moments away from any opponents.
On a similar, but yet much different note, I will also be following which schools have games rescheduled, canceled, or suspended due to school violence. We've seen several schools, their athletic departments, and their communities become affected by this in our society in recent years. I hope that students and others can learn to behave both in school and at games so there's no issues that regular folks have to deal with.
And lastly, I will be looking to see if the changes amongst the VHSL Staff amount to a net positive for the league. I certainly hope so. And relating to this point, I definitely hope that they have quality compliance people with experience in investigations running a tight ship when it comes to catching and punishing illegal activities.
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Wait…! You would rather stay in Europe and watch “pretend” football instead of returning to Virginia and watching the “real thing?”
Just kidding. Enjoy your trip and we will try to keep the chatter going so you can be kept well informed. Safe travels.
Oh I know. Quite the dilemma for sure. I find myself getting bored here stateside so I try to prolong my trips as much as possible. Plus, I get all my medical stuff done abroad and I have a conference to attend and also a birthday party. So the other stuff is just a bonus.
It's never personal with me. I don't know you. You made the inmate comment and exposed yourself with racism. Unfortunately, these accounts are anonymous, so we don't know who you are. But like you said. Keep that same energy come December, and worry about Union and Glenvar first "champs".
They did a jamboree with Glen Allen and Benedictine, and second scrimmage was against Lakeland out of Suffolk (I think that's where they are from).
