Tennessee vs. Mississippi State

6:00: We are in Knoxville for tonight's SEC showdown as the Tennessee Vols are hosting the Bulldogs of Mississippi State for a 7:07 kickoff. We will not be blogging during tonight's game, but will have a recap and game photos up later this weekend. The Bulldogs are coming off a major upset of Vanderbilt last week, while the Vols are just trying to pick up a victory. It looks to be a fun night and we will have you covered here on the Avery Journal-Times Sports Blog.

AJ-T Sports Blog LIVE FROM.... Mars Hill College

It's Saturday afternoon, and that means LIVE coverage of college football here on the blog. My colleague Matt Laws will be at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville later this evening for tonight's SEC showdown between Mississippi State and Tennessee.

But first, I'll be posting live updates here from the Press Box at Mars Hill College for this afternoon's tussle between the Mars Hill Lions (4-3, 1-2 in South Atlantic Conference play) and the Brevard Tornadoes (1-5, 0-3 SAC).

A pair of former Avery Vikings standouts, senior quarterback Ricky Spradling and redshirt sophomore linebacker Zach Johnson, will be starting today for the Lions.

I'll be periodically updating the game with stats and drive summaries, as well as odds and ends. Mars Hill is providing live stat updates real-time as well, and you can check that out by clicking the following link: http://sports.mhc.edu/football/Livestats/xlive.htm

1:35 PM - Brevard takes the opening kickoff on a cool, cloudy afternoon from Meares Stadium, and breaks off a 55-yard quarterback run from Trey Wilburn. Zach makes a hit on the quarterback on a third and goal carry to initally keep the Tornadoes out of the end zone. Brevard earns and first-and-goal and cashes in on a carry by running back John Taylor for the first score of the game. The PAT is good and the Tornadoes take the early 7-0 lead.

1:40 PM - On the Lions' first possession, Spradling carries the ball 15 yards for a first down on the first offensive play across midfield. Spradling converts a third down with a ten yard scramble to the Tornadoes 37. Spradling converts another third down on the drive with a screen pass to RB George Washington. A quick pass to former Murpy standout receiver Tyrea Allen set the Lions up with third and short, but a holding penalty pushed Mars Hill outside the Brevard red zone. Another pass completion leaves Mars Hill with fourth down from the Brevard 18, which the Lions decided to gamble and try to convert. On fourth down Ricky Spradling finds RB George Stripling out of the backfield with a pass that goes for a touchdown. PAT fails with 6:02 left in the opening quarter, Brevard leads 7-6.

1:55 PM- On Brevard's second possession, Zach Johnson is in on a pair of tackles as the Tornadoes are held to three-and-out and punts back to Mars Hill. The Lions keep the ball on the ground for the first four plays and advances to midfield. Spradling completes a pass to his tight end inside the 20 yard line as the first quarter concludes. Brevard leads 7-6 after the first period. Ricky Spradling is 5 of 7 for 70 yards and a touchdown after one period. Zach Johnson with three tackles, one for loss.

2:05 PM - George Washington carries the ball for a five-yard touchdown to put the Lions on top for the first time in the game. The point after try is good, capping an 11-play, 70-yard scoring drive. Mars Hill leads 13-7 with 13:40 left in the half.

2:15 PM - Brevard's next possession consumed over three minutes off the second period clock, but the drive stalls when a fourth down play inside the Lions 20 is fumbled away, giving the Lions back the football on offense. The Lions give the football back as a long pass from Spradling is intercepted by Brevard's Chase Waldo at the Tornado 20-yard line.
Brevard drives the ball using its option running attack, and the help of a personal foul penalty moved the ball into Mars Hill territory, but the defense stiffens to force a Brevard punt back to the Lions. 4:14 2nd period, 13-7 Mars Hill leads.

Mars Hill is unable to move the football and punts to Brevard to close the first half of play. 13-7 Mars Hill at intermission.
Halftime Stats:

QB Ricky Spradling: 8 of 11, 85 yards, TD, INT

5 rushes, 32 yards
RB Zach Johnson: 6 tackles (1 TFL)


3 PM - Mars Hill fumbles the ball with its first possession of the third quarter in Brevard territory. Brevard drives the football for over six minutes of clock time and scores on a Matthew Gaines four yard touchdown run, capping a 13 play-55 yard drive. The successful PAT puts the Tornadoes back in the lead 14-13 with 6:35 left in the third quarter.

3:20 PM - Mars Hill opens its ensuing drive at its own 29 yard line, moving downfield with a couple of key runs, including a 22 yard touchdown run by RB George Washington off the right guard. The play capped a 10 play, 71-yard drive to give the Lions the lead at 19-14. Spradling completed a 2-point conversion pass to Elroy Harris to put Mars Hill ahead 21-14 with 1:41 to go in the third quarter. Brevard takes possession to close out the third period and the Lions leading by a touchdown.

3:35 PM - The Tornadoes were held and forced to punt back to Mars Hill, who began a drive from its own 28-yard line. With 8:14 left Spradling pump faked and hit Tyrea Allen with an 18-yard touchdown pass to cap a 11 play, 72 yard drive. The PAT is successful to stake the Lions to a 28-14 lead.

The Mars Hill defense holds the Tornadoes to three-and-out and must punt back to the Lions with 6:21 left in the contest. The Lions look to melt away the clock, but a fumble turns the football back over to the Tornadoes at its own 40-yard line with 4:11 remaining. An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty gives the Lions a first down just inside Lions territory with 3:11 to play. Brevard trailing by two scores does not appear to be in a hurry, huddling with under three minutes left. Brevard continues to go with its option running game and faces a fourth and ten with 2:06 to go.

The Tornadoes have been held to under 200 yards rushing and no passing yards in the game, while Mars Hill has 359 yards in total offense. Spradling is an efficient 13 of 18 in the game for 145 yards and a pair of TD passes. Mars Hill forces a sack on the Brevard QB to turn the ball over on downs with 1:37 remaining. Spradling has been replaced at quarterback for the final drive as the Lions have sealed a 28-14 win to move to 5-3, and a 2-2 mark in SAC play.

We'll try to have some audio comments from both Spradling and Johnson later this afternoon.

Wolverines Devour Vikings on Homecoming at Polk

The Avery Vikings fell 28-7 at Polk County on Friday night. Avery scored its lone touchdown in the game's final ten seconds on a two-yard touchdown run by sophomore quarterback Taylor Potter.

Click the link above for a quick game recap courtesy of the Avery Vikings Sports Network's Phillip Greene with Go Blue Ridge.

Vikings Look for Elusive Victory at Polk County

Following a disappointing 35-6 loss at home to Hendersonville, the Avery Vikings (1-6, 0-2 WHC) travel to Polk County to take on defending conference champion and surprisingly surging Wolverines (5-3, 2-1 WHC). Polk County outlasted the Mitchell Mountaineers in a 26-20 come-from-behind victory in Ledger last week. Polk County defeated Avery 26-6 in Newland last season.

Scouting the Wolverines:
The Polk County Wolverines are led by seventh-year veteran head coach Bruce Ollis (141-105 overall record, 58-24 at Polk). Polk advanced to the state 1A playoffs a season ago, losing 20-14 to Hendersonville in the first round.

In its rich history the Wolverines have made ten playoff appearances since 1972 and is 6-10 all time in postseason play. The Wolverines have won at least 10 games in four of the past five seasons, marking the best five-year period in school history.

Polk returned six starters on both sides of the football to open the season, but lost one of them in quarterback J.P. Ruth when he fractured his hand in three places in the team’s loss to Chase.
The loss of Ruth compounded the other holes that the team needed to fill at season’s dawn, as all-conference players Derrick Overholt and Regis Bittle were among players lost to graduation from last season’s conference championship squad.

Three weeks into the season, Polk reverted from the spread offense to a run-heavy option style of offense, using the talented feet of coach’s son senior Jordan Ollis (102 rushes, 396 yards, 7 TD) to set the pace. However in recent weeks, the team has went more to a balanced blend of run and pass, as Ollis has gotten comfortable in the pocket (54 of 114 passing, 787 yards, 4 TD, 6 INT).

Senior wide receiver Kamron Kerr has remained a constant in the Polk offensive attack, racking up 31 receptions for 416 yards and a pair of touchdowns this season. Sophomore wide receiver Andre Overholt has seen his playing time and contributions increase of late, catching 10 passes for 204 yards and a touchdown (caught last week at Mitchell).

The Wolverine defense has proven stern through the season to date, surrendering only 13.5 points per game in 2008.

Nine of the 11 defensive starters ran 4.7 40-yard dashes or better at the start of the season, but the lack of defensive girth could hurt Polk in a smashmouth contest. The Wolverines will employ multiple defensive looks in an attempt to compensate for their weaknesses.

“We’re very multiple defensively” Polk head coach Bruce Ollis told a Hendersonville newspaper during summer camp. “You’ll see us in five-man fronts, six-man fronts, four-man fronts, multiple coverages and we also do a lot of stunting. One thing we like to do is keep people guessing on both sides of the ball.”

Leading tackler Ollis is anchored at linebacker and Kerr has developed into a frontline playmaker at the free safety position.

The Low Down:
For Avery to pull out a victory on Friday night, they will need to establish its power running game. The Vikings unveiled a new power-I formation offensively last week using three bruising backs in the backfield in Zac Hall, Jon Clark, and Cole Blackburn.

The Vikings had early success running this tandem on the Bearcats last week, but was unable to sustain the attack once the team trailed on the scoreboard.

Defensively, Avery must do a similar job of limiting the speed of Polk as it did in the first half of last Friday’s loss to Hendersonville. Pass defense has to improve should Polk quarterback Ollis choose to take to the air, however.

The Big Red must also avoid turning the football over, especially on its own end of the field as Hendersonville made Avery pay for its mistakes in last week’s loss.

By the Numbers:
2 – rushing touchdowns by Polk County QB Jordan Ollis in last week’s victory over Mitchell.
3- number of successful third down conversions by Avery (out of 11 attempts) in last week’s loss to Hendersonville.
5 – number of completions by Avery quarterbacks in last week’s contest for a total of 83 yards.
37- rushing attempts by the Vikings last week against Hendersonville.
47- rushing yards by Avery’s Cole Blackburn to lead the Vikings last week.
110 – receiving yards by Polk WR Andre Overholt in last week’s win over Mitchell.
215 – number of passing yards by Polk County quarterback Austin Ollis last week.

Tennessee Coach Phillip Fulmer Media Comments from Tuesday

Courtesy of Utsports.com

"It goes without saying that no one is happy at all with the season to this point. We all know and understand that winning cures a lot of things: frustration, confidence level, and those kinds of things that come with having a disappointing season. As I told our football team--and we talked about it as a staff--anybody that has played this game for any length of time has had their struggles at times when things didn't come together like you would have expected them to. Going back to high school or my time as an assistant here or as an assistant at Wichita State, there have been lots of battles to fight. As a head coach, at different times, there have been a few (seasons) like this one where you'd have to persevere and overcome. We've been able to do that in the past and certainly expect to do that again.

"We look at our football team every Sunday as we grade the tape and make evaluations of whose doing well and what schemes are working. We've certainly done that to a greater degree now more than ever. We're looking at our personnel, looking at our practice schedule, looking at our schemes, anything that we can do to do better and change what's going on. We have changed some of the practice schedule routine going into this week with a little bit more game-like situations and full-speed type things to get some of that carryover--for an inexperienced quarterback for example--from practice to the games. Our plans, we feel like, have been good, but our execution has not been there. How can we help, whether it be a guard be better or a tight end be better or a quarterback be better or a safety be better? We have certainly looked and adjusted that some starting today.

"The good thing is that we don't have an effort problem. Our guys are busting their rears if you watch the game on Saturday or go back and watch the tape. There's a lot of really good effort on both sides of the ball. Our defense is flying around but made some mistakes in the course of the ballgame and gave up some big chunks of yards. But I don't see our team making excuses or having a lack of effort. I saw a lot of them come around yesterday to watch tape on their own. I saw a group of quarterbacks and receivers out there on their own throwing and catching in the indoor facility. Those are positive signs that our guys are really listening and staying the course and are anxious to get this turned around like we all want to"I have to credit the staff some for that, the energy and their character of how they've approached this, having to work through the disappointment and frustration that comes with not having the kind of season that you would like to have.

"We have a number of issues that we have to address. Early in the season, we were a very good running football team. What has happened to that is people are daring us to run the ball against numbers that are not in our favor. That makes things more difficult. Down and distance becomes a problem, and we haven't been very good in any kind of third-and- medium or third-and-long situation of consistent execution. However, we have in the last two ballgames made people pay for those efforts to play man-to-man and we have to continue to make them pay for it. Denarius Moore has made a couple of really nice plays and Nick (Stephens) has a knack for finding those guys and getting the ball to them with accurate throws. We'll continue to work toward those kinds of plays.

"Mississippi State is a good team. They had a nice win versus Vanderbilt. The tailback is a good player and the quarterback is making plays for them. I think he's given them a lift, much like Nick has for us. The offensive line is physical and they have a good group of receivers and tight ends. They're a real challenge for our defensive football team. Last year they might have been the most physical team that we played, and we're expecting the same kind of football game this year.

"Defensively, they're a very aggressive team that will challenge you. I think Vanderbilt had 107 total yards, which is really not very good at all but good for their defense. We've got to work at it, have a great week of preparation and take that preparation and be as good as we can possibly be in the game. Hopefully, that preparation, some of the full-speed things, will carry over for us."

CHS Schedule Change

The Highlanders last regular season contest with Hampton has been moved to Thursday, October 30th. The game was orginally scheduled for Halloween Night. More Details will be available in the print edition of the Avery Journal-Times and Sports Blog as it becomes available.

The 'Landers host Unaka Friday night before traveling to Grace Christian next Friday night.

Johnson Named SAC Defensive Player of the Week

ROCK HILL, S.C. - The South Atlantic Conference Football Players of the Week have been announced for the week ending Oct. 11, 2008. Tusculum quarterback Corey Russell was named the SAC Offensive Player of the Week, while Mars Hill linebacker Zach Johnson was named the SAC Defensive Player of the Week. Wingate return specialist Antonio Cotton was named the SAC Special Teams Player of the Week.

Russell, a 6-4, 190-pound senior from Speedwell, Tenn., accounted for six of his team's eight touchdowns in Tusculum's 55-42 win over Brevard. Russell passed for four touchdowns and ran for two. He went 22-for-29 for 328 passing yards, while also churning out 73 yards on seven carries. This marks the fourth time this season Russell has been named the SAC Offensive Player of the Week.

Johnson, a 6-2, 230-pound sophomore from Newland, N.C., was Mars Hill's leader on defense as the Lions posted a 27-6 win over No. 25 Newberry. Johnson tallied nine tackles, including a pair of sacks and an interception. His pick led the Lions to their first score of the game. He also accounted for a pair of quarterback hurries and a pass break-up.

Cotton, a 6-1, 165-pound junior from Tampa, Fla., returned a punt for 71 yards and a touchdown in Wingate's 35-27 win over Lenoir-Rhyne. He also made five receptions for 89 yards, giving him 160 all-purpose yards on the day. Wingate is 7-0 for the first time in school history and ranked No. 15 in NCAA Division II.

The South Atlantic Conference Football Players of the Week are selected by a vote of the league's sports information directors.

Lady Vikings Fall at Madison, Host Senior Night

As the regular season winds down, the Avery Lady Vikings hit the home stretch of the conference schedule last week, facing a pair of tough challenges in a Tuesday match at Madison and the team’s home finale against Mountain Heritage on Thursday.

In Tuesday’s match the junior varsity squad pulled out a thrilling three-game victory, coming from behind to win in three games by scores of 17-25, 25-18, and 29-27.

The varsity team played a grinding match against the Lady Patriots. Avery came up short in the first game 20-25, but showed dominance in running away with the second game 25-14. Madison regrouped quickly, however, and captured the final two games 25-13 and 25-17, respectively.

Katie Ellis sparked the offense with 23 kills and eight digs, with 13 service points from fellow senior Brittney Hagie. Cassie Bumgarner added 31 assists, with three kills and 10 digs by Savannah Dellinger, seven digs from Rachel Buchanan, two kills and a block by Megan Tennant, and four kills from freshman Shelby McKinney.

“Madison is a very scrappy team, and we just couldn't get it going,” Avery head volleyball coach Kim Hayes said after the match.

On Thursday the Lady Vikings celebrated Senior Night, honoring a quintet of players who have made great contributions to the Avery volleyball program. Prior to the varsity match, Rachel Buchanan, Katie Ellis, Brittney Hagie, Sara Singleton, and Kiley Webb were recognized along with their families.

Prior to the varsity match, the junior varsity fell in two games by scores of 15-25 and 25-27.
Once the varsity contest began, the visiting Lady Cougars of Mountain Heritage made it a point to play the role of spoiler for the evening.
The Lady Vikings played three nip-and-tuck games against Heritage, but good fortune was not with the home team, as the Lady Cougars picked up victories in three straight hotly contested affairs by scores of 23-25, 24-26, and 25-27, respectively.

Katie Ellis had 21 kills, eight digs, and three blocks, with 11 assists from Sara Singleton, six digs from Rachel Buchanan, and two kills from Brittney Hagie. Cassie Bumgarner had 11 assists, with a pair of blocks from Megan Tennant.

“I felt the effort was much better against Mountain Heritage. We were so close every game, actually ahead, but just couldn't finish,” Coach Hayes said following the match. “I really wanted a win for the girls and our fans since it was senior night.”

Despite the loss, the evening was a celebration of the senior players whose contributions to the Lady Viking program have made an impact on the school as well as the coach who was regretful to only coach them for their final season.

“It has been hard for me coming back into coaching and not being with these girls the other three years. That makes a huge difference, and I wish I could have coached them,” Coach Hayes explained. “It has been trying at times for them as well, learning about me and my coaching style. My expectations for all my players are high and I expect things to be done and done correctly. I expect them to play harder than the time they played before.”

In just a brief time the players and coach have formed a tight-knit family-like atmosphere.
“The seniors and others have given me all they could give and I thank them for that. Brittney and Sara both have worked very hard this year and contributed many great things to our program, and Kiley has as well. Kiley had to fight a couple of illnesses this season that caused her to miss over a week of school and volleyball. Rachel has impressed me so much this season. She has played some incredible defensive games, made some awesome digs, and some I never thought she could do. Our defense will miss her tremendously,” Coach Hayes reflected.

“Then there is Katie. I can't imagine what it will be like without her. She has more natural ability than I have ever seen before and by far is the most talented player I have ever coached. She had such an awesome game against Heritage, and I was so happy for her because Lenoir Rhyne’s volleyball coach Dave Markland was there recruiting her. He was my first coach who introduced me to Junior Olympics, the state games, and national competition, and I finished my career with him as coach at ASU. It was very special.”

Avery concluded the regular season with a match Tuesday at Mitchell, and hopes to be able to shore up areas where the team needs to strengthen heading into potential poseason contests.
“I feel like some players have come on in the hitting aspect. But for some reason our defense has let down. I have been waiting for both aspects to come together on the same night,” the coach shared. “At this point, we need to be playing more together as a team and playing for each other.”

By week’s end the Lady Vikings will know whether they have earned a state playoff berth.
“I am not sure what our chances are for the playoffs. We can play with Polk and Hendersonville. I feel we are a legitimate contender for the playoffs,” Coach Hayes said. “I would love to see us go and, even better, win the first round.”

Second Half Surge Lifts Bearcats over Vikings

Fresh off its Homecoming victory last Friday night, the Avery football team hoped that the momentum from the win would carry over into its conference contest with Hendersonville on a damp night for football at MacDonald Stadium.

Avery began strong with the first touchdown of the night, but the Bearcats answered with a bang, using big plays on offense for 35 unanswered points in a 35-6 Avery loss.

Offense was at a premium through the opening quarter as neither team could put points on the board. Avery used the final possession of the period to march downfield, and on the third play of the second quarter struck for the first points of the game. On fourth down from the Hendersonville 32-yard line, Avery chose to roll the dice and go for a conversion. Vikings quarterback Adam Pate found wide receiver Dylan Aldridge in stride, who outran the Hendersonville defense for a touchdown. The extra point kick was unsuccessful, but Avery held a 6-0 advantage.

Avery’s hard-fought lead lasted all of 18 seconds, as Hendersonville’s Cedrick Allen received the ensuing Viking kickoff and raced 90 yards to put the Bearcats on the board. The point after try was good and the Bearcats led 7-6.

Throughout the first half, the Avery offense found success running the football, but was not able to drive deep into Hendersonville territory. Late in the first half Avery committed its first turnover when a fumbled snap was recovered by the Bearcats in Viking territory. The Bearcats cashed in on the opportunity when quarterback Ben Walgenbach threw a 27-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Daniel Orr. The Will Roper extra point kick gave the Bearcats a 14-6 halftime advantage.
Avery doubled Hendersonville in total offense for the first half, but still found itself on the short end of a deficit.

Hendersonville tacked on 21 second half points while holding the Vikings to 19 yards of offense over the final two quarters of play. The Bearcats received the opening kickoff of the second half and drove 84 yards over 12 plays to reach the end zone again. Almost six minutes was consumed off the third quarter clock when Walgenbach connected with Orr for a second touchdown pass, a seven-yard dart to give the Bearcats a 21-6 edge.

Avery turned the ball over via fumble on its first offensive play of the second half. The Bearcats capitalized just three plays later when Walgenbach ran seven yards for a score to up the lead to 28-6 with 3:42 remaining in the third period.

With its second and final possession of the period, Avery was held to a three-and-out and punted the ball away to the Bearcats. Avery ran only four offensive plays in the entire third quarter as Hendersonville dominated the time of possession battle.

Following the punt, the Bearcats continued to grind out yards as well as the clock. A nine-play, 79 yard drive which elapsed almost five minutes off the clock was capped by Walgenbach’s second touchdown run, a 24-yard scamper to close out the game’s scoring.

Avery was unable to find an answer for the Hendersonville defense, while injuries continued to hamstring the Big Red’s chances of victory.

Colton Blackburn led the Vikings rushing attack with 11 carries for 46 yards, while Adam Pate was 4 of 7 passing for 76 yards and a touchdown. Chris Childress, Taylor Potter, and Travis Thomas each recorded six tackles in the contest. Cedrick Allen led the Bearcats with 16 carries for 81 yards, while Ben Walgenbach was 5 of 10 passing for 139 yards.

The Vikings fall to 1-6, with an 0-2 conference mark. Avery travels to Columbus to take on Polk County in Western Highlands Conference play on Friday night.

Men's Soccer Coach Leaving Avery High School

Avery High School French teacher and men’s head soccer coach Lou Brancourt is resigning from Avery effective in November to pursue a career in Salt Lake City, Utah.

“I am writing you today to let you know that I am headed out of Avery County High School. I made the decision to leave a few months ago, and I am paying attention to my little voice who is telling me, “why not, why not?””, Brancourt wrote in a letter sent to his soccer players and parents last week.

Brancourt came from France to Avery County High School as a student in 1989 and was a two-year player on the men’s soccer team. Beginning in 2002, Lou began working with the high school women’s soccer program as an assistant under head coach Tom Evaul. Brancourt assumed the head coaching duties of Avery’s men’s soccer program in 2005.

Several factors have contributed to Coach Lou’s decision to make this move. “I was ready to move this summer but I didn't want to leave without one more season with those boys,” Brancourt commented regarding the decision in an interview over the weekend. “Now I am leaving in November before the end of the semester so I can have a little time to find a teaching position in Salt Lake City for next semester.”

Chief among the coach’s reasons to move is consideration for someone he deeply cares for, his girlfriend Una. “Why am I leaving? For a girl (I told you that the French were romantic)”, Brancourt wrote in his letter. “This is an opportunity for me to explore more of this amazing country and I feel that it is not a bad time in my life to do so. You may think that I am crazy, and you are right, I am a little crazy…but I really feel good about this move. I need some new spices in my life; I need to face some new challenges and I need to be in harmony with my heart.”

Although his decision was made, the coach was honest in expressing the difficulty with making such a choice. “It's always hard to move and to leave behind you family and friends, but I am a little nomad inside,” Brancourt stated. “I am always excited to make a move. I left home in France when I was 16, almost twenty years ago.”

As far as the state of the soccer programs are concerned, Coach Brancourt is certain that the program will continue to thrive and improve.

“I’m leaving the team in a good position. We are getting better and better, our record is showing progress in scoring and on defense, our numbers are increasing, we are moving up in the conference standings each year. The boys are doing an excellent job in the classroom and in the community, and next year, if everybody returns and we can add some key player who didn't play this year, plus a really good freshman class, the team will be able to compete in the state playoffs,” Brancourt shared. “It's going to be hard to not coach the girl’s team with Coach Evaul. They are going to be a very, very strong. Polk and Hendersonville need to watch out as the girls are ready to play.”

Brancourt expressed deep appreciation to a number of people in his letter, including the parents and families within the program through the years, of whom he said “no coach is capable to make an impact on a team without”, and specifically Coach Tom Evaul of whom the coach wrote “Coach Evaul, you have been a coach, a teacher, a boss, a mentor, a father at times, and a great friend. I will miss you dearly.”

Coach Brancourt was quick to admit the lessons learned from his years of coaching and teaching at Avery High School. “I learned one just last week: you just really never know who you impact in life, who you help out, or even emotionally hurt,” the coach explained. “Every semester, every season, you deal with so many students or players. You can never treat anybody the same, you can never coach or teach the same. It's always different and you are always learning.”

Vols Look To Carry Over Practice Effort

Courtesy of UTSPORTS.com

Tennessee head coach Phillip Fulmer wasn't shy Sunday night when discussing the Vols current state of performance.

"There's a lot of frustration by a lot of people," Fulmer said after the team's practice inside the Neyland-Thompson Sports Center. "Our frustration as coaches right now is just finding that consistency we know is there. We see it in practice enough, but (in games) we are not making plays and that ends up costing us opportunities or even ballgames.

"Especially offensively the inconsistency we have had, it's not one particular person or position or anything like that. It's one here and one there enough that we've not been -- and this is an understatement -- very efficient."

The Vols have a chance to turn things around during a stretch of three home games in their next four, beginning Saturday with a 7 p.m. kickoff against Mississippi State. VideoSeat is providing the pay-per-view telecast.

"We're working at it," Fulmer said. "We had good energy tonight. If we can bring that energy on Tuesday -- that's absolutely the only way I know to get where we need to be and that's consistently practice well, take the practice into the game and play well."

ASU Outlasts Samford

Courtesy: Appalachian Sports Information

No. 2 Appalachian State University rebounded from a sluggish start to defeat Samford, 35-24, on Saturday afternoon at Seibert Stadium. A combination of Appalachian miscues and Samford trickery accounted for ASU falling into an early14-7 hole. ASU turned the ball over twice in the first quarter (one which led to SU’s first score) and Samford opened up the bag of tricks with attempts at an onside kick, direct snap to the halfback, halfback pass to the quarterback and, most notably, a fake field-goal that extended the Bulldogs’ second touchdown drive.

The damage could have been even worse, as a fumbled kickoff return gave the Bulldogs possession at the ASU 24 late in the opening period. However, after the Mountaineers’ special-teams mistakes in the first quarter, it ironically was a special-teams play that turned the tide, as Cortez Gilbert blocked a 32-yard Samford field-goal attempt on the third play of the second period to keep the Apps’ deficit at just one touchdown.

The second quarter was all Appalachian (4-2, 2-0 SoCon), as quarterback Armanti Edwards directed scoring drives of 78, 67 and 52 yards and the Mountaineer defense held Samford to 16 yards and no first downs to take a 28-14 halftime lead.

In the first half alone, Edwards completed 18-of-20 passes for 258 yards and three touchdowns.Samford cut the ASU advantage to 28-17 with a 22-yard field goal with 5:30 to play in the third quarter, but Edwards put the game away with a 25-yard touchdown run just over three minutes into the final period. Samford added a one-yard touchdown run by quarterback Dustin Taliaferro with 2:02 to go to account for the final margin.

Edwards finished with a season-high 370 yards of total offense and four touchdowns (three passing, one rushing) on 22-of-29 passing for 307 yards and 13 rushes for 63 yards. His top target was CoCo Hillary, who caught eight balls for 78 yards and two scores.Defensively, linebacker D.J. Smith led the way with a game-high 16 tackles, 12 of which were solo. Fellow ‘backer Jacque Roman added 10 stops, including a 13-yard sack, and broke up a pass while Gilbert made eight tackles to go along with two pass break-ups and the critical field-goal block.

Chris Evans led Samford (3-3, 1-2 SoCon) with 144 yards and a touchdown on the ground.Appalachian closes out its only two-game road trip of the season when it travels to Southern Conference rival Georgia Southern next Saturday. The contest, which will be televised across the Southeast on SportSouth, kicks off at 3 p.m.

NOTES: With a 16-yard completion to T.J. Courman in the first quarter, Edwards became just the seventh player in NCAA Division I history (FCS or FBS) with 5,000 passing yards and 3,000 rushing yards in a season, joining Louisiana-Lafayette’s Brian Mitchell (1986-89), Morehead State’s David Dinkins (1997-2000), Indiana’s Antwaan Randle El (2001-04), Texas’ Vince Young (2003-05) and Missouri’s Brad Smith (2002-05) ... the game was Samford’s first-ever SoCon tilt at home ... Saturday’s attendance of 10,670 was the third-largest in 6,700-seat Seibert Stadium history ... ASU has played in front of capacity crowds in 23 of its last 28 regular-season games ... after not registering a receiving touchdown in the first 19 games of his career, Hillary now has three touchdown catches in the past two games ... senior Billy Riddle made his first start in two years at safety in place of injured Mark LeGree ... Riddle missed the entire 2007 season while doing missionary work in war-ravaged Sudan ... Appalachian is 2-0 in SoCon play for only the third time in the past six seasons and the 18th time in its 37 years in the conference.