Kickoff is set for this evening at 7:30 p.m. from MacDonald Stadium in Newland.
Friday, November 19, 2010
Interview with Avery Head Football Coach Darrell Brewer
Kickoff is set for this evening at 7:30 p.m. from MacDonald Stadium in Newland.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Vikings Meet Maroon Devils in Second Round of Football Playoffs
Fresh off a convincing 42-20 opening-round victory over Bessemer City, the Avery Vikings (9-3) take a step up in competition on Friday, November 19, when it hosts the Swain County Maroon Devils (7-5).
Swain advanced to the second round of the playoffs by virtue of a 30-7 win over a depleted Hendersonville team playing without the services of its starting quarterback and defensive stalwart following their arrest earlier in the day.
Scouting the Maroon Devils:
The Swain County Maroon Devils are led by head coach Sam Pattillo and finished in second place in 2010 as members of the Smoky Mountain Conference. The Maroon Devils entered this season coming off an impressive 9-4 record in 2009 and trip to the second round of last year’s state playoffs.
Offensively, Swain relies on multiple formations to move the football downfield, including a split-back veer option attack as well as an I-formation among others.
On the defensive side of the football, the Maroon Devils utilize a base 4-3 defensive scheme, but will alternate to a three-man defensive front when in likely passing or long-yardage situations.
Swain predominantly runs the football on offense with three backs that are capable of big statistical performances. Calling the signals for the Maroon Devils is dual-threat quarterback Colby Hyatt. The junior has enjoyed a strong season with 797 passing yards, 672 rushing yards and 21 combined touchdowns.
In the backfield Swain relies on a corps of backs, including Hyatt, Josue Otero (127 attempts, 654 rushing yards, 9 touchdowns) and Austin Shuler (472 rushing yards, 3 touchdowns). When the Maroon Devils throw the football, Hyatt’s go-to receiver this season has been sophomore wideout Matthew Maennle, who has caught 22 passes for 531 yards and 8 touchdowns. Also seeing time at wide receiver has been Greg Tisho, who has caught eight passes for 184 yards and four touchdowns.
Among the defensive leaders for the Maroon Devils in 2010 have been Jared Turbyfill, who leads the club with 86 tackles and 8.5 sacks. Junior Tim Woodard (61 tackles) and senior Chris Cochran (60 tackles) are also among the team leaders in tackles.
The Low Down:
For the Vikings to advance to round three of the state playoffs, defensive discipline is a must. The Maroon Devils run a patient offense that prides itself in running its plays precisely and capitalizing on defensive assignment mistakes.
Avery for the most part during the season has played running teams with a decent measure of success. The Vikings did surrender 246 rushing yards in last week’s win over Bessemer City, although it took the Yellow Jackets 44 attempts to do so.
In most of Swain’s games in 2010, the team has played as well as its quarterback has been able to carry it. Hyatt is the centerpiece of the offense and is talented enough throwing the football that the Vikings must respect his arm as well as his legs and option-executing abilities.
Avery won last week’s game without the services of starting quarterback Alex Villanueva, as senior Dustin Childress again filled in admirably for his fourth victory calling signals behind center.
Viking fans are hopeful that the extra week of rest will prove to be enough for the junior to rejoin his teammates on the MacDonald Stadium turf this week. Avery will need the quarterback now as much as at any point this season, as Childress suffered a broken scapula last weekend in a motorcycle accident and is now out for the remainder of the playoffs. Sophomore Lane Smith has moved up the depth chart and will start if Villanueva is unable to go this week.
The Avery offense has been bolstered by the running of senior Colton Blackburn, who has six 100-yard rushing games, including 268 yards in Avery’s last two wins.
Swain County handed the Vikings a 15-8 loss the last time the two teams met on the gridiron back in the opening round of the 2007 1-AA state playoffs. The Maroon Devils can also rely on experience against the Western Highlands Conference this season, as the club played and defeated Mitchell in the first game of the regular season.
Swain took advantage of a number of turnovers to defeat Hendersonville last week. If Avery is able to continue taking care of the football as it has the previous two weeks, the Vikings have a good chance to punch its first ticket to the third round of the playoffs since the year 2005.
By the Numbers:4 – Avery players with at least 50 rushing yards in last week’s 42-20 win over Bessemer City (Colton Blackburn, Spencer Blackburn, Taylor Potter, Hunter Shields)
5 – number of touchdowns in Avery’s five trips inside the red zone during last week’s opening round win over the Yellow Jackets.
7 – number of state 1A championship won by the Swain County Maroon Devils (most recent championship in 2004)
19- combined number of pass attempts by Avery and Swain in their first round playoff games (compared to 95 rushing attempts between the schools)
28- unanswered points scored by Avery to open last Friday’s playoff win against Bessemer City.
80- minutes last week’s Hendersonville/Swain playoff football game was delayed due to a power outage at the stadium in Bryson City.
184- team rushing yards gained by Swain in its 30-7 win over Hendersonville last week.
1,014 – rushing yards gained in 2010 by Avery running back Colton Blackburn in 10 games (did not play in games this season against Cloudland nor Thomas Jefferson)
Read next week’s edition of The Avery Journal-Times for a full recap of this week’s game against Swain, as well as a preview (if necessary) of next week’s playoff opponent.
Follow the Viking football playoff run online at The Avery Journal-Times Sports Blog by clicking to: http://www.ajtsports.blogspot.com/
Swain advanced to the second round of the playoffs by virtue of a 30-7 win over a depleted Hendersonville team playing without the services of its starting quarterback and defensive stalwart following their arrest earlier in the day.
Scouting the Maroon Devils:
The Swain County Maroon Devils are led by head coach Sam Pattillo and finished in second place in 2010 as members of the Smoky Mountain Conference. The Maroon Devils entered this season coming off an impressive 9-4 record in 2009 and trip to the second round of last year’s state playoffs.
Offensively, Swain relies on multiple formations to move the football downfield, including a split-back veer option attack as well as an I-formation among others.
On the defensive side of the football, the Maroon Devils utilize a base 4-3 defensive scheme, but will alternate to a three-man defensive front when in likely passing or long-yardage situations.
Swain predominantly runs the football on offense with three backs that are capable of big statistical performances. Calling the signals for the Maroon Devils is dual-threat quarterback Colby Hyatt. The junior has enjoyed a strong season with 797 passing yards, 672 rushing yards and 21 combined touchdowns.
In the backfield Swain relies on a corps of backs, including Hyatt, Josue Otero (127 attempts, 654 rushing yards, 9 touchdowns) and Austin Shuler (472 rushing yards, 3 touchdowns). When the Maroon Devils throw the football, Hyatt’s go-to receiver this season has been sophomore wideout Matthew Maennle, who has caught 22 passes for 531 yards and 8 touchdowns. Also seeing time at wide receiver has been Greg Tisho, who has caught eight passes for 184 yards and four touchdowns.
The Low Down:
For the Vikings to advance to round three of the state playoffs, defensive discipline is a must. The Maroon Devils run a patient offense that prides itself in running its plays precisely and capitalizing on defensive assignment mistakes.
Avery for the most part during the season has played running teams with a decent measure of success. The Vikings did surrender 246 rushing yards in last week’s win over Bessemer City, although it took the Yellow Jackets 44 attempts to do so.
In most of Swain’s games in 2010, the team has played as well as its quarterback has been able to carry it. Hyatt is the centerpiece of the offense and is talented enough throwing the football that the Vikings must respect his arm as well as his legs and option-executing abilities.
Avery won last week’s game without the services of starting quarterback Alex Villanueva, as senior Dustin Childress again filled in admirably for his fourth victory calling signals behind center.
Viking fans are hopeful that the extra week of rest will prove to be enough for the junior to rejoin his teammates on the MacDonald Stadium turf this week. Avery will need the quarterback now as much as at any point this season, as Childress suffered a broken scapula last weekend in a motorcycle accident and is now out for the remainder of the playoffs. Sophomore Lane Smith has moved up the depth chart and will start if Villanueva is unable to go this week.
The Avery offense has been bolstered by the running of senior Colton Blackburn, who has six 100-yard rushing games, including 268 yards in Avery’s last two wins.
Swain County handed the Vikings a 15-8 loss the last time the two teams met on the gridiron back in the opening round of the 2007 1-AA state playoffs. The Maroon Devils can also rely on experience against the Western Highlands Conference this season, as the club played and defeated Mitchell in the first game of the regular season.
Swain took advantage of a number of turnovers to defeat Hendersonville last week. If Avery is able to continue taking care of the football as it has the previous two weeks, the Vikings have a good chance to punch its first ticket to the third round of the playoffs since the year 2005.
By the Numbers:4 – Avery players with at least 50 rushing yards in last week’s 42-20 win over Bessemer City (Colton Blackburn, Spencer Blackburn, Taylor Potter, Hunter Shields)
5 – number of touchdowns in Avery’s five trips inside the red zone during last week’s opening round win over the Yellow Jackets.
7 – number of state 1A championship won by the Swain County Maroon Devils (most recent championship in 2004)
19- combined number of pass attempts by Avery and Swain in their first round playoff games (compared to 95 rushing attempts between the schools)
28- unanswered points scored by Avery to open last Friday’s playoff win against Bessemer City.
80- minutes last week’s Hendersonville/Swain playoff football game was delayed due to a power outage at the stadium in Bryson City.
184- team rushing yards gained by Swain in its 30-7 win over Hendersonville last week.
1,014 – rushing yards gained in 2010 by Avery running back Colton Blackburn in 10 games (did not play in games this season against Cloudland nor Thomas Jefferson)
Read next week’s edition of The Avery Journal-Times for a full recap of this week’s game against Swain, as well as a preview (if necessary) of next week’s playoff opponent.
Follow the Viking football playoff run online at The Avery Journal-Times Sports Blog by clicking to: http://www.ajtsports.blogspot.com/
Vikings Smack Jackets to Move on to Round Two; Fans Asked to "Pack The Mac" vs. Swain
Avery fans are asked to “Pack the Mac” this week and attend Avery’s second round playoff game this Friday, Nov. 19, when the Vikings play host to the Swain Maroon Devils.
On just the third play from scrimmage during Nov. 12’s first-round game, the Vikings asserted its dominance, as senior running back Taylor Potter scurried past the Yellow Jacket defense for a 44-yard touchdown. The Dustin Clark point after touchdown (PAT) gave the Big Red the early 7-0 lead.
The Avery defense continued to swing momentum in favor of the home team as a third-down pass from Bessemer quarterback Travis Black was picked off by Viking junior Spencer Blackburn. The defensive back returned the pick to the Jackets 5-yard line, where on the next play brother Colton Blackburn blasted across the goal line. The PAT doubled the Avery advantage to 14-0 just two-and-a-half minutes into the contest.
Bessemer was held to a three-and-out on its ensuing series and punted the ball back to the Vikings. For a third straight possession Avery found its way to the end zone. A pass connection from quarterback Dustin Childress, filling in for his sixth start of the season for injured starter Alex Villanueva, to wide receiver Andy Gonzalez covered 22 yards into Bessemer territory. The Vikings then ran the football for six of the next seven plays to reach the goal line, capping the 9-play, 72-yard drive with a one-yard Childress plunge. Clark’s extra point pushed Avery out in front 21-0.
The fast start was just what the doctor ordered for the Big Red.
“That’s what we felt like we needed to do,” Brewer said after the game. “I tell you, they’re the best 1-9 team I’ve ever seen. Watching them on film, they moved the football well against Lincolnton, and everybody knows Lincolnton is a powerhouse and ranked No. 1 in 2-A right now. They were a scary football team.”
Bessemer City found the going tough for most of the evening against the underrated Avery defense. The Yellow Jackets turned the football over on each of its next two possessions, once on a Hunter Shields interception and secondly when Jackets quarterback Blake fumbled and Avery linebacker Tyler Buchanan fell on the loose football.
Following the latter turnover, the Vikings embarked on a 7-play, 45-yard scoring drive culminating in Colton Blackburn’s second score of the half, an 8-yard gallop that provided the Vikings with an insurmountable 28-0 advantage midway through the second quarter.
Late in the half, the Jackets forced and recovered a fumble from Avery ball carrier Childress, then scored on a Jhalen Adams 32-yard touchdown run. The two-point conversion failed and Avery held a 28-6 lead at halftime.
The Vikings doubled the Jackets’ total yardage output in the first two quarters.
Bessemer City showed its fighting spirit as it scored on its first possession to open the second half, cutting the Avery lead to 28-12 with 6:59 to play in the third quarter. Each time the Jackets put points on the scoreboard, however, Avery would answer with a touchdown of its own to hold Bessemer at bay.
With its first series of the half, Avery recovered an onside kick attempt from the Jackets, and marched 56 yards on a 9-play scoring drive. Spencer Blackburn hit pay dirt on a 10-yard touchdown run as the Vikings built its lead to 35-12 with 3:14 left in the third period.
The Yellow Jackets made its next offensive series count as much as a 20-yard Adams touchdown run capped a 70-yard possession early in the fourth quarter. The two-point conversion was successful and cut the Avery lead to 35-20 with 10:40 left in the contest.
Avery held the Yellow Jackets on downs on its ensuing possession and the teams also traded turnovers before the clock ran out and Avery punched its ticket to a second-round matchup with the Swain County Maroon Devils, a 30-7 winner over Hendersonville in Bryson City in its opening round contest.
“I think our offensive line came out and really blocked well,” Brewer said after the Viking victory. “The kids stayed with their blocks.”
Colton Blackburn led all players with 144 yards rushing on 18 carries and a pair of touchdowns. The senior also eclipsed the 1,000-yard rushing mark for the season with the performance, despite missing two games earlier this season with a hamstring injury. The senior shouldered much of the ground game burden for the evening as teammate Potter was knocked out of the game late in the first quarter after making a hard tackle on a Bessemer running back.
“It just opened up. We had watched game film this week and looking at the holes—their defensive line was split pretty wide,” Blackburn said of the team’s success with its rushing attack. “The five and six holes were open pretty much the whole game and that got us most of the yardage. Our line did a good job blocking and in practice, we worked on sticking with our blocks and driving down the field.”
Mitchell Pounds Cherryville, Plays West Wilkes in Round Two
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| Justin Hughes ran for 273 yards and five touchdowns in last week's opening round win over Cherryville (Ben Goff/The Gaston Gazette photo) |
It was a dominating performance in all phases of the game for the team in purple, cranking up the running game out of its vaunted spread offense to the tune of 499 yards on 43 attempts. Quarterback Justin Hughes himself accounted for 273 of the yards on just 15 carries, and scored a whopping five touchdowns.
Cherryville drew first blood in the game on a five-play drive when running back Markeith Redd raced 36 yards for the game’s first touchdown just two minutes into the matchup.
Following Cherryville’s score, however, the Mountaineer coaching staff adjusted to stop the Ironmen option offense. Mitchell shut down the dive play to Cherryville fullback Shane Harwell, and prevented the big plays to the boundary from quarterback Thomas Bess and running backs Redd and Alex Burns.
With the Ironmen offense bottled up, the Mitchell offense took over and rolled up 36 unanswered points over the next two and half quarters to commence with the rout.
The Mountaineer defense forced a pair of Cherryville turnovers and capitalized on both mistakes with touchdowns, using a 44-yard and a 41-yard scoring drive to take advantage of the short-field opportunities.
Mitchell running back Shawn Jackson scored the first Mountaineer touchdown on a two-yard run, then converted the two-point conversion run to give Mitchell an 8-7 lead with 3:43 left in the first quarter.
Cherryville fumbled on its next offensive series and Hughes cashed in with the first of his scores for the game, a 47-yard scurry which, along with an Isaac Edwards extra point kick, gave Mitchell a 15-7 lead barely more than two minutes after its first score.
Mitchell’s defense forced an interception from Bess on Cherryville’s next series early in the second period and scored for a third straight series as Hughes galloped to purple paydirt from seven yards out.
The final two Cherryville possessions of the half resulted in punts as the Mitchell defense had its way with the speedy Ironmen offense. The Mountaineers in the meantime added a fourth score on a two-yard Hughes plunge to carry a commanding 29-7 lead to halftime.
The second half story was more of the same for the Mitchell offense. With the opening drive of the second half, the Mountaineers drove 66 yards over 11 plays, capping the drive with a Michael Styles eight-yard run and Edwards PAT to take an impressive 36-7 advantage.
Cherryville’s Bess scored on a 35-yard run on the Ironmen’s ensuing series to finally break its scoring drought, but the Mitchell offense answered in the final seconds of the third period when Hughes raced to the end zone from 40 yards out for his fourth score of the night and a 43-14 lead.
Midway through the fourth quarter, Hughes put the icing on the cake when he broke through the Cherryville defense and rambled 86 yards for a touchdown to put an exclamation point on an historic night for the signal-caller.
With the win, the Mountaineers will take on the West Wilkes Blackhawks in the second round of the state playoffs this Friday, Nov. 19. West needed a pair of fourth quarter touchdowns to defeat conference rival East Wilkes 21-14 last week.
Middle School Basketball Roundup
The Lady Wildcats got off to a fast start with a 9-2 scoring run over the first quarter of action. In the second period the Lady Panthers rallied with its defense and rebounding to claw back into the contest, outscoring Cranberry by a 13-3 margin, including a buzzer-beating shot to take a 15-12 lead into the locker room at halftime.
Avery scored the first bucket of the second half to take a five-point edge at 17-12, but the Lady Wildcats proved it could also stage a rally, roaring back to score 15 of the final 17 points of the third period to take its largest lead of the game at 27-19 after three periods.
“That scoring run says a lot about our team and how they never quit,” Cranberry head coach Jimmy Tilley said after the game. “I thought this was probably the best game we played all year.”
In the final six minutes, the Lady Panthers showed their competitive spirit as well, putting together a final scoring spurt to draw within two points for the final three minutes of the contest. Jodi Poore drained a three-pointer and a basket, with a bucket from Kylie Polsgrove and a pair of free throws from Destiny Ollis to power Avery’s offensive attack. The Avery defense also held the Lady Wildcats without a field goal in the final quarter.
Despite the cooled shooting touch, Cranberry managed to withstand the Avery flurry, however, with three free throws which proved to help provide the margin of victory.
Cranberry’s Bethany Burleson led all scorers with 13 points, with six points from Elizabeth Pittman, four points from Sierra Jones, three from Brandy Banner and two apiece from Emma Shell and Abby Roberts.
Poore netted nine points to pace Avery, with seven points from Polsgrove, four from Keturah Taylor, and two points each from Ashley Singleton, Ollis, Christian Burleson and Rainn Wiseman.
“I’m just really proud of the girls. They work hard and try to do the things I ask them to do. It’s a big win for them and I hope it builds their confidence a little bit,” Tilley said after the win. “We’re really trying to grow as a team during the games. It’s a slow process with a new coach and system, but we’re trying to get the girls to grow a little with each game and play as a team. I think tonight they’ve played as well as a team than at any point so far this year.”
For the Lady Panthers, although they didn’t come out on top on the scoreboard, the team continues to improve and grow as a unit.
“The girls have been hustling and doing what we’ve been asking them to do. Tonight we didn’t come out and play in the first and third quarters, but all in all, they’re learning a lot,” Avery head coach Tonia Hall said after the contest. “It’s a big transition for the girls to change from the zone they used last year to the man-to-man we’re using this year. The girls are learning the fundamentals right now that they will have to know to play for Missy (Avery High School Coach Lyons). Our girls played hard and they all play well, but we need to come out ready to play and do a better job of running our offense.”
In the night cap for the evening, the undefeated Avery Panthers boys team were held in check through the first quarter of its matchup with the Cranberry Wildcats, but the offense got in gear late in the half and pulled away to earn a 45-18 victory.
Early in the second period, the Panthers began to use a pressing defense and force the tempo of the contest to pick up. Avery used a 14-4 scoring run in the second quarter to build a 19-10 halftime advantage. Austin Phillips paced the Panthers with eight points in the opening half, while Tyler Pittman netted six points to lead Cranberry going into the locker room.
In the third period, the Panthers continued to run the floor. The defense held the Wildcats to three points in the stanza as Levi McIntosh provided the lone field goal for the Cranberry club. Avery extended its lead to 35-13 with a 16-point third period. Phillips added a pair of baskets, with seven in the quarter from Kobe Pittman and baskets from Dylan Bauer and Tre Jackson as Avery improved its record to 5-0 for the season.
“We were tight to start the game. In this rivalry records mean nothing, and I think we felt the rivalry factor. Once we relaxed and I convinced them that we weren’t playing well on offense and needed to play defense to win, the team responded. It was a heck of a second-half defense and I’m really proud of the team,” Panthers head coach Gordon Polsgrove said after the win. “We had more turnovers than I would have liked, but we battled on the boards pretty well and we were more deliberate than we have been at times and were patient.”
“The first quarter was good and it was our game plan to take care of the basketball, keep our turnovers to a minimum and not give them too many scoring opportunities,” Cranberry head coach Jimmy Tilley said after the game. “They were just bigger and more athletic than we were. Again, we were just unable to match up with them.”
Phillips and Pittman scored double-figures for Avery with 14 and 13 points, respectively, with five points apiece from Jackson and Dalton Tennant and two points each from Jacob Waldroup, Jeffrey Puckett, Bauer and Jacob Smith.
Cranberry was paced by Pittman’s nine points, with four from McIntosh, two apiece from Caleb Stansberry and Aaron Dugger, and a point from Kasey Ross.
Both Avery and Cranberry continue Toe River Conference basketball action this week.
Musings and Ramblings: Trick Play Spotlights Coach's Character
Prior to his team’s final regular season home game on Nov. 5, Watauga High School head football coach Tim Pruitt gave his seniors the opportunity to choose a play that they could execute during their senior night contest against Saint Stephen’s High School. The players decided to choose a play that involved the team’s kicker/wide receiver Cam Haas, spotlighting his athleticism and ability to perform back handsprings down the Pioneer offensive formation rather than the usual receiver motion movement.
During his pre-game meeting with the officials on the field, Coach Pruitt voluntarily informed the officials of the possibility that the play might be run during the contest, and the head official warned the coach that the play would result in an unsportsmanlike penalty assessed against the Pioneers, citing the act as a travesty of the game.
The head coach disagreed with the officials over the opinion, but Pruitt had to leave the meeting before settling the matter in order to attend Senior Night activities before kickoff.
Watauga scored a touchdown during the first half of the game, and following the score but prior to the extra point kick attempt, a 15-yard penalty was assessed against the Pioneers for failure to wear legal equipment when the team’s kick holder wore a tinted visor onto the field (a penalty that is charged to the head coach).
After the flag, the coach decided the time was right to run the seniors’ play.
The play, entitled “Right Pro 80 Cam,” was called and during its execution, penalty flags were thrown prior to the snap. Watauga was assessed a 15-yard penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct as Hass was deemed as “bringing attention to oneself,” akin to a touchdown celebration penalty. Haas was also ejected from the contest.
During the fallout that ensued, an assistant coach argued the call with an official on the sideline and was flagged for an additional unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. The flag counted as the second penalty assessed against the head coach, which by rule resulted in the ejection of Pruitt.
An individual caught the incident on camera from the vantage point of the press box and posted the footage on the popular www.youtube.com website. Within the past week of the video’s posting, the video had received more than two million views. In addition, national media outlets caught wind of the incident. The video was featured on the home page of the Yahoo! website, and the video was featured on the ESPN television network’s broadcasts Jim Rome is Burning and Around the Horn.
Now, it’s not every day that a rural high school in the mountains of Western North Carolina is featured in such a manner.
In the aftermath of the incident, Pruitt was gracious enough to speak with me in his first one-on-one interview regarding what transpired, and expressed deep regret over what took place that evening, over the notoriety of the incident, as well as the fact that his player was unexpectedly ejected from his final football game as a senior.
“To be honest with you, we didn’t do what we did to become household names or to become famous. We were just trying to run a play that the seniors had picked out,” Coach Pruitt told me last week. “As head coach, one of the things we try to talk to our kids about is to try to do things that don’t embarrass ourselves, our program, our school and our community. I feel like this has become more of an embarrassment for me, for the kids and for the people involved in the play as it became a sort of nationwide story for about a day and a half.”
Pruitt wrote a letter which he provided to our sister newspaper The Watauga Democrat last week, as well as to members of Watauga County Schools. In it he took personal responsibility for the incident and apologized for any negative publicity the incident might have caused.
“I feel that the national and local attention put on this story has caused embarrassment for many and has put a bad light on our program and for this I am very sorry,” Pruitt wrote. “We all will make mistakes in life, and unless we learn from those mistakes we have not grown. I hope you will be able to forgive me for this mistake, and that you will have confidence that I have the kids’ best interest at heart in the decisions that I make in the classroom and on the playing field.”
In our discussion Pruitt clarified a statement that has been circulating in some media outlets where he was quoted as stating that if he knew he would be ejected, he would not have called the play.
“Cam is a kid with unbelievable talent as an athlete, but he’s also an unbelievable talent as an actor and a musician. He’s just a kid that does a lot of things in our community and at his church, so I don’t think this will be the last you hear of Cam Haas doing something famous or important,” Pruitt shared. “I was quoted as saying that if I knew I would be ejected I would not have called the play, but after the game I said ‘If I would have known that Cam would have been ejected, I would never have run the play.’”
The coaching fraternity is by its nature a tightly-knit group. Pruitt was quick to share with me the respect he has for Avery head football coach Darrell Brewer. As a fellow coach who understands what it means to take criticism, Pruitt has great admiration for the lead Viking and what he has done for Avery High School, and he as well as anyone understands the rigors of coaching and dealing with decisions and consequences.
“They don’t get much better than Darrell [Brewer]. He’s a guy who went through a lot of hard times to get to where he and his team are right now as a No. 1 seed in their pod for the playoffs,” Pruitt said. “For people to talk about players playing certain plays and doing certain things… That’s what we play the game for, to have players be in position to win a football game against a team like Mitchell, and to have an opportunity to be a No. 1 seed. He was doing what he needed to do to win the game. To give a coach grief over a situation like that is ludicrous. People need to concentrate on the positive things about the football program. For a coach to have to go through negative talk during the playoffs for a team that has gone from where they were last year to where they are now and who they lost to this season, that team has taken a giant step. This time next year, I hope I can say that my program has taken a step like his program has this year. People need to look at the big picture. Coaches don’t get paid enough to have to deal with people being critical of them all the time. We take a lot of time away from our families to do what we do, and for people to ride him is unbelievable in a season where they’ve had so much success.”
Prior to this incident I had a great deal of respect for Pruitt, dating back to when I first met him as head football coach at West Wilkes High School. He has always played the game the right way and respected his players and opponents.
Regardless of what has occurred, I believe Pruitt cares deeply for his players, and the fact that he wanted to do something special for his seniors on what was to be their final game, then to be the stand-up person that he is and take responsibility for the ramifications speaks even greater volumes about his character.
“It was a play that my seniors had chosen. You go to every head coach in the country and ask their players if they’ve taken a penalty for their players, and they’ll tell you they have. I took a penalty earlier this year belaboring a call to protect a player, and I took a half-the-distance penalty many years ago which didn’t cost all that much. I didn’t think taking a penalty in this instance would cost that much either, but I felt like I deserved to run the play for the seniors,” Pruitt told me. “The nice thing would have been for us to have connected on the pass and at least we could have said ‘hey, the play worked.’ But the things that came after that obviously led to some embarrassment, and as a head coach that’s something that I have to take responsibility for.”
Twenty years from now, it isn’t likely that everyone will remember that the 2010 Watauga Pioneers lost their final game 31-28 on Senior Night to Saint Stephen’s. But you can bet that the lasting memory of the back-flip play will stay with those players who played their final game that night in Boone and will be a uniting bond between them for a long time to come.
During his pre-game meeting with the officials on the field, Coach Pruitt voluntarily informed the officials of the possibility that the play might be run during the contest, and the head official warned the coach that the play would result in an unsportsmanlike penalty assessed against the Pioneers, citing the act as a travesty of the game.
The head coach disagreed with the officials over the opinion, but Pruitt had to leave the meeting before settling the matter in order to attend Senior Night activities before kickoff.
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| The Watauga back-flip video appeared, among other places, on the Yahoo! home page (photo courtesy WHS Media Relations) |
After the flag, the coach decided the time was right to run the seniors’ play.
The play, entitled “Right Pro 80 Cam,” was called and during its execution, penalty flags were thrown prior to the snap. Watauga was assessed a 15-yard penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct as Hass was deemed as “bringing attention to oneself,” akin to a touchdown celebration penalty. Haas was also ejected from the contest.
During the fallout that ensued, an assistant coach argued the call with an official on the sideline and was flagged for an additional unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. The flag counted as the second penalty assessed against the head coach, which by rule resulted in the ejection of Pruitt.
An individual caught the incident on camera from the vantage point of the press box and posted the footage on the popular www.youtube.com website. Within the past week of the video’s posting, the video had received more than two million views. In addition, national media outlets caught wind of the incident. The video was featured on the home page of the Yahoo! website, and the video was featured on the ESPN television network’s broadcasts Jim Rome is Burning and Around the Horn.
Now, it’s not every day that a rural high school in the mountains of Western North Carolina is featured in such a manner.
In the aftermath of the incident, Pruitt was gracious enough to speak with me in his first one-on-one interview regarding what transpired, and expressed deep regret over what took place that evening, over the notoriety of the incident, as well as the fact that his player was unexpectedly ejected from his final football game as a senior.
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| Tim Pruitt at a WHS function in 2008. His decision to run a play called by his team's senior football players on Senior Night made national sports headlines. (Steve Behr/Watauga Democrat photo) |
Pruitt wrote a letter which he provided to our sister newspaper The Watauga Democrat last week, as well as to members of Watauga County Schools. In it he took personal responsibility for the incident and apologized for any negative publicity the incident might have caused.
“I feel that the national and local attention put on this story has caused embarrassment for many and has put a bad light on our program and for this I am very sorry,” Pruitt wrote. “We all will make mistakes in life, and unless we learn from those mistakes we have not grown. I hope you will be able to forgive me for this mistake, and that you will have confidence that I have the kids’ best interest at heart in the decisions that I make in the classroom and on the playing field.”
In our discussion Pruitt clarified a statement that has been circulating in some media outlets where he was quoted as stating that if he knew he would be ejected, he would not have called the play.
“Cam is a kid with unbelievable talent as an athlete, but he’s also an unbelievable talent as an actor and a musician. He’s just a kid that does a lot of things in our community and at his church, so I don’t think this will be the last you hear of Cam Haas doing something famous or important,” Pruitt shared. “I was quoted as saying that if I knew I would be ejected I would not have called the play, but after the game I said ‘If I would have known that Cam would have been ejected, I would never have run the play.’”
The coaching fraternity is by its nature a tightly-knit group. Pruitt was quick to share with me the respect he has for Avery head football coach Darrell Brewer. As a fellow coach who understands what it means to take criticism, Pruitt has great admiration for the lead Viking and what he has done for Avery High School, and he as well as anyone understands the rigors of coaching and dealing with decisions and consequences.
“They don’t get much better than Darrell [Brewer]. He’s a guy who went through a lot of hard times to get to where he and his team are right now as a No. 1 seed in their pod for the playoffs,” Pruitt said. “For people to talk about players playing certain plays and doing certain things… That’s what we play the game for, to have players be in position to win a football game against a team like Mitchell, and to have an opportunity to be a No. 1 seed. He was doing what he needed to do to win the game. To give a coach grief over a situation like that is ludicrous. People need to concentrate on the positive things about the football program. For a coach to have to go through negative talk during the playoffs for a team that has gone from where they were last year to where they are now and who they lost to this season, that team has taken a giant step. This time next year, I hope I can say that my program has taken a step like his program has this year. People need to look at the big picture. Coaches don’t get paid enough to have to deal with people being critical of them all the time. We take a lot of time away from our families to do what we do, and for people to ride him is unbelievable in a season where they’ve had so much success.”
Prior to this incident I had a great deal of respect for Pruitt, dating back to when I first met him as head football coach at West Wilkes High School. He has always played the game the right way and respected his players and opponents.
Regardless of what has occurred, I believe Pruitt cares deeply for his players, and the fact that he wanted to do something special for his seniors on what was to be their final game, then to be the stand-up person that he is and take responsibility for the ramifications speaks even greater volumes about his character.
“It was a play that my seniors had chosen. You go to every head coach in the country and ask their players if they’ve taken a penalty for their players, and they’ll tell you they have. I took a penalty earlier this year belaboring a call to protect a player, and I took a half-the-distance penalty many years ago which didn’t cost all that much. I didn’t think taking a penalty in this instance would cost that much either, but I felt like I deserved to run the play for the seniors,” Pruitt told me. “The nice thing would have been for us to have connected on the pass and at least we could have said ‘hey, the play worked.’ But the things that came after that obviously led to some embarrassment, and as a head coach that’s something that I have to take responsibility for.”
Twenty years from now, it isn’t likely that everyone will remember that the 2010 Watauga Pioneers lost their final game 31-28 on Senior Night to Saint Stephen’s. But you can bet that the lasting memory of the back-flip play will stay with those players who played their final game that night in Boone and will be a uniting bond between them for a long time to come.
Lees-McRae Sports Roundup
Senior Whitney Justice posted a match-high nine kills, and Dana Oliver recorded 12 digs to lead the top-seeded Lees-McRae College (LMC) women's volleyball team to a three-set sweep of second-seeded Erskine College in the championship match of the 2010 Conference Carolinas Tournament on Sunday, Nov. 14.
LMC (25-7) won the match by scores of 25-21, 25-23 and 25-12 to punch the program's 12th ticket to the NCAA Division II women's volleyball championship in the last 13 years, while also capturing the 12th Conference Carolinas Tournament championship in school history. LMC posted a solid .235 hitting percentage in the match, while also tallying seven blocks and holding the Flying Fleet (20-11) to a .063 clip on the attack.
Justice posted a match-high nine kills, along with a sterling .412 hitting percentage, to earn Tournament MVP honors. Megan Epperson and Taylor Clendenin tallied seven and six kills, respectively, while Megan Mitchell chipped in five kills and 26 assists. Oliver and Lauren Fox recorded match-highs of 12 digs and four blocks.
Lauren Stewart led the way for the Flying Fleet with nine kills, while Sandra Campbell and Mary Crawford James chipped in eight and six kills, respectively. Larz Chabra posted a match-high 28 assists, while Jamie Murray and Alison Albers chipped four and three blocks, respectively.
Justice, Mitchell, and Epperson each earned a spot on the All-Tournament team, while Erskine's Chabra and Albers represented the Flying Fleet. Barton's Melissa Ritter and Queens' Brittney Barren rounded out the All-Tournament performers.
The two teams battled back and forth in the first set, with LMC opening an early 7-2 lead before Erskine countered with a 7-2 spurt of its own to even the score at 9-9. After a pair of quick points by the Bobcats and an answering marker by the Flying Fleet, LMC launched a 5-0 spurt to take a 16-10 lead on an Erskine miscue.
LMC extended the lead to 21-12 on back-to-back service aces from Mitchell before Erskine answered, launching a 9-3 spurt to cut the margin to 24-21 on an ace from Julie Jackson. LMC then took the set on an Erskine attack error to claim an early 1-0 lead in the match.
The second set started in much the same fashion as the first, with neither team able to claim a significant lead until, with the score at 14-13 in favor of LMC, the Bobcats launched a 6-3 spurt to claim a 20-16 margin on a kill from Clendenin. LMC stretched the margin to 24-18 before Erskine responded with a valiant effort, overcoming five set points to close the gap to 24-23. Mitchell then delivered the deciding point, placing a perfect dump into the center of the Erskine court to give LMC a commanding 2-0 lead in the match.
LMC carried the momentum into the third set, opening the frame with a 13-3 run that was capped by an emphatic kill from Fox. Erskine clipped the margin to 14-6 on a pair of LMC miscues before the Bobcats regained control, launching a 6-2 run to open a 20-8 lead. LMC then tallied five of the final nine points of the set to claim the set, match, and tournament title on a kill by Clendenin.
LMC is the eighth seed in this week's NCAA Division II Southeast Region Tournament, NCAA officials announced on Sunday, Nov. 14 with the release of the 64-team field.
LMC will square off against top-seeded Wingate University (28-1) on Friday, Nov. 19, beginning at 7:30 p.m. in the NCAA Division II Southeast Regional. Wingate enters the NCAA Tournament as the South Atlantic Conference regular season and tournament champion, carrying a 26-match winning streak into the regional. LMC enters the tournament on a nine-match winning streak, having won each of its 21 matchups against conference opponents this season.
Flagler College (26-8) is the second seed, and will play seventh-seeded and Peach Belt Conference foe Armstrong Atlantic State University (22-12) in the first round. Tusculum College (25-6) is the third seed, making its second straight and second overall NCAA Tournament appearance. The Pioneers will face archrival and sixth-seeded Carson-Newman College (19-10) in the opening round. Fourth-seeded Lincoln Memorial University (23-7) and fifth-seeded University of Montevallo (23-11) round out the first round matchups, and will square off in Friday's opening round.
LMC is in the midst of one of the best seasons in program history, having recorded the fourth undefeated season in Conference Carolinas history with a perfect 18-0 mark against league opponents.
Women’s Basketball: Bobcat Rally Falls Short in Exhibition at Milligan
The Milligan College women's basketball team held off a furious second-half rally by LMC on Thursday, Nov. 11, en route to a 73-59 win in an exhibition contest.
LMC and Milligan combined for 105 rebounds, as the Lady Buffaloes bested the Bobcats on the glass by a 62-43 margin, including a 19-9 advantage on the offensive boards. Johneshia Good recorded a game-high 18 points for Milligan to lead three players in double figures, while LMC's Sophia Witte posted a contest-best 12 rebounds.
Jaimee Hill chipped in 14 points for Milligan, while Heather Mandela posted a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Alisha Mainer chipped in 11 boards of her own, while Mandela and Good posted game-highs of four blocks and four assists, respectively.
Megan Tate paced LMC with 12 points, knocking down a trio of three-pointers, while Witte and Paige Whitaker chipped in nine and seven points, respectively. Witte also posted a game-high four blocks, while Kasey Haynes added a contest-best four steals.
Milligan started off strong, opening an early 8-2 lead on a three-pointer by Victoria Dailey before extending the margin to 17-6 with a triple from Dorian Freeman at the 10:57 mark on the heels of a 9-4 run. LMC fought back, cutting the lead to 24-16 on a trey by Tate before Milligan launched a 14-10 spurt to take a 38-26 lead into the intermission.
MC carried the momentum into the second half, stretching the margin to a game-high 17 points, taking a 43-26 lead with a 5-0 spurt to open the half. LMC answered, launching a furious 19-6 run over the next seven minutes to cut the margin to 49-47 on a jumper by Haynes with 10:44 remaining.
Milligan responded, answering with a 12-5 run over the next six minutes to open a 61-52 lead on s Good jumper with 4:51 to play. LMC rallied once again, cutting the margin to 61-58 with a 6-0 run before the Lady Buffaloes answered again, closing out the win with 12-1 run over the final three and a half minutes.
LMC returns to the hardwood on Thursday, Nov. 18, when it opens its season at home against Tennessee Wesleyan University. Tip-off is slated for 6 p.m. in Williams Gymnasium.
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