Vikings JV Football Fails to Put Away Patriots in 20-14 Loss

The Avery junior varsity trailed early in Thursday's game in Marshall against Madison, roared back to lead 14-6 at halftime, but a special teams error, the inability to finish scoring drives, and a key injury on the Vikings' final drive hampered the Big Red in a 20-14 loss.

Avery surrendered the first points in the game as Patriots running back Ethan Ball scored on a run through the Viking line for a 6-0 lead.

The Vikings tied the contest up at 6-6 primarily using its ground game with the running of the triumvirate of Kenny Hicks, Nathaniel Buchanan, and Hunter Shields. A Hicks touchdown run put the Vikings on the board.

Avery scored its second touchdown on defense in the final minute of the first half as Remington Austin rushed Madison quarterback Shelton who threw a backward pass to prevent a sack. Tyler Long alertly scooped up the pigskin and raced 37 yards for a touchdown.

The Vikings converted a two-point conversion pass from quarterback Alex Villanueva to wide receiver Andy Gonzalez. Avery took the 14-6 lead into halftime.

A special teams error cost the Vikings greatly in the third quarter as, on a Madison punt, the Avery receiver muffed the punt deep in Viking territory. The football caromed into the end zone and was recovered by the Patriots for a touchdown. Madison failed to convert the two-point conversion, but had cut the Avery lead to 14-12.

The Vikings had the opportunity to put the dagger in their opponent midway through the fourth quarter, as the ground game picked up chunks of yardage and a pair of Villanueva completions pushed Avery to the Madison 15 yard line. The Patriots held, however, to get back the football at its own 20 yard line.

Madison used only two plays following the turnover on downs to score what proved to be the winning score. A 30-yard pass play to midfield was immediately followed by a second scoring run from Ball, a 50-yard gallop to the pylon giving the Patriots an 18-14 edge. A conversion run gave Madison a six-point bulge with 2:18 left in the game.

Avery had one final chance to drive for a winning score, but a big hit on a first down carry by quarterback Villanueva forced the talented freshman out of action for the remainder of the game.

The loss of its field general shook the Viking offense, as the next three plays netted negative yardage. A fourth down pass play fell short, giving Madison the football for two quarterback knee plays to end the contest.

The Vikings drop to 3-5 on the season and return to MacDonald Stadium next Thursday night to host the Mountain Heritage Cougars junior varsity squad.

Audio Interview with Vikings head football coach Darrell Brewer

Click the link above for an audio interview with Vikings head football coach Darrell Brewer discussing this Friday night's football game with the Madison Patriots.

Winless Mountaineers Upend Vikings to Close Soccer Season

The Mitchell Mountaineers used Senior Night at Memorial Stadium in Ledger as just the right motivation to play inspired soccer, scoring three quick first half goals to take a commanding lead, then hung on to defeat the Vikings 4-2.

Mitchell scored three goals over the first 12 minutes of the match, but the Vikings rallied in the final portion of the first half. Senior Andrew Ingram played with great heart, gutting out a knee injury to score both Avery's goals in the match. The Big Red got on tbe board with an Ingram tally to the lower left corner of the goal in the 27th minute to cut the lead to 3-1.

Ingram's second goal came off a great send which split the Mitchell defense. Ingram used his strong leg to shoot a high attempt of the net's crossbar and into the net, providing the final score for Avery. Mitchell rallied with an inurance goal in the second half to preserve the win.

Lady Vikings Conclude Season with Second Round Loss at Swain County

Updating our earlier story, the Avery Lady Vikings were defeated by the Swain County Lady Maroon Devils in three straight games by scores of 14-25, 13-25, and 17-25 on Tuesday night in the second round of the NCHSAA 1A state volleyball playoffs.

Katie Ellis led Avery with 8 kills and 4 digs, with 8 assists from Cassie Bumgarner, 5 digs by Rachel Buchanan, three service points by Sara Singleton, a pair of kills by Megan Tennant, and a dig by Savannah Dellinger.

"Swain was a very solid team. I tried three different rotations to see if I could get something going," Coach Kim Hayes remarked after the match. "They were all seniors who having been playing together for four years playing club, et cetera. They will play Polk next. It will be an awesome game. I think whoever wins that game will be the next state champions."

Polk and Swain meet in the third round, while the Hendersonville Lady Bearcats were upset by Hiwassee Dam on Tuesday night. The Lady Vikings finish with a 10-11 overall record. Although the team loses five seniors, Coach Kim Hayes's club looks to have a promising future ahead. Congratulations to the Lady Vikings on a terrific season!

Cross Country Competes in Conference Championships

The Avery boys and girls cross country teams traveled to Montreat College in Black Mountain to take part in the Western Highlands Conference championships on Thursday. The event was held on a 5K course with a number of challenging hills to test the racers’ will and endurance.

It was the men who competed first on the course, with Avery fielding four runners in the meet with Ethan Church, Jared Clark, Will Fox, and Jose Munoz.

Avery as well as Mitchell did not have enough male entrants to comprise a full team for statistical and team championship purposes, as Owen won the team boys championship followed by Hendersonville. Munoz came in with the fastest time out of the Avery boys contingent with a time of 21:09, good enough for 28th overall in the competition.

In the girls competition, Avery fielded enough to qualify for team points as Mary Chesnut Smith, Caroline Crenshaw, Elyse Perry, Katelyn Eudy, Taylor Lacey, Debra Anderson and Teddie Jablonski competed for the Big Red.

The girls race was a competitive affair, as Kristen Stout, WHC Female Runner of the Year, captured first place with Avery’s sophomore Mary Chesnut Smith finishing just behind her in second place overall with a time of 21:27, with Crenshaw finishing 19th best overall.

Six schools had enough female participants to qualify for the overall team championship, with Hendersonville capturing first place overall. Avery finished the day in fifth place, with an average time a shade under than four minutes behind third place Polk County.

Interview with Mars Hill's Johnson and Spradling

Mars Hill and former Avery High School football teammates Ricky Spradling and Zach Johnson have played pivotal roles in the success of the Lions football program this season. Click the post title above for a link to an audio interview with the players following their 28-14 win last Saturday over the Brevard Tornados.

TSSAA Class Divisions Released

(Coutresy of TSSAA.ORG)
The Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association announced football class divisions for the 2009-12 seasons on Monday. All-male schools' enrollments were doubled. Division I private schools' enrollments were multiplied by 1.8. Regions will be announced on Nov. 13.

Division I

Class 1A

Sunbright 154, Gleason 169, Oakdale 176, Pickett Co. 187, Greenfield 195, David Brainerd 198, Huntland 210, Copper Basin 222, Coalfield 224, Greenback 226, Red Boiling Springs 234, S. Pittsburg 243, Hollow Rock-Bruceton 245, S. Fulton 248, Cloudland 251, Lookout Valley 253, Lake Co. 261, Midway 287, Jo Byrns 315, Hancock Co. 316, Nashville Chr. 319, Moore Co. 321, McEwen 322, Cornersville 326, Clarksville Acad. 329, Columbia Acad. 331, West Carroll 334, Perry Co. 334, Gordonsville 334, Union City 344, Collinwood 347, Monterey 350, Clay Co. 352, Harriman 367, Halls 377, Middle Tenn. Chr. 382, Whitwell 382, Wayne Co. 382, Huntingdon 382, Eagleville 383, Grace Chr. 389

Class 2A

Jellico 390, Friendship 392, Watertown 398, North Greene 398, Middleton 403, Rockwood 404, Oneida 405, Treadwell 409, Peabody 412, Richland 413, Unaka 419, McKenzie 419, Dresden 419, Silverdale 425, Mt. Pleasant 426, Grace Baptist 434, Community 436, Hampton 437, Trinity 443, Humboldt 447, Scotts Hill 448, S. Gibson 450, Trousdale Co. 451, Signal Mountain 454, Houston Co. 455, E. Robertson 456, Wartburg 457, Oliver Springs 460, White House-Heritage 461, Forrest 478, Adamsville 479, Cosby 483, Marion Co. 494, Cascade 498, Boyd Buchanan 500, Westwood 501, Jackson Co. 511, Douglass 513, Tellico Plains 515, Decatur Co. Riverside 517, Loretto 519

Vikings Soccer Shuts Out Cougars on Senior Night

The Avery men's soccer team closed out its home schedule on Monday night with an impressive 1-0 shutout of Mountain Heritage on Senior Night.

Prior to the match Avery Vikings head soccer coach Lou Brancourt, a native of France, was honored with the playing over the public address system of "La Marseillaise", the French national anthem, as friends and colleagues hung a French flag outside of the box for the coach to see.

Once the match began Avery greatly outshot the Cougars throughout the first half, but had nothing on the scoreboard to show for it.

At halftime the Vikings honored five seniors who had given much time and talent to the Avery soccer program. Honored seniors with families included John Ray Benfield, Alex Brannon, Quentin Burleson, Andrew Ingram, and Sutton Stanley.

The teams continued to battle into the second half when the Big Red finally broke through.

Avery was awarded a corner kick in the 57th minute of the match. Kyle Griewisch took the corner and sent a ball into the box where Alex Brannon sent a shot screaming past the Heritage keeper for the lone goal of the evening. Morgan Bounds was sterling in goal as he saved every shot that came his way during the match.

Avery improves its record to 5-12-3 overall, with a 2-6-3 record in Western Highlands Conference play. The Vikings conclude the regular season by traveling to Mitchell High on Wednesday. (Photo of soccer seniors courtesy Skip Sickler)

Vikings Look for Second Win against Hapless Patriots

After a disappointing performance last Friday night in Columbus during a 28-7 loss to Polk County, the Avery Vikings (1-7, 0-3 WHC) are prescribed the best tonic possible to cure what ails them, a date with the winless Madison Patriots.

Madison (0-8, 0-3 WHC) fell 40-14 to Owen last Friday night at home last Friday night. The Vikings snapped a three-game losing streak last season when they defeated Madison 30-6 in Marshall.

Scouting the Patriots:
The Madison Patriots are coached by first-year head coach Eric Schneider, who was promoted from the junior varsity position following the resignation of former coach Darren Ponder.

Madison returned only four starters in 2008 from a team that was the depiction of turmoil in 2007. Disciplinary measures severely depleted the ballclub, but the team has already doubled the number of times it scored in double figures from a season ago, having scored ten or more points four times this season.

Coach Schneider installed a multiple offense, running the football a majority of the time. Zack Sawyer (30 for 80 passing, 403 yards, 3 TD, 8 INT) began the season as the team’s starting quarterback, but Cameron Garrison (54 rushes, 225 yards, 5 TD; 9 of 24 passing, 89 yards, 4 INT passing) has seen time at the position the previous two contests.

Corry Heath Miller (54 rushes, 284 yards, TD) is just one of a number of running backs who have shared the burden of toting the pigskin for the Patriots this season.

Defensively, the Patriots have used a 3-5 alignment to prevent clubs from running to their outside, but will employ multiple defensive fronts as the play warrants.

The Low Down:
For Avery to come away victorious Friday night, the team must put the memory of last Friday night’s difficult loss behind them. Madison is a squad that has seen its share of struggles, and is a team that Avery matches up well against.

There is the potential for Friday night’s contest to transpire quickly as both teams will likely concentrate on running the football and grinding out yardage.

This week’s game may easily depend on turnovers, and which team’s defense can create team. On paper Avery appears to be the more diverse offense despite injuries, but Madison has given Avery trouble in the past (a 20-14 overtime win in Avery’s 11-3 third round playoff season of 2005, for example).

By the Numbers:
0 – number of points for Avery through 47:50 seconds of 48 minutes during last week’s loss to Polk County.
2- number of touchdown runs by Madison QB/RB Cameron Garrison in last week’s loss to Owen.
5- turnovers forced by the Avery defense in last season’s win over Madison.
60 – total passing yards by the Vikings in last week’s loss.
328 – total rushing yards surrendered by Madison in last week’s home loss to Owen.
351- total yards gained by Avery in last year’s 30-6 victory over the Patriots.
413- total yards surrendered by the Avery defense in last week’s game against the Wolverines.

Read next week’s edition of the Avery Journal-Times for a recap of this week’s game against Madison, as well as a preview of next week’s game at Mountain Heritage.

Lady Vikings Close Regular Season with Win over Rival Mitchell; Advance to Second Rd. of State Playoffs

The Avery volleyball appears to have peaked at just the right time as they swept Mitchell in junior varsity and varsity matches last Tuesday, then traveled to Highlands and defeated the higher seeded Lady Highlanders in four games.

On Tuesday Avery traveled to Ledger and took care of business in upending the Lady Mountaineers. In junior varsity action the ladies fought hard in winning a closely contested three-game match by the scores of 20-25, 25-19, and 25-22, respectively.

Once the varsity took the floor, the Lady Vikings played with precision and purpose in dominating the Lady Mountaineers in three straight contest, winning by scores of 25-17, 25-21, and 25-11.

Senior Katie Ellis led the team with 15 kills while adding 11 digs. Sara Singleton registered 22 assists, with three kills, seven digs, and ten service points (three aces) from Savannah Dellinger and seven service points and a pair of digs by Lacey Barrier.

“The girls played great at Mitchell, finally!” Vikings head coach Kim Hayes exhorted. “We needed a good win before playoffs. Tuesday night was the first match we won in three games. It was a great game to end the regular season for both the varsity and for my JV team.”

On Saturday morning at 7:30 a.m. the team loaded onto the bus and made the three-hour drive to Highlands (near the NC/GA border) to take on the Lady Highlanders for a 2 p.m. tipoff in the opening round of the state 1A volleyball playoffs. Despite the long commute, the Lady Vikings remained focused on the task at hand in dispatching of their opponent in four games.

Avery won the opening two games by scores of 25-19 and 26-24, respectively. Highlands rallied to capture the third game 25-15, but the Big Red closed out the match with a decisive 25-13 victory in the fourth and final contest.

“Once we got to the school we ran around to loosen up. It was a beautiful place, but the drive was not so much,” Coach Hayes explained. “We were a bit sluggish at first, which I expected. In the fourth game, we were finally with it and we killed them,” Coach Hayes said after the exciting victory.

Ellis tallied 32 kills in the match, with 15 digs from Dellinger, 27 assists from Singleton and ten digs by senior Rachel Buchanan.

Avery’s reward for the victory was a ticket for a Tuesday date with Swain County to take on the 25-1 Lady Maroon Devils. Swain swept Cherokee in three straight games to advance to the second round, their 75th consecutive win against a Smoky Mountain Conference team, and have won the Smoky Mountain Conference Tournament the past five seasons.

“They are definitely a good team. They are not Hendersonville or Polk good, but a very solid team with a couple of strong hitters,” Coach Hayes remarked. “Several number ones have been knocked out in the tournament already. IF the girls can get it in their heads that they are a good team, they can beat anybody. Swain will have the pressure on them, as they are “supposed” to win since they are the higher seed. We just need to go and play our style of ball, and we will see what happens. We’re very excited!”

Swain is paced by a six-pack of seniors Auburn Lowe, Anna Burns, Alisha Lambert, Megan Brown, Cayla Crawley, and Lauren Maennle. Avery’s second round match with the Lady Maroon Devils took place after press time this week, but check here at the Blog for scores and updates.

Avery Tennis Concludes Season with State Duals, Regional Championships

The Avery tennis team wrapped up a highly successful 2008 season last week with team dual meet action at Lees-McRae College against North Stokes, as well as regional singles and doubles competition.

On Tuesday the Lady Vikings welcomed the Vikings from North Stokes High School to Lees McRae College for first round state duals action. Avery performed valiantly, but was unable to advance in tournament play as North emerged with the team victory.

In singles action, Avery’s Anna Melton defeated Amber Nelson 6-4,6-1, while Morgan Yackey defeated Jordan Wilkins 2-6,6-3, (7-4 in tiebreaker) to provide Avery with its two points for the afternoon.

Judi Dillishaw was defeated by North’s Holly Whitener 4-6, 4-6, while Hayden Blackburn fell to Haley Pack 1-6, 3-6, Leah Powell was defeated by Taylor York 0-6, 1-6, and Morgan Stout fell to Alysha Hutchins 1-6, 0-6.

In doubles play, the team of Yackey and Melton were defeated by North’s team of Whitener and Hutchins 5-10, mathematically eliminating the Vikings from the tournament. Avery’s team of Dillishaw and Blackburn led their opponents 7-4 and the Avery team of Lauren Avery and Leah Powell trailed 4-7 when the dual match was declared over.

“I hated to see the season end. The girls played the best they could against North Stokes, and I was pleased with how we competed,” Avery head tennis coach Rhiannon Manis remarked after the matches. “There were a few close matches that could have changed the ending result, however it is such an achievement for the girls and program to have gotten this far.”

This past weekend Avery’s doubles team of Dillashaw and Blackburn competed in regional competition, as did Avery junior Anna Melton for her third consecutive year.

In singles action Melton defeated Albemarle’s Sophia Pastorini in straight sets by the scores of 6-1 and 6-1. Melton was defeated in the second round by Jessica Curtis of Gray Stone High School by the final of 2-6, 1-6.

In doubles play, senior Judi Dillashaw and junior Hayden Blackburn, undefeated the past two seasons, made their first doubles appearance in regional competition, taking on Alysha Hutchins and Holly Whitener from familiar foe North Stokes High School, falling in straight sets 6-2 and 6-2.“

All three ladies represented Avery County well. Traveling, trying to deal with the weather, and then playing tennis is not easy to do,” Coach Manis said of the girls’ performances at Regionals. “The girls adjusted and met the challenges head on and gave it everything they had. They ended their individual season on a high note, and I am very proud of their accomplishments.”

Berry, Defense Shines In Volunteer Victory

by:Matt Laws (matt.laws@averyjournal.com)
Avery Journal-Times

KNOXVILLE- The Volunteers were tired of losing. Eric Berry and the Tennessee were determined to avoid a 0-4 league start.

Berry intercepted a Mississippi State pass with 10:37 left in the contest and returned it for a touchdown that put Tennessee (3-4, 1-4) up 20-3, and swung the momentum to the Volunteer side as Tennessee took a 34-3 victory over the struggling Bulldogs.

"It's almost indiscernible the difference between winning and losing,” Coach Phillip Fulmer said. “I want to say a special thanks to the team who did one heck of a job this week preparing, staying the course and working. To the coaches, for the work they did during the week and especially tonight we got some really nice work done. Overall, it was just a fantastic win for us. That win is something to build on."”

The game was suppose to be a lackluster affair between two of the SEC’s worst, and for the first half it appeared to be headed in that direction. The Vols scored on two Daniel Lincoln field goals, and took a 6-3 lead into the locker room.

However, Nick Stephens and the Volunteer offense answered the call as they marched down the field on the opening possession in the second half. Austin Rogers appeared to catch a Stephens’s 21-yard touchdown pass, but was ruled down at the one yard line.

However, the offense would not be shut out of the end zone as Montario Hardesty jumped over the pile into the end zone.

The Tennessee defense continued to shut down the Bulldogs offense. Berry electrified the Neyland Stadium crowd as he returned an interception 72 yards.

“I don't know if I've ever seen anybody like Eric Berry,” Fulmer said. “It's amazing what he does when he has a football in his hands and the spirit that he brings to the team.”

Berry finished the game with 10 tackles, one tackle for loss, one sack, and an interception for a touchdown. With the interception, Berry became the SEC’s career interception return leader as a sophomore.

"On the interception I was headed to the ball and I think Ellix (Wilson) tipped it and it went downhill from there,” Berry said. “As far as breaking the record, I feel like it's really a team effort as well as an individual effort. We're getting great pressure up front week-in and week-out and doing great blocking down the field after the interception."

On the next Bulldog possession, it was Dematrice Morley’s turn to get an interception as he sprinted 32 yards for the touchdown. The Vols then put the game in Lennon Creer’s hands as he carried the ball for 12 straight plays for 51 yards, and Creer got into the end zone from one yard out.

Creer ended the game with 17 carries for 68 yards and one touchdown. Stephens ended the game 10 of 20 for 136 yards, and Adrian Foster added 40 yards on 11 carries.

The Volunteer defense had five sacks on the night, and limited Mississippi State’s offense to 189 yards.
However, Coach Fulmer knows that the victory was important, but UT still have work to do.

“There is still much to be done, but I think this is something we could build-on and build the confidence of the football team,” Coach Fulmer said. “The energy from the team and the stadium in the second half when we finally started making plays (was great). We have sometimes been our own worst enemy. We had no turnovers tonight and one penalty for the evening, and if nothing else, that's great progress.”

The Vols host #2 Alabama on Saturday evening.

Apps Survive Wild One

STATESBORO, Ga. – Writing perhaps the most dramatic chapter in the always-thrilling Appalachian State-Georgia Southern rivalry, No. 2 Appalachian took the lead with 2:36 to play and stood up GSU in the red zone twice in the final two minutes to hold on for a 37-36 win on Saturday afternoon at Paulson Stadium.

Armanti Edwards almost single-handedly led Appalachian (5-2, 3-0 SoCon) in the heart-stopping triumph, accounting for 333 of ASU’s 454 total yards and all five touchdowns in the win.Edwards capped off his amazing performance by flying over the Mountaineer front for a one-yard touchdown dive on fourth-and-goal that gave the Apps a 37-34 advantage with 2:36 to go in the ballgame. The fourth-down conversion was the second of the drive for the Mountaineers, as Edwards eluded several would-be tacklers in the backfield on fourth-and-five from the GSU 43 before finding CoCo Hillary for a 15-yard gain to keep the possession alive.Immediately following Edwards’ score, Georgia Southern (3-4, 1-3 SoCon) marched 69 yards in four plays to the ASU 13 yard line. On third-and-eight, defensive back Travis Dowdaintercepted GSU quarterback Antonio Henton at the goal line to seemingly seal the Appalachian victory.

However, the officials ruled Dowda down inches outside the goal line and on ASU’s first play after the turnover, GSU’s Larry Beard stopped Edwards for a safety that cut the Mountaineer advantage to 37-36.After the free kick, the Eagles took over on their 42 yard line and moved all the way to the Mountaineer 27 before a huge sack by Anthony Williams pushed the Eagles back to the ASU 39. After two incomplete passes, safety Mark LeGree intercepted Henton at the goal line on fourth-and-22 with 14 seconds remaining. The officials again spotted the the ball inside the one yard line, but after a brief discussion, the ruling to a touchback and Edwards took a knee on the final play to run out the clock.

The fourth-quarter was a microcosm of the entire game, as the affair featured eight lead changes. Appalachian opened strong with a nine-play, 80-yard drive that was capped by an acrobatic catch in the corner of the end zone by B.J. Frazier on an option run-turned-pass from Edwards, giving ASU a 7-0 edge less than five minutes in.After GSU kicked a field goal on its initial possession and forced an ASU punt on the next series, the Eagles took their first lead of the game when Raja Andrews returned the Mountaineer punt 84 yards for a touchdown. The touchdown return was the fourth allowed by Appalachian this season (two kickoffs and two punts).Georgia Southern extended its lead to 13-7 on a 37-yard Adrian Mora field goal early in the second period, but Appalachian regained the advantage on its ensuing possession when Edwards directed a six-play, 62-yard drive, capped by his five-yard touchdown run that made it 14-13, ASU.

It remained 14-13 until the Eagles put together their first sustained drive of the afternoon, a 10-play, 80-yard series that culminated with a four-yard touchdown run by quarterback Antonio Henton that gave GSU a 20-14 halftime advantage.

The Mountaineers started fast again in the second half, turning the halftime deficit into a 24-20 lead on a 14-yard touchdown pass from Edwards to Brian Quick and a 22-yard Jason Vitaris field goal.The advantage flip-flopped three more times over the next 7:13, with Michael McIntosh’s 15-yard touchdown catch from Henton giving Georgia Southern a 34-31 lead with 9:46 left in the game and setting up the wild flurry at the finish.

In all, Edwards ran 33 times for 157 yards and three touchdowns and completed 12-of-22 passes for 176 yards and two more scores. Josh Johnson was his top target, hauling in four receptions for 49 yards. Devin Radford chipped in with 76 yards on the ground and one catch for seven yards.Defensive, the Mountaineers were paced by Williams, who had one-and-a-half sacks among his five tackles and forced a fumble. Linebacker Jacque Roman tallied a team-best 11 stops and cornerback Cortez Gilbert notched seven tackles and broke up three passes.Henton finished with 292 yards through the air and 99 on the ground in the loss.

Appalachian’s triumph marked the first time it has ever won back-to-back games at Georgia Southern, while its 37 points were the it has ever scored in Statesboro. For the first time in the series that dates back to 1932, the visiting team has won three-straight decisions.

Standing at 3-0 in Southern Conference play for only the 11th time in their 37 years in the league, the Mountaineers host longtime rival Furman next Saturday at Kidd Brewer Stadium. The “Black Saturday” kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m.

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.