Border Bash II: Mission accomplished in Waynesville!

After months of anticipation Border Bash II finally became a reality on Friday night. I made a decision early on to promote the heck out of the event and I had three main reasons:

1. I'm a big fan of games against out-of-state opponents and the idea of Hickory facing a top team from another state is exciting.

2. I wanted to make the Tornado Nation aware of the strength of the Fulton program so that they could appreciate the significance of the contest.

3. And most importantly I wanted to do my part to challenge the players themselves. So I repeatedly threw the Falcons in their faces. All the videos, the championships, the mystique of the Falcons and, finally, their pre-season #1 ranking. I wanted any player who saw this stuff to feel personally challenged by the Falcons and rise to the occasion.

And guess what?

The Red Tornadoes rose to the occasion - big time.

The Border Bash consisted of two parts: a "controlled" situation in which each team started at the 40 yard line and had eight plays to score. Each team had four turns on offense. In this portion the Falcons outscored Hickory 4-1. Three of their scores were on pass plays. Sophomore Tyshon Chisholm scored for Hickory. Hickory also forced two turnovers.

It's a fact that Fulton was able to don full pads and start hitting on Monday, July 28th. Meanwhile, like all North Carolina schools, Hickory wasn't allowed to even gather the entire team together on the practice field until Friday, August 1st. The Tornadoes weren't able to put shoulder pads on until Tuesday, August 5th. That same day Fulton had it's first scrimmage. By the time Hickory was able to don full pads and start hitting on Friday, August 8 Fulton was having its second scrimmage. And Fulton had yet another scrimmage the night before the Bash.

Fulton had a huge headstart on Hickory in terms of preparation. More reps, more hits, more passes thrown, more opportunities to be tested by another team and mistakes corrected. So when the Red Tornadoes stepped onto the turf of Weatherby Stadium in Waynesville Friday night they had to catch up in a hurry. The advantage for Fulton was so great that I really can't even consider the "controlled" part of the scrimmage as anything more than a warm-up for the 2-quarter contest that followed.

In the 2-quarter game when a team turned the ball over they didn't get a "do-over" from the refs. Consequently the Tornadoes came very close to beating the Falcons by two touchdowns. It was a clear victory for Hickory. The final score of the 2-quarter game was 14-6. Kevin Shelton threw a couple of touchdown passes to Trevin Parks and junior Patrick Smith did his job by nailing both PATs. Kyshell Geter and Rakim Barrett ran the ball well. Geter was on the verge of scoring what would have been Hickory's third touchdown of the 2-quarter game but was stripped of the ball at the 1-yard line while trying to fight his way across the goal line and Fulton recovered the ball in their endzone. In general it was a remarkably hard-hitting contest, as expected. Hickory didn't look like a team that had only been hitting for a week. They traded blow for blow with Fulton.

I can't say enough about the outstanding play of Trevin Parks. He was in the game for almost every snap on offense and defense, catching a couple of nice touchdown passes from Kevin Shelton and then picking off three Fulton passes. The first score was a 30-yarder to the endzone where Trevin beat double coverage. It was a great pass that became a great catch.

Trevin Parks

Two touchdowns, three interceptions and just plain ol' senior leadership. In the end, it's that last quality - leadership - that may be the most valuable of all. Leadership is the gift that keeps on giving. I think this senior class has shown quite a bit of it already and this is just the beginning!

After all the hype that I myself helped to generate it is really incredible to think that this was actually Hickory's first scrimmage. Just a scrimmage...and yet not just a scrimmage. This was a truly significant victory by the Red Tornadoes in a truly unique setting. Being involved and doing well in it gets the 2008 season off to a good start.

The attitude of the player was excellent. There was a fairly long wait in between the two portions of the scrimmage. The players weren't at all rattled or disgruntled by the way the early portion had gone down. They were quietly determined to make a statement and they were quietly confident that they could and would get it done. These kids support each other and trust each other and don't believe that there's anything they can't achieve on the football field. When faced with the challenge of the Fulton Falcons they chose to - and did - rise up and overcome it. They made their statement.

Fulton loses to Class 4A Halls High in KOC Classic, 7-0

In one quarter of action the Fulton Falcons were unable to put points on the board after giving up a quick touchdown to the Halls Red Devils.

The Red Devils went on offense first and drove the ball downfield without throwing a pass. The offensive line for Halls opened up big holes for the ballcarriers. Halls scored its touchdown on nice run with 9:45 left in the contest.

The successful PAT made it 7-0.

Fulton's only real offensive drive did manage to produce a couple of first downs. Quarterback Ben Winters attempted a couple of unsuccessful deep passes to wide receiver Micah Pitchford but basically the Falcons kept it on the ground. Winters did his Tim Tebow impression on one play, picking up a few yards. Also carrying the ball were tailbacks Marco Golliday and Dametrius Thomas, who had a couple of nice runs. Eventually, however, the Halls defense forced the Falcons to punt the ball away.

On the Halls' next possession the Falcon defense adjusted to the fact that Halls wasn't going to throw the ball and put eight men in the box, which effectively slowed the Red Devils down. Faced with 3rd-and-long, the Red Devils finally did go to the air which almost resulted in a quarterback sack by Fulton. But the Halls quarterback did get the pass off and the Falcons secondary was flagged for defensive holding. So instead of forcing a punt and getting another shot on offense the Falcons gave new life to Halls drive.

Even though the penalty yardage did not give Halls an automatic first down it did put them close enough so that a short burst up the middle was enough to move the sticks again. After this Halls just continued to drain the clock with running plays that were just effective enough to keep it going. With about 15 seconds left to go the Halls runner broke through the line and made Falcon Jemichael Williams miss him...but then Williams managed to get up, go after the ballcarrier and strip him of the ball!

Fulton recovered the Halls fumble with 11 seconds left. The Falcons attempted a couple of halfback passes that fell short as time ran out. Thus the Halls strategy of scoring early and then shortening the game with a punishing ground game proved to be the winning one.

It's hard to tell much from just 12 minutes of game time but I definitely see the opening by which Hickory can exploit the inexperience of the Falcons on Friday night.

If you can't be there in person make sure you go to WKCS 91.1 FM and listen to the scrimmage live. Again, I would tune in about 6:00 PM to be sure you don't miss anything. Expect to hear music playing until the broadcast team goes on the air.

Border Bash II: Hickory vs. Fulton!

Friday is the day we've all been waiting for since Hickory's participation in the Border Bash II was announced back in February. Now the clash of our Red Tornadoes against one of the powerhouse programs in Tennessee is upon us and it's time for Hickory to take things to a new level. The Fulton Falcons are the pre-season #1-ranked team in Tennessee's 3A classification and have played for the 3A state title in five of the past six years, winning it all in 2003, 2004 and 2006. The Falcons were runners-up last season, falling to Nashville-area powerhouse David Lipscomb by a score of 32-24. If you are just finding out about The Garnet & Gold Report I encourage you to take the time to go back and review all my previous postings about the Fulton Falcons to get a good idea of just how good this program has been over the past six years.

FULTON FALCONS 2002-2007

2007: 12-3...3A Runners-up
2006: 14-1...3A State Champs
2005: 8-4
2004: 13-2...3A State Champs
2003: 14-1...3A State Champs
2002: 14-1...3A Runners-up

I also invite you to visit the Fulton Football website to learn more about the Falcons. One of the things you will learn is that Fulton High School is the home of one of only four high school radio stations in Tennessee, and is one of only a small number of high school radio broadcast stations in the country. The call letters, WKCS, were originally chosen to stand for Knoxville City Schools. The station is WKCS 91.1 FM and you will be able to listen live to the Hickory/Fulton battle. I'm not sure exactly when the covereage will start Friday night but since the event begins at 6:00 PM I would start checking it out around then. The actual 2-quarter scrimmage between the Red Tornadoes and Falcons will start approximately at 7:00.

When writing about the 2008 Fulton Falcons it's much easier to start with who they don't have on the team than it is who they have returning. The Falcons lost literally all of their starting skill position players from last year's squad.

The departed include:

1. DBs Ken Tyson, Vic Smith and Derrick Humphrey. This trio combined for 22 interceptions a season ago. And Humphrey was the team's leading receiver with 755 yards and eight TDs. Tyson and Smith contributed about 800 yards together.

2. QB Jonathan Blair: 61 percent passing, 1,714 yards and 20 TDs.

3. RB/LB Terrence Cobb: 1,448 yards rushing and 17 TDs / 11 sacks, 16 TFL

4. LB Bubba Stokes: 145 tackles, 4 sacks, 10.5 TFL, INT.

The Falcons return just three defensive and five offensive starters from last season:

DE Antwan Hamilton (6'1, 221, Jr.)
DT Devin Crawford (6'0, 229, Jr.)
LB Stephan Matthews (5'11, 181, Jr.)
TE Ben Winters (5'11, 184, So.)
RT Mychal Cason (6'1, 229, So.)
RG Matthew Blasco (6'0, 276, Sr.)
C Vincent Johnson (6'7, 251 Sr.)
LG Jarius Johnson (6'2, 263, Jr.)

Some other names to listen for in Friday's contest include:

RB Demetrius Thomas (5'10, 173, So.)
WR Micah Pitchford (6'0, 172, So.)
WR Jemichael Williams (5'10, 173, Sr.)
RB Jerron Brown (5'10, 174, So.)
RB Marco Golliday (6'0, 176, Jr.)
TE Khiry Riddles (6'2, 216, So.)
RB Bart Satterfield (5'10, 180, So.)
WR Xavier Bridges (5'8, 143, Jr.)
WR Antonio Barfield (5'11, 161, Jr.)

Sophomore Ben Winters, the starter at tight end last season, got in a few snaps last season while Jonathan Blair was hurt. Winters led Fulton to a win against Tyner by completing eight of 17 passes for three touchdowns, 153 yards and three TDs. He performed well this summer during the Nike 7-on-7 tournament held at the University of Tennessee.

One of Winters' favorite targets during the Nike competition was senior Courtland Styles (6'3 200), a talented wide receiver and free safety who transferred in from Knoxville's Central High School. Styles, who is also an outstanding basketball player, was All-Region for Central in 2007. If the Falcons try to throw the football then Styles could join Micah Pitchford as a prime target.

Another thing to expect from Fulton is that they will use a lot of players both ways during the contest. For the most part the players listed above will be the names you hear called on defense as well as offense. This is similar to what Hickory does but more extreme. In this aspect Fulton reminds me a lot of Burns.

Fulton has been practicing in pads since July 28th and will have scrimmaged at least three times prior to the Border Bash. It will be interesting to see if the headstart they have had on Hickory will be enough to overcome the youth and inexperience of the Falcons. The coaches of Tennessee have marked Fulton as #1. We're going to find out what exactly that means on Friday night.

Fulton Falcons in Kickoff Classic tonight. Watch it live!

A day before traveling to Waynesville to face the Red Tornadoes, the Falcons are participating tonight in the Knoxville Orthopedic Clinic Kickoff Classic. The KOC Kickoff Classic will showcase in two nights and two different sites some of the top high school football teams, players and coaches in the Knoxville area and Wazoo Sports will bring it to high school football fans everywhere LIVE on the internet with the click of a mouse. Just go to WazooSport.com to watch all the action.

Coverage will kick off at 6:45 PM tonight and the games from both nights will also be available for unlimited ON DEMAND viewing as well.

Fulton's quarter of action against Halls High should start at approximately 7:30.

Each night, the Classic consists of five "one quarter" games of 12 minutes, starting at 7:00 PM. Tonight's action will be held at Central High School's Dan Y. Boring Stadium which is located in the Knoxville's Fountain City Community.

TONIGHT:

1st Quarter: Tennessee School for the Deaf vs. King's Academy
2nd Quarter: Fulton vs. Halls
3rd Quarter: Hardin Valley Academy vs. Cosby
HALFTIME
4th Quarter: Gibbs vs. Grace Christian
5th Quarter: Carter vs. Central.

Halftime activities will take place after the third quarter each night, and players can compete in the 50-yard dash (for linemen and backs), quarterback throw for distance, punt distance and kickoff distance.

*Fulton High is one of the few KFL schools to have participated in the Classic every year.

*Fulton has amassed a 21-9-18 record in the Kick-Off classic in 48 games.

*Fulton has faced 15 different schools in th Classic. Carter, Halls, and Powell have been Fulton’s most frequent opponent, each playing the Falcons 8 times.

*Coach Buck Coatney has a 9-3-4 record in the Kick-Off Classic.

*The Falcons last played a jamboree quarter at Dan Y. Boring Stadium in 1988. Fulton holds a 4-3-7 record in the Kick-Off Classic at Central.

A little bit of Falcon history

D.D. Lewis

Defense has always been a hallmark of the Fulton Falcons and a designation as "Linebacker High" would not be out of line at all. At least that's the way it was in the turbulent 1960s. Today's high school players probably wouldn't recognize the names now but there is no doubt that back in the day nobody was feared more than D.D. Lewis and Jackie Walker.

Lewis was such a headhunter for the Falcons that he earned a scholarship to play for Mississippi State University. But although he was a two-time (1966-67) All-SEC and All-American linebacker for the Bulldogs, Lewis was largely unrecognized as a collegian because Mississippi State didn't have a winning season while he played there. The Dallas Cowboys waited until the sixth round (the 159th pick overall) to take Lewis, who went on to become an All-Pro and play in five Super Bowls in a 13-year professional career. A key member of the Cowboy glory teams of the 1970s, Lewis was a major player in two Super Bowl championships and was also MVP of the Cowboys twice.

If the name Lewis still isn't ringing a bell then how about his teammates...Roger Staubach, Tony Dorsett, Drew Pearson, Butch Johnson, Billy Joe Dupree, Golden Richards, Robert Newhouse, Preston Pearson and Rayfield Wright... But those guys were merely the offensive players. The real Cowboys were on defense. There was Harvey Martin, Jethro Pugh, Randy White, Ed "Too Tall" Jones on the front line. Behind them were the linebackers: Bob Breunig, Thomas "Hollywood" Henderson and D.D. Lewis, the ol' Fulton Falcon. The secondary revolved around Benny Barnes, Mel Renfro, Cliff Harris, Aaron Kyle and Charlie Waters. Together they were the Doomsday Defense. Nuff said!

The 1967 Fulton Falcons are perhaps the most revered of all Fulton football squads due to the fact that they are still the only Falcon squad to finish an undefeated season. None of Fulton's recent state championship teams have managed to go the distance without at least one loss. Ironically, the 1967 "Mighty Mites" were not state champions. They were, however, the AA champs of the Knoxville Football League and winners of the Optimist Bowl against Morristown High. Fulton's final record that season was 10-0-1 and featured some very interesting players. None was more famous at the time than senior linebacker Jackie Walker, one of the first African-American athletes to play for a newly integrated Fulton High School. At Fulton he averaged 23 tackles a game his senior season. Then he went on to become the first African-American football player in the Southeastern Conference to be named an All-American and the first to captain an SEC team.


Jackie Walker

Jackie Walker was as tough as they come. He was an All-State selection for his ferocious play on defense. He put at least 2 players in the hospital in 1967 with brutal hits. In the season opener against Rule High School a player named Jim Brannam was sweeping wide when Walker caught him alone at the line of scrimmage knocking him out cold. Their was a collective gasp of a large crowd at Fulton’s home field because the hit was so hard. Brannam lay motionless until he was help off the field. Brannam was taken to the hospital and could not finish the game. Another knockout blow that has become known simply as "the Hit" left another opposing ballcarrier laid out cold and the sound of the hit could be heard all over the stadium and down a nearby hill.

Meanwhile, the University of Tennessee integrated its football team in 1967, and when Walker became eligible to play in 1969, he was one of only three African-Americans on the team. But he quickly established himself as one of UT's top defensive players. Not particularly big for major college football Walker was extremely fast as well as hardhitting. He still holds the NCAA record for most career interceptions returned for touchdowns (5).

By 1971, six African-Americans were playing football for the Volunteers. When the team elected Walker captain for the 1971 season, one of the two alternates was a lineman from Winchester by the name of Phillip Fulmer.

“Though he was always undersized, he was a great player — smart, great speed and toughness,” Fulmer said after a recent spring practice session. “And he was a great person.”

Tim Priest, a teammate and an all-SEC defensive back, said of Walker: "Jackie was a terrific player. Though he was not very big, he had great explosion at the point of contact, as great as anybody I ever saw play.”

But perhaps it was Bear Bryant and his Crimson Tide who paid Jackie Walker the greatest compliment of all.

In his book Career in Crisis: Paul "Bear" Bryant and the 1971 Season of Change, John David Briley included a description of a special play — the Jackie Walker Play — Alabama designed to contain him. The center would stand him up. Another player would hit him from the right. And a third — the future NFL Hall of Famer John Hannah — would hit him from the left.

Jamie Rotella, another Tennessee linebacker during that game, said the triple-teaming scheme was the only time in all the games he played alongside Walker that his teammate was effectively blocked. With Walker neutralized, Alabama prevailed, 32-15.

“We didn’t talk about concussions back then,” Rotella said. “But in hindsight, I guess that’s what happened to Jackie. He was in the defensive huddles and didn’t know where he was. It was really disheartening for the rest of us to see our hero get dinged. He had always been invincible. Of course, it took three of them to do it.”

That's what we call football tough!

Border Bash II: Fulton ranked #1 in Tennessee Class 3A for 2008

The Fulton Falcons have received the No. 1 ranking in the 2008 Murphy Fair Class 3A pre-season football poll. The Falcons secured 10 first place votes and appeared on more ballots than any other team in 3A. The Red Tornadoes and Falcons will face each other this Friday in Waynesville at Border Bash II.

The Murphy Fair poll is a coaches poll and is Tennessee's only published ranking of high school teams before the start of the season. Teams are ranked by total number of top-10 votes by coaches throughout the state. First-place votes, however, are only counted from coaches of other Class 3A schools. Even though defending state champ David Lipscomb received more first-place votes, Fulton received more top-ten votes.

First-place votes are in parentheses. Note that three of the top four teams are from the same region.

1. Fulton (10)
Region 2
2007 Record: 12-3

2. David Lipscomb (16)
Region 5
2007 Record: 14-1

3. Knoxville Catholic (3)
Region 2
2007 Record: 11-1

4. Austin East
Region 2
2007 Record: 9-4

5. White House
Region 4
2007 Record: 9-4

6. Pearl-Cohn
Region 4
2007 Record: 11-3

7. Dyersburg (1)
Region 7
2007 Record: 10-2

8. Mitchell
Region 8
2007 Record: 10-4

9. Crockett Co.
Region 7
2007 Record: 4-6

10. Giles Co.
Region 5
2007 Record: 8-3

Border Bash II: Video highlights of Fulton's 2007 season

PART 1: THE BEGINNING



PART 2: SEASON HIGHLIGHTS



PART 3: SEASON HIGHLIGHTS



PART 4: PLAYOFFS



PART 5: The Championship Game

Border Bash II: Video Highlights of Fulton's 2006 season

Here are the highlights of Fulton's 2006 run to the Tennessee Class 3A state championship. As mentioned previously, the 2006 title was Fulton's third in four years.

PART 1: THE BEGINNING
The first minute will be familiar as it is basically the same as the intro video that I have posted previously. But keep watching because the last 8 minutes are very interesting. The first game shown is against Fulton's crosstown rival, Austin-East High. That was the team that played Independence back in 2001 (Chris Leak's junior year) and lost 77-13.




PART 2: SEASON HIGHLIGHTS




PART 3: SEASON HIGHLIGHTS




PART 4: PLAYOFFS




PART 5: THE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

Border Bash II: Falcons have size to spare!

To say that the Fulton Falcons are blessed with both speed and size would be putting is mildly. I have already touched briefly on the great tradition of running backs at Fulton, particularly current Tennessee Volunteer Dennis Rogan. Now I want to take a quick glance at the Fulton line.

When the Falcons won the Tennessee Class 3A state championship in 2006, their roster included these senior linemen:

Chase Kennedy (6'3" 221)
Mark Brown (6'3" 239)
Raymond Johnson (6'1" 276)
Ryan Gould (6'1" 223)
Sean Reilly (6'6" 308)
James Higgins (6'3" 298)
Rodney Sims (6'2" 275)
Charles Wiley-Gatewood (6'6" 311)
Antonio Hamilton (6'1" 294)

These were just some of the roadgraders paving the way for Dennis Rogan and Terrence Cobb. But surely this was a uniquely oversized class of linemen that couldn't possibly be replaced in a year's time...right?

In a way, yes. The 2007 Falcons only listed two senior linemen:

Gary Gamble (6'1" 237)
Ricky Hensley (6'2" 297)

The rest of the 2007 Falcon linemen on the roster were as follows:

Hakeem Gray (6'0" 209, 9th)
Adam Bowman (5'10" 218, 10th)
Tony Hendricks (5'10" 198, 10th)
Mychal Cason (6'1" 229, 9th)
Aaron Miller (5'10" 212, 9th)
Jarius Johnson (6'2" 263, 10th)
Christian Clark (6'0" 236, 10th)
Cardeem Brown (5'11" 245, 10th)
Michael Miller (5'11" 248, 11th)
Caleb Garrett (5'10" 215, 10th)
Jake Reilly (5'10" 235, 10th)
T.J. Miller (5'11" 206, 9th)
Kadeem Blair (6'3" 348, 11th)
Vincent Johnson (6'7" 251, 11th)
Jarvis Drew (5'11" 311, 10th)
Matthew Blasco (6'0" 276, 11th)
Jordan Phillips (6'3" 320, 11th)

The hot topic of discussion this time last year for the Falcons and their fans was the remarkable inexperience of the linemen. Well, one year and another trip to the state championship game later, the Falcons won't have that problem to worry about.

Of course size isn't everything. The biggest team Hickory faced all year in terms of raw size was undoubtedly Hunter Huss. But that didn't prevent the Red Tornadoes from administering a stunning 63-0 smackdown on the Huskies. But rest assured that Fulton is nothing like Huss - the Falcons won't lay down after getting smacked in the mouth. You do not want to miss this, folks!

Border Bash II: Introducing the Fulton Falcons

On August 15, 2008 the Red Tornadoes will take the field against Tennessee 3A powerhouse Fulton HS of Knoxville for 2 quarters of hard-hitting action in Border Bash II, a 6-team, North Carolina vs. Tennessee, showcase jamboree. Just to whet your appetite, here is a short video introduction to the Fulton Falcons.

Border Bash II: Buck Coatney, Fulton's Head Coach

The 2008 season marks Buck Coatney's 17th season as head coach of the Fulton Falcons. Entering this season Coatney's record stands at 125-76, with three state titles (2003, 2004, 2006) to his credit. The Falcons have played in the 3A state title game five times in the past six seasons.

Buck Coatney

Coatney is the only coach in Tennessee to win three consecutive KFL/PrepXtra Coach of the Year honors (2002-2004). For his work in 2004, Coatney was named state coach of the year by the Tennessee Sportswriters Association, as well as the Tennessee Titans. He earned his fourth PrepXtra Bob Polston Coach of the Year award, and his third TSWA state Coach of the Year honor following Fulton's 2006 state championship. Coatney also served as defensive coordinator on the 2005 Tennessee High School All-Star team.

But things weren't always so sweet for Coatney and the Falcons. When he took over the head coach position at Fulton in 1992, the school was on the verge of extinction. The Knox County School Board had voted to close Fulton, but strong protests by alumni and supporters helped reverse the decision. One of those alumni was Buck Coatney himself. The 1992 Falcons fell to 1-9 in Coatney's debut but the one victory was a satisfying victory in overtime against archrival West High.

Coatney's roots are colored maroon and white, as his father, John, captained Fulton's 1959 squad. Buck was known as a hardnosed linebacker and tight end on the Falcon teams of the late 1970s. He was named to the all-state team and was voted Defensive Player of the Year by the Knoxville Journal. He helped lead the Falcons to a region championship in 1979. Current Vanderbilt coach Bobby Johnson recruited Coatney to Furman University where he earned honorable mention All-America honors.

Coatney began his coaching career at Furman as a graduate assistant. After leaving Furman, Coatney spent two years as an assistant coach at Middlesburg High School in Florida. He returned to Fulton in 1987, where he served as defensive coordinator. He was named the school's 11th head coach in 1992.

After the dismal 1-9 campaign of 1992 things began to gradually improve for the Falcons. They made the first of their 15 consecutive playoff appearances in 1993. By 2000 Coatney and his Falcons had re-established Fulton as a football power in the Knoxville area. In 2002 Coatney led the Falcons to their first undefeated regular season since 1974, ending the season with a loss in the BlueCross Bowl (the 3A state title game). The Falcons returned to the title game in 2003 and won the school's first state championship in any sport.

In 2004 Coatney became the first-ever coach in Knoxville to lead his team to back-to-back state football championships. After a disappointing 2005 campaign Coatney and the Falcons returned to the pinnacle of Class 3A football in 2006, led by UT-signee Dennis Rogan, and completed a 14-1 season with a victory in the BlueCross Bowl.

In 2007 the Falcons (12-3) returned once again to the title game, losing this time in a rematch with the David Lipscomb Mustangs.

Border Bash II: The Falcon work horses

Like the Red Tornadoes, the Fulton Falcons also have a traditionally-strong rushing attack. Here are Fulton's top rushers since 1995.

2007...Terrence Cobb (229 - 1,476...19 TDs)
2006...Dennis Rogan (343 - 2,876...44 TDs)
2005...Dennis Rogan (249 - 2,112...31 TDs)
2004...Jam Fine (158 - 1,143...11 TDs)
2003...Jam Fine (197 - 1,298...10 TDs)
2002...Demetris Davis (224 - 1,250...12 TDs)
2001...Jeff Mitchell (296 - 2,334...25 TDs)
2000...Jeff Mitchell (174 - 1,406...13 TDs)
1999...DeMarcus Fine (233 - 1,953...21 TDs)
1998...Marcus Thomas (150 - 1,015...7 TDs)
1997...DeMarcus Fine (125 - 748...9 TDs)
1996...Tyson Porter (69 - 410...6 TDs)
1995...Brian Tate (164 - 977...12 TDs)

Border Bash II: The Vols Connection

One of them is a freshman fullback from Hickory. The other is a sophomore defensive back from Knoxville. They were both highly-valued recruits with all kinds of big-time potential. They are even next to each other on the University of Tennessee 2008 roster: Austin Johnson is #40 while Dennis Rogan is #41. Oh, by the way, their high school alma maters will face off against each other in Waynesville at the 2nd Annual Border Bash on August 15th.

Although he is a defensive back and special teamer for the Volunteers, Dennis Rogan was also a star running back at Fulton High School in Knoxville. Indeed, he is the all-time leading rusher (career total of 5,261 yards and 81 touchdowns) in Fulton High history. While at Fulton, Rogan contributed to three Class 3A state championships (2003, 2004, 2006) and earned two Mr. Football finalist awards. As a senior in 2006, Rogan ran for 2,876 yards and 44 touchdowns.


Dennis Rogan


In 2007 Rogan played in 13 games for the Volunteers as a kick-off and punt returner, as well as a defensive back. He helped the Vols to the largest 4th-quarter rally in Neyland Stadium history by returning a punt 45 yards to set up the winning field goal against Vanderbilt ... He finished that game with 72 yards on three punt returns and also returned three kickoffs for 74 yards with a long of 41 yards. He was named the SEC Special Teams Player of the Week for his efforts against the Commodores.

Johnson completed his high school career in 2007 as one of Hickory's most highly-decorated players of all time. He was named All-State as a senior in 2007 and as a junior in 2006 ... He was a three-time All-Conference honoree from 2005-2007 ... He was the CVAC Defensive Player of the Year in 2006 and 2007 ... He was twice selected All-Piedmont by the Charlotte Observer and was named to the 1st-Team All-Observer squad in 2007... He was named three times to the Hickory Daily Record All-Unifour Team and was the Daily Record's Defensive Player of the Year in 2006 and 2007... He was named a 2007 Carolina Panthers Community Captain ... He was a Shrine Bowl participant in 2007 and a captain of the North Carolina team.

Bruiser Johnson



The Bruiser's career numbers as a Red Tornado are impressive. He racked up 580 tackles in three seasons ... He totaled 210 tackles as a senior, 211 tackles as a junior and 160 tackles as a sophomore in 2005 ... As a senior, he rushed 108 times for 692 yards and 16 touchdowns and had 35 receptions for 470 yards and two touchdowns. In his junior season he rushed 107 times for 602 yards and five touchdowns. He also caught 14 passes for 259 yards and a touchdown.

An excellent student and a member of the National Honor Society, Johnson graduated from Hickory High following the 2007 fall semester and immediately enrolled at UT in order to participate in spring practice.

So, while family, friends and fans of both Austin Johnson and Dennis Rogan will eagerly keep track of events in Knoxville this fall, the rising stars of Volunteer football will no doubt pay close attention to the Hickory-Fulton clash at the 2008 Border Bash. This is gonna be good...