Crest fans...you gotta love 'em!

This was posted on NCreps.com at 8:50 PM by another toilet nugget from Crest who calls himself "crestmas"...

"hickory and burns will be a good cool down after Gaffney.This is a good time to work out a few kinks. special teams,blocking,playing till the whistle blows.I'll say it again these kids are young and exciting!Just what us fans needed.If these guys stick together there is no telling what can happen.I know they will have to mature quickly and this group of kids can.These players have a common goal,and that is to work hard everyday.Thats all we can ask.
Gaffney might have walked on the field thinking cakewalk but I don't think they walked off the field thinking that.
I think Gaffney is the team that could turn it out this year"

Are you kidding me?





















Nothing like taking a little trip down to Boiling Springs...

Words of wisdom from a Crest fan...

Posted on NCPreps.com today at 10:52 AM by a Charger fan calling himself "notashelbyfan":

"I wiukd nt be to worried about Hickory I went and watched them play last year and that was the worst 10 win football team I have ever seen They won 10 games last year because they play no one! I would worry more about Burns ib week one than Hickory!

The Chargers will be ok I think!"

BRILLIANT!

The Next Step...

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: NC squads feature impressive QBs

The Bash is a showcase event matching up three teams from North Carolina against three teams from Tennessee. Obviously I'm going to spend most of my time focusing on Hickory and Hickory's opponent when writing about the Bash. However, there will be four other teams competing in Waynesville this Friday night. The other two North Carolina teams, the host Tuscola Mountaineers and their neighbors from Canton, the Pisgah Black Bears, both feature big, talented quarterbacks who will be playing on Saturdays in the not-too-distant future.

The Black Bears, coached by David Pressley, are led by senior signal caller Tyler Jaynes (6'3 205).
Tyler Jaynes

Jaynes, whose older brother Zack is a redshirt freshman quarterback at Western Carolina, had a terrific junior year in 2007, passing for 3,018 yards and 23 touchdowns enroute to a second-place finish in the Western Athletic Conference (4-1 and 10-4 overall). Jaynes attended camps at Chapel Hill, N.C. State and Vanderbilt this summer and is waiting for offers. A big senior season would go a long way towards earning a scholarship and a good showing at the Border Bash would be a nice way to start things off.

And then there's the other Tyler...

Expectations have risen significantly in Waynesville since the end of last season. Coming off a dismal 2-9 campaign in 2006 Tuscola brought in Donnie Keifer, formerly head coach at Gates Co. and East Carteret, to turn things around. Keifer, a Lenoir-Rhyne alumnus, was head coach at Hibriten in the mid-1990s (including 1996 when the Panthers were drubbed by the Tornadoes). Here he is being interviewed by what sounds like a student in August of 2007. Keifer is without a doubt one of the most innovative coaches in North Carolina's high school ranks. But even he might have been dismayed by the situation at Tuscola except for one thing: the Mountaineers had one heck of a young prospect in Tyler Brosius.

Brosius is a 6'3" 220-pound junior who didn't waste any time making a name for himself as a pro-style quarterback. His second varsity start for the Mountaineers was a season-ending, 13-10 upset of heavily-favored T.C. Roberson in 2006. That was the end of a freshman season spent mostly on the JV. At that moment hope returned to the Mountaineer faithful. Then along came Donnie Keifer.

Although it is not his style of football Keifer stayed with the spread offense of his predecessor for the 2007 season in order to best utilize the talents of his sophomore quarterback. The early results were positive. Tuscola began with a 29-26 road victory over East Henderson. Brosius threw four touchdown passes to four different receivers in that one. After a tough loss to Brevard the Mountaineers won the 44th Battle of Haywood County by beating rival Pisgah, 22-6. You know what they say about rivalries, how if you only win one game all year it had better be that one... Well the rest of the season didn't turn out the way Tuscola might have wanted it (2-4 in the Mountain Athletic Conference, 5-7 overall) but it was certainly an improvement.

The Mountaineers will not operate out of the spread formation this season and so there is a chance that the quarterback known as "T-Bro" will not have quite the numbers he had last season (1,769 yards, 20 TDs). But after a full year of work under the tutelage of Coach Keifer the entire team should be much more effective. Brosius himself had a very productive off-season. His intinerary included trips to Las Vegas for an Elite 11 tryout and also a trip to Gainesville to participate in the University of Florida's "Friday Night Lights" event where he and other top prospects worked out in front of coach Urban Meyer and offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Dan Mullen.

Tom Luginbill of Scout.com had this to say about Brosius:

"If Saturday was any indication of the caliber of quarterback in the 2010 class, it could be a special group. Tyler Brosius (Tuscola, N.C.) has great size, a thick build and really looked the part of a pocket passer with good arm strength and solid mechanics."

Brosius also had the opportunity to stop off in Columbia to show what he can do to the Ol' Ball Coach himself, Steve Spurrier. Add to this the fact that former Tuscola quarterback Jonathan Crompton is the starter at Tennessee and you can imagine the level of interest that is already being generated among the powers of the SEC.
Tyler Brosius

Most recently, Brosius put on a clinic of his own when the Mountaineers hosted West Forsyth in a 7-on-7 scrimmage in July. Brosius surgically dissected and demoralized the West Forsyth pass defense for nine touchdown passes — and no interceptions. Those nine scoring strikes came from a variety of passes. Four were deep bombs, three were to wide open receivers and two TDs were difficult throws. Seniors Brody Medford and Dakota Brown caught three touchdowns apiece, sophomore Austin Chambers hauled in two and senior Sage Frady one.

Needless to say, the Mountaineers will be looking to conduct another Air Raid this Friday night at the Bash.

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

HHS Alumni Update #3: AUSTIN JOHNSON

Just a brief update on Austin as he continues with pre-season practice in Knoxville. There is no question that graduating from HHS early and getting to Knoxville for the spring semester has paid off for the Bruiser. Going into spring practice Austin was listed as a 4th-string linebacker. When it was over, however, he was the 2nd-string fullback. Austin also received a mention in Lindy's preview of the Volunteers.

"Freshman linebacker Austin Johnson was moved to fullback and made an immediate impact."

Under new offensive coordinator Dave Clawson the fullback is basically an H-back in that he will be used a great deal as a receiver as well as a blocker. Hickory fans and opponents know that Austin has a great set of hands. So although he is a fullback most of his touches will be receptions rather than carries. Once he is "in space" with the football he is hard to bring down. He is also an outstanding blocker.

Austin is one of several Volunteers who hail from North Carolina. These include Tennessee's new starting quarterback, Jonathan Crompton of Waynesville. One of Crompton's prime targets will be senior wide receiver Josh Briscoe from Lawndale. And joining Crompton in the backfield will be backup tailback Monterio Hardesty of New Bern.

If Austin maintains his place on the depth chart then he should make the traveling squad. This means that his first-ever college football game will be played in the Rose Bowl against the UCLA Bruins. That's exciting stuff for a guy who opened last season at home against the Statesville Greyhounds!

Two-a-days begin today

Like the rest of the state's high school football teams the Red Tornadoes were in full pads on Friday for the first day of "contact" drills (aka HITTING!). For those who aren't familiar with the process, a certain number of practices must be concluded before teams are allowed to go full contact. Friday was the day and the Tornadoes took full advantage of it. As is customary the first day of hitting brought out several spectators who were eager to see what this year's team is made of. They did not leave disappointed! The hitting was hard and we all found it very good.

The Tornadoes conducted another full practice on Saturday morning that included a mini-scrimmage between the varsity offense and defense. This portion of practice was filmed as part of the ongoing evaluation process as Week 2 of the pre-season begins. Today the varsity had a light practice in the morning (9:00) and will return to the field at the usual time (6:00) for evening practice. This schedule will continue through most of the week. The week will culminate with a trip to Tuscola High School in Waynesville for Border Bash II.

New defensive coordinator Wayne Hicks is satisfied with the progress made by the players in adjusting to his preferred schemes, which are different from what his predecessor ran in 2006 and 2007. How quickly they get ahead of the learning curve will dictate how well the defense performs in the early part of the season. Fortunately, as stated before, the defense has several returning starters and their experience certainly willl help with the learning process.

I want to make special mention of junior Buddy Withers who has found a spot on the starting unit at linebacker. Buddy did not play football last season but has come on strong in the off-season and now in the pre-season and should definitely give the defense an extra burst of speed, which will be needed to deal with the offenses that Hickory will face in the CVAC. Another couple of juniors, Cole Smithey and Drew Siciliano, have also made great strides on the defensive side of the ball. Once again Hickory should be very stout against the run.

No more boring Fridays!

It just occurred to me that my Friday nights are now officially booked from now until (hopefully) December. For months the question has been "Damn, how many more Fridays must I endure before it's football time in Hickory again? But it slipped my mind Friday night that it was the last time for a long time that I won't have Hickory High football to enjoy. In five days the Tornadoes hit the road to Waynesville for the Border Bash. The following Friday Hickory's "Hardest Hits" tour makes a stop in Boiling Springs for the Cleveland County Jamboree. After that there will be a Tornado warning in effect for the Statesville area. Awesome!

This pre-season is unlike any other in Hickory High's long history. For the first time the Red Tornadoes will be involved in not one but two "event scimmages" which is my terminology for showcase jamborees such as the Cleveland County Jamboree and the Border Bash. In years past Hickory would have a couple of casual scrimmages against local teams and a joint practice with Freedom that involved some scrimmage action. Hardly anybody but the players, coaches and family members even paid attention.

Not quite ten years ago Hickory got involved with the Cleveland County Jamboree and has been playing in it ever since. I think it's a great thing and very valuable to the growth of the kids as football players and the program as a whole. When most teams around the state are having their season openers the Red Tornadoes are honing their skills in a 2-quarter game situation against one of the best teams in the state. Lately Hickory has been paired with Crest. Before that it was Shelby. Going up against the Cleveland County schools is always great preparation for Hickory's season opener against Statesville.

Now with the addition of the Border Bash to Hickory pre-season schedule time is fleeting because while the outcome has no official bearing on the 2008 season it is a contest that Hickory would love to win. So suddenly it's like the season is already upon us after only one week of practice. But that's what makes it exciting!

Deconstructing the 3A Baker's Dozen

I've just got one question for the coaches of North Carolina: Where's the love people?

Let me just state for the record that yes, I know that pre-season polls are basically meaningless in terms of predicting which teams will walk off the field as state champions in December. Everything will be won or lost on the field, week in and week out. But that doesn't mean that polls are useless. In my opinion polls do have two primary functions. They are conversation starters. Who can resist joining the debate about who belongs in the rankings but isn't and who is in the rankings that shouldn't be. The other function is to give some respect to the teams who have made a name for themselves in past seasons. A pre-season poll is really all about what has happened before - not what will happen in the future.

With this in mind I'd like to talk about the fact that despite a 13-1 record and a conference championship in 2007 the Red Tornadoes were left out of NCPreps.com's pre-season Baker's Dozen ranking. It's especially curious when you consider that Hickory has more returning starters than some of the teams who had lesser records in 2007. So, the teams that I'm questioning did not do as well as the Red Tornadoes nor do they have as many starters returning. So what's the deal?

The first thing you have to remember about the pre-season Baker's Dozen is that it is the only time when the rankings are not based on a "power" formula. The real Baker's Dozen is the product of a remarkably accurate power-ranking system devised and scrupulously guarded by Arnold Solomon, the creator of NCPreps. Those rankings won't come out until the season is underway. The pre-season Dozen, however, is a coaches poll that is derived from responses to information-gathering questionaires that go out each year to all of the state's coaches. So maybe it's asking too much for coaches in Manteo and Whalebone Junction to keep Hickory in mind when from their point of view Raleigh is considered "way out west."

It's more interesting to examine the teams that did make the Dozen, some of whom might surprise the average fan. So now I will take a quick look at each of the teams in the 3A Baker's Dozen.

Rocky Mount is an old cotton and tobacco center located in eastern North Carolina. The town derives its name from the rocky mound located at the falls of the Tar River. It is the home of the top-ranked Rocky Mount Gryphons. I have no problem with the Gryphons being ranked #1. The champions of the New 6 Conference, the Gryphons rolled to a 14-0 record last season before falling to the eventual 3A champion, Western Alamance. The Gryphons return 16 starters from that squad and the consensus around the state is that this should be Rocky Mount's year.

To accomplish their goal of winning a state title the Gryphons will have to find a way to get past the 2007 Class 3A champ, #2-ranked Western Alamance. The Warriors have won four consecutive East Region titles and finally finished the drill by crushing North Gaston in the 2007 finals. The three previous trips to the championship game had all ended in frustration for the Warriors. Western lost a ton of talent off last year's juggernaut but head coach Hal Capps is one of the best in the state in any classification and nobody runs the spread offense like the Warriors. Most importantly, nobody has a quarterback as good as senior superstar Donald Britt. The 2008 East Region final could easily be a rematch between Rocky Mount and Western Alamance.

Coming in at #3 are the Cougars of Charlotte Catholic. The Cougars have won four consecutive West Region titles and a couple of state titles (2004 and 2005). The amazing thing about Catholic's recent run of success is that in 2004 the Cougars won the 2AA state title and then, the very next year, moved up in classification and still wound up winning the 3AA title. Both of those championship squads finished with 16-0 records. Like Western Alamance (the team that Catholic defeated for the title in 2005) the Cougars lost several key players to graduation but do boast a bluechipper in tight end Tucker Windle. More importantly Catholic has the benefit of head coach Jim Oddo's decades of experience to build on. There are two excellent head coaches in the Queen City. Tommy Knotts of Independence is one and Jim Oddo is the other. As long as Oddo's machine is cranking properly the Cougars will always be standing in the way of other teams' state title hopes. Just ask Kannapolis. The Wonders have been eliminated three years in a row by the Cougars. It remains to be seen if Hickory will get a shot at redemption against Catholic this season.

The #4 team in the poll is Dudley, the team that defeated Catholic in the 3AA finals last season. The remarkable thing about the Panthers is that although they won the 3AA state title they finished the regular season third in their conference. That's because they play in the dreaded Triad Conference, home of Western Alamance and also Northeast Guilford (more about them later). You have to love high school football when a team can be the best in the state...yet not even second-best in its own conference. Playing in such a tough conference helps the Panthers in a power poll but it can also put some checkmarks in the loss column. In the end, however, it might not make a difference. The Panthers proved that records can be deceiving.

The Red Raiders of South Point come in at #5 in the poll. It's not often you see the wishbone anymore but the Raiders think the "redbone" (their word for it) is great and they're sticking with it. It certainly served them well in 2003 when they ran wild on the rest of the competition enroute to the 3A state title. The defending champ of the Big South Conference, South Point has eight starters back on offense (13 starters in all) and is making noises reminiscent of the 2003 pre-season. It's difficult for teams who aren't familiar with triple-option football to prepare for it in a week, so that will almost always work to South Point's advantage. If their defense comes together effectively then the Red Raiders could definitely make a run for the title. But first they'll have to make a run for the border in the season opener when they cross the line to tangle with the Clover Blue Eagles. Clover is the defending Class 4A Div. II champions of South Carolina. I'll go ahead and dub it the Garnet & Gold Report's Carolinas game of the week. How does that sound?

I have no problem with the top five teams in the poll. They have all proven themselves in the past and should be very strong in '08. But after South Point things become problematic.

Hertford Co. is ranked #6. Like Hickory the Hertford Bears play in a mixed 3A/2A conference. But unlike the Tornadoes, the Bears only tied for second place in the Northeastern Coastal Conference with Currituck Co. The conference champion was Bertie Co. Yes, Hertford did slap a hurtin' on Parkland and Southern Durham to start the 2007 season but got crushed by Rocky Mount and Bertie Co. as well as getting knocked off by a sub-.500 Pasquotank squad. Hertford was eliminated in the second round of the 3A playoffs by Western Alamance. Yes, head coach Diego Hasty does welcome back 17 starters from last year's 9-4 team but I really don't think they belong in the top six in the state. They can prove me wrong by winning on the road at Southern Durham, Rocky Mount, Currituck and Bertie. Good luck with that.

Winston-Salem is represented in the 3A polls by the Carver Yellow Jackets. In 2007 Jackets built a 12-game winning streak between a season-opening loss to Dudley and a playoff defeat at the hands of the Asheville Cougars. Carver reps the Piedmont Triad Conference and was the only team to beat fellow conference member Glenn during the regular season. Coach Brent David's Jackets run the Wing-T and do it effectively. They return eight starters from last year's offense and five more on the defensive side of the ball. They should be primed to make a deep run in the 3A playoffs one last time before shifting down to Class 2A in 2009. The Piedmont Triad Conference has been a slaughterhouse in previous seasons but 2007 was a different story. Carver and Glenn were the only teams in the league with winning records. Parkland and T.W. Andrews will have to get much better if they are to help Carver's power ranking.

At #8 is Kannapolis, aka Wonderland. The Wonders boast one of the state's top running backs in Artrele Louis and a ton of tradition. Louis is one of 12 starters returning for head coach Ron Massey and the Wonders are expected to battle the Anson Co. Bearcats for the South Piedmont Conference championship, which they shared last season. The schedule is not particularly helpful to the K-Town squad this season as the Wonders must play at Mooresville, Anson Co. and Concord. But when all is said and done the real question is this: Can they get over the major hump that Catholic represents in the playoffs? I get the feeling that Round 4 of that scuffle is on tap in 2008. It's been a decade since the incomparable Nick Maddox led the Wonders to a state title. The folks in Kannapolis think that it's been too long. We'll just have to see about that.

Northeast Guilford comes in at #9 and the Rams from McLeansville are the third team from the Triad Conference to make the Dozen. Northeast defeated Dudley in the regular season but fell in a 2nd-round playoff rematch with the Panthers. The victory over Dudley was the highlight of Northeast's season, which ended with a 10-3 record. This season they'll have six returning starters to crank up the ol' "wingbone" offense (their terminology) and another seven coming back on the defensive side. I don't think Northeast is really a top nine team but there is value in playing tough opponents when it comes to power rankings. Then again the Rams aren't known for great consistency and rarely put back-to-back great seasons together. Don't be surprised to see them finish with a 7-5 or 6-6 record.

At #10 are the Vikings of White Oak High School in Jacksonville. I don't agree with this one at all. The Vikings return only 11 starters from a 6-6 team. There are several strong teams from the Jacksonville area in different classifications (particularly Class 2A) but White Oak is definitely not a threat in football. Now if you want to talk soccer then...well, you know. So I really have no clue as to what this is all about. As a member of the Mideastern Conference the Vikings have to deal with the defending Class 4A champions from Wilmington's Hoggard High. I'll predict that White Oak makes the playoffs again but that's about it.

At #11 is Southwest Edgecombe. Now what is wrong with this pick you ask? Well, it is the second team from Edgecombe County to make the Dozen. The other one is Rocky Mount. I'm sorry but I don't believe that there is enough talent in the greater Pinetops metropolitan area or history to support Southwest Edgecombe's inclusion here. They were pretty good last year (3-2 in the conference and 8-3 overall) but they only have 10 returning starters. I seem to recall that there was similar hype swirling around them this time last year. I'm not seeing it, though. The Cougars finished 3rd in their conference and that's about where I think they'll finish this season, too. That does not make them a good candidate for a #11 ranking.

J.F. Webb is the #12 team and is a perfect example of the problem with these kinds of polls. Yes, the boys from Oxford did have a great season last year (11-4) before losing to Dudley in the 3AA East Region championship. But it was a special year for the Warriors, not a typical one. There is no way they will come close to duplicating their success from last year. They certainly don't have the kind of record that Hickory has built over the past 13 or so seasons. This one was strictly due to the memory of a good record in 2007 and a good showing against eventual champ Dudley in the playoffs. This will probably be the last time we see them ranked.

Last and perhaps least is the #13 team, Eastern Alamance. First of all, there are too many other great 3A teams around the state that could and should be ranked in the Dozen. The Eagles of Eastern Alamance have had a couple of strong years. In 2006 they were very good. But before that they were downright awful. Head coach John Kirby welcomes back only nine starters from last year's 9-3 team that finished in a three-way tie for the Mid State Conference crown along with J.F. Webb and South Granville. They will learn a lot about themselves immediately when they face cross-county rival Western Alamance in the first game of the season. There is already tremendous excitement building for the matchup. Look for standing room only at Western when the Eagles bring their version of the spread on August 22nd. Other major games on the schedule include rumbles with Cummings and Williams from Burlington (the latter on the road) in addition to visits by South Granville and J.F. Webb. Is #13 unlucky for the Eagles? Maybe...

Notably absent from the Dozen in addition to Hickory are Asheville, Glenn, T.C. Roberson, Anson Co. and West Rowan. I'm not sure why there is such a distinct East Region bias since it's the West Region of Class 3A that has tended to dominate the state over the years. Perhaps it's because for the first time in a long time the East teams swept the state championship games. Of course other than the championship games there is almost no head-to-head competition between teams from the East and West. North Carolina is one of the few states I can think of where there is literally no on-field interaction between teams from opposite ends of the state. Gas prices will ensure that this remains the case. I would love to see more games between the two regions but I'm not holding my breath.

Afterall, this is all just conversation.

Pre-Season Baker's Dozen by Classification

Class 4A
1. Independence
2. Hoggard
3. New Bern
4. Jack Britt
5. Butler
6. Rose
7. Mount Tabor
8. Richmond Co.
9. A.C. Reynolds
10. Garner
11. Millbrook
12. Southern Durham
13. Wake Forest-Rolesville

Class 3A
1. Rocky Mount
2. Western Alamance
3. Catholic
4. Dudley
5. South Point
6. Hertford Co.
7. Carver
8. Kannapolis
9. Northeast Guilford
10. White Oak
11. Southwest Edgecombe
12. J.F. Webb
13. Eastern Alamance

Class 2A
1. Shelby
2. Reidsville
3. Cummings
4. Northside
5. South Columbus
6. Southwest Onslow
7. Bunn
8. Southern Vance
9. Clinton
10. Lincolnton
11. Hibriten
12. Pisgah
13. Wilkes Central

Class 1A
1. James Kenan
2. Thomasville
3. West Montgomery
4. Albemarle
5. Mount Airy
6. Louisburg
7. Plymouth
8. Wallace-Rose Hill
9. Williamston
10. Murphy
11. Hendersonville
12. Jordan-Matthews
13. South Stanly

Back for more!

Hickory returns five defensive players who were selected first-team All-CVAC in 2007. You will be hearing their names even more this year. And here they are...

All about the skill positions

After watching another couple of practices I just can't help but be excited about the talent and depth at the all skill positions.

Everybody knows about the returning starters, quarterback Kevin Shelton and split end Trevin Parks. As a passer, Shelton's final stats in 2007 are second only to Tim Swanson's in 1998 for underclassmen. As I've stated before I believe that he could easily eclipse the 2,000-yard mark this season if given a chance. That would be something no Tornado quarterback has ever accomplished in the traditional run-oriented sets that Hickory uses. Shelton has the size and arm strength to play on the next level.

Parks is a returning All-CVAC performer at both split end and cornerback. The rockstar of the basketball team (he's the point guard for those unfamiliar with Tornado basketball), Parks is a savvy player who was the homerun threat for Hickory last season. His running mate, senior David Dula, is also an All-CVAC cornerback who functions as the 3rd-team quarterback and all-around utility player. He can be effective as a thrower, runner or receiver. Dula will always be a hero in my book simply for the game-winning touchdown bomb he threw in 2006 to beat the Hibriten JV up in Lenoir. It was a thing of beauty. Parks and Dula are without a doubt two of the team's fastest players. And they are good communicators.

Other returning lettermen among the receivers are seniors Step Banner, Reggie Robinson and Brad Ansley. Jaquan Wilson, a junior, adds quality depth at split end. D.J. Holloway, also a junior, should dominate at tight end, combining excellent size with good hands.

The 2nd-team quarterback is talented junior Tyler Barnette, who in 2007 joined the small but growing fraternity of Tornado JV quarterbacks who have led their squads to 10-0 records in recent years. The other members of the club are Chris Rogers (2001), Patrick Shelton (2003), Michael Cook (2004), Jordan Wilson (2005) and Kevin Shelton (2006). Barnette, who is also a top pitcher for Coach David Craft's Diamond Tornadoes, is a great athlete and a tough competitor. He is so tough that a collarbone injury early in the pre-season last year barely slowed him down. He missed only one game.

While he waits his turn to get under center Barnette will probably be a starter at outside linebacker. This is reminiscent of Chris Rogers who started at strong safety his junior year while backing up Cole Kenworthy at quarterback in 2002. Rogers, who went on to play at Furman, started at quarterback for Hickory in 2003 and led the Tornadoes to a 10-3 record.

Yet another key member of the skills team is senior Mikey Shook who can simply and accurately be described as a football player. An All-CVAC selection last year at safety he will see extended duty on both sides of the ball this season. The player who saved the day with his interception against Bandys in overtime last season sucks up whatever footballs are thrown in his vicinity - whether by his quarterback or theirs! He is one of those tough-as-nails kids who will fool you with his size and speed and then flat-out take care of business. Look for the offensive coaches to invent new ways to get him the ball.

I have also touted the abilities of senior fullback Rakim Barrett. In limited action (playing behind current Tennessee Volunteer Bruiser Johnson) all Barrett did was to rack up 504 yards and 5 touchdowns on 52 carries. That's a healthy 9.6 yards per carry, which led the CVAC. For the record, Darrien Burch led the conference in total yards with 2,208 on 237 carries for an average of 9.3.

As the off-season has progressed into the pre-season future stars have emerged. Junior Anthony Wilson was half of a potent 1-2 punch in the JV receiving corps last season and has performed well during the summer 7-on-7s. The other half of the tandem, junior Fearious Anderson, has a lot of upside to him. He is one of those tall receivers I mentioned last week. Wilson and Anderson are also good on the defensive side of the ball.

There have been a couple of pleasant surprises this pre-season, namely the emergence of junior Jason Hill as a strong candidate for tailback or wingback. According to the most recent 40 times turned in he may be the fastest of the fast for Hickory. He is also a good receiver. Another newcomer who was impressive in middle school but did not play football for Hickory last year is Montavious Sims, another of the tall, lanky receivers that I think are so important to an offense. It will be tough for CVAC cornerbacks to deal with the likes of Fearious Anderson and Montavious Sims simply because of their height and reach.

There is also a ton of talent at the tailback position. The first option is senior Kyshell Geter who has gotten better and better each year. He had many shining moments last season but perhaps the most memorable was his performance in the crucial game at Hibriten. With Burch suspended for the game Geter stepped in and rushed for 168 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries (7.3 yards per carry) to help lead the Tornadoes to an impressive 28-7 victory. For the season he accumulated 612 yards and three touchdowns on 95 carries (6.4 yards per carry).

Geter has also been playing well on defense and may spend more time on that side of the ball in 2008. How can the Red Tornadoes afford to move him to defense? Depth and talent. The JV had a quartet of talented running backs in 2007: Marcus Mayfield, Tyree Rhinehardt, T.J. Wimbush and Tyshon Chisholm. Look for at least one or two of them to make the varsity in 2008 and see extensive playing time. In the end we may see more of a "committee" approach to the tailback spot this season. There is no doubt that Hickory has the players to fill the hole left by Darrien Burch's graduation. It will be exciting to see how it all plays out.

And so it begins...

The Red Tornadoes opened their 2008 preseason with 99 players on the practice field promptly at 6:00 Friday evening. The anticipation level is particularly high this August due to a significant number of returning starters from last year's 13-1 campaign that brought Hickory its second CVAC title in the conference's brief history.

Although Friday's practice marked the official beginning of preseason preparation the Red Tornadoes have been typically active this summer. The numbers in the weight room have been strong and consistent. As I reported a few weeks ago the Red Tornadoes did well in the 7-on-7 competition at Lenoir-Rhyne. They also did well in a 7-on-7 against West Iredell on Wednesday. But now is the time for all the pieces of the puzzle to come together - and quickly.

One of the most important concepts that the coaching staff is constantly working to impress upon the players is the need for speed. Not just footspeed from the skill players but an overall accelerated movement: from station to station, to and from the sideline, into and out of the huddle and up to the line... The key is to keep the tempo lively. The defense will have to read and react and get to the ballcarrier with speed and violence. This is what preseason work is all about. Honing the fundamentals and making it automatic - and thereby faster.

There is also a need for the mostly new offensive line to gel into a cohesive, machine-like unit. Senior left tackle Dalton Abee is the only returning starter. And the forging of a new offensive line can't happen fast enough because in two weeks the Red Tornadoes will board their chartered buses and travel deep into the mountains to face Knoxville Fulton, the best 3A team in Tennessee. If you have watched the videos from the Falcons' 2006 state championship run then you have an idea what they're all about. More on the Border Bash II in days to come.

Early indications are that Abee will be joined on the line by fellow seniors Clay Johnson at right tackle, Triston Smith at right guard, Darrin Willis at center and junior Alex Martin at left guard. But of course the preseason is all about players winning and losing their starting positions so there could very well be some drastic changes in the coming two weeks. As Coach Worley is fond of saying, it all starts with the offensive line. Last year's group was ridiculously undersized but was extremely experienced, quick and dedicated. This year's line, whatever the final combination, will have much more size. The key will be how quickly they can overcome their relative inexperience. That's definitely something that will be closely monitored.

The other glaring hole in the Tornado starting lineup is at the inside linebacker positions. This time last year Bruiser Johnson was one of only two returning starters. Now the defense, overall, is in a much stronger position despite the graduation of Johnson and his fellow insider, Daniel Wakin. One of the players counted on to fill the void this season is no longer attending Hickory High while yet another contender for the inside is waiting to see if he will be academically eligible. Junior Drew Siciliano will most likely fill one slot. The other spot might go to a sophomore. That is still to be determined so I won't even speculate on here about it just yet. Stay tuned for more on that.

Let me take this opportunity to remind all readers that unless I specify that Coach Worley has informed me directly about an issue you should understand that these are simply my observations from the sideline. There will never be a need to go to Coach Worley and ask him if something that I've blogged is the "truth." I will let you know when Coach Worley has confirmed information for me. Otherwise it is merely my own educated but unofficial observations.

I will wait until next week to discuss other aspects of the offense and defense. I will mention, however, that the offense if blessed with probably the largest number of quality receivers Hickory has ever had. During the championship years of the 1990s Hickory utilized several talented and tall receivers: Ty Hunt and Jovan Hoover, Tyrek Holmes and Menyel Flowers, Jeremy Sherrill, Keith Connor and Lance Johnson. Later there was Roddy Long, Will Baker and Brent Johnson. The 2008 Red Tornadoes once again have multiple tall receivers who will present match-up problems for opposing secondaries. The new tall Tornadoes include underclassmen Fearious Anderson and Montavious Sims. The tight ends also have good height.

But not all of Hickory's best receivers over the past 12 years or so have been tall. Johnnie Dillingham, for instance, was a mighty mite who sucked up any ball that was remotely in his area. Hickory's most experienced receivers are not necessarily very tall (senior Mikey Shook is a tweener, I'd say) but are fast and sure-handed. These include senior Trevin Parks and Step Banner along with junior Anthony Wilson. The bottomline here is that Hickory is loaded at wide receiver and wingback and has an experienced, strong-armed quarterback who can get them the ball. Everybody knows that Hickory can roll up big numbers on the ground. But if Hickory really commits to using the pass as a weapon rather than merely a defense-stretching diversion then fans will witness the kind of balanced attack that the opposition will be hard-pressed to contain, let alone stop. That's good stuff!

HHS Alumni Update #2: RASHAUD MUNGRO

Former Red Tornado star Rashaud Mungro (Class of '04) has been named the Spotlight Athlete of the Week by the official Eastern Kentucky athletics website. Mungro (6'5" 278) is a 5th-year senior for the Colonels and will be fighting for a starting position on the offensive line in pre-season practice after a couple of years as a backup. The Colonels swept the Ohio Valley Conference in 2007 with an 8-0 record before falling to Richmond in the first round of the FCS playoffs. Richmond was eventually ousted by Appalachian State.

Rashaud was asked five random questions including this one: "Five years from now, I will remember this from my EKU football experience..."

Rashaud answered this way: "Change is good. Most people get worried and doubtful when change happens, but I think that it always works out for the best."

One example of change for Rashaud and the Colonels was the loss of head coach Danny Hope in the off-season. Hope left to join the staff at Purdue as the offensive line coach. Current Purdue skipper Joe Tiller will retire after the 2008 season and has named Hope as his successor.

According to Rashaud's roster bio he had a solid off-season this past spring and his coaches expect big things from him in fall camp. Rashaud has the ability to compete for playing time at both guard and tackle in 2008.

Rashaud was a 2-time All-Conference player in high school and helped lead the Tornadoes to a 10-3 record in his senior season.

Tornado Warning!!

Tradition Never Graduates

We are just days away from the start of pre-season practice. On August 29th the Red Tornadoes will kickoff Hickory High's 86th football season with a trip to Statesville. The clash with the Greyhounds will be the 46th meeting between the two schools in one of North Carolina's oldest high school rivalries. The series dates back to 1924.

With this in mind I encourage everybody to check out the Tornado History page on TornadoPride.com because it has grown into an absorbing visual record of Hickory's long athletic history. Hickory alumnus Bob Duckworth, a longtime supporter of Red Tornado athletics, has done an outstanding job of gathering and scanning all the photographs you will see on the History page. And, of course, it is my pleasure to provide the forum with which to make these treasures accessible to all visitors to the site.

One of my original motivations for creating TornadoPride.com in 2002 was to make current Red Tornadoes aware of the long-standing tradition to which they contribute when they put on the garnet and gold colors of Hickory High. I felt at the time that not enough was being done to "bring to life" Hickory High's sports tradition and make it real for the players and fans. It's an ongoing process which, fortunately, is my great hobby and passion.

On the Tornado History page you will also see some photographs from the days of Ridgeview High School, which was the traditional African-American high school in Hickory prior to integration. Gathering additional information and pictorial mementos from Ridgeview's impressive sports history is also an ongoing process to which I look forward as time goes by. The grandchildren and great-grandchildren of Ridgeview's Panthers now proudly wear the colors of Hickory High but they are also heirs to a tradition that produced the likes of Coach Samuel W. Davis, Sr.

Coach Davis was the longtime Panther football and basketball coach as well as Ridgeview's athletic director. He did it all for many years. His Panther football teams in the 1950s and 1960s still hold the North Carolina records for consecutive regular-season wins (74, from 1957-1965) and consecutive shutouts (14, from 1964-1965). His 1964 Panthers had the ultimate perfect season, compiling a 12-0 record and outscoring the opposition by 446-0. That's right...unbeaten and unscored upon. Did Zero Bars exist back then?

Just two years later the Red Tornadoes and Panthers were finally united into one single football juggernaut that also went 12-0 and won a state championship. I'd love to see a movie called Remember the Tornadoes of 1966!

Learning more about Hickory High's football traditions will introduce you to men like Carl "Willie" Wakefield.

Wakefield was once described as a hustler of the "rock 'em, sock 'em" type and was a terrific lineman for the Lenoir-Rhyne Bears back in the late 1940s. He was a standout on the undefeated Red Tornado squad of 1943 that won the Western Conference championship.


After his high school playing days were over Wakefield's life took a fascinating but not unfamiliar turn for kids of his generation. The world was at war and like so many others Wakefield joined the military. He signed up with the Air Corps, ending up in Okinawa. He survived the fighting and at war's end a service football league was organized on the island. Wakefield was a key member of a team known as the "Okinawa Flyboys." The Flyboys eventually won the South Pacific Air Force championship.

Wakefield returned to Hickory and entered Lenoir-Rhyne in 1947 on the GI Bill and, of course, continued to play football. He earned a letter his first season as a 2nd-string guard. The 1st-stringer ahead of him was a senior and fellow war veteran by the name of Frank Barger. Wakefield became a starter himself on Clarence Stasavich's 1948 and 1949 Bear teams.

This is just a small sample of Hickory's football tradition. Like they say, it never graduates.

It's that time of year again...