Queen City Classic

[Red White and True]

There wasn’t much excitement from any of the 3 Teams at Greenway Ave Stadium today. Substitutions were massive for FH every 5 plays. It appears that 3-5 positions are still up for grabs on the OL. The backfield looks to be set. The starting Def looked pretty good, but they were subbed out very quickly.

At times, a team would really get it going on Offense/Defense, but it was when their 1st Team was playing the others 2nd or 3rd Team.

What are the takeaways for FH? 26 is a great S, 1 is a great DL, 22 has some burst, there’s not a lot of difference between the 1st group and 2nd group on Offense, all the OL positions are up for grabs and the passing game will continue to be Sprint-Out/Waggle or Quick Pop

 

[TDHelmick]

Tuscarora dropped out of the scrimmage and gave 48 hours notice saying they had too many kids banged up. Westminster almost bailed for the same reason, drove to Cumberland, ran two offensive and two defensive series and then said they had enough. Mervo drove all the way from Baltimore and was upset they only got three offensive and three defensive series.

To all coaches in Maryland...football is a contact sport. I have never seen it this bad. Coaches scared to death. Football is going to die, already half way there based on fear. But I usually find those coaches and teams never fare well on the scoreboard because YES football is a contact sport. We will see at season's end I guess.

 

[Red White and True]

That insight was helpful. It was the strangest scrimmage I’d ever seen. I even told my buddy that FH would have been better off having a Red-White scrimmage, because it looked like nobody wanted to be there.

By the way, the Westminster coaches should be embarrassed by the actions of their QB on that interception. For a team worried about injuries; his cheap shot was one of the most blatant cheap shots I’ve ever seen. He speared a standing Mervo kid right in the back with a 10 yard sprint. I’m glad that kid wasn’t hurt, because it could’ve gotten ugly with both teams sharing a sideline.

 

[Lagmeister]

Tuscarora dropped out of the scrimmage and gave 48 hours notice saying they had too many kids banged up. Westminster almost bailed for the same reason, drove to Cumberland, ran two offensive and two defensive series and then said they had enough. Mervo drove all the way from Baltimore and was upset they only got three offensive and three defensive series.

To all coaches in Maryland...football is a contact sport. I have never seen it this bad. Coaches scared to death. Football is going to die, already half way there based on fear. But I usually find those coaches and teams never fare well on the scoreboard because YES football is a contact sport. We will see at season's end I guess.

At all levels, we change the rules and extend the season with some kind of projected benefit.

Consider the rule changes at the game's highest level. The NFL no-lowering-the-helmet rule for tackling. In theory, it sounds like a great rule. In practice, I have seen perfectly good shoulder pad tackles get a flag and cost an eventual touchdown. (Possibly, it may increase injuries from more passes down the middle of the field: if you don't complete it, great chance for a flag.) Consider too, this current rule change is not affecting the overall number of injuries so far this NFL preseason.

I have always thought that you need a short season with enough players. Roster caps for the NFL are a joke: it only helps the bottom line for the owners while screwing the players and the fans. For high school.... well, I have always felt that the playoffs extend the season too long.

Is it no wonder why coaches would limit scrimmages when they plan for these longer extended seasons. Every well meaning change always brings unintended consequences.

 

[foreverredandwhite1]

Tuscarora dropped out of the scrimmage and gave 48 hours notice saying they had too many kids banged up. Westminster almost bailed for the same reason, drove to Cumberland, ran two offensive and two defensive series and then said they had enough. Mervo drove all the way from Baltimore and was upset they only got three offensive and three defensive series.

To all coaches in Maryland...football is a contact sport. I have never seen it this bad. Coaches scared to death. Football is going to die, already half way there based on fear. But I usually find those coaches and teams never fare well on the scoreboard because YES football is a contact sport. We will see at season's end I guess.

So there's the one side that is basing everything on fear, and you are saying leave things the way they are, I think. Correct me I'm wrong. If I'm right, then as an idea guy who has a lot of insight do you think both sides should stand their ground or are you willing to compromise or give in on some issues that you don't want to in order to save the sport?

 

[bleedred]

Todd, I understand your frustration but sometimes there are things that you can't control. Tuscarora, usually pretty reliable, didn't come due to injuries. Westminster left early, due to injuries. Coaches do what they feel is best for their teams, no one else can or should control that. I feel that you and I are on the same page when it comes to scrimmages.. If you have a starter that's banged up, rest him and turn the scrimmage into an opportunity to look at other kids in a game type situation. I noticed that both Fort Hill and Mervo played everyone who was dressed, There was a small boy on there sideline, about 3 years old, running around with a helmet on. For a minute, I thought that he was going to get some PT until his mom got to him! Anyway, it is what it is and you just have to make the best of it. I would like to see Mervo come back again. The coaches impressed me, like Todd, their head coach was watching from the top of the stands and calling for the substitutions to be made.

As far as how FH looked, I was happy with what I saw. The O line doesn't look overly huge, they are tall, but they look fit. I felt that they did well. There may be a few twos that could move up to a starting position. (At one point, FH had one Jr and four Sophs on the line. They held there own, but in years to come, they will be a strength.) The backfield looked good, but they are missing that game breaker that they've had in recent years. The passing game needs some work, I think that FH only threw about four or five passes the whole scrimmage.

FH's defense played fast. The best thing that I saw was that pass coverage was very good. This is going to be a strength for this team. Again, they aren't overly huge but they are tall and fit. Again, Todd played a lot of people.

Overall, I like this team. They have a good combination of exceptional special teams, an impressive defense, and an offense that will live off of grinding out drives. There wont be many running clocks this year, but there should be a lot of good football. The first four games will force this young team to grow up fast. (1-3 or 2-2 would not shock me.)