Old fashion football

[ddavis]

Axe N Shield : That Green victory last year was probably the greatest comeback victory I was ever involved in. I think we just wore them down. The first three quarters we couldn't do much but in the fourth quarter we couldn't be stopped. Another check for power football. You wear your opponents defense down. That game was a prime example. It wouldn't be fair if I didn't mention my most heartbreaking comeback loss. It was in the eighties and we were playing Huntington of Ross County. We were up at half by 18 points. Rick Messer got thrown out of the game for something and they came back in the second half and won. I was a jerk to the opposing coach after that game and always regretted that behavior.

[ddavis]

I'm still losing half the things I write but I guess I'm getting writing practice. To answer someones question about the double wing I would have to say I learned the most from Hugh Wyatt. Coach Calande has a good sight to check out. His warroom is interesting. Tim Murphy at Clovis East in California has a lot of stuff. Murphy may have switched schools but I'm not sure. There is a symposium in Texas every year but I didn't get much use out of the stuff on those dvd's. Wyatt gives a lot of credit to Don Marcum but I really havn't studied his stuff much. The offense fits my philosophy. I always had trouble with blitzing linebackers and it takes that away. It's easy to learn which goes back to if you know what to do you can be aggressive. It creates some nice cutback lanes. Hoover exploited that alot. It's fun for linemen and backs. The main thing is it's something totally different and that means our opponents have one week to prepare for us and it's hard to do. Our defense isn't bad either so I think that really puts our opponents between a rock and a hard place.

[battlecats]

The worst East loss in the past 5 years or so I would say would be at Prestonsburg in 2002. East was 3-0 and beating teams by atleast 28 points per game. The score wasnt horrible I dont think but the injuries to East in that game I believe stopped us from winning 8 or 9 games and winning the SOC. We were beating Valley with 10 starting positions injured and alot of freshman playing. That team had alot of talent but there for a few years East seemed to always have a good 11 on the field but there was always a big drop after that.

[california kid]

Axe N Shield : That Green victory last year was probably the greatest comeback victory I was ever involved in. I think we just wore them down. The first three quarters we couldn't do much but in the fourth quarter we couldn't be stopped. Another check for power football. You wear your opponents defense down. That game was a prime example. It wouldn't be fair if I didn't mention my most heartbreaking comeback loss. It was in the eighties and we were playing Huntington of Ross County. We were up at half by 18 points. Rick Messer got thrown out of the game for something and they came back in the second half and won. I was a jerk to the opposing coach after that game and always regretted that behavior.

a very hard hitting soc battle in the mud both teams running the ball everyplay most heartbreaking loss in my career there was of so much on the line

[california kid]

ddavis, it is very interesting hearing your stories and football knowledge i hope you keep telling us stuff

[ddavis]

Prestonburg............some people have no heart. Family duty now but I'll be back

[RogueWarrior1965]

One thing East has always been able to do is hit hard. Anyone beg to differ? I agree with Coach, if you teach a passive offense, you aren't as aggressive on defense. Even when we played the bigger schools, East typically still had one of the better defenses in the area. In 83, I think we gave up around 140-150 yards and 6 points per game. Our offense rushed for probably 220 per game and we passed for an amazing 20+ yards per game. Of course, there was no need to pass most of the time, especially when we were driving the ball down most team's throats. Tim Love was our #1 back and he averaged around 7.5 yards per carry. I am pretty sure he lead the area in rushing that year and East had the best record in the area at 8-2.

Back to hitting and defense....I/We think/thought we were hitting pretty hard as a team, but Coach D didn't think we were....apparently....because he suited up in full pads and came down to practice to show us how to hit one day. Boy, do I remember that day. I think every team we played after that paid the price for that day! :-) Keep in mind, he would have been what Coach, about 28 or 29 years old? Young, quick, and hit like a truck!

[ddavis]

Prestonsburg! Well, I thought I did my homework before we signed that game. I remember West had played someone the year before that had played Prestonsburg. To make a long story short my comparative score analysis was flawed. They were a Dandy team. Big, strong, fast and mean. They ended up playing in the Kentucky state championshio game in their division which would have been at least two divisions higher than us. They lost that championship game but their quarterback missed the game due to injury. They may be the best team I ever coached against. We started out great that season. It was the first time we used the double wing and we were cookin'. We beat Southeastern in a scrimmage and they went to the playoffs that year and had a super season. Jon Stapleton and Matt Brown were both injured for the season and several other players were hurt. By the third quarter we couldn't find anybody that wanted to go in when someone went down. We lost so many players that game that we didn't have enough backs left to run the double wing so we shelved it for a while.

Rogue Warrior I'm going to have to gag you. I'm probably going to have former players coming out of the woodwork to sue me. The thing that I used to try to teach is that hitting is leverage. Bend your knees, get under your opponent and deliver a forearm or the hit as you extend your body. I wasn't all that big as a high school player but I learned if I used leverage I could stand up to anyone. I've always tried to pass that on to my players. When you were playing I stayed in pretty shape plus, as you said, I was young. For many years I lifted with the boys. I finally destroyed my knees by doing so many heavy squats. Years and years worth. My knees are now bone on bone. Dr. Trinidad wants me to wait until I can't stand it anymore before I have knee replacements since I'm so young. How do you like that? I can remember that ten or so years after your group graduated I sprinted against I think Dustin Paxton. He burned me and stated how slow I was. By that time my legs were gone. I can remember thinking I've run in two state track meets and placed and you call me slow. What could I say? All he saw was an old man that couldn't run. Coach Dunham who's a little older but had better knees gave him a good race. Talking about running let me throw this out at you guys. My junior and senior years in high school I ran on a mile relay team (1600 meter relay for you young pups) that placed fifth my junior year and seventh our senior year. Our time was something like 3:31 in yards which converts to what in meters 3:29 or so. Anyway, remember this was class "A " at the time. Springs of 1971 and 1972. The football related part of this is that the four of us on this relay were a center, two guards and an end. Jeff Walburn was the center, Bennie Hall and I were guards and Jim Roney was an end. I always thought that was neat. Snuffy Smith was our football and track coach and we ran a lot of sweeps. I wonder why? My last thought. Most everyone knows Coach Smith. A wonderful,wonderful man who there happens to be a lot of funny stories about. Well, I can remember one practice Coach Smith was playing quarterback with the first offense. Remember the center and both guards were very close friends and we all played football, lifted weights and ran track so we were always together. Snuff bent over and put his hands deep under the center and Walburn (the center) farted. Needless to say the whole team rolled. We couldn't stop laughing. Every time Coach tried to get under center one of us would make that dreaded sound and it all started again. Finally, he got fed up with us and sent us to the showers. I'm sure we didn't do that again but that day was the most I ever laughed at a football practice. I've always been careful about getting under center as a coach.

[ddavis]

Rogue Warrior we have always taken pride in our hitting. We scrimmaged Westfall several years when Keith Downing was head coach because he liked the physical test we gave them. They basically outgrew us and we couldn't keep giving them the competition they wanted. I had a short period where I didn't have those naturally tough kids with a chip on their shoulder but I'm proud to say they're back. Aggressiveness also come from preparation. I think this was something I talked about on one of the post I lost before submitted so if I repeat myself please forgive. My mother and grandmother had dimentia so chances are..... There's an old saying in football that you can't be confused and aggressive. I think one of the things we do well is prepare our team for what they are going to see. We spend a lot of time on play recognition. Down, distance and formation. A good question to ask each player on defense is what can hurt you in that formation? If a defensive end knows that the only play a team runs to his side when he's on the weak side is a counter then as soon as he sees play flow away he should be gearing up for a kick out block. I compare an offense to sign language. Your key will tell you what they are going to do. Fullback leads, guard pulls, tackle blocks down. These are alll things that tell you where the ball is going. Spread offenses where teams run the dart can be handled the same way as you handle option teams. Assignment football. You have quarterback and you have back. Again, it's the coaches responsibility to have his team prepared well enough so they can be aggressive. I did not do a good job against Mechanicsburg. I had our team more prepared for the pass and they ran. As the bumper sticker on Forrest Gump said, "poop happens".

[YOU'RE TIGER BAIT]

COACH D.DAVIS I'VE BEEN HEARING SOME OF WHATS GOING ON FROM A COUPLE DEAR FRIENDS. IT SURELY SEEMS AS IF YOU ARE BEING RAILROADED, LET ME BE THE FIRST FROM KITTS HILL TO TELL YOU, I THINK YOU ARE DOING A GREAT JOB AT EAST. I HOPE THINGS WORK OUT FOR YOU. I HAD A SIMILIAR SITUATION HAPPEN TO ME WHEN I COACHED. HANG IN THERE. AND YOU MENTIONED TIM MURPHy, IS THIS THE SAME GUY THAT COACHED THE CINCINNATI BEARCATS YEARS AGO, WE ARE BUDS, BUT I DID NOT KNOW WHERE HE WENT AFTER HE LEFT CUNCY, I THOUGHT HE WENT TO AN IVY LEAGUE SCHOOL. WE JUST LOST TOUCH WITH EACH OTHER. GOD BE WITH YOU YTB.

[RogueWarrior1965]

Rogue Warrior I'm going to have to gag you. I'm probably going to have former players coming out of the woodwork to sue me. The thing that I used to try to teach is that hitting is leverage. .

OK.....no more war stories from me....no need to worry because the statute of limitations has expired, so we're all safe. :-) If nothing else, times have surely changed where there was a time you could do things like that, but you cannot anymore because of how today's parents are. I applaud you and the others that coach today for having to deal with the parents. Most don't know squat about sports and instead of being an adult about something and approaching situations in a mature way, all they want to do is run their mouths and go to the school board. A lot of kids still want that type of structure, but society has changed. Personally, for me, I learned a lot of lessons from football that have benefited me personally and professionally. A couple of which undoubtedly saved my butt in a couple of situations that could have turned out less than favorably for me. Bottom line, thanks for the life lessons and the memories. When you start getting older like me and Axe N Shield, we still laugh about some of the things we experienced and appreciate the never say never and never quit lessons we learned from games like the East-Valley SOC Championship game or how to overcome adversity after an embarrassing game like we had against Northwest. Thanks again Coach. I would say it is safe to say you have positively impacted more lives than you'll ever know.

[ddavis]

The boys that I have had the opportunity to coach have done much more for me than I ever could have done for them. People always have asked me, "don't you wish you'd had a son?". I can honestly say no. I have always considered the boys I coach each season as my sons. Probably moreso since my daughters have all married and have there own families. I have two wonderful twin daughters and a step-daughter that have made me very proud. They have grown into fine adults and have chosen excellent husbands. I will soon have my fourth grandchild. The boys that I have coached the past three decades have given me all the male bonding I needed. Rogue Warrior, I do want to thank you. It's nice to hear something positive during times when you feel so unappreciated. My friend from Kitts Hill. I announced that I wasn't going to use this site for political issues any longer but what I didn't say is that I intend to set up a web page in which I intend to discuss school issues, the upcoming school board election and maybe some other Sciotoville issues. Thanks for your support.

[ddavis]

I got an email from Josh Matiz of Minford who reminded me about a game we played agaist Valley during the 98-99 season in which we weren't so conservative. Josh was with us then. It was a game in which we were suppose to get hammered. We didn't win the game but we sure made it interesting and scored 20 points when we were suppose to get shut out. What we did in that game is we went from a shotgun formation with Ben Ettering (the Quarterback}about seven yards off the ball. We also used something I had read that Mississippi Valley State used when Jery Rice was there. I think I remember that correctly. We stacked three wide receivers to one side. Valley was still using the 53 defense then. We basically threw out there all night long and moved the ball. It was a case that if they had known what was coming they would have been ready for it. Josh, if you remember anything else about that game please jump in.

Oh yeah, I don't know Tim Murphy personally but if you punch his name on google I'm sure there will be a picture somewhere. I do have the honor of knowing a guy named Mike Maser who is known as the guru of offensive line coaches in the NFL. Mike was the offensive line coach at Bluefield State while I and Bill Pick from the West Side were playing for Bluefield. Bill was lucky enough to be an offensive guard so he had much more contact with Mike than I did. Mike played his college ball at Buffallo. Our head coach at that time came from Marshall and I'm not sure if Mike was with him there or not. After Bluefield shut it's football program down Mike hooked up with Jack Bicknell at Boston College. He then went to the Jacksonville Jaguars with Bicknell. I think. I think he has been with at least three pro teams and he's either with the Carolina Cougars now or just left them. He's like me in that he's a little heavier than I remember. Mike was very good friends with the defensive coordinator who I was close to and taught me how to break down films. His name was Tony Zvonar. I learned so much from this man. He left Bluefield and coached high school in North Carolina for a while and has since retired as an administrator.

[JohnKnight]

Hey Coach DD, what about this offense?

http://www.humphinternet.com/A11/index.htm

BTW, I played at Salem 79-83 when were you at Bluefield?

[biggdowgg]

LOT of Interesting reading here...I love to hear Snuffy talk about his days of coaching too

[ddavis]

John, I just left Bluefield when you came in at Salem. I think 1978 was the last year I played. I graduated in December. I went to The University of Dayton for one semester. That was 1972. I couldn't afford that place. I quit school for a couple of years. I worked at Sunray Stove Company in Delaware, Ohio and then came back to Portsmouth and worked at Dayton Walther Foundry. I couldn't shake that football addiction so I saved some money and wrote some colleges within 200 miles of my home. I ended up at Bluefield but that's another interesting story that I'll save for a while. That offense is really interesting. I would think a quick athletic quarterback would really be important. I've been looking at some things as a changeup to our doublewing. People tend to change personnel to stop us so I'd like something that's completely different that we might do anytime just to mess with them. This is a possibility. We didn't pass much last year but we do have some kids with excellent hands. My wife is waiting for me to help put her new kitchen table together so I have to run.

[RogueWarrior1965]

LOT of Interesting reading here...I love to hear Snuffy talk about his days of coaching too

Snuffy Smith was my first football coach. Another class act and all around great guy. He had/has a great love for the kids as well. We still chat every now and then when I see him at a football game. He was broadcasting the Minford vs. Huntington Ross game (I think) this year and we were talking about getting old. I told him he did not seem as old anymore because I am now the age he would have been when I graduated! I told him in hindsight, he was/is young! He has great stories and I never tire of hearing them.

I know the A11 offense post was not to me, but they looked like a really small team, so maybe that is why they went to it so they could maximize speed and skill. If you have a big team, I not so sure how well it would work.

If you ever want to see the spread offense at its best, look for some film from Kenton High School 4-5 years ago. Ben Mauk was the QB (he is at UC in Cincinnati now) and he set all kinds of rushing and passing records in not only Ohio, but for the country. They played Portsmouth West in the State Finals in 2002 or 2003, so if there is anyone on here from West, you could speak to this much better than me.

[JohnKnight]

I have plenty of DVDs to watch the spread, Waverly has done it pretty well the last two years. I have been at Waverly since 1987 other than the Dewitt years. I have seen a good bit of offense.

[ddavis]

As far as I'm concerned if it has anything to do with football we'll talk about it and anybody join in. RW, you're exactly right about Ben Mauk while at Kenton. I'd be in a spread if I had him. Again, it comes down to personnel. Kenton always has the state powerlifting championships and they have some nice looking athletes. I had the pleasure of knowing Ed Bolin and he loved to flip that ball in the air. Ed was always very generous to me if I needed a film. He had success at Glouster Trimble as well. Ed really brought wide open offense to the SOC in my opinion. My reason for endorsing smash mouth football is to keep offenses like Waverly s' off the field, if possible. If they're hard to stop don't let them have the ball. John, I'll make it a point to meet you sometime. I'm sure you could teach me a few things about the pasiing game and if I don't use it on offense then it will help give me some ideas on new ways to stop it. I have to do something but play on this computer. I'm going to practice on the guitar and then put some trim up. Later.

[RogueWarrior1965]

I have plenty of DVDs to watch the spread, Waverly has done it pretty well the last two years. I have been at Waverly since 1987 other than the Dewitt years. I have seen a good bit of offense.

I am sure you have as Waverly has had an excellent teams the past few years, but I am telling you, I have never seen it ran like Kenton. Some of Mauk's stats at Kenton are: National records with 6,540 passing yards and 76 touchdowns through the air his senior season ... set national career passing records for completions (1,105), attempts (1,931) and yards (17,534) and is second with 179 career passing touchdowns. That's right 6,540 yards passing his senior year, not mentioning what he rushed for. If you never saw it, it was truly a work of art. The kid was amazing. Kudos to his Dad, who was the head coach at Kenton.