OVC 2009

[OVCfan32]

Honestly. . . .its been soo random the past few years. . .
I'm thinking. . .
I don't know

[earp]

Actually Fuzz Piketon is in Pike County!

[robycop3]

I know it's early, but I going to make my first prediction of the New Year:

Chesapeake, barring catastrophic injuries, WILL beat South Point. Lindsey is a fine QB and he'll have a pretty good line in front of him. Chesapeake always finds at least a couple of decent running backs and receivers to get the ball to.
South Point's major losses to graduation will be felt immediately because of the lack of experience and the lack of talent compared with the past few years.

Oh, and I almost forgot to mention: the game is at chesapeake this year - South Point will be playing on grass. Since 1997, South Point is 2-4 against Chesapeake on the road.

In 2003-4 when my son Mark played at Peake & was MLB, & Smith QBd at Point, Peake HAMMERED the Pointers badly. (They also hammered Fairland & CG!) But the wheels of the great cycle turned, & Peake was down for a coupla years. Now, while they won't be world-beaters this year, they already have at least 30 boys hitting the weights under Coach 'Ball , & Head Coach Davis & Assts. Andy Clark & the aforementioned Cannonball Wells are looking forward to a BIG improvement over 3-7.

[mcstephen10]

sorry im going to say south point beats chesapeake again chesapeake dont really have anyone good back besides peter n trent saunders..im going to take south point with this one

[groveyard08]

im going to say that the point, fairland ,and the grove will all beat chesapeake but i do think they will improve..

[peake450]

Guys this will be alot tougher team than you think. Should have 4 maybe five lineman benching over 300 and a fullback benching the same, all around this will be a stronger and tougher team. The pointers will be OK especially with the usual Hunt. High transfers, The dragons lost alot but will still be fast, Rock Hill will be wide open and hard to stop, River Valley will be decent and the Grove will be the heavy favorite. All i'm saying is the peake will be greatly improved.

[mcstephen10]

the redman wont be that wide open they just lost there best wide out mitch davenport because he transfered to a school in KY where his dad took a job and from what i saw on the fieldwhen i played chessy they didnt look like there going to have anyone bench over 300 lbs but i could be wrong the off season makesalot of differences

[avalanche]

I am tired of hearing this kid can bench this much, blah blah.

The difference between Chesapeake and say CG in the late 90's into the 2000's was that CG trained to be big and slow, Chesapeake trained for speed. How many times did CG win lifting meets during that stretch? How many OVC titles? Exactly. This is a different time and age. You can be strong, but you better be explosive and agile.

The new Chesapeake program trains for speed and versatility. Chesapeake will get that run of athletes, and when they do, the conference will watch them run away like they used to.

ovcfan32 you think these backs were good. the grove backs in the 70's and 80's would be quite better than those you mentioned. those grove teams would beat your peake teams hands down.
ovcfan32 you think these backs were good. the grove backs in the 70's and 80's would be quite better than those you mentioned. those grove teams would beat your peake teams hands down.

I think they were every bit as good. This is a different era of football. Did Coal Grove have the athletes to run down a Josh Waugh who was a division one athlete? Did any of those teams have a defensive back good enough to shut down a Robby Issacs (Marshall WR)? I seriously doubt it. I watched Chesapeake dominate with great athletes for a good stretch. The teams that beat them, had the athletes to do it. I may be biased, but Chesapeake had a heck of a run of athletes: Chriz Fizer, Mark Runyon, Bryan Davis, Robby Issacs, Andy Clark, Josh Waugh, Zeb Best, Luke Beach, Michael Hunt, Cody Hunt, Jackson Caynor, Josh Dillion, Junior Jamie, Jeff Thornberg, Caleb McComas, Dustin O'Bryan, just to name a few.

[fuzzhead]

All good posts. Coal Grove has been able to outbench Chesapeake for most of the decade. The Grove has only beaten Chesapeake twice since 1997. Coal Grove could outbench Chesapeake easily this year, yet the Panthers were an awful snap and a questionable fumble call away from potentially beating the Hornets.
Some of you folks have admitted to being biased. I graduated from CG so up to a point, I am too. But I have pretty good Chesapeake connections and if it weren't for the insane number of tests they wanted me to take before they would let me go there, I would have been a Panther. My mom taught at Chesapeake MS for around 3 years and was the first coach of the middle school volleyball team.
Now for a long time, I hated Chesapeake football with a passion - back in the early 2000s many of them were smug and arrogant. They were "great" by OVC standards, but for the most part they were nothing special come playoff time.
Over the past few years, though, I've reflected on some of those Chesapeake teams and it's obvious that they had plenty of good athletes - not just good football players. Some of these guys were good at everything they did and it showed. Weightlifting had almost nothing to do with why Chesapeake was good.

[avalanche]

I agree with your comments for the most part. I knew many of the football players and for the most part they were good people. They were not arrogant like you described, but I am sure there were posters who thought they could gloat at the expense of their success.

but for the most part they were nothing special come playoff time.

I do not know how accruate that statement is.

In 1998 they ran into a buzzsaw in Wheelersburg. The Burg did go onto state that year if I recall correctly.

In 1999 they went 10-0, beat #3 Johnstown Monroe 13-3, then ran into an Amanda Clearcreek team that blew everyone out all the way to a state championship. I thought that season Chesapeake got screwed because they were a #4 seed that year. Chesapeake was very good that season, and if they were in another region I think they probably go to state.

In 2000 Chesapeake did not make the playoffs despite going 8-2. Those two losses came by a combined 3 points. They lost to Wayne (state-runner up in WV class AA) in double overtime by two, then lost to Minford (division 4 playoff team) 20-19, despite leading 19-0 at the half. Aside from those two losses, no one came within two touchdown's of Chesapeake. That team would have had a very good shot in my opinion had they made the playoffs.

The 2001 team was probably a team that had more bad luck then any of the successful teams Chesapeake has had. They went 7-3 in the regular season, and were devistated by injuries early. They lost Lance Pauley (starting DE) two games into the season, Luke Beach broke his foot the third game of the season, Matt Rucker split his knee open the fourth game of the season, and Tommy Hill broke his foot the sixth game of the season. Luke Beach would return around the sixth game and played with a broken foot the rest of the way, and Matthew Rucker came back by the seventh I believe. This team never really got healthy after the first two games. They lost the opening game to that awsome Portsmouth runningback (Parker) the first game of the year, then lost 10-9 to Wayne on a last second fieldgoal, and lost to South Point at home, despite leading by two touchdowns at the half. They lost to Crooksville 35-21, it was 14's at the half.

The 2002 team went 8-2 in the regular season and made it all of the way to the regional finals. They beat the #8 and #2 teams in the state, before falling to Amanda again.

The 2003 team was beaten in the first round by a very good Wheelersburg team and the 2004 squad was beaten late in a close game in the playoffs.

By my count Chesapeake has won more playoff games then any OVC team since the 80's? I would not say they were average in playoffs. I would say they were consistent.

[fuzzhead]

Again, You're going by OVC standards which are nothing special.
Coal Grove has been to two state semifinals but that was back when fewer teams went to the playoffs.

[groveyard08]

Guys this will be alot tougher team than you think. Should have 4 maybe five lineman benching over 300 and a fullback benching the same, all around this will be a stronger and tougher team. The pointers will be OK especially with the usual Hunt. High transfers, The dragons lost alot but will still be fast, Rock Hill will be wide open and hard to stop, River Valley will be decent and the Grove will be the heavy favorite. All i'm saying is the peake will be greatly improved.

coal grove has hand fulls of 300 pound benchers,,throw in a 300some pounder bencher at tailback like cg has ..

[tony181stewart]

Guys this will be alot tougher team than you think. Should have 4 maybe five lineman benching over 300 and a fullback benching the same, all around this will be a stronger and tougher team. The pointers will be OK especially with the usual Hunt. High transfers, The dragons lost alot but will still be fast, Rock Hill will be wide open and hard to stop, River Valley will be decent and the Grove will be the heavy favorite. All i'm saying is the peake will be greatly improved.

coal grove has hand fulls of 300 pound benchers,,throw in a 300some pounder bencher at tailback like cg has ..

Who would this be?

[groveyard08]

trust me frank has benched 300 b4..he may not have done it in the powerlifting meet b4 but he has got it in the weightroom b4...tho now he is more a fullback then tailback..

[#1_fan]

Actually Mcstephen, Davenport is not transferring.. His dad took a job KY but he is staying at Rock Hill..

[avalanche]

Again, You're going by OVC standards which are nothing special.
Coal Grove has been to two state semifinals but that was back when fewer teams went to the playoffs

I do not understand what you are implying. Chesapeake lost a single OVC game from 1998 untill 2004. That is something that your great 80's teams did not accompish. The 1984 Coal Grove playoff team lost a game to Fairland, and escaped Chesapeake 17-14. I am talking about a two year stint (1999-00) where an OVC team did not come with in two touchdown's of the Panthers. Those are not regular OVC standards.

I feel it would be difficult for anyone to judge how good another OVC era was based on the fact that the best OVC football you have wathced was when Chesapeake was dominating.

If you want to say based on OVC standards now, well that is understandable. The OVC now is atrocious. 5-5 teams in the OVC are in the mix for the title.

It was far more difficult to get into the playoffs when Coal Grove did, but consider it a blessing as well. I believe if I recall correctly, Coal Grove had to win a single game to get to state, compared to winning two or three. I would not say it is any easier to get to state now.I would actually say it is more difficult.

[fuzzhead]

I do not understand what you are implying. Chesapeake lost a single OVC game from 1998 untill 2004. That is something that your great 80's teams did not accompish. The 1984 Coal Grove playoff team lost a game to Fairland, and escaped Chesapeake 17-14. I am talking about a two year stint (1999-00) where an OVC team did not come with in two touchdown's of the Panthers. Those are not regular OVC standards.

You're right - Coal Grove has never gone 8 seasons without losing more than one OVC game. But please consider the fact that outside of Chesapeake the OVC was horrible during those years:

Coal Grove OVC record (1998-2002): 6-15
Rock Hill OVC record (1998-2002): 7-14
South Point OVC record (1998-2002): 13-8
Fairland OVC record (1998-2002): 6-15
Combined records = 32 - 52

IMO, the conference is just as bad now. . .the only difference is that Chesapeake is down, too.

It was far more difficult to get into the playoffs when Coal Grove did, but consider it a blessing as well. I believe if I recall correctly, Coal Grove had to win a single game to get to state, compared to winning two or three. I would not say it is any easier to get to state now.I would actually say it is more difficult.

You're right. The road to State is longer and more difficult now, but Coal Grove lost so some very tough teams in their playoff appearances, just like Chesapeake did:

1981 - Coal Grove's first playoff appearance; Coal Grove loses to eventual DIV Champ Nelsonville-York, 12-14.

1986 - Coal Grove loses to eventual DIV Champ Bishop Hartley, 3-7. . . and there was a pitiful call that negated a TD.

1990 - Coal Grove loses in the State Semis to eventual State Champ Versailles, 0-33.

[2trap_4ever]

1986 - Coal Grove loses to eventual DIV Champ Bishop Hartley, 3-7. . . and there was a pitiful call that negated a TD.

He was in and everyone knows it,,,,you have to look also we lost to Wheelersburg on their state championship run and in 92 we lost to Barnesville who made it to the state semifinal.

[fuzzhead]

He was in and everyone knows it,,,,you have to look also we lost to Wheelersburg on their state championship run and in 92 we lost to Barnesville who made it to the state semifinal.

I have the goal-line photo of him breaking the plain
And you're right - I forgot to mention that in 1989, Coal Grove lost to eventual Champ Wheelersburg, 26-28. Then Coal Grove beat them the following year en route to their 2nd semi final appearance. Thats 4 State Champs CG has lost to, so I'd say Coal Grove's playoff history is every bit a good, if not better than Chesapeake's.

[avalanche]

I, nor anyone else, is arguing how good Coal Grove's playoff run v. Chesapeake's is. I am only pointing out that fuzzhead's statements about the wins by Chesapeake were nothing special are inaccurate.

Chesapeake has lost to Amanda twice (both state title teams), Wheelersburg (state-semi), and Licking Valley (state-semi). Those are pretty good teams if you ask me. Along the way they have beat teams like Monroe Central, Johnstown Monroe, and Stubenville Catholic Central.

Coal Grove has a very good history, I am not debating that.

The OVC was not horrible in 1998. Coal Grove was 7-3 if I remember correctly, and the loss to Chesapeake kept them out of the playoffs.

In 2000 South Point was pretty good (6-4), and the following year (2001) they were very good at (7-3). Rock Hill was also very good the in 2002 and 03. Fairland was also very good in 2003. Chesapeake, Fairland, and Rock Hill went to the playoffs that year.

The OVC now is as bad as I have seen it. There is no comparison. The second place teams during Chesapeake's run where much better then the title teams now.