[charlie22]

If you don't mind, who do you coach for and have you ever coached in a state championship? I can tell you one thing, I promise you there WAS speed on that field and evidently you didn't pay too much attention to some of the playmakers. Sorry, just had to voice my opinion on your post and was curious as to your resume details.

I don't mind you asking those questions at all. I am not a coach and I never coached in a state championship. If that makes me unqualified to make my observations on a game, than so be it. I guess in your eyes then I'm unqualified. I have to assume that countless other posters are likewise unqualified to post their observations. I thought the Belfry players played extremely hard, played great defense and gave it their all on the field. Am I likewise unqualified to have such observations because I'm not a coach? Perhaps your observation about there being SPEED on the field Saturday is also unqualified unless you are a coach and coached in a state championship. Are you a coach and have you coached in a state championship game?

I thought I was being as respectful as one could be towards Coach Haywood. While not a coach, I do think I know enough about the game to make the observations I made. I did play the game in high school. Good enough to make first team All State by both the coaches and the sports writers. Good enough to play the game in college where I made first team All Conference. I have two sons who both made All State in high school (I doubt many folks can say not only were they All State in high school but both of their sons were also). I follow the game very, very closely to this day. Well enough to be asked to be involved in the production of the state games by the KHSAA due to my knowledge of the game. I actually paid quite close attention to the game and the players in it. I know the game. I'm sorry if that comes across as arrogant, but since you were questioning my credentials to make observations, there they are.

No. 22 for Belfry (Howie Dotson) has nice speed, I'll give you that. Justin Johnson (No. 28 for Belfry when Belfry wears red jerseys, but No. 12 when they wear white due to the fact the white No. 28 jersey needed to be cut off of him early in the year due to an injury; yeah I know that much about Belfry) also has nice speed. But Belfry did not have the speed needed to get outside of Central using the flex bone. It just didn't. Which is why Belfry in fact did not get outside of Central during the game.

I obviously touched a wound that was still too fresh and I genuinely apologize for doing so. As stated, I'm a big fan of the Belfry program. I publicly predicted before the game that Belfry would win. Heck, one of the radio announcers for the game even mentioned (without stating my name) that I predicted Belfry would win. I'm a big fan of Coach Haywood. The man is a legend and rightly so. But I'm not sure I can go so far as to state the man never makes a mistake. There has only been one perfect person ever walk this earth. Even the best of coaches make mistakes. The coach of the program I support (Highlands) made a time management mistake towards the end of the first half of the state game this year and he has coached and his teams have won 10 state championship games now. It happens to even the best of coaches.

I just think that the Belfry coaches need to step back and evaluate their O for 2012. It's a great O, but since they've now been beaten by Central the last 3 times they've made it to the state game and scored no more than 17 points in any of those three games, is it being unreasonably harsh or unfair to ask the questions that I have? I hope not. If you feel differently, I apologize to you. Trust me no offense or disrespect was meant to you, the Belfry program, the Belfry fans, the Belfry players and certainly not the Belfry coaches. I'm just asking if the O needs to be modified to be able to beat Central in future state games and pointing out what I observed in last Saturday's game that supports my observation that it does need to be modified some. Lordy, I'm not suggesting Belfry abandon the run and start throwing the ball 75% of the time. I want Belfry to win state next year; just like I wanted them to win it this year.