final

Congrats Belfry on the win. Russell seniors good luck in your future it has been fun watching you for 4 years. Underclassmen get in the weight room and get bigger, faster, stronger. Work hard in the off season and see if you can make it farther next season.

Belfry wins their 13th Regional Title in the past 14 years.

 

Russell threw an INT on their first drive and Belfry was set up in the redzone and promptly scored. After a long Corbett run set up another score, Belfry benefited from an illegal formation penalty that forced Corbin to punt again and returned it for a TD and that was essentially all she wrote.

 

Belfry just too big, too fast, and too many playmakers.

 

BELFRY

Corbett 6 carries, 90 yards

Fletcher 7 carries, 69 yards, TD

Catron 6 carries, 45 yards, TD 1 rec, 20 yards, TD

Wellman 17 carries, 104 yards, 2 TD

 

RUSSELL

Smith 6/14, 87, 2 INT

Conley 15, 60, TD

I thought Russell may be out manned in this one.

 

Belfry was just way to much for the Red Devils. Russell is all class and the Devils should hold their heads high. The score is not what they wanted but they represented their school well and had a great season

 

Good luck to Belfry moving forward.

ttt

No program do I respect more than Russell and that continues.

 

Just too big of a task and Russell got in too big of a hole. They Devils fought valiantly and Conley ended his career the way he deserved in the 2nd Half. He rumbled for yards and even trucked a couple of Belfry's heavy hitters and ended his career with a late TD.

 

The Blackburn kid played a great game and Smith stood in and kept throwing passes even with Belfry all over him.

 

Coach TJ Maynard will be at the Belfry graduation in the Spring so he can personally hand these Belfry Seniors their diplomas and end their High School eligibility. :lol2:

 

Russell has to stay the course and keep pushing in the off-season. Belfry's invincibility cloak will come off next year and even though the Pirates will still be strong, that gap will close in a big way.

So--who is next for Belfry

 

And frankly, what if anything can stop them?

So--who is next for Belfry

 

And frankly, what if anything can stop them?

 

#2 Corbin on the road... I expect a pretty tough game and Belfry will have to bring their A Game for sure

 

What can stop them is an efficient offense that keeps the sticks moving and can pop a couple big plays, and a defense/special teams unit that makes Belfry earn every first down and score and hopefully by doing so gets a turnover or penalty to stall their drive.

#2 Corbin on the road... I expect a pretty tough game and Belfry will have to bring their A Game for sure

 

What can stop them is an efficient offense that keeps the sticks moving and can pop a couple big plays, and a defense/special teams unit that makes Belfry earn every first down and score and hopefully by doing so gets a turnover or penalty to stall their drive.

 

Of course you were being humble by expecting a tough game tonight also......I see two more blowouts and a state crown :-)

Awesome performance by the Pirates.

 

There's not much I can say about these Belfry seniors that hasn't already been said. They're a special bunch.

 

As for the game...

 

Belfry's already good enough on their own. They don't need you to help them by gifting them a 1st and goal a minute into the game off a turnover. They also don't need you to commit a penalty that you haven't committed all year on special teams so that they have an extra opportunity to return your punt for a TD. The Red Devils didn't do themselves any favors tonight.

 

Even without those mistakes, Belfry was head and shoulders better than Russell. Russell will be fine in the long run, it's just going to take time. There has to be an increased commitment to the weight room year after year. I think seeing Belfry up close and personal the last three years has been a good thing for the future of Russell's program. The returning players know what they have to do to get better. They've done battle with the best. I think that's a good thing.

 

Best of luck to Belfry the rest of the way. Make it a 4-peat. If Russell's going to lose to someone, it might as well be the champs.

No program do I respect more than Russell and that continues.

 

Just too big of a task and Russell got in too big of a hole. They Devils fought valiantly and Conley ended his career the way he deserved in the 2nd Half. He rumbled for yards and even trucked a couple of Belfry's heavy hitters and ended his career with a late TD.

 

The Blackburn kid played a great game and Smith stood in and kept throwing passes even with Belfry all over him.

 

Coach TJ Maynard will be at the Belfry graduation in the Spring so he can personally hand these Belfry Seniors their diplomas and end their High School eligibility. :lol2:

 

Russell has to stay the course and keep pushing in the off-season. Belfry's invincibility cloak will come off next year and even though the Pirates will still be strong, that gap will close in a big way.

 

You're underestimating the guys who have been pushing these seniors the last couple of years. The gap, in which there is one in terms of experience, isn't as noticeable as some might think.

Good article from my favorite small town news-paper

 

Class 3A region final: Red Devils dragged down by Belfry | Sports | dailyindependent.com

 

Maynard very classy in defeat and some big words of praise

You're underestimating the guys who have been pushing these seniors the last couple of years. The gap, in which there is one in terms of experience, isn't as noticeable as some might think.

 

Oh I fully expect Belfry to be much better than people are expecting when they see how many starters they lose.

 

I still think Belfry will definitely have a championship contending team which is almost unfathomable when you consider the parts of their roster they graduate.

 

With that said, this is a special Pirate squad filled with probably five or six guys that are going to be inducted into the Pirate Hall of Fame and dare I say it, maybe a couple guys who have a chance to play football for years to come.

 

Belfry will take a step back for sure as such. I don't think that step will be as far as some teams are thinking, but the gap will close expectations especially with numerous teams returning a lot of experience in 2017.