On 11/27/2021 at 3:49 PM, Tigerpride94 said:

 

Great wisdom here!  But you know what I noticed most in this video?  Coach Haywood wearing a tie.

Who does that?  Someone who respects the game.  Tremendous Coach!  His record speaks for itself.

I am going to be rooting for the Blue Tornado but I am taking Belfry in this game. I like Belfry a lot but it seems like every time I turn around they win another state championship.  Tilghman would be "old school" new and I would like to see them win the game. 

Watched the Glasgow/Tilghman game.

Thoughts:

1. Tilghman was better prepared and Tilghman also executed better. Glasgow shot themselves in the foot constantly on both sides of the ball, but Tilghman also had them outflanked and capitalized when they did so. The onside kick out of the Half was a beautiful call and the biggest play of the game. Tilghman also had Glasgow completely scouted for their misdirection or slow developing runs and ate them up. The QB keep with James for about a 20 yard TD was a great playcall as well as it was clear Glasgow never expected him to run the ball all game.

2. Glasgow's tackling in the back half of the defense was horrendous. They took bad angles on WR's and that burnt them a couple times, they also had numerous plays where they had Ryder the HB bottled up only to let him break contact and turn it into a big gain.

3. Speaking of which, I like Ryder a lot. He's kind of a smallish scatback but he is tough. Not elite speed or athleticism, but his acceleration is phenomenal. He gets to his top speed extremely quick even with contact. He is the key to that Tilghman offense and he never stops running.

4. Tilghman's WR's are dangerous. They have good ball skills but they are made for making big plays. They also did a great job finding holes in the zone on 3rd and Long and the QB got the ball where they could then make the catch. Not really the guys who beat you by blowing past you or with double moves, but if you give them space after they catch it you better watch out.

5. Tilghman's OLine didn't overly impress me but they got the job done. Same can be said for their Special Teams units. By and large nothing impressive, but it was also their ST unit who came up with the biggest play of the game.

6. I expected a little more sideline to sideline speed from Tilghman than what I saw, at the same time they were extremely quick inside the box and when they blitzed they had a high success rate of disrupting the play. They remind me of a discount version of Louisville Central on defense.

7. I also watched a couple of Tilghman's early season games.... this is a different team than the one that was playing at the end of Summer. This isn't a six loss football team. They are plenty deserving and plenty capable of winning a State Title. In fact, anything short of Belfry bringing their "A" game and I think Tilghman does just that.

8. Regardless of the outcome Saturday, the future is bright in Paducah. Very young team with a lot of room for individual skill growth. On top of that, the coaching looks good. I thought PT's coaching staff completely outclassed Glasgow in that game. You also saw a PT team play very disciplined and mistake free football for the most part. That was Tilghman's downfall for many years. Tilghman has to love their trajectory.

54 minutes ago, ATLCat said:

Watched the Glasgow/Tilghman game.

Thoughts:

1. Tilghman was better prepared and Tilghman also executed better. Glasgow shot themselves in the foot constantly on both sides of the ball, but Tilghman also had them outflanked and capitalized when they did so. The onside kick out of the Half was a beautiful call and the biggest play of the game. Tilghman also had Glasgow completely scouted for their misdirection or slow developing runs and ate them up. The QB keep with James for about a 20 yard TD was a great playcall as well as it was clear Glasgow never expected him to run the ball all game.

2. Glasgow's tackling in the back half of the defense was horrendous. They took bad angles on WR's and that burnt them a couple times, they also had numerous plays where they had Ryder the HB bottled up only to let him break contact and turn it into a big gain.

3. Speaking of which, I like Ryder a lot. He's kind of a smallish scatback but he is tough. Not elite speed or athleticism, but his acceleration is phenomenal. He gets to his top speed extremely quick even with contact. He is the key to that Tilghman offense and he never stops running.

4. Tilghman's WR's are dangerous. They have good ball skills but they are made for making big plays. They also did a great job finding holes in the zone on 3rd and Long and the QB got the ball where they could then make the catch. Not really the guys who beat you by blowing past you or with double moves, but if you give them space after they catch it you better watch out.

5. Tilghman's OLine didn't overly impress me but they got the job done. Same can be said for their Special Teams units. By and large nothing impressive, but it was also their ST unit who came up with the biggest play of the game.

6. I expected a little more sideline to sideline speed from Tilghman than what I saw, at the same time they were extremely quick inside the box and when they blitzed they had a high success rate of disrupting the play. They remind me of a discount version of Louisville Central on defense.

7. I also watched a couple of Tilghman's early season games.... this is a different team than the one that was playing at the end of Summer. This isn't a six loss football team. They are plenty deserving and plenty capable of winning a State Title. In fact, anything short of Belfry bringing their "A" game and I think Tilghman does just that.

8. Regardless of the outcome Saturday, the future is bright in Paducah. Very young team with a lot of room for individual skill growth. On top of that, the coaching looks good. I thought PT's coaching staff completely outclassed Glasgow in that game. You also saw a PT team play very disciplined and mistake free football for the most part. That was Tilghman's downfall for many years. Tilghman has to love their trajectory.

You are spot on in everything you said. Great analysis! 

When Rider missed some games later in the season, he was severely missed. As good as James can be throwing the ball at times, Tilghman is at their best when Rider is carrying a chunk of the load. He's only around 5'6, but he's one tough dude and always keeps those feet moving. 

As for the OLine, they were 5 rungs below average before the season started and I was worried. We all thought all along if they could just be average, we would have a shot. While not spectacular, I believe they've at least held their own and that's a big reason for them being here. 

Once they had their off week coupled with the virus outbreak the next week, it had lasting affects for quite some time. They almost didn't get back on track, but here we are. It's been some kind of season for sure. 

I'm hoping it ends well, but if it doesn't, I don't know of anyone who would deserve it any more than Belfry. Great turnarounds for both programs. 

5 hours ago, TilghmanPride said:

You are spot on in everything you said. Great analysis! 

When Rider missed some games later in the season, he was severely missed. As good as James can be throwing the ball at times, Tilghman is at their best when Rider is carrying a chunk of the load. He's only around 5'6, but he's one tough dude and always keeps those feet moving. 

As for the OLine, they were 5 rungs below average before the season started and I was worried. We all thought all along if they could just be average, we would have a shot. While not spectacular, I believe they've at least held their own and that's a big reason for them being here. 

Once they had their off week coupled with the virus outbreak the next week, it had lasting affects for quite some time. They almost didn't get back on track, but here we are. It's been some kind of season for sure. 

I'm hoping it ends well, but if it doesn't, I don't know of anyone who would deserve it any more than Belfry. Great turnarounds for both programs. 

I will say for the PT O-Line, the are super super young, both starting tackles are sophomores, and I believe they only have 1 senior starting on the O-line, not necessarily bad players, just really young players.

17 minutes ago, R1 sports fan said:

I will say for the PT O-Line, the are super super young, both starting tackles are sophomores, and I believe they only have 1 senior starting on the O-line, not necessarily bad players, just really young players.

They've progressed nicely during the season. There's several more young guys who look promising for the next few years as well. It's very tough physically to start as a Freshman like a couple of them did last year, especially given the schedule. They took the bumps early, now it's beginning to pay off. Some really good size as well to them. 

Ready to make my prediction I think...

After studying up, I have came to a boring conclusion. This game is going to come down to fundamental football.

BELFRY KEYS

- Stay clean, stay ahead of the chains, hold on to the football. Boring, but this is the #1 key to the Pirates. They have played exceptionally clean football and have held on to it and it has been the key to their post-season success. The Pirates should have success moving the ball on Tilghman and should have the opportunity for a couple big plays, but to open those doors they have to establish the FB, establish an outside threat, and then execute at the LOS.

- Tackle. Tackle. Tackle. If there is one theme to Tilghman's offense it is they make you pay dearly for missing tackles or taking bad angles on tackles in the open field. Belfry is very young in their back half and have been prone to missing those tackles. They have got to tackle better than they ever have.

- Win 3rd Down. To some extent Tilghman has lived dangerously. The number of 3rd and Longs they have overcame is shocking the past two weeks. The QB has made throws, they have broken tackles, and the WR have made plays. When Belfry gets PT in 3rd and Long it has to be an advantage.

 

TILGHMAN KEYS

- Don't wait for the ball, go get to it. There are times Tilghman seems to wait to read the play and react. Against Glasgow this is when they hurt them with the FB dive or quick sweeps. They played misdirection very well because they were confident in their initial read and attacked the play. They cannot let Belfry bring the play to them because a 4 yard gain is exactly what Belfry wants. Go make the play ad get Belfry behind the sticks.

- Play your clean game on offense. For Belfry it is avoiding procedural penalties, avoiding fumbles, and not missing blocks.. for Tilghman a clean game is a little different. This means not dropping passes, avoiding holding penalties, and not missing throws when a receiver gets open. This is not a vintage Belfry defense, opportunities will be there, the Blue Tornado have to capitalize when those opportunities arise.

- To make History you have to play as if you are not trying to make History. Neither team is littered with guys who have played a ton of Championship minutes. The list is basically Isaac Dixon and then noone else. Tilghman is hearing all week how improbable and historic this is and that pressure is building, they cannot afford to come out tight. Tilghman has to realize that even though Belfry has been a State Finals fixture the past 15 years, this particular group is just as green as they are on the biggest stage. Relax, play your game, and set the tone.

 

PREDICTION:

So we are talking fundamentals, right? We are talking about doing the little things right over the course of the game. We are talking efficiency, patience, and repetition. We are also talking about the core of Coach Haywood's being.

Here's the deal, 99% of the players are on the same footing in terms of Championship experience. We covered that.

That 1% though is arguably the best player in all of Class 3A and arguably the Most Valuable player in the State in Isaac Dixon.

What we haven't discussed though is Philip Haywood and his staff's Championship Experience. The winningest coach in KY, The man who is tying Dale Mueller for 2nd All-Time with his 14th State Finals game, the man who has led Belfry to the Semi-Finals all but only two times since 2003. Suffice to say, big game experience is a box that is checked.

In a game where the fundamentals will probably decide the winner, I am siding with the team who has the best individual player who makes you pay for every single missed assignment or tackle and the team with the man who is perfectly content running five plays as crisp as they possibly can be ran.

Belfry 26

Tilghman 20

1 hour ago, ATLCat said:

What we haven't discussed though is Philip Haywood and his staff's Championship Experience. The winningest coach in KY, The man who is tying Dale Mueller for 2nd All-Time with his 14th State Finals game, the man who has led Belfry to the Semi-Finals all but only two times since 2003. Suffice to say, big game experience is a box that is checked.

In a game where the fundamentals will probably decide the winner, I am siding with the team who has the best individual player who makes you pay for every single missed assignment or tackle and the team with the man who is perfectly content running five plays as crisp as they possibly can be ran.

Belfry 26

Tilghman 20

 

This is why, in a game that feels like a toss-up, I'm picking Belfry. The calming, been there, done that influence of Haywood and his staff is immeasurable at this stage. I think the Pirates will do enough of the little things, the boring things, right to get the job done.

The score prediction feels about right, too.

I don't doubt any of the analysis mentioned above.

I just have a hunch Tilghman gets it done.

PT 21

Belfry 20

I am curious what the worst combined record is between two teams in a state title game. I don’t expect both teams being 8-6 in this game to be the record but I’ve always wondered if two teams made the same Cinderella run to make it to December?

1 hour ago, Glider said:

I am curious what the worst combined record is between two teams in a state title game. I don’t expect both teams being 8-6 in this game to be the record but I’ve always wondered if two teams made the same Cinderella run to make it to December?

I couldn't imagine there being two teams records like this being in championship before. Maybe one team but I would be surprised if two.

1 hour ago, Glider said:

I am curious what the worst combined record is between two teams in a state title game. I don’t expect both teams being 8-6 in this game to be the record but I’ve always wondered if two teams made the same Cinderella run to make it to December?

If it's not the record, it has to be awful close. They only had 8 regular season wins between them. They both have doubled that during the playoffs. 

Good question that I'm sure with all the knowledge around here that someone will know. I would think this game would be it. 

1 hour ago, Glider said:

I am curious what the worst combined record is between two teams in a state title game. I don’t expect both teams being 8-6 in this game to be the record but I’ve always wondered if two teams made the same Cinderella run to make it to December?

 

52 minutes ago, Tigerpride94 said:

I couldn't imagine there being two teams records like this being in championship before. Maybe one team but I would be surprised if two.

 

26 minutes ago, TilghmanPride said:

If it's not the record, it has to be awful close. They only had 8 regular season wins between them. They both have doubled that during the playoffs. 

Good question that I'm sure with all the knowledge around here that someone will know. I would think this game would be it. 

Off the top of my head, I can't think of one with more combined losses than the twelve here. 

Belfry had five losses in 2010 when they lost the 3A finals to six loss Central. That's the only one I can think of that comes close to this one.

I'm taking Paducah by a touchdown. This is a good Belfry team but not a great one as we have seen in years past. Paducah has enough size upfront to load up the box, shoot the gaps, clog up the middle and run down Belfry's backs. Offensively Paducah's speed will generate enough points to win this game. 28-21.  

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