How far are they away from contention. Also heard they are having a freshmen Team this year.

They will still be very young, possibly starting three Freshman at times. Pitching will be an issue as well. They will have a couple of good arms and then the rest will be a work in process. Their stronger arms, per class, will be the Freshman arms but they probably won't see much mound time due to their youth. I have heard they will have a Freshman team but with their Varsity being young, it will be a trickle effect and the Freshman team may be "mostly" 8th graders. It is good to get the numbers built up though.

Who are the three Freshmen? Did they play last year for Cooper?

Who are the three Freshmen? Did they play last year for Cooper?

 

AJ Collins, Jared Blank and Tyler Morris. Collins and Blank played varsity all year and Morris was moved up around mid season. Collins and Morris are the two best catchers at the school, even as 8th graders last year. Blank plays infield and pitches.

Dont forget about John Bjourquist(sp?), Tyler Ramey, and Ryan Thompson. Thompson will be the ace of the staff. He is a junior. Very good player.

Dont forget about John Bjourquist(sp?), Tyler Ramey, and Ryan Thompson. Thompson will be the ace of the staff. He is a junior. Very good player.

 

All three will definately be counted on to lead this team. All very nice players and good people.:thumb:

This team will have a target on it's back probably by the time Collins, Blank and Morris are Juniors. As far as arms go, you can't forget about Carella which is a very consitant pitcher that will just keep getting better and Dunn which was only a 7th grader last year that held his own at the JV level. Coaches really looked to protect him since he was so young, as they did with the other young players.

This team will have a target on it's back probably by the time Collins, Blank and Morris are Juniors. As far as arms go, you can't forget about Carella which is a very consitant pitcher that will just keep getting better and Dunn which was only a 7th grader last year that held his own at the JV level. Coaches really looked to protect him since he was so young, as they did with the other young players.

 

I agree, they are still a year or two away but they will be competitive this year in many games. Blank has had one of the best arms throughout his select summer teams but has had growth plate issues in his last two years. He may only see one inning at a time this year if at all. His fast ball is just about as good as Cooper has now and he knows "how to pitch". He has to be more consistent with second and third pitches. Carella throws hard as well but less consistency and gets flustered at times. Collins throws well but is too valuable as a catcher or fielder if Morris is catching. Dunn will be a stud pitcher as well when he is a Junior or possibly Soph..

Only good player is Thompson, so how far from contention??? Umm a long time!!!!

Only good player is Thompson, so how far from contention??? Umm a long time!!!!

 

I agree that Thompson is a good player but i think you are underestimating the rest of this team,but thats alright its opinion.:jump::jump:

I guess it depends on what you define as a long time? Thompson is a very good player, but I really think once these younger players get to be sohpmores and juniors Cooper will have a much stronger line-up. Not knocking any of the upper classmen, but the stronger group was the younger players, 7th, 8th and 9th graders. Just an observation!

Really a shame that Cooper has to be in the toughest District in the 9th Region this season. They will be the fourth best out of the five, but that isn't bad when you consider that Ryle, Boone and Conner are all in the top five in the Ninth.

I agree TOG its going to be tough going against the Ryles ,Boones and Conners but hopefully it will get the younger guys ready for years to come.

This could be a little off topic but I think that the "Boone County" district in the 9th region (Ryle, Boone, Conner, Cooper) is completely unfair to those schools. There needs to be thoughts of a redistrict. When you are a 5A school like CCH or Dixie and get to play in a District with a few 1A and 2A schools compared to four 6A schools in one district, it is more than unfair.

Thompson is by far the best player they have with Bjyquest? second. They lost their best pitcher who was also a senior in Turner as a transfer to Boone.

People are forgetting how strong this team can be. Last year they were up on Ryle by 4 when Ramey came in to save. They lost but it was only due to Ramey being nervouse on the mound and giving up a ton of walks. I see them surprising alot of people this year!