RowdyRedRam

From a Manual perspective I believe that the key to this game will be turnovers. If Manual's young offense cannot hold onto the football we don't have a prayer, if we do I actually like our chances and believe the game will be close. I'm really not as concerned about Highlands blowing up a score on us. Since coach Nichols has been around Manual his defenses have always been pretty sturdy and he has seen them all, the Brohm's, the Bush's, the Anderson's. If Highlands can put 7 TD's on our defense then god bless em they are a truly great team.

I will say this, if this Highlands team really is as close to the 1998 team as you think then this will not be a close game. That team was really in a league of its own, I think any preseason comparison to them is very premature.

Something additional to note about this match-up is that these are two of Kentucky's most prestigious academic institutions going against each other.

As a matter of reference 2008 Manual vs Central W 34-28 2008 Highlands Vs Central W 28-0 2007 Manual vs Central W 20-13 2007 Highlands vs Central W 21-13 2006 Highlands Vs St X L 21-35 2006 Manual vs St X L 6-20 2006 Manual vs St X L 9-39 2005 Highlands vs St X L 0-45 2005 Manual vs St X L 7-17 2005 Manual vs St X L 18-33 While the past will have little to due with Fridays game, and it is quite possible Manual could be worse than usual while Highlands will be better than usual, do the programs appear to be so far apart that the four and five TD predictions seem appropriate? I'm not suggesting it is impossible for Highlands to lay the smack down on us but I won't at all be surprised if that isn't final outcome.

Well the situation for Manual is as follows. Everyone will make the playoffs. Our route will have to go through St X. We haven't beaten St X since 1993. We've beaten everyone else. So we can continue scheduleing just the best teams in Louisville or try to get a little tougher. What we were doing wasn't getting us any closer to a championship, so even if we do go 3-9 and lose to St X in the second round we will have gotten just as far as we have by going 9-3. So at least we can say we tried something different.

Coach Nichols's stated reason for the schedule was to keep the players attention. Big games tend to make the players more focused and feels he will get more out of practices and the like by having a big opponet every week. It was not because he has a great team this year.

Seeing as Manual plays the top contenders for that title we should get a good reference point to consider that possibility.

I figured someone had to start this thread. The facts as they stand are that Highlands blewout Male in a barrage of TD's and Manual couldn't manage a TD against Ballard in thier scrimmage. Doesn't sound to promising for my Crimsons. However two of the three TD's Ballard scored were from the defense off Manual turnovers and the last one was during the controlled part (teams got a number of plays not downs) so perhaps the Manual D may give my Crimsons a chance if the O can limit turnovers. To those coming from Highlands I want to reiterate that the stadium is not at the school but at 1230 East Burnett Street, 40217. There is parking at the stadium however I think they charge a small amount ($2 I think) to park in the stadium (on the baseball feild actually) and it can be a hassle getting in and out of there. Most regulars tend to park on the surrounding streets although these will fill up reletively quickly and some streets will be blocked from gameday parking. The moral of this story don't try to get here right on time because you will probably end up late. Get there early, stop by one of the neighborhoods hole in the walls, and have a cold one before walking to the stadium. I would assume this to be a well attended game. With this being the season opener (always a big draw), T and X not playing actual games (they may want to get a look at both HHS and Manual), and the fact that some UofL prospects like Roller will be playing could bring out a large contingent. Although there will be plenty of seats ( I believe Manual Stadium is the largest HS stadium in the state) the lines for tickets and other things could be difficult.

Last season Manual and Ballard faced off twice. The first game of the season was very close with Manual winning 36 to 26. Then due to the severe wind storm several games in the area were effected and both Manual and Ballard needed opponents so they decided to rematch with Ballard winning the second game 30-14. It would be very fair to say that the two programs are close to each other in terms of strength, I would give a slight edge to Manual in the last few years but they are close. Ballard is in Trinity's district and much like Manual they are most likley competeing for 2nd in thier district (which will be a challenge). Ballard is in there second season under a new coach (who I believe posts here on BGP) but it was reported that they are also filling a lot of holes. It isn't a tragedy that they lost to Ballard, but it is a major concern that they didn't score a TD. CardinalsFan I hate to say it, because I'm very happy for us to play a program like yours, but it might not be doing your program any favors by playing us this season. It could get ugly.

There was no thread but Manual did scrimmage Ballard. There is a podcast of it on Old Goats. Ballard won 21-3 I believe. Not a good sign for my Crimsons at all, I can't overstate that. While I didn't listen to all of it I heard enough to know that the offense is not gelling very well. Unless they see huge improvement real fast it will be a very ugly start for Manual.

I saw a 28-6 halftime score for Moeller from another board, A. Is this accurate? B. How did the later half progress?

Thanks Birdsfan. Knowing that your guys put one on Male like that doesn't bode to well for my Crimsons.

Out of curiosity were Highlands TD's primarily from long plays or long drives?

My Picks Highlands @ DuPont Manual (Game of the Week for the state) Ballard @ PRP (Two strong 6A programs) Male @ Elizabethtown (Etown had a strong record last season, we should see how they handle playing up) Seneca @ Central (would have been a big time game with Smith, now it will be a measureing point for Seneca without him) Louisville Holy Cross vs Franklin County (I would think this will be competetive) Washington County @ Shawnee (Shawnee won 6 games last season and I don't know if anyone noticed) Dunbar @ Bullitt East (I'm interested in Bullitt East I think they would get more pub if outside the Louisville shadow) Moore vs North Oldham (I think North has long term powerhouse potential in KY football, so I like to follow them but the game should be a blowout) other eligible games for Week 1 Woodford County @ South Oldham East Jessamine @ Spencer County Atherton vs Trimble County Bardstown @ North Hardin Bethlehem @ Fort Knox Larue County @ Campbellsville Central Hardin @ Logan Co DeSales @ Western Fairdale @ Iroquois Pike County Central @ Henry County Kentucky Country Day @ Paris

This is tremendously unfortunate for both Smith and the Seneca program. I saw him against Manual last season and came away very impressed with his ability. He may have been the best QB I saw last season.

Manual Stadium 1230 East Burnett Street, 40217 Manual High School 120 West Lee Street, 40208 When the game thread comes up I'll reiterate this. The Stadium is NOT ON CAMPUS make sure your friends all know this. You should not expect to go to the school and "manage to find" the stadium either it is not so close.

A UofL recruiting site is mentioning Brandon Roller. What kind of potential do you Highlands fans see in this player, is he a D-1 guy? Is UofL a good option for him?

I can understand why you would get that impression, especially through this interview. When the whistles start blowing he is however one of the most intense football coaches you can have on the sideline. Also I know during my time playing at Manual when he was the DC he was far and away the biggest film junkie of the coaches. He will know every tendency of every player of every opponent by game time. Keep in mind that since he has been coach Manual he has pretty much dominated Louisville's public schools and he has become the winningest coach in Manual's history. If Highlands thinks they will roll over Manual after this interview than I would think he has them right where he wants them.

It is functional for me on two different computers. But try typing the web address in if it isn't working for you. A link to the interview is right on the page.

It hit on each position the probable starters and players. It also went through each game on the schedule. Main points IMO Linebacker may be the deepest spot Woodmore may play all over the field and it is very possible we could see as many a three different qbs playing depending on game situations. The difficulty of the schedule was as much about keeping the season exciting as anything else.

I'm listening to it now, so I can't give details of the interview, but here is a link to a preseason interview with Coach Nichols. http://manualfootball.com/

I don't have anything new to add. They have proformed well in 7on7's before (winning tournaments) and then not had a terribly successful passing attack when the season came along. I have heard that they run there 7on7's the way they play, meaning out of running formations with a lot of qb roll outs and not simply with drop back passes. I figure this probably gives the 7on7 teams something they don't see to much and have a difficult time defending. This is simply my assumption I haven't seen them this summer.

Congrats Crimsons! While I don't think it means anything for the season it is still nice to win.

Bigdawg I see little comparison to Male of the last few years to Male of the mid 90's and early 2000's. The talent of those years was significantly superior than what Male has had the last few. Hard not to view that as Male turning in the wrong direction.

Congrats on the honor Highlands. I do think Highlands may have had a superior team in the 98 season where they squashed an outstanding Male team (preseason or first game I don't remember). Outside of that I would stand with the arguement that X and T have had better teams. There will be a good barometer as Highlands plays Manual who gets both X and T this season.