mercer_titan

If the young recievers improve I see Newport puttin one on the chin of Spencer Co. The talent is there at Newport. I saw that Friday. I will definitely keep an eye on this one.

You know what? You are right. Just another case of me not thinking before I post. Thanks for keeping me in check!

I guess Mercer is as much of a mystery as Western to some point. We wont find out till they get to the playoffs and play the teams that have been there. If the Titans get to that point. But I know Newport wants another shot at the Titans as well.

I wouldn't say that Newport kept Mercer in check. They made Mercer adjust. Mercer had to grind it out. I thought that was a postive since they had to finally sustain drives. That was a situation they hadn't been in. And they did well in putting long drives together. Give credit to Newport though. They are giving up less then 10 a game for a reason. They are a much better defensive unit this year.

If both make it to the 3rd round then this is definitely a dangerous matchup for Mercer. Lou Western can match speed for speed as far as backfields. I'm not for sure how the rest of the matchups would play out. Anybody know enough about both teams to give their opinions and how they view this potential matchup playing out? It's very possible Russell or Belfry wont even see the Titans in the playoffs.

They are. They can be beat just like everyone else. It just wont be easy to beat them. I believe that Newport deserves a little respect here. They slowed the Titans down. Mercer dominated in one area,and that was eating up the clock. So Newport did well in preventing the big plays but still their was little time left for anything else.

I don't know if you can stop the Titan running game completely. This was their lowest output. It's going to be hard for a team to score much on the Titans. They bend some but they hardly break. As stated earlier, it was nice to see Mercer have to sustain drives throughout. They haven't had to do that and they showed that they can. Once again, hats off to a great defensive effort by Newport. They have some quality players. I think by the time the playoffs come around those young recievers of theirs will be alot better.

The timing by the defense was there. I remember the play very well. The zebra's were definitely not good throughout the game though.

It should have been a shutout. A costly Mercer penalty led to the touchdown. Mercer has alot to work on. Both teams will get alot of positives from this game.

Good win Golden Lions. The fellas needed that.

I don't think it's the beginning of the end for Boyle. It may be for Pardue and co. I'm not close to the situation but I've read too many times in the paper where he has ripped his players. And it seems to me he has given up on some of his seniors since day 1. I think he is a great offensive mind but I question his leadership. I know a great coach will break the kids down and build them back up. I remember a coach at Boyle that was like that. Don't give up on these young men. I know most of you wont. I wish those young men the best! This will only make them stronger.

Very good defense on both sides. Defense was the difference. Newport could have capitalized when Mercer fumbled on the kickoff to start the second half with Mercer only leading 14-0. But as stated Newport couldn't move the ball. They did have a few good plays. Especially that first series when they looked really good til the turnover. Newport is a quality team. And I love their facilities. Very nice. I was impressed with their run defense. Very disciplined. This was a defensive battle like alot of people predicted. Mercer had a little over 300 total yards and Newport had a little over 200. Newport did a good job containing corey and holding him to around 70 yards. Brandon had just under 170. But he got 47 of those on a late td run. The people in Newport were very nice, and it was a wonderful place to watch a game. See you guys in round 2.

I didn't say we had 7 or 8 backs good enough to start for anybody. We have good depth. 7 or 8 guys who have shown they have what it takes to hit the holes and gain yardage.

Everybody that claims that Mercer will dominate AA football isn't necessarily a fan. I've seen several comments by non fans that have ruined threads due to them saying that Mercer can't be stopped. The 15-0 thread was a discussion about a local sportswriter making that prediction. It got turned upside down. And you are exaggerating on the bragging. I made a stupid comment on 40 times without any proof and I apologized for that.

Originally Posted by westsider Not true ... under Kentucky law, the county is constitutionally charged with providing a public school system for all of its residents. Mercer had to take over Harrodsburg, whether it wanted to or not. Mercer's only choice was how to structure the new school system. Disregard my last comment. I jumped the gun on this one.

Is that what they said when Mason Co and Maysville merged last? That's the whole problem. It's easy for you and some others to assume this was football driven. That's what drives me CRAZY!!!! They did what was best for the kids. And they are still doing what is best for the kids. There are some wonderful teachers and other staff members from both Mercer and Harrodsburg that have came together and are working theirselves hard to make sure these kids get what they need. Noone in this area including Danville and Boyle Co have made any accusations that this was done for the purpose of football. I've never known Mercer to put athletics ahead of academics ever. My daughter is a student who went to Harrodsburg last year. She was totally against the merge. She is 12 and was scared to death of the unknowns that were facing her with a totally new situation. But, now I've never seen her so happy about school. She woke up crying all night with a migrane the other morning but she wasn't about to stay home and miss school. They are doing some wonderful things out there and it's only going to get better. I'm proud to be a Mercer Co parent! And my daughter is proud to be a Titan!

Do some research for fun and check out some of the players that have come out of this area in the past 20 years. Alot of people arent aware due to how small Harrodsburg was. Just in the 90's alone they had a ton of D1 players and a few NFL draft picks. There is alot of talent in the area. We have a highly populated county for our size. With the coaching staff they have they will step right up and compete in 5A. They have alot of kids to choose from. I believe they will have even more next year.

That's pretty much what he is saying I believe. You just explained why they had no choice. So what he is said is true.

They are all merged. But the new school being built is a senior high school. The new junior high will be the current high school once the new one is built. I believe that the Harlow which was the elementary for Harrodsburg will remain open for k-3rd grades. It's one of the top elementaries in the state so it would be a shame for it to be no more. All schools at Mercer were overcrowded last year but once the new high school is complete this will take care of those issues. This school will be second to none. It will be a wonderful opportunity for these students because this new school will better prepare them all for the future they have in front of them. I commend the job that the staff from top to bottom has done so far. Nothing short of unbelievable. All schools are Mercer Co under one superintendent.

I don't think so. It goes back to people not knowing what has happened in this area over the last few months for the Mercer Co Titans to even exist. Alot of the anger and resintment has been replaced by excitement and joy over how these kids have been so much better together. So if they come up short of their goals this year it will be hard on the kids but the fan support is set in stone and growing. So they have already won somthing bigger then a state championship. They've brought an entire community that was split for so many years together as one rooting for the same team together. The crowd at the Boyle Co game was magical with the stands full 2 hours before kickoff 100's of tailgaters behind the endzone and 8 or 9 deep all around the track. That's home cookin like I've never seen it before here. That's what alot of people don't understand. So to me I don't care about history. I'm looking forward to the future and watching all these kids in our community grow up and go through our program and take it to places we haven't seen. And they will. And I expect to see alot of Titan Red and Blue tomorrow night at Newport. After thinking all week about the game my predicition will be. Mercer 35 Newport 21

Mercer has a pretty nice indoor facility.

That's sweet! That is big time!

I agree on the baseball field. Luckily they will be getting a brand new field right beside the new stadium. Yeah I used to live on 80 myself just below nancy. I know a little about the hills in Somerset.

I remember seeing them snap that 42 game winning streak of Danville's. Then a couple years ago I saw Danville snap Boyle's 47 game win streak. I may be bad luck for those two when I'm in attendance during a huge win streak.

Great post. The only thing is that I think the guy who stated that our top seven backs would start for any AA team in the top 7, I don't believe he was even a Mercer fan. Just someone who has seen them play some in our area. And I totally disagree with his opinion.