[RunItUpTheGut]

Thanks for bringing the truth to a head. Highlands football players are just better than other kids. the coaching has nothing to do with it. Dale sits back reads the paper and the state championships just roll in.
better faster stronger smarter. Highlands football forever

Yea, the Highlands players along with the few "magical" athletes that always you all always seem to have.

As ive stated a million times before, there is no way you can keep having that much talent year in and year out by simply using boys out of a high school that has around 400 boys or so.

And yes, state championships pretty much do roll in. Of the last 5 that you all have had, Highlands has blew every single playoff team out for the most part, especially when they were in 5A.
Schools have good runs, take Boyle for example, a 4 or 5 year stretch where they dominated, and then the talent started thinning out and now there recovering, and doing it well, while the all mighty highlands seems to continue getting the best NKY players year after year.
Im not saying your doing anything wrong or illegal, but you know as well as i do that parents will send there kids to highlands over other schools for athletic and academic purposes, while around these neck of the woods, people are to poor to pack up and send there kids to the best school.

[thsrocks]

Do you realize how small of a school Highlands is? It is amazing how they can compete with the big schools in the state. Would they ever beat Trinity annually? The answer is no, but Beatty could not coach at Highlands and beat Trinity annually either. Trinity just has too big of numbers and large area of talent pool for other teams to beat on an annual basis. What other 3A school in KY has the balls to play Trinity, whether it be a regular season game or a preseason game? ( That's right, do not forget that HHS is a 3A school that was playing up in 5A until last year when the KY athletic association moved them down to 4A!).

Do you realize Highlands can take kids from all over? Do you realize your school's enrollment has remained constant for 15 or more years? HHS buildings grow and yet the HS enrollment stays constant, give or take 50 students. HHS has always stayed beneath the top tier in enrollment dating back to 1975, the first season schools outside Jefferson County were placed into 4A. This control over enrollment has also contributed greatly to their annual state wide test scores. That is a topic for discussion elsewhere. I also firmly believe when a home comes up for sale in Ft. Thomas, there is premium placed on what the demographics are of the family taking possession.

[IAM22]

Do you realize Highlands can take kids from all over? Do you realize your school's enrollment has remained constant for 15 or more years? HHS buildings grow and yet the HS enrollment stays constant, give or take 50 students. HHS has always stayed beneath the top tier in enrollment dating back to 1975, the first season schools outside Jefferson County were placed into 4A. This control over enrollment has also contributed greatly to their annual state wide test scores. That is a topic for discussion elsewhere. I also firmly believe when a home comes up for sale in Ft. Thomas, there is premium placed on what the demographics are of the family taking possession.

You do realize that Ft.Thomas is basicallyically land locked and has next to zero places to build new homes. It has pretty much been that way for a couple of decades now. People just do not leave Ft Thomas and if they do they are usually willing to pay a premium to return.

[charlie22]

Do you realize Highlands can take kids from all over? Do you realize your school's enrollment has remained constant for 15 or more years? HHS buildings grow and yet the HS enrollment stays constant, give or take 50 students. HHS has always stayed beneath the top tier in enrollment dating back to 1975, the first season schools outside Jefferson County were placed into 4A. This control over enrollment has also contributed greatly to their annual state wide test scores. That is a topic for discussion elsewhere. I also firmly believe when a home comes up for sale in Ft. Thomas, there is premium placed on what the demographics are of the family taking possession.

With the City's enrollment staying relatively constant for the last 15 years, should it be a surprise that the School's enrollment has stayed relatively constant also? It's no surprise to me.

As mentioned by IAM22, the City has pretty much been built out for a long, long time. The only way Highlands could ever be big enough to be in the largest football classification is if the school district consolidated with Newport, Bellevue and Dayton. Given the academic and athletic success of Highlands, there is no reason to consolidate. Admittedly, it's been a rough row to hoe financially because of the SEEK formula, but so far the tax payers in the school district have been willing to ante up enough local taxes to keep the school district standing on its own.

Highlands does get players occasionally from out of the district, but it is nowhere near as prevalent as some people like to believe it is.

And to RIUTG: you may have stated a million times that it is not possible to keep having such talented kids in a school Highlands size, but you have ignored a million times the point I made about talent being developed; not born. The vast, vast majority of the "magical" athletes were from Ft. Thomas. Towles is a perfect example. Ft. Thomas kid. I have to assume that you'd consider him to be another "magical" Highlands player. Towles wasn't good enough at QB to even start on the frosh team. Coaches worked with him extensively after his frosh year. As a sophomore when he came into replace the injured starting QB he did an okay job but to be fair, on that team he really didn't have to do much other than hand the ball off and throw the ball occassionally with little to no pressure on him. But by the time he started as a junior, you could tell he and the coaches had worked extensively to develop that talent. Even more so by his senior year. While he was blessed with height, the arm strength and accuracy was developed.

Noel Rash, the successful coach at Beechwood (who knows a thing or two about the game and is very familiar with Highlands) a couple of years ago didn't attribute Highlands consistent success to out of district players or even to the "magical" playes; rather he attributed it to the ability of Highlands coaches to develop 175 pound football playing maniacs.

I was on the KHSAA Board of Control for two terms. As such, I had the opportunity to get to know a lot of football coaches throughout the state. In talking about Highlands success and the reasons for it, they never mentioned the "magical" athletes. The words I heard over and over again: execution, discipline and quickness, all of which are things that are taught and coached. Heck I ran into Coach Johnny Hines of Pulaski County at the state finals in 09 (Highlands had beaten Pulaski County the prior week). I don't think he even mentioned Collinsworth's name to me; rather he chose to focus on compliments for the offensive and defensive lines (I think he referred to the O line as a machine is his newspaper comments the day after the game). He talked about the discipline, the execution and the desire of the O line to maintain their blocks as the things that impressed him the most about the Highlands team.

Too many fans want to focus on the "magical" players as the reason for a team's success, when in reality it's the efforts of the non-magical players that make a team successful year in and year out.

[Micro-Brew]

:Clap::Clap:.......Great post!!!! If you can get the numbers in your system, and couple that with great coaching and a great work ethic in the kid you can find success. Love love love what Highlands does from the ground up within their program. So many people get too wrapped up in winning and losing at early ages when it should still be about developing kids and as many as possible. I don't know as much about the entire program at Trinity to gauge Coach Beatty, hence the reason I would not post who I thought was the better coach. So much more to evaluating things like that than just to look at wins.....JMO...or who would win in a head to head matchup......but that was a great post Charlie, you are spot on in my book....

[birdman44]

I coach in the Ft. Thomas Jr Football League and I have to say its where everything starts for Highlands football. Teams have 23 kids tops and we play non starters in the 3rd quarter. Its not as macho as other jr leagues that have 40 kids sit bench for a whole year. we dont weed out players until freshman soph year, and that is from the strenuous demanding practices. a crazy amount of untapped talent is discovered and the kids learn the highlands playbook from 4th grade on. its a very smart formula. i believe cov cath modeled a jr league after it a couple of years ago. the competitive leagues basically destroy kids that are on fence with football interest and the late bloomers. we harvest the talent , not pave over it for proud dads.

[RunItUpTheGut]

With the City's enrollment staying relatively constant for the last 15 years, should it be a surprise that the School's enrollment has stayed relatively constant also? It's no surprise to me.

As mentioned by IAM22, the City has pretty much been built out for a long, long time. The only way Highlands could ever be big enough to be in the largest football classification is if the school district consolidated with Newport, Bellevue and Dayton. Given the academic and athletic success of Highlands, there is no reason to consolidate. Admittedly, it's been a rough row to hoe financially because of the SEEK formula, but so far the tax payers in the school district have been willing to ante up enough local taxes to keep the school district standing on its own.

Highlands does get players occasionally from out of the district, but it is nowhere near as prevalent as some people like to believe it is.

And to RIUTG: you may have stated a million times that it is not possible to keep having such talented kids in a school Highlands size, but you have ignored a million times the point I made about talent being developed; not born. The vast, vast majority of the "magical" athletes were from Ft. Thomas. Towles is a perfect example. Ft. Thomas kid. I have to assume that you'd consider him to be another "magical" Highlands player. Towles wasn't good enough at QB to even start on the frosh team. Coaches worked with him extensively after his frosh year. As a sophomore when he came into replace the injured starting QB he did an okay job but to be fair, on that team he really didn't have to do much other than hand the ball off and throw the ball occassionally with little to no pressure on him. But by the time he started as a junior, you could tell he and the coaches had worked extensively to develop that talent. Even more so by his senior year. While he was blessed with height, the arm strength and accuracy was developed.

Noel Rash, the successful coach at Beechwood (who knows a thing or two about the game and is very familiar with Highlands) a couple of years ago didn't attribute Highlands consistent success to out of district players or even to the "magical" playes; rather he attributed it to the ability of Highlands coaches to develop 175 pound football playing maniacs.

I was on the KHSAA Board of Control for two terms. As such, I had the opportunity to get to know a lot of football coaches throughout the state. In talking about Highlands success and the reasons for it, they never mentioned the "magical" athletes. The words I heard over and over again: execution, discipline and quickness, all of which are things that are taught and coached. Heck I ran into Coach Johnny Hines of Pulaski County at the state finals in 09 (Highlands had beaten Pulaski County the prior week). I don't think he even mentioned Collinsworth's name to me; rather he chose to focus on compliments for the offensive and defensive lines (I think he referred to the O line as a machine is his newspaper comments the day after the game). He talked about the discipline, the execution and the desire of the O line to maintain their blocks as the things that impressed him the most about the Highlands team.

Too many fans want to focus on the "magical" players as the reason for a team's success, when in reality it's the efforts of the non-magical players that make a team successful year in and year out.

You can't teach Size and Speed, the two things i was referring to, which makes an athlete and is something Highlands, as a 3A sized school gets year after year almost more than anyone else in the state.
Say what you want, but unless you all are putting something in the water, it's not possible.

[IAM22]

I coach in the Ft. Thomas Jr Football League and I have to say its where everything starts for Highlands football. Teams have 23 kids tops and we play non starters in the 3rd quarter. Its not as macho as other jr leagues that have 40 kids sit bench for a whole year. we dont weed out players until freshman soph year, and that is from the strenuous demanding practices. a crazy amount of untapped talent is discovered and the kids learn the highlands playbook from 4th grade on. its a very smart formula. i believe cov cath modeled a jr league after it a couple of years ago. the competitive leagues basically destroy kids that are on fence with football interest and the late bloomers. we harvest the talent , not pave over it for proud dads.

I did not think that the teams ran the high school stuff. I would think that to be tough because they occasionally change what they run at the high school. 5 years ago they ran the jet sweep for about 5 years.

[IAM22]

You can't teach Size and Speed, the two things i was referring to, which makes an athlete and is something Highlands, as a 3A sized school gets year after year almost more than anyone else in the state.
Say what you want, but unless you all are putting something in the water, it's not possible.

Believe it or not they play a lot of tag and keep away in the off season!! And I am not even joking.

[birdman44]

I did not think that the teams ran the high school stuff. I would think that to be tough because they occasionally change what they run at the high school. 5 years ago they ran the jet sweep for about 5 years.

yeah its a dumbed down version of the high school playbook. it gets a little more complicated each year. basics are the same. terminology is the same. right slam right slam right slam.

[WideRight05]

You can't teach Size and Speed, the two things i was referring to, which makes an athlete and is something Highlands, as a 3A sized school gets year after year almost more than anyone else in the state.
Say what you want, but unless you all are putting something in the water, it's not possible.

Speed I would agree on considering it is THE major focus of our coaching staff, but you would be surprised with the size on a lot of our teams. You could make a good argument that some of our lines have even been undersized. The key with our lines has been the ability to fly off the ball and really good form.

[RunItUpTheGut]

Believe it or not they play a lot of tag and keep away in the off season!! And I am not even joking.

lol.
I will let our coaches know to set up some "tag" workouts this summer.

[RunItUpTheGut]

Speed I would agree on considering it is THE major focus of our coaching staff, but you would be surprised with the size on a lot of our teams. You could make a good argument that some of our lines have even been undersized. The key with our lines has been the ability to fly off the ball and really good form.

I can see that. I remember when Highlands played Whitley in 08 our line was actually much bigger, but as you said, the speed killed us. I dont know how you can get that much speed every year.
I know there are several workouts to help improve speed but with the speed Highlands has and talent, thats something those kids are born with.

[WideRight05]

^ I would agree that speed does seem to be a natural thing with some of them, part of it though is the feeder programs all the way down to grade school. I think one of the best thing with Highlands program is our feeder system that works really well. I still remember that game against Whitley County in 2008. Your line was HUGE!! They were also quick and big and quick does not work well for opponents. Don't quote me on it but I think you guys picked up close to 300 yards on us running the ball. That Powers kid was the real deal. Whitley had a few fumbles on crucial plays which luckily saved us. Those guys marched up and down the field and they weren't going to be stopped. Hope to see Whitley get back in the game and do really well in 2012. Not sure what they return, but they did give a good PCC team a run for their money last year.

[RunItUpTheGut]

^ I would agree that speed does seem to be a natural thing with some of them, part of it though is the feeder programs all the way down to grade school. I think one of the best thing with Highlands program is our feeder system that works really well. I still remember that game against Whitley County in 2008. Your line was HUGE!! They were also quick and big and quick does not work well for opponents. Don't quote me on it but I think you guys picked up close to 300 yards on us running the ball. That Powers kid was the real deal. Whitley had a few fumbles on crucial plays which luckily saved us. Those guys marched up and down the field and they weren't going to be stopped. Hope to see Whitley get back in the game and do really well in 2012. Not sure what they return, but they did give a good PCC team a run for their money last year.

We were pretty big that year. Probably the biggest team we had since the 01 season.
And we actually had 301 yards that night :biggrin:
Even though we lost 42-16 it was much closer than that, if thats possible to say.
We fumbled 2 or 3 times on 3rd and shorts and Collinsworths speed was ridicolous.
Highlands only outgained us by around 30 or 40 yards.
The dup of Powers and Jones in the backfield was maybe the best Whitley ever had. Powers was a rock and just ran through lines while Jones was the speed and could flat out fly. An interesting note you may not know is that Jones actually plays for UK and will be playing this year.
The turning point of that game was when we went up 8-7 midway through the first quarter and we had held you all to a 3rd in long deep in your territory and Collinsworth came up with a catch that ill never forget. A one handed, falling down, dipsy doo. Our biggest problem that night was that our defensive backs, who were a junior and sophomore, couldnt keep up with your recievers on deep balls. They did a lot better than i thought, but it just seemed like every loose ball and bounce went Highlands way.
Ill never forget standing on the visitors side as i always do and watching Highlands Defensive coach ripping your guys defenses ass apart after we pretty much ran it right up the middle for about 86 yards on that first possession. It definitely got your kids attention.

http://thetimestribune.com/sports/x10652...s-too-much

[IAM22]

lol.
I will let our coaches know to set up some "tag" workouts this summer.

You actually think I am joking but I am not!!! They really do play tag 1 on 1, 1 on 2, 2 on 2, 3 on 2, it turns into basically open field tackling, with speed, agility, and conditioning all built into one. Every time you lose in tag you have to do push ups, up downs or what ever always punishment for losing. This makes everything competitive all the time.

They even lift weights different than any other team. They never look to max out to see how strong they are, there are no best bench awards or best squat. For them it us mostly irrevalent towards success.

Coach Mueller has down several coaches clinics explaining what they do at HHS.


All if this training and success with probably the worst weight room and locker room in the state.

[IAM22]

When you first "visit" HHS you cannot believe what they do in the off season. Then when you talk to coach about it...it is so simple and makes so much sense. Most coaches from the outside dismiss it because of the simplicity of what they do.

[sstack]

We were pretty big that year. Probably the biggest team we had since the 01 season.
And we actually had 301 yards that night :biggrin:
Even though we lost 42-16 it was much closer than that, if thats possible to say.
We fumbled 2 or 3 times on 3rd and shorts and Collinsworths speed was ridicolous.
Highlands only outgained us by around 30 or 40 yards.
The dup of Powers and Jones in the backfield was maybe the best Whitley ever had. Powers was a rock and just ran through lines while Jones was the speed and could flat out fly. An interesting note you may not know is that Jones actually plays for UK and will be playing this year.
The turning point of that game was when we went up 8-7 midway through the first quarter and we had held you all to a 3rd in long deep in your territory and Collinsworth came up with a catch that ill never forget. A one handed, falling down, dipsy doo. Our biggest problem that night was that our defensive backs, who were a junior and sophomore, couldnt keep up with your recievers on deep balls. They did a lot better than i thought, but it just seemed like every loose ball and bounce went Highlands way.
Ill never forget standing on the visitors side as i always do and watching Highlands Defensive coach ripping your guys defenses ass apart after we pretty much ran it right up the middle for about 86 yards on that first possession. It definitely got your kids attention.

http://thetimestribune.com/sports/x10652...s-too-much

Actually Collinsworth has just average speed, it was his ability to see the entire field and make GREAT cuts that made him a great HS player. Speed wise though he was far from fastest on the team or track team. He could make a cut on a dime though on the football field.

[WideRight05]

We were pretty big that year. Probably the biggest team we had since the 01 season.
And we actually had 301 yards that night :biggrin:
Even though we lost 42-16 it was much closer than that, if thats possible to say.
We fumbled 2 or 3 times on 3rd and shorts and Collinsworths speed was ridicolous.
Highlands only outgained us by around 30 or 40 yards.
The dup of Powers and Jones in the backfield was maybe the best Whitley ever had. Powers was a rock and just ran through lines while Jones was the speed and could flat out fly. An interesting note you may not know is that Jones actually plays for UK and will be playing this year.
The turning point of that game was when we went up 8-7 midway through the first quarter and we had held you all to a 3rd in long deep in your territory and Collinsworth came up with a catch that ill never forget. A one handed, falling down, dipsy doo. Our biggest problem that night was that our defensive backs, who were a junior and sophomore, couldnt keep up with your recievers on deep balls. They did a lot better than i thought, but it just seemed like every loose ball and bounce went Highlands way.
Ill never forget standing on the visitors side as i always do and watching Highlands Defensive coach ripping your guys defenses ass apart after we pretty much ran it right up the middle for about 86 yards on that first possession. It definitely got your kids attention.

http://thetimestribune.com/sports/x10652...s-too-much

Man, you probably weren't too far from me then. You could have gotten my autograph in the stands and be a very rich person right now hahaha.

In all seriousness, I clearly remember that series after Whitley scored and how we had to make a big play. They had everything going their way (crowd momentum, ball movement, even a 2 point conversion after a careless penalty on us) and it looked like they were going to stop us. I was most relieved when we fumbled around our own 20 yard line and recovered before that huge play on 3rd down. As to Powers and Jones, they were the real deal. I was actually more worried about Jones coming in, as I felt he would be more of a threat but I thought we did a pretty good job on him. Hope to see him do well for the Cats this year. Powers probably had a good majority of that 301 yards rushing against us...he would just fall forward and get five yards. That kid was insanely good.

You look at the scores on the 08 Highlands team playoff games and they don't do justice as to how the games went. Whitley County played their tails off and was in the game in all phases except the scoreboard. Bryan Station gave us a great run in the first round, and Johnson Central had probably their best team in the Matney era. Ashland kept it close early before we pulled away. Then you look at Christian County in the finals and it took a couple of big plays in the 4th quarter to put them away. Shows how good 5A was that year.

[RunItUpTheGut]

Actually Collinsworth has just average speed, it was his ability to see the entire field and make GREAT cuts that made him a great HS player. Speed wise though he was far from fastest on the team or track team. He could make a cut on a dime though on the football field.

That's where i think of speed and quickness differently.
There are a LOT of kids that can run straight up and down a football field who are very fast, but you all had players that were extremely quick and just made us look silly trying to tackle. To plant, spin, and cut like you all did against us was something we didnt have an answer for.
Our biggest downfall of that game was our turnovers. We fumbled three of four times on 3rd and shorts and even 4th and shorts, and it just completely took our momentum away. Turning the ball over was something we rarely did in 08, and being in that new territory with so much on the line jittered us a bit and by the time we got a feel for it, it was already to late.

[WideRight05]

Austin Collinsworth was a baller. He simply knew what to do, when to do it, and how to do it. He had an amazing sense for the field.

[RunItUpTheGut]

Man, you probably weren't too far from me then. You could have gotten my autograph in the stands and be a very rich person right now hahaha.

In all seriousness, I clearly remember that series after Whitley scored and how we had to make a big play. They had everything going their way (crowd momentum, ball movement, even a 2 point conversion after a careless penalty on us) and it looked like they were going to stop us. I was most relieved when we fumbled around our own 20 yard line and recovered before that huge play on 3rd down. As to Powers and Jones, they were the real deal. I was actually more worried about Jones coming in, as I felt he would be more of a threat but I thought we did a pretty good job on him. Hope to see him do well for the Cats this year. Powers probably had a good majority of that 301 yards rushing against us...he would just fall forward and get five yards. That kid was insanely good.

You look at the scores on the 08 Highlands team playoff games and they don't do justice as to how the games went. Whitley County played their tails off and was in the game in all phases except the scoreboard. Bryan Station gave us a great run in the first round, and Johnson Central had probably their best team in the Matney era. Ashland kept it close early before we pulled away. Then you look at Christian County in the finals and it took a couple of big plays in the 4th quarter to put them away. Shows how good 5A was that year.

That might have been the best year ever for bigger mountain school when it comes to competeing with the big boys up north.
I remember in the first round after we dismantled South Laurel, i got into the car and for some reason there was live feed of the Highlands/Bryan Station game because the radio station was streaming the final few minutes of that game because i think everyone was shocked that Bryan Station was so close to winning the game. I remember thinking of how huge that upset could have been.

[WideRight05]

^ What is scary is that Bryan Station was the fourth seed in that district. The problem with them was similar to what Whitley presented - they had so much size. They were the biggest team we played against in the state tournament. Their line was humongous (sp?). Them, JC, Ashland, Woodford, they all beat the hell out of each other that year. JC was the best team in that district, and IMO would have won state had they come across a different year in the 2000's. I think they led the nation in rushing that year, or came close to it. Their running game was better than a lot of passing games.

[charlie22]

You can't teach Size and Speed, the two things i was referring to, which makes an athlete and is something Highlands, as a 3A sized school gets year after year almost more than anyone else in the state.
Say what you want, but unless you all are putting something in the water, it's not possible.

We'll just agree to disagree. I know that speed and quickness can be developed. I've seen it happen with both of my sons and many other Highlands players over the years. Don't know about in your parts but there are plenty of speed camps up in these parts that successfully improve speed.

[charlie22]

We were pretty big that year. Probably the biggest team we had since the 01 season.
And we actually had 301 yards that night :biggrin:
Even though we lost 42-16 it was much closer than that, if thats possible to say.
We fumbled 2 or 3 times on 3rd and shorts and Collinsworths speed was ridicolous.
Highlands only outgained us by around 30 or 40 yards.
The dup of Powers and Jones in the backfield was maybe the best Whitley ever had. Powers was a rock and just ran through lines while Jones was the speed and could flat out fly. An interesting note you may not know is that Jones actually plays for UK and will be playing this year.
The turning point of that game was when we went up 8-7 midway through the first quarter and we had held you all to a 3rd in long deep in your territory and Collinsworth came up with a catch that ill never forget. A one handed, falling down, dipsy doo. Our biggest problem that night was that our defensive backs, who were a junior and sophomore, couldnt keep up with your recievers on deep balls. They did a lot better than i thought, but it just seemed like every loose ball and bounce went Highlands way.
Ill never forget standing on the visitors side as i always do and watching Highlands Defensive coach ripping your guys defenses ass apart after we pretty much ran it right up the middle for about 86 yards on that first possession. It definitely got your kids attention.

http://thetimestribune.com/sports/x10652...s-too-much

I was at that game too. Very cold. Your administration was extremely nice and allowed us to park the fan buses very close to the visitor seats. Class people.

I agree with you that but for some fumbles, that game could have been much, much closer. Whitley had one heck of a good team that year. Coach Black did a great job.

That was one heck of a catch by Collinsworth. I agree with you on that also.

I also clearly remember the DC (Brian Weinrich) ripping a new one in the defense. We were going to put his "speech" on the highlight video but were advised not to. We followed the advise. I think I still have a copy of it somewhere though. I thought Brian was going to pop a gasket.

[RunItUpTheGut]

^
Id like to watch that first quarter again.
It was a hell of a quarter, the rest of the game wasnt all that bad, just to many mistakes.
That first series Whtley scored on it appeared Highlands didnt have an answer. Then after the chewing, they seemed to get focused and looked like a whole different ball club after that.
Hey, atleast we had the lead......for a minute or so :biggrin:

[RunItUpTheGut]

We'll just agree to disagree. I know that speed and quickness can be developed. I've seen it happen with both of my sons and many other Highlands players over the years. Don't know about in your parts but there are plenty of speed camps up in these parts that successfully improve speed.

I definitely understand what your saying. The problem with player development camps is its just not an option for these kids.
Parents cant afford it and the school will rarely ease up enough to where we can go to more than one camp a year.
Ive always said speed training was the key to todays game, but around here and especially in mountain schools, strength is still the main concern. Strength has a lot to do with it but if your not improving players' speeds then your not going to compete with successful schools.

[charlie22]

I definitely understand what your saying. The problem with player development camps is its just not an option for these kids.
Parents cant afford it and the school will rarely ease up enough to where we can go to more than one camp a year.
Ive always said speed training was the key to todays game, but around here and especially in mountain schools, strength is still the main concern. Strength has a lot to do with it but if your not improving players' speeds then your not going to compete with successful schools.

I totally understand and agree with your point. Many folks have talked about this unfair advantage and that unfair advantage. Most of which I felt were bunk. But I do think the urban teams have the advantage of having camps (like the discussed speed camps) and personal trainers readily and easily available. The urban teams also have the advantage of their school district being much more compact making it easier for student athletes to attend off season work out and training sessions at the school.

But my point in making the post you quoted was that the speed you see from Highlands players is not just the speed they were "born with". Genetics does play a part. I'm not going to deny that. But speed and quickness can be and is improved (sometimes dramatically) by training. As another poster mentioned, the Highlands coaching staff places a premium, actually an immense premium, on speed and quickness development. It is an emphasis of the coaching staff. People may scoff at the "play tag" drills, but they actually work extremely well, particularly for the O linemen. Highlands O linemen are generally well complimented on their ability to maintain blocks. That comes from being able to quickly adjust their feet and body to movements of the defender taken to get off the block. "Playing tag" really helps those O linemen develop the muscles needed to do so. Having the speed camps nearby help, but there is no reason the eastern Ky football coaches couldn't implement a lot of those same drills into their off season and during season practices if they really wanted to improve the speed and quickness of their players.

[NCC41]

Believe it or not they play a lot of tag and keep away in the off season!! And I am not even joking.

In the very early summer coaches from other high schools that are not on Highland's schedule will come up to observe practice. It's amazing to see the look on their faces when they watch an hour long game of tag.

They were actually playing tag the week before the State Championship. Not real macho, but whatever works. :biggrin:

[RunItUpTheGut]

I totally understand and agree with your point. Many folks have talked about this unfair advantage and that unfair advantage. Most of which I felt were bunk. But I do think the urban teams have the advantage of having camps (like the discussed speed camps) and personal trainers readily and easily available. The urban teams also have the advantage of their school district being much more compact making it easier for student athletes to attend off season work out and training sessions at the school.

But my point in making the post you quoted was that the speed you see from Highlands players is not just the speed they were "born with". Genetics does play a part. I'm not going to deny that. But speed and quickness can be and is improved (sometimes dramatically) by training. As another poster mentioned, the Highlands coaching staff places a premium, actually an immense premium, on speed and quickness development. It is an emphasis of the coaching staff. People may scoff at the "play tag" drills, but they actually work extremely well, particularly for the O linemen. Highlands O linemen are generally well complimented on their ability to maintain blocks. That comes from being able to quickly adjust their feet and body to movements of the defender taken to get off the block. "Playing tag" really helps those O linemen develop the muscles needed to do so. Having the speed camps nearby help, but there is no reason the eastern Ky football coaches couldn't implement a lot of those same drills into their off season and during season practices if they really wanted to improve the speed and quickness of their players.

I can agree with that.