[cat86]

Notes from a long night on Pond Creek:

Um....Belfry is really, really good. This team may pan out to be better than the 2A Championship teams.

The result of this game is what most people feared at the start of the year: What will happen on the road when this young Prestonsburg team has some breaks go against them? How will they respond? Well, last night we didn't respond very well...although I suspect Belfry had a little to do with that.

Belfry controlled the Line of Scrimmage on both sides of the ball all night. Not even close. Johnson is the best RB I have seen in some time. Warren was very poised under center and made good reads all night.

5 turnovers simply killed any chance at changing the momentum of the game. On the Anderson fumble/touchback, IF Anderson fumbled the ball prior to crossing the goal line, then the call was correct. I understand that there was some confusion about WHEN the ball came loose, and was told that Cecil made the comment that "he didn't maintain control after he crossed the goal line". Don't know if that is true or not, but if that is why the touchback call was made, it was a blown call. Belfry was still the far superior team, and it wouldn't have changed the outcome, but a score there and a little momentum may have made a difference.

The Messer hit on Anderson was a 50:50 call. What Pburg was upset about (and from our sideline we had a pretty good view of the play) was that it appeared Messer launched himself head first into the head of Anderson. Bang-Bang play, and a tough call to make.

Defensively, Prestonsburg is struggling. Gap control and blitzes give us the best chance at the current time, because this young team simply doesn't have the athletes at key positions to be able to play keys and read. However, if we continue to lose the battle at the point of impact, it doesn't matter. Tackling was still terrible.

Playing without Bryson Williams hurt on both sides of the ball. Prestonsburg played with freshmen CB's all night, and Chatlin Jarrell weighs in at about 120. He is fearless, but sweeps to his side were guaranteed big plays.

I expect this Belfry team to make it to the Championship game, and this may be the year for a 3A Title for them. Congrats and good luck the rest of the year.

Prestonsburg needs to keep working on the fundamentals: blocking and tackling. It is still early in the season, and a little improvement every day can make a huge difference in the season. Don't hang your heads and let this loss define your season. Get back to work and get better.