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8th Grade 13u Falcons - Season Recap 2006
'06 Record ~ 21-4
Before the recap of the '06 season first I want to special thank Coach H.L. Cason for all he has done the past two seasons for this football team. He's been a true blessing from above to the kids and coaches. During the humid June conditioning practices he was right there every single day w/ cold drinks for the kids and coaches. Down in the 90+ degree Georgia heat and him right there w/ the drinks. Down in 90+ degree Fla heat and him again right there w/ our hydration. His commitment to the team has has been incredible and has truly helped us and been a key part in our success, thanks coach Cason for all you have done we all appreciated it!!!
The 8th grade Falcons was one of the most talented assembled youth football teams to play in Knoxville in sometime. We started the year out with 43 players. Of the 43 players, 31 had been starters on other teams in the past. 2005 season success atracted alot of kids off of other teams onto ours. We welcomed alot of new faces to the team; we had kids come from Austin-East, Bearden, Carter, C.C.Y.S.P., Central, C.B.F.O., Karns, Northwest, Pilot, Rule & South Doyle. Our backfield was VERY crowded. But the coaches got everything sorted out after awhile and went on to have a great season.
We again competed in the Clinton Middle School Flag Passing League in mid-July. We lost our first game but responded by winning 4 straight and again capturing the championship. Our first scrimmage came against the Alcoa Middle School Football team. We knew they would give us a good look and they did. Offensively we looked sluggish, even though we broke free for many un-tackled runs. Defense was stingy and did a great job in shutting down the talented Tornados.
Right out of the gate we played in the Volunteer Youth Pre-Season Classic, we went 3-0 to capture 1st place. We didn't play well in any game but it was early and good to play some games prior to Atlanta.
The following weekend we traveled down I-75 S to play in the Metro Atlanta Pre-Season Classic. We opened play against the always tough Bessie Branham Knights (which hadn't been defeated in a year and a half according to locals). It was a very aggressive game, both defenses dominated, first downs were few and far between. Late in the first half (6-3 205lbs.) TE Khiry Riddles caught a pass over the middle and then out-raced the Knight secondary 60 yards for the game's lone score. Falcons won 7-0. Later that afternoon the Falcons were matched against the host (Central Dekalb Jaguars), the Falcons had defeated the Jags last year in the semi-finals of this very same tournament. The game was totally dominated by defenses as again first downs were few and far between. With under a minute remaining in the game and the Falcons facing a 4th and long, we decided to dip into our bag of tricks for a double pass, (5-11 180lbs.) qb Ben Winters took the shotgun snap then threw behind the line to split-out qb Dametruis Thomas who then launches the ball some 40 yards to (6-2 175lbs.)WR Phillip Stanford (who had got behind the Jaguar secondary), he made the catch then raced another 30 yards to the endzone for the games lone score. Our third game we were to face New Birth, after scouting the Falcons and our hard hittin', stingy defense the Eagles decided to forfeit. The next day in the semi-finals we were matched up against guess who??? C.D. Jaguars, they had clawed there way back in it. We had gotten the best of them twice in as many years so we knew this was going to be war. The opening play of the game the refs caught the Falcons off guard by allowing them to snap the ball with us still rushing players onto the field. The end result was they got all the way down to our 5 yard line. Only to be denied four striaght times by our greedy defense. Late in the first half our ground game decided to show up for the weekend, RB Carlos Campbell took a lead off tackle some 70 yards for the games first score. With less than twenty seconds remaining in the half, and the Falcons pinned in at their own 5 yard line, QB Dametrius Thomas launched a 40 yard pass to WR Devin Williams who out-jumped the Jaguar DB and then raced 50+ yards for the games 2nd score right before halftime. Leading 13-0 we knew the game was far from over, on the first play from scrimmage in the 2nd half the Jaguars forced a Falcon fumble, the D-Lineman scooped up the ball and raced 40 yards to make it a one score game again. The Falcons held on for a hard-fought victory against the rival Jags. The Jags in 2006 went on to win the ever tough MAYFL Championship in Atlanta (that is how good they were). The championship game at the Classic matched us w/ another familar foe, the well rested North Clayton, GA squad (who eliminated us from the National's the previous year). It would be their first game of the day, we were only two hours off from our war w/ C.D. Give North Clayton credit, they won 6-0 on a long reverse. It was a hard fought agressive game as it always is when you battle a team from the ATL. Congratulations go out to our outstanding defense. Led by LB's Jerron Brown, Travell Boatwright, DaVante Gamble & Ben Winters, all were all over the field making many tackles. Also standing out on "D" were Zack Cooper (DL) and Bart Satterfield (DB).
Two weeks after the great Atlanta tournament, the Falcons headed up I - 75 N to Louisville, KY to the ANNUAL River City Classic. It would be our first time attending this event. We opened play versus the host PCC Bears. A solid athletic team, Falcons showed up to play (many knows what happens when that is the case). The end result was 48-6 Falcons. Later in the day we faced a small but scrappy PRP Panthers, we won 12-0. The second day of the event had the Falcons to face the local Jets for the championship. Falcons jumped out to a 13-0 lead, only to see it go away as the Jets kept fighting and fighting. JaVonte Cotner ended the Jets hopes of an upset as he intercepted their qb's pass at the 15 yard line with less than 30 seconds remaining in the game. The final score was 13-6, a very intense physical game that was viewed by many people. Congrats to QB Dametrius Thomas who was named the River City Classic "Most Outstanding Player - 2006".
A month later the Falcons were back on the road traveling down to Birmingham, AL to play the two best teams in the I.Y.F.A. 13u unlimited weight league. The first game matched us up against the host Park West Panthers coached by Johnny King. The Falcons controlled the ballgame for the majority of the first three quarters. We led 16-0 going into the final quarter. The Panthers wouldn't quit, as they returned a Falcon punt for a game tying touchdown w/ only 20 seconds remaining. In double OT, the Panthers edged the Falcons 32-24. It was a great game played by the Panthers, the Falcons came away from the game learning that no lead is safe against a very athletic team. The following day the Falcons regrouped and played the John Carroll Knights. The Falcons due to injuries had to make-shift a backfield and it worked. RB's JaVonte Cotner & Dametruis Thomas raced up and down the field all game, rushing for over 300 yards for the game. QB Ben Winters hooked up w/ TE Phillip Stanford several times to put the game completely out of reach. After the final horn sound, the Falcons came away with a 38-14 win. Special congrats to Jerrico Smith who stepped in and played some big minutes when a couple starters went out with injuries. We had a great time on this trip, both team's were great hosts.
Falcons opened up Knox Metro Play-Offs against a scrappy Central Bobcat squad. Falcons didn't overlook the upset looking Bobcats. RB's Carlos Campbell (1st game back from injury) and Dametruis Thomas raced up and down the field in the mud. Zack Cooper & Ben Winters led the defense. Falcons downed the Bobcats 30-0. The championship had the Falcons faced with a familar foe (CBFO Admirals) who we had already defeated twice. The game was played at there home field (Farragut High School) in the pouring rain. Admirals scored on their opening possession, the Falcons quickly answred as JaVonte Cotner raced 50 yards right up the middle for the Falcons lone score. After this possession every offensive possession ended in a fumble for the Falcons (hard to win that way). The Admirals upset the Falcons 8-6 to claim the 2006 Knox Metro Championship (congratualtions CBFO on a well played game).
Next up for the Falcons came the "Battle In Rocky Top Classic", over 80 teams from 12 different states were coming to Knoxville. We opened up with the previously unbeaten Loudon (TN) Redskins. The Redskins were very scrappy. Falcons played focus and came away with a 19-0 win. The following day would have us matched up in the semi-finals against the Steil's Center Nighthawks from Grand Rapids, MI. The Falcons would be short-handed as a several starters were unable to attend the Sunday morning game. It was a see-saw game, we played hard but came up short 12-8.
Everytime we stepped off the team bus in the out of state tournaments people made all sorts of positive comments. We had fans everywhere we went, people we didn't even know would be cheering us on against the locals. We recevied so much positive feedback, it was great for the kids to see it. This experience for theses kids has been unreal. They'll remember these last two years for the remainder of their lives.
TEAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
~Finished 1st in the Volunteer Youth Football Classic. Knoxville, TN (3-0)
~Finished 2nd in the Metro Atlanta Classic (one of the South's best tournaments). Stone Mountain, GA (4-1)
~Finshed 1st in the River City Classic in Louisville, KY. (3-0)
~Went 1-1 in Birmingham, AL ~ IYFA Mini-Classic.
~Gave up zero touchdown's during regular season play in the tough Knox Metro League (only one all regular season and during playoffs).
~Finshed 1st in the regular season in Knox Metro League play.
~Finished Runner-Up in Knox County Playoffs (were upset by CBFO 8-6 in finals)
~Finished third in the Battle In Rocky Top, which featured teams from all over the United States. (2-1)
~Participated in the Turkey Day Classic National Championships (Mobile, AL). The largest tournament in the USA in '06!!!
~C.M.S. Summer Flag Passing League (Clinton, TN): Champs
Great job Falcons I'm VERY proud of what all you accomplished this season. Keepin the reputation up...This team has a strong reputation throughout the Eastern United States. You've set the standard very high for future Falcon teams.
Below are a list of players who excelled on the field all season for the Falcons. These guys are just some who made the big plays in the big games for the Falcons.
Jerron Brown (RB/LB), Travell Boatwright (RB/LB), Carlos Campbell (RB/S), Mychal Cason (OL/DL), Zack Cooper (OL/DL), JaVonte Cotner (WR/RB/DB), Jordan Fulton (TE/LB), DaVante Gamble (RB/TE/LB), Khiry Riddles (TE/DE), Bart Satterfield (RB/DB), Chris Spencer (OL), Phillip Stanford (TE/DE), Brandon Taylor (WR/DB), Dametruis Thomas (QB/RB/DE), Devin Williams (WR/DB) & Ben Winters (QB/LB)
WINS:
C.B.F.O. Admirals - Blue (2 times)
C.B.F.O. Admirals - White 26-0
Bessie Branham Knights - (Atlanta, GA) 7-0
C.D. Jaguars - (Stone Mtn, GA) 2 times
New Birth Eagles - (Lithonia, GA)
Bearden Bulldogs - (3 times)
P.C.C. Bears - (Louisville, KY) 48-6
P.R.P. Bears - (Louisville, KY) 12-0
California Jets - (Louisville, KY) 13-6
Central Bobcats - (3 times)
Austin-East Roadrunners - 62-0
J.C. Knights - (Birmingham, AL) 38-14
West Rebels - (2 times)
Loudon Redskins - (Loudon, TN) 19-0
LOSSES:
C.B.F.O. Admirals - Blue (8-6)
Powell Panthers - (2-0)
Park West Panthers - (Birmingham, AL) 32-26 in 2 O.T.'s
North Clayton Eagles - (College Park, GA) 6-0
Steil's Center Knight Hawks - (Grand rapids, MI) 12-8
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