Slow Start Blows CCHS Away (10-10-2008)

October 12, 2008 · Filed Under Football, Misc. Sports Reports · Comment 

By SETH BUTLER
Newport Plain Talk Sports Writer

MORRISTOWN-The Cocke County Fighting Cocks have started slow in every game of the 2008 season.
Having been outscored 102-0 in the first quarter this season, Cocke County gave up three more scores to an opponent before most fans were fully settled in their seats on Friday night at Burke-Toney Stadium.
That slow start resulted in the same outcome as the Fighting Cocks have suffered from through the previous six games of the season: a lopsided loss.
Morristown East (6-1, 4-0) scored three first quarter touchdowns, including one on their second play from scrimmage, on their way to a 42-0 homecoming romp over the visiting Fighting Cocks (0-7, 0-4). The loss is the 15th consecutive for Cocke County, which ties the school’s longest losing streak, which occurred the last three games of the 1973 season through the first game of the Dale Chrisman era in 1975
Despite their second highest offensive production totals of the year, with 180 yards of total offense, the Fighting Cocks were shut out for the third consecutive game.
The scoreless streak has now reached 12 consecutive quarters and comprises 17 of the last 18, dating back to the second half at Walker Valley in the third week of the season. Cocke County last scored 19 points in the fourth quarter against reserves from Greeneville in a 41-19 loss to the Devils.
Cocke County’s offensive attack was balanced, with 110 of their yards coming from the air, but was not enough to overcome an athletic Morristown East squad. Junior quarterback Casey Ragan, who has replaced injured Lee Adams under center, accounted for all the passing yards in his third career start under center. Ragan was 4-of-9 passing for the 110 yard total and no interceptions.
“We got better tonight, even though we were defeated, we got better,” Cocke County coach Casey Kelley said. “Offensive production wise we stepped our game up.”
New receivers Jared McGaha and Logan Suggs each had a catch and combined for 58 yards in the game.
“Our kids are getting more comfortable,” Kelley said. “We’re having some younger guys fill their role in our offensive and defensive units.
“But we have a long way to go,” Kelley said. “We’re not there yet.”
Despite the second highest offensive totals in the season for the Fighting Cocks, the first-year head coach still wasn’t pleased at its execution in short-yardage situations.
Cocke County failed to convert seven third and fourth downs with less than three yards to gain. One failed attempt was a fourth-and-two at their own 42 late in the first quarter, setting up the Hurricane’s third touchdown of the night.
“One of the disappointing things, is we have to be able to convert on short yardage,” Kelley said. “We did not do that tonight.
“In a couple key situations to keep an offensive drive going, we have to punch the ball forward when we need it,” Kelley said.
The Hurricanes tallied 322 of their 392 total yards on the ground as they ran past, over and through defenders from Cocke County. Morristown East used a toss sweep to stretch the field against a Fighting Cocks defense, already stretched to the limits with a lack of depth and athleticism.
“Morristown East’s speed is something every coach dreams of having,” Kelley said. “We knew we couldn’t stop them, it was just a matter of being able to contain them.
“We never accomplished the feat of stopping their speed sweep, hats off to coach (Dwayne) Hatcher and the athletes he has out there playing football,” Kelley said.
Tee Howell was the biggest athlete on the field for the Hurricanes on Friday night. Howell, who has played some quarterback this season, lined up at running back and was unstoppable for the Fighting Cocks defense.
Howell ran for 107 yards on eight carries and accounted for two touchdowns during the game. He also was 1-of-2 passing for 27 yards and a touchdown.
Howell’s three scores were responsible for the Hurricanes getting out to a 28-0 halftime lead. The East High junior had touchdown runs of 20 and 25 and his 27-yard touchdown pass to Justin Sandifer came on his team’s second play from scrimmage.
Two of Howell’s touchdowns were set up by Cocke County miscues in the early going.
After a three-and-out on the opening series, fueled by a botched pass between Ragan and tight end Matthew Hurley, Devon Yankee’s punt traveled only 19 yards giving the ‘Canes outstanding field position.
The second Howell touchdown was set up by Cocke County’s inability to convert a fourth-and-two at their own 42-yard line late in the opening period.
In between Howell’s first and second scores of the night, East High took advantage of another short field after a William Carmichael fumble gave the ‘Canes the ball at the Cocke County 44-yard line. Morristown East scored eight plays later on a Daniel Lowe 11-yard run.
The Hurricanes also struck with two second half touchdowns, a 41-yard reception by Sandifer from Tyler Turner and a 23-yard run by Tavin Blanton.
Five Rivers Conference Action: During conference play on Friday night, Morristown West used a big overtime, comeback victory over Daniel Boone to solidify their playoff positioning.
The Trojans defeated Daniel Boone 24-17 in overtime after appearing to clinch the victory twice in regulation. A roughing the kicker call against the Blazers, negated a missed field goal for West, allowing the Trojans to tie the game with no time remaining.
In other games, Greeneville beat Cherokee 41-14 and Volunteer beat David Crockett 21-0.
Friday’s results leaves the standings with Morristown East (4-0) and Greeneville (4-0) tied for first, Morristown West (3-1) in third and Daniel Boone (2-2) and Volunteer (2-2) tied for fourth. Boone holds the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Falcons with their win back in Week Four.
Outside the playoff race are sixth place Cherokee (1-3) and a seventh place tie between David Crockett (0-4) and Cocke County (0-4).
Next week’s games include: David Crockett at Cocke County, Morristown East at Volunteer, Greeneville at Morristown West and Cherokee at Daniel Boone.
Greeneville at West will be a battle for a first-round home game berth in the post-season if the Trojans could pull of the upset and a Cherokee win over Daniel Boone would place the Chiefs on the inside of the 2008 playoff chase.
On Deck: Cocke County returns to action next week by hosting the David Crockett Pioneers for Homecoming.
Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. (WLIK 1270-AM). Homecoming activities are slated to begin prior to kickoff, around 7:15 p.m.

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Boone rolls past Cocke County

October 5, 2008 · Filed Under Football, Misc. Sports Reports · Comment 

NEWPORT-When the Daniel Boone Trailblazers exit the Five Rivers Conference at the conclusion of the season, the Cocke County Fighting Cocks will be one of the first teams to wish them goodbye.
The Trailblazers (4-2, 2-1) rolled past Cocke County (0-6, 0-3) 35-0 for their fourth consecutive victory over the Fighting Cocks since joining the conference in 2005 on Friday night at Hedrick Field.
The loss puts a strain on any fleeting hopes for a playoff run for Cocke County and positions Daniel Boone into a third place tie with Morristown West.
Daniel Boone’s win was the third such blow out decision over Cocke County in the four meetings since the series resumed in 2005. This season is the last for the ‘Blazers in the Five Rivers Conference with statewide reclassification occurring next month.
Cocke County again suffered offensive woes during the game, being held to 55 yards of offense. That output marks the fourth time this season Cocke County has been held to less than 100 yards a game.
First-year Fighting Cocks’ coach Casey Kelley said that Cocke County’s offense was struck by injuries, which have besieged the team during the 2008 season.
“We’ve had trouble of getting healthy personnel on the field,” Kelley said. “We’re on our sixth different offensive set and having to move people in order to find an offensive system that we think is going to execute.
Two converted players, Chris James from wide out and Lee Adams from quarterback were moved into the backfield during the week. The results did not improve with the moves, as neither player gained any positive yards during the game.
Meanwhile, the Blazers used their traditional ground game to pound Cocke County during the game. The Trailblazers out gained the Fighting Cocks by 193 yards, using a punishing ground game to gain 184 yards on 41 carries. Conversely, Cocke County’s ground game only averaged 1.1 yard per carry in the game.
“Coach (Jeremy) Jenkins has been there four or five years and it’s obvious that the kids have bought into his system,” Kelley said. “They really executed well tonight.”
Execution was a strong point in the game, as turnovers created an early hole the Fighting Cocks could not climb out of. A pair of early miscues led to the first two scores for Daniel Boone, which put the Fighting Cocks in a deep hole early in the game.
The Blazers struck first at the 10-minute mark with a 55-yard interception return by Hayden Chandley. Chandley’s interception struck one play after the Fighting Cocks opening drive was extended by a roughing the punter penalty.
Cocke County junior quarterback Casey Ragan’s pass was poorly thrown from the right hash to the left sideline of the field and Chandley jumped the route in front of receiver William Carmichael and ran untouched into the end zone.
“That was about the only major flaw of the first quarter,” Kelley said. “It was a bad one and a big one.
“We wish Casey would’ve picked the second receiver, not the first, but he has to do what he feels right when he lets go of the football,” Kelley said.
The turnover ruined the goal of the team being able to reach the midway mark of the opening quarter with no points scored against them or any turnovers committed by the offense.
“That interception was the only flaw we had in the first quarter,” Kelley said.
Despite not meeting that goal, Kelley said the Fighting Cocks were still in the game at the specific juncture that he had in mind.
“Overall, I looked at the scoreboard and it wasn’t bad,” Kelley said. “We were in the game.
“It wasn’t as bad as it has been and it’s going to continue to get better,” Kelley said. “I view it that way, I see it that way and I’m going to continue to coach it that way.”
Cocke County has been outscored 41-0 in the first quarter in its previous two outings.
Another Cocke County turnover led to points to start the second quarter. A William Carmichael fumble at midfield translated to a 7-play, 50-yard drive by the Blazers. Quarterback Kevin Connell hit Thomas Karczymarczyk on a 19-yard pass with 10:30 to play in the half.
A short field gave the Blazers their third score of the night, taking a five-play, 31-yard drive together near the end of the first half. Jeremy Hood scored on an eight-yard run with 3:40 to play before halftime.
Daniel Boone struck with a crucial touchdown on their opening drive of the second half, which grew their lead to 28 points with 9:13 remaining in the third quarter. Hood scored his second touchdown of the night from two yards out.
The Trailblazers scored their final touchdown with two minutes remaining. John Barker scored on a 2-yard run on an 11-play, 40-yard drive.
Cocke County returns to action next Friday at Morristown East, who defeated Morristown West 21-14 to vault into a first place tie with Greeneville in the conference race. Kickoff from Burke Toney Stadium is set for 7:30 p.m. (Radio: WLIK 1270-AM).
Five Rivers Action: In other Five Rivers Conference games, Greeneville maintained a share of first place with a 34-14 win over Volunteer and Cherokee beat David Crockett 32-18.
Morristown West and Daniel Boone are in a third place tie with a 2-1 record, with Cherokee and Volunteer tied for fifth at 1-2, and David Crockett and Cocke County tied for seventh at 0-3.
By SETH BUTLER
Newport Plain Talk

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Patriots rip Fighting Cocks: By Seth Butler Newport Plain Talk

September 28, 2008 · Filed Under Football · Comment 

DANDRIDGE-What was one of East Tennessee’s fiercest rivalries, turned into a lopsided thrashing on Friday night.
The second installment after the renewal of the rivalry between Jefferson County and Cocke County was the most lopsided game in the 32-game history of the series.
Another patented slow start by the Fighting Cocks led to a 27-point first quarter explosion which propelled the Jefferson County Patriots (3-3) to an easy 54-0 win over Cocke County (0-5) on Friday night at Leroy Shannon Field.
That 27-point first quarter was interrupted by a 30-minute delay due to a lighting malfunction, which seemed to be an omen for the rest of the night for the Fighting Cocks.
“It was a very dreary night and kind of dark over in Dumplin Valley for a little while,” Cocke County first-year coach Casey Kelley said on WLIK’s Player of the Week show. “And there was not a lot of light from our side of it.
“We showed up, played a football game and we came back home,” Kelley said.
The Patriots dominated every phase of the game, throttling an already weary and worn Fighting Cocks team besieged by injuries, defections and a battered mentality halfway through the season. Cocke County had a light week of practice the past week due to those factors and appeared ill prepared to offer any type of defense to Jefferson County’s attack as they jumped on Cocke County 20-0 six minutes into the game.
“One of the keys to victory for us was to look up at the scoreboard halfway thru the first quarter and be able to say that nothing bad has happened to us yet tonight,” Kelley said. “We’ve not beat ourselves with a turnover, a special teams blunder, their offense is moving and our defense is not stopping them.
“When I looked at the scoreboard with six minutes left in the quarter, Jefferson County had 20, we had nothing, and all those factors had happened,” Kelley said.
Will Brooks and Brad Mason continued the successful string opponents have had against the Fighting Cocks this season, scoring five of their team’s six touchdowns before the intermission.
Brooks, who was the only regular member of the Patriots’ offensive backfield active in Friday’s game, ran for three of his four scores in the first half and eventually tallied 176 yards on only 10 carries. The Jefferson County back had gaping holes to run through all night long, and ran untouched to the end zone on all four touchdowns.
The linebackers and secondary provided little to no resistance to any Patriots player who made it into the second and third levels of the Cocke County defense.
Brooks posted his first touchdown on the game’s first play, marking the second consecutive game an opponent has posted seven points just seconds into the game.
“They come out in a double-tight formation and we jumped to our five-man front defense,” Kelley said, noting when Cocke County goes to a five-man front they roll a defensive back or linebacker down to the line of scrimmage.  “Their tight end got a good block to seal our defensive end and allowed the running back to scrape off the tight ends block.
“With a 5-3 defense we don’t have an extra defensive back to come in and fill that outside running alley,” Kelley said.
Mason had three punt returns for 180 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the half, before the Fighting Cocks kicked every other punt out of bounds. Mason had clear running room
with very little white Cocke County jerseys in the vicinity on each of his three returns.
“During our game plan this week, we didn’t want to kick it to them because we saw on film with a couple of blocks he could spring it and bounce and go all the way back with it,” Kelley said. “The whole intent with our punt team was to get an angled kick and pin them to the sideline.
“With the first couple of kicks we got off, we were lucky to first couple of kicks off and we put down the field went straight down the field and that wasn’t how we wanted our punt team to set up,” Kelley said.
The Patriots scored early, often and quickly throughout the game. Jefferson County had only one scoring drive going more than three plays as four of six Patriot touchdowns on offense came on plays of longer than 40 yards. The remaining two touchdowns came via special teams.
Jefferson County’s defense also did their job as they out gained Cocke County 291-81 on the night. The game was the third of five contests in which the Fighting Cocks failed to crack the 100-yard mark this season.
Cocke County’s offensive woes that have stemmed back to the preseason continued to grow as the Fighting Cocks punted on 8 of their 11 possessions in the game. The other three possessions ended with a lost fumble, a turnover on downs and the end of the game.
All of Cocke County’s 81 yards of offense came on 36 carries, as the Fighting Cocks were 0-of-12 passing. Conversely, the Patriots were 0-of-3 passing as both teams struggled with the rainy conditions.
Cocke County’s offense was disrupted by the loss of their starting running backs Jordan Keller and William Carmichael, both of whom are expected to miss next week’s game.
“We came out and our game plan got thrown out the window and we had to piece things together and it made for a long night for us,” Kelley said, citing the injury to Keller on the game’s third play from scrimmage.
Keller and Carmichael were joined on the doubtful list for next week, along with Casey Jones and Jason Collins, stretching an already thin Cocke County team to its limits.
The Patriots gained their 291 yards on only 27 snaps, averaging 10.8 yards per play, equating to an average of a first down on every play from scrimmage.
Those averages allowed the Patriots to hold a 40-0 halftime lead on the strength of Brooks’ and Mason’s touchdowns and a 10-yard Will Darby run at the 1:57 mark of the first quarter.
Darby’s touchdown was the fourth of the game in the first 10 minutes of the game. Even a 30-minute delay due to a light malfunction did little to slow down the Patriots in the midst of their second offensive drive of the night.
The Patriots took advantage of excellent first quarter field position to secure their early first quarter lead. Jefferson County did not run an offensive play in their own territory in the quarter and when the quarter had ended they had 27 points to go along with only 98 yards of total offense.
Jefferson County added a pair of second half scores to continue to pile on the points.
Brooks ran untouched on a 58-yard run on the second series of the half for the Patriots, pushing the lead to 47. Hunter Gentry scored on a 52-yard run with 7:27 remaining in the game for the final margin of victory.
Cocke County must regroup for the second half of the season, which features five consecutive Five Rivers Conference games to conclude the season. The Fighting Cocks begin that stretch by hosting Daniel Boone at Hedrick Field on Friday at 7:30 p.m.
Kelley said the team still has a chance to accomplish the goals it set out at the beginning of fall camp in August.
“We have five football games left, five conference games left, Kelley said. “We have a chance to achieve the goals we set for this team at the beginning of the season by putting a productive team on the field and going out and surprising people.
“Five more conference games, that could be five conference victories and we walk in second and third in the conference at the end of the season and representing our school in the playoffs,” Kelley said. “There are still attainable goals here, (but) we’re going to have to work our butts off and have a lot of good luck happen to us.”
In order for those things to happen, the Fighting Cocks must hit the practice field and attempt to climb out of the cellar of the Five Rivers Conference standings.
“Right now we’re the dog of the conference, we’re last and everyone has given up on us,” Kelley said. “I’ve not given up on this team, these players have not given up on themselves yet and they’re not going to.”

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