khayward

Final games of the season and first round of sectionals:
Who ya got...

On 1/8/2024 at 3:22 PM, Daniel_Bragg said:

I think the Hoosier Heartland is one of the more competitive conferences this year.  A LOT of fun games.  It looks like Taylor and Clinton Prairie could be the leaders though.  Either way, the majority of the conference looks to be separated by just a few points on any given Friday/Saturday.

Now that the final conference standings are locked in, I thought it was interesting to see the top four as the top four I predicted pre-season. Bragg you were right as well, tons of games separated by very few points. Conference standings could have easily been flipped many different ways with just 1 play in many of the games.

CP             8-0

Carroll       5-2

Taylor        5-3

Sheridan   4-4

Sheridan is still young and lost some games they should not have this season. Most notably the Delphi and Eastern games but also the 1 point home loss against Taylor. They beat Carroll and have the talent that could have very easily finished 7-1 in conference with only a 6-point loss to CP, a game in which they led at one point in the 4th Q.
Sheridan has secured a winning season record; it is only the 3rd winning season in the last 20 seasons.
Trey Page(Freshman) broke the Sheridan 3-pointers in a game record(9), the team has scored more points in a game than they have in over 10 years(86 and 87), Trent DeCraene(Senior) broke the Sheridan single-game record for assists(15), and with 2 games left Trent is only 6 assists away from breaking the Sheridan all-time single season assists record.

Sheridan had an up and down year losing some close ones but overall, what a fun team to watch. A lot of exciting run and gun basketball and some great records and stories to follow on this team. They have a tough draw in Sectionals but with a first round bye 1 win gets them to the sectional championship, Sheridan has not won a sectional since 1983 or even been to a sectional championship game since 2003.

Go Blackhawks

This weekend's HHC slate:

On 1/11/2024 at 8:56 AM, khayward said:

This weekend's slate of games, some great match ups, should produce some close games, all important conference games Fri and all non-Conf games Sat.

Friday, Jan. 12
Clinton Central at Taylor © , 7:30 pm - Taylor gets the win at home
Clinton Prairie at Carroll © , 7:30 pm - Rematch from a holiday tournament game these 2 already played, Carroll has been up and down with the results so not sure what team will show up, I have CP on the road avenging their earlier loss.
Eastern at Delphi © , 7:30 pm - Delphi at home, just played Carroll in a close game, I am going with the home team upset.
Tri-Central at Rossville © , 7:30 pm - If Rossville keeps shooting well and can control the Tri big man, they can win at home as well.

 

Saturday, Jan. 13
Anderson Prep at Tri-Central, 6 pm - Tri should win
Carroll at Pioneer, 7:30 pm - Carroll should win
Clinton Central at Alexandria, 7:30 pm - Alexandria should win
Delphi at North Newton, 2:30 pm - close one, I'll take the HHC team on the road
North Montgomery at Sheridan, 7:30 pm - Sheridan starting to figure things out, let's keep that ball rolling!
Rossville at Frankfort, 7:30 pm - Both better than their records, 3A Frankfort too much
Western at Taylor, 7:30 pm - Another close one, I think Western is way better than their record, can Taylor hang with a 3A at home?

I didn't miss a pick this last weekend! Things are really starting to get exciting.

On 1/8/2024 at 3:22 PM, Daniel_Bragg said:

I think the Hoosier Heartland is one of the more competitive conferences this year.  A LOT of fun games.  It looks like Taylor and Clinton Prairie could be the leaders though.  Either way, the majority of the conference looks to be separated by just a few points on any given Friday/Saturday.

Excited for another double header Friday night in Sheridan.

This weekend's slate of games, some great match ups, should produce some close games, all important conference games Fri and all non-Conf games Sat.

On 1/5/2024 at 11:04 PM, Daniel_Bragg said:

Tonight, especially in the 2nd half, we saw a Sheridan team that was playing together and working as a team.  When they do it, they are a thing of beauty.  This team really should have a better record.  They found a way to lose to Eastern last month, and honestly, the Frankfort game should have been much different as well.

And they did it again Sat night against Rossville! Played well as a team, if they make even half of their free-throws I think the game is put away a lot sooner in the 2nd half. Both teams were on fire making everything and the high final score shows it...

Eastern, Delphi and CP with somewhat surprising wins, I think our conference overall is pretty darn good. See below, 10th best conference in the state in non-conference games. 

On 1/4/2024 at 7:11 PM, Daniel_Bragg said:

Friday:
Sheridan @ Tri-Central - I'm gonna go with Sheridan as well.  Honestly, the two games against Eastern and Clinton Prairie could have gone very differently.  Sheridan just needs to avoid the "Live by the 3" game that they fall into sometimes.
Rossville @ Taylor - Taylor.  Rossville has been stout in the past, but I think Taylor gets it this year.
Delphi @ Carroll - Carroll going away
Clinton Central @ Eastern - Eastern going away

Great call tonight at the game, enjoyed watching from home, totally agree about forcing all the 3's, much more success when we are driving and moving the ball around more, wish we would even try more 10-12 footers. A couple of the guys would benefit greatly from taking 10-12 footers instead of 3's. Great road Conference win, we will take it!

Taylor and Eastern win big as expected, Carroll with the surprising 3-point win as 20-point favorites at home, wonder what happened there, they beat CP recently, so I know they are a good team.

On 12/26/2023 at 10:38 PM, Daniel_Bragg said:

Sorry.  I'm 100% down to do a pick 'em every week.  

This weekend's games...

Friday:
Sheridan @ Tri-Central - Watched both play at the Morristown Classic, Tri was not as impressive as anticipated but their big will give Sheridan fits on both ends. Always going to pick Sheridan but not an easy game to win on the road. Sheridan +4(Sagarin), winnable if they make their 3's and play man to man D and not the 3-2 zone that has not worked yet.
Rossville @ Taylor - Taylor at home should be a good pick. Rossville could give them a game.
Delphi @ Carroll - Easy win at home
Clinton Central @ Eastern - Easy win at home

Saturday:
Clinton Prairie @ Northwestern - Clinton Prairie currently on a slide, can they bounce back on the road... I will take them, but they are a +5 underdog on the road.
Rossville @ Sheridan - Sheridan finally returns home after a 7-game, month long, stretch on the road.
Oak Hill @ Eastern - Eastern on a roll but Oak Hill with a much harder schedule, despite their records Oak Hill is the Sagarin favorite on the road -2.
Tri-Central @ Wes-Del - Tri favored on the road but Wes-Del could give them a closer game than they expect.
Caston @ Delphi - Both struggling, giving the edge to another road team.
 

On 12/26/2023 at 10:38 PM, Daniel_Bragg said:

Sorry.  I'm 100% down to do a pick 'em every week.  

Sounds good, I will pick it up again this Next week. Some surprising results so far, conference title still seems well up for grabs.

This weekend's games.
Friday:
Carroll @ Rossville - looks to be the best conference match-up of the weekend. I'll take Rossville at home as the 4-point underdogs.
Sheridan @ Eastern - Sheridan looking good, takes the win on the road.
Frontier @ Clinton Prairie - Jake McGraw nightmares in Frontier land this week.
Tri-Central @ Clinton Central - Tri-Central takes this one.
Taylor @ Delphi - Taylor should win.

Saturday:
Sheridan @ Frankfort - Watch out, Frankfort might be the best winless team in the state. Still taking the Blackhawks on the road as 2-point underdogs.
Rossville @ LCC - my gut says LCC on this one.
Eastern @ Cowan - Is Cole Duncan out for the year? If and when Cowan gets him back, they will get a lot better. If not, Eastern with the win.
Tri-Central @ Madison-Grant - Tri-Central wins the hyphen war.

On 12/5/2023 at 10:43 AM, Daniel_Bragg said:

I think we still have to wait a few more games before I can tell you how good Sheridan is. CP operated as a team from the jump, whereas Sheridan was very shaky, and seemed to have jitters. They obviously figured it out later on. Just unfortunate that their first game was a conference matchup. 

I think CP can win the conference. It should be an exciting season for sure. I'm looking forward to Friday, and seeing how Sheridan plays against Clinton Central. 

How about a little weekend pick em, just looking for some action on our conf thread, see if we can get some more participation. 2 conference head to heads tonight and a good handful of other games Fri/Sat for Heartland teams.

Friday:
Sheridan 2-1 @ Clinton Central 0-3  -  Can Sheridan pull off the running clock in basketball and football this year. Sheridan wins either way
Eastern 1-3 @ Tri Central 2-1  -  Eastern with a tough schedule to start but I think they can get the conf win going away.
Caston 2-1 @ Carroll 2-1  -  Both had close games with their 1 common opponent, Caston with the edge on that result alone but Carroll with the edge at Home. 
Rossville 3-1 @ Frontier 0-3  -  Rossville will win, running clock alert.
Northwestern 2-2 @ Taylor 3-2  -  Sticking with Taylor but their recent loss to a young WeBo team has me confused.

Saturday:
WeBo 2-2 @ Clinton Prairie 3-0  -  CP with the running clock late in the 2nd half although the recent WeBo win against Taylor was surprising to me. CP just too good.
Rossville 3-1 @ Western 2-2  -  Western has "seen some things"(Kokomo), I am thinking they can pull off a close one at Home.
Tri-Central 2-1 @ Morristown 0-4  -  Tri-Central should win
Clinton Central 0-3 @ Attica 0-2  -  I'm taking the bulldogs to get their first win of the season.

On 11/28/2023 at 2:15 PM, Daniel_Bragg said:

I'll happily take part in discussions throughout the season. I honestly forgot that there was a basketball side to the GID. 

Early season thoughts?

CP and Jake McGraw are a tough team, my way too early in the season prediction has them taking the Conference title.
Would love to see Sheridan up there at the top of the pack and I think they can, they beat CP in 3 of the 4 quarters and actually took the lead late in the 4th Q. Just could not pull off the come back from the slow start down 15-2 at the end of the 1st Q.

Early results from Taylor and Carroll, they don't seem as dominant as last year but still a lot of basketball to play. Rossville and Tri-Central with good records to start but not sure if the quality of opponents and wins are worth judging them as contenders yet.
 

On 11/14/2023 at 3:37 PM, Muda69 said:

 

On 11/14/2023 at 3:33 PM, Daniel_Bragg said:

 

Any interest in a Hoosier Heartland Basketball thread? I started one on the (GID)basketball forum but doesn't seem like it gets a l lot of action historically, is there another place that is more popular for Indiana HS basketball forums?

Enjoyed the HH Conference football thread this year, curious if there is any interest in a basketball one as well....

Wondering how good Caroll and Taylor can be this year(Clinton Prairie as well)? 
Looks like they each lost 3-4 senior starters from last year, will they be able to reload, or will they be down at all from prior year success?

Sheridan had no Seniors last year, so they return all starter's plus 3 quality adds from JV/transfers. They are much taller and more talented and seem to be ready for a jump up the conference standings this year.

Any other teams looking to make a case for a run at a conference title? Would love to hear any predictions or news on interesting transfers/up and comers that will be making a splash around the conference.

Any Westfield update? Have not see any…

On 11/13/2023 at 2:17 PM, Daniel_Bragg said:

This wasn't on the coaching.  They were trying to move to a single-high safety defense, and ND came out in 5-wide.  The safety never stepped up to cover the open WR, LIKE HE WAS COACHED TO DO!  

The first onside kick was not a given that it would happen.  There was no problem in lining up like they did.  The young man that jumped on the ball did exactly what he was coached to do.

That trick play that you are trying to downplay here, is likely the difference in the outcome of that game.  I'm not sure what personal vendetta you have against Coach Wright, but most of your posts bagging on him have not exactly been from a place of deep analysis.
 

If he was coached to move from 1 high back to man to cover the 5th WR then why the confusion?

1st onside is not a given but possible so coaching should move 2nd row up just in case.

no personal vendetta, have said many times I like and respect Bud. Don’t like that people on here act like he is immune from criticism. 
I would love to get into deep analysis here but can’t get past basic criticism of obviously poor coaching decisions.

On 11/13/2023 at 12:50 PM, gonzoron said:

I'm sorry your kid doesn't get more playing time.

The kid I follow plays both ways, not my kid, wrong twice lol

On 11/11/2023 at 8:39 PM, Ballhawk said:

I would do my criticism/critique away from an internet message board.  I have plenty of answers.

You want to talk about it?  I'm all in, but not here.

I am curious as to your thoughts from last night's game?  I thought the old man outsmarted the HC of ND.  On a side note, how does the coach of ND even get to work around children after his stunt at HH?

You think he outsmarted them when he did not use the timeouts before halftime when we could’ve had another chance at at least a field goal? 

What about when we played 3 yards off the ball on defense in 3rd and more than 20 and got beat deep twice for TDs… one was at the end of the game when you should be playing prevent, nope just everyone in press man 3 yards off the ball. SMH

How about the first onside kick and we are not prepared and do not have the hands team on the field, luckily a lineman fell on it.

in what way did he outsmart the other coach? Because we had a trick play that happened to work at the end of the game?
They dropped some huge passes and their QB had some easy ones that he just completely missed. If they play a clean game on offense they could have easily won.

Out-coached IMO, glad the boys overcame and found a way to win. Regional Champs is a great accomplishment, we will have to play lights out our best game of the year to stay close with Lutheran.

45 minutes ago, FarmerFran said:

The Sheridan fans can correct me if I'm wrong, but a coach isn't going to change his coaching philosophy after several years of coaching let alone 50+. Bud wants to play good defense and pound the ball/control the clock. That thinking has led to one of the most historic coaching careers in the nation. With that said, no coach is infallible or should be free from criticism. The simplicity of the offense and defense are probably a reflection of the team he has this year. A quick look at maxpreps looks like they are pretty young overall. Might be keeping things simple to get the kids playing fast. Traditionally Bud was an option guy, probably doesn't have the dudes to do that this year, so simplify. Regardless, the dude has plenty of hardware to support his coaching style and has the team playing for a regional title this Friday.

You are 100% right and I have been very clear in the past that the majority of my criticism is for the D Coordinator. He has all 11 guys 2 yards off the ball on every play, 3rd and 20? same D, no safety, no cover 2 looks ever. Look back at the scores Sheridan has given up in the last few seasons, Majority are on big plays, usually through the air(especially last year).
My only small complaints with Bud are on play calling but you are right that he may not have "the dudes" and that could be restricting his choices. For me it is all very predictable and would like to see him switch it up more than he does i.e. not run the ball left off tackle 3 plays in a row. Yea sometimes it works but it never does against better competition.  

At the end of the day I am excited to be following a team and a coach with such an amazingly rich history. Some here are mistaking my criticism as disrespect. I am trying to make light of my criticism and add jokes to keep it fun.

11 hours ago, Ballhawk said:

Your original comment was not respectful.  If you want to act like a tough guy, you’ve come to the wrong place loudmouth.  

You’re a disrespectful dbag.  Don’t act like a badass with me.  You’re just a turd who thinks he knows it all.  What level have you coached and what are your accomplishments?  Don’t come back with the “I played football” argument either.  
 

I can’t wait for your big boy response.  Or your threats.  I’ll shut my mouth when I choose to bubba.

You can't answer the questions so you double down on the insults because maybe that will cover up your lack of response. You were all chums with me on the other thread talking about wanting to get a drink and be friends LOL. You liked my criticism of the coaching in the past but not now, odd.
Just like YOU said before, I also want to "right the ship for Sheridan" and the quality of coaching is a clear issue that YOU have agreed with very recently! What changed? 

I can't wait for your lack of response again...

2 hours ago, Ballhawk said:

I think you have overstepped here sir.  If you've never spoken with him or talked football with him, you need to keep your mouth shut.  You have no idea what you're talking about.  You can think what you want, but for what he has done for the Sheridan community and school system deserves some respect.

Uncalled for, totally uncalled for.

Which part is uncalled for? I said I respected him and he should be praised etc. etc. Do I have to come to the alter you have for him and kiss the feet of his golden statue?
Again, you're proving my point, everyone loves to call "blasphemy" at the drop of a hat but not one person will answer the questions I have about the clear issues. Respond to those instead of crying for Bud Wright, he's surely taken plenty of criticism in his long tenure, this is nothing!
Tell me how running the same plays 3-4 times in a row consistently is good coaching.
Tell me how running the EXACT same defense, no changes, no adjustments, everyone 2 yards off the ball every play even in 3rd and 20+ is good coaching.

If you can't answer the questions and tell me how these and other coaching decisions are considered good coaching and make Sheridan coaching untouchable to criticism, then you need to keep your mouth shut.
 

On 11/6/2023 at 8:41 AM, kdets89 said:

Each of the 4 regional games this weekend is a rematch from last year.  When was the last time that happened, and will the results be the same?

Harrell Predictions:

North Judson over Park Tudor, 35-28:  Was D.J. Gordon available for this game last year?  Can North Judson shut him down this year?

Adams Central over Carroll, 31-24:  What does Carroll have to do to pull off the upset?

Sheridan over North Decatur, 31-24:  Only prediction I disagree with.  Game is at Sheridan, so if you're traveling from Greensburg, make sure all your taillights work, your license plate is current and keep it under the speed limit once you hit the Sheridan line.

Lutheran over Providence, 38-24:  Providence is having a great year, but has their schedule prepared them for the Saints?

3 of the 4 games last year were blow outs(running clocks). I am hopeful the predictions are correct and we have 4 competitive games.
Providence, Park Tudor and Carroll may not win again this year, but I do think they all avoid the running clock they all endured last year; I think all 3 could even make these games close! I think at least 1 of them can get it done.
Sheridan/ND game is a toss-up on paper. All make for more exciting regional games for all.

14 hours ago, dazed and confused said:

Blasphemy !

ND may beat Sheridan with the athletes on the field but I don’t see Bud getting out coached!!!

You must not be watching much Sheridan football then... and it's mostly the defensive coach, defensive scheme is so poor and no adjustments ever made.
If you think running the same play on offense 3-4 times in a row consistently is good coaching, then I'm not sure what to tell you.
Outcoached at Eastern this year and last week at MC... If you want details, I am happy to provide them, if you know football it's all very obvious.

I respect Bud a lot for his outstanding record and place in History but that does not mean he has an advanced football mind; it simply is not the case if you watch in person.
I think when you coach for 60 years in 1A football there are going to be some good players/teams in that stretch... blind squirrel or broken clock references come to mind.
He should be praised for his longevity and giving that town some great years to be proud of, but can we stop with the ridiculous "Blasphemy" claims acting like the man is a god or untouchable to criticism. We should be able to speak the truth here and call a Spade a Spade.

On 11/3/2023 at 4:21 PM, Bobref said:

I think there are more than a few games tonight that are rematches of regular season games. I’m going to one, as Knox hosts John Glenn. What are some of the others, and how did the regular season game turn out? Knox handled Glenn by a comfortable margin in mid-season.

How about these 4 regional match ups in 1A... Every single one is a rematch from last year's regional games! 8 solid programs 2 years in a row, pretty good!

Would love to see some different results but I think Lutheran and AC might just be too good for 1A, pretty sure at least one of them go to 2A next year...

On 11/4/2023 at 10:50 AM, DecCoFan said:

With regional and semi state coming, could Providence or North Decatur beat Lutheran or still just the Lutheran show? With North Decatur win last night, i dont think Sheridan will be much of a game

Won't be much of a game for Lutheran or for ND?

I think Sheridan's defense will be better than Milan's, question for me is how many Sheridan can put up against the ND defense... Sagarin predictor has a near deadlock(advantage Sheridan at home), Hopeful for a great game!