District Volleyball Tournaments Begin Tonight

Seminole District Matchups
# 7 Amherst at # 2 Jefferson Forest
# 6 Heritage at # 3 Brookville
# 5 Liberty at # 4 Staunton River

Semifinals will take place tomorrow at Liberty High School. Rustburg, the # 1 seed will play the winner of Liberty-Staunton River at 6:00 in Game 1. Then, the other two winners will matchup in the night cap.

Thursday, will be the finals and the 3rd place game. Winners of tonight's games will advance to the Region III Tournament, which gets underway next Monday.

Features to be Heard on "The Sports Buffet" podcast.

In case you don't know (or have been on Mars, Neptune or Uranus) I am the author, creator, producer, writer, director, host and any other superlative you'd like to throw in of "The Sports Buffet" podcast. I always look for feedback on "The Sports Buffet". If you have thoughts (what you think of current podcasts), comments or suggestions (who are your favorite teams and what guests do you want to hear), e-mail me at TheSportsBuffet@verizon.net. Also, I am going to be creating a mailing list to update you when new podcasts are added to "The Sports Buffet"."The Sports Buffet" features high school, college and professional sports. You will be able to hear new podcasts as well as older segments from "Talking High School Sports" and other games broadcasted throughout the years on WKDE.Here are some of the segments (most of these will be related to high school sports) that you will be hearing on "The Sports Buffet"

"The Sports Buffet" is going to be taking a lot of the segements/features that were spotlighted on "Talking High School Sports". "The Sports Buffet" (http://thesportsbuffet.mypodcast.com/) continues to add previous broadcasts from "Talking High School Sports" to the pod-cast site, however we also will be developing new ones as well. In order, to do that, Here is what you can expect in terms of segments on "The Sports Buffet"

* "Checking In": This segment features updates on former high school athletes from the Lynchburg area and beyond as they continue their athletic careers in college. You will hear from the athlete, as well as current and past teammates and coaches.

* "Where Are They Now": This is the segment where we catch up with former high school athletes, coaches, media members, officials, athletic directors, athletic trainers and more from the Lynchburg area and beyond to find out what they are doing now. You will hear from the individual as well as people that were associated with them during their time in high school sports in the Lynchburg area and beyond.

* "Teammates": This segment test two teammates from an athletic squad to see how well they know each other. With larger teams, it may become a contest to where it would feature 3 teams of 2, similar to ESPN's "Teammates", where they are competing against one another. But, with smaller teams it will feature two participants from a team to see how well they know each other with questions that pertain to questions away from the sport, i.e. favorite movie, favorite food and so forth.

* Know Your Coach...... New segment that will see how well a player knows their coach. This is very similar to "Teammates" but will instead feature 3 athletes from a team to see how well they know their coach.

* "One on One with Bob Alvis": This segement takes a personality from the sporting world and gives them 12 questions that they would not hear in their normal, everday life, such as "If you were stuck on a desert island, what 3 movies would you want with you?"

* "Inside the Game": This segment is designed to take a fast pace look at a sport or conference and it's most recent happenings. The segment can also be designed to take a look at a specific night. For example, a Friday night in High School Football could be covered on one edition of "Inside the Game"

* "Bumps and Bruises": This segment is designed to allow athletic trainers to talk about a prevention, rehabilitation method, or anything they feel needs to be brought to the public's attention relating to the area of athletic training.

* Away from the Game...... Was to be known as "Off the Field" on "Talking High School Sports" but never really got off the ground. Segment is designed to highlight an athlete's good deeds away from the field. For example, an athlete that may help out at a nursing home, or tutors other students, or is just a good student and is actively involved in their school, church or another organization.

* "Coach's Corner": This is where a coach talks about a technique, strategy, or something that will allow the public insight on the game that they coach.

* "Rules of the Game": This is where a sports official talks about a rule of the sport they officiate. Nothing much more to say about that.

* "The Roundtable": This is where 3 coaches, media members, athletes or officials sit down and talk not so much strategy but more of coaching phillosphies and general sitatuions about sports.

* "Profile": Every now and again we will have a feature on a coach, player, official, athletic director, broadcaster, etc. You will hear from the person being feature, as well as other people talking about them.

You can go to the pod-cast of "The Sports Buffet" (http://thesportsbuffet.mypodcast.com/) and hear examples of the segments from the days of "Talking High School Sports" as well as the new segments that will be added to "The Sports Buffet"."The Sports Buffet" is a free pod-cast developed by Bob Alvis, a self described sports nut, as he looks to promote the great things in sports at all levels as well as to inform and entertain the general public. I do have one child (and another on the way) as well as working a 3rd shift job, so I apologize up front if I don't give as much coverage as I'd like to a certain team

Amelia at Buckingham PPD til Monday at 7:30

Amelia travels to Buckingham, Monday at 7:30

William Fleming at GW Danville tomorrow at 2

According to Friday Football Extra's website, this game will be played tomorrow at 2:00

Cancelled High School Football Games 10/17

Nelson County at Chatham will now play Monday at 6.

Amherst at Liberty will now play Saturday at 6.

Stay tuned for more updates.

"The Sports Buffet" Podcast's Coming Attractions

Here is what's on tap at the 'Buffet in the next day or two.

- Brad Bradley Interview: Coach Bradley talks about what is going to need to go right for William Campbell to beat Gretna on Friday night in Naruna. Coach Bradley also reviews the Altavista game, as well as talking about a real living legend, his dad, Coach Larry Bradley, who just coached his last middle school game a week ago, as coach at Andrew Lewis Middle School.

- Chris Thurman Interview: Coach Thurman speaks on the Dogwood District as a whole, as well as the Hawks chances on Friday in Naruna. Coach Thurman also talks about the Nelson County game, and the large comeback the Governors had up in Lovingston a couple of weeks back. Also, Coach Thurman talks about the respect he has for Brad Bradley, as well as if we will see Nick Miller back on the field for the Hawks this season.

- Cecil Phillips Interview: Coach Phillips joined me to discuss his Amherst Lancers, who may be one of the hottest teams in the Lynchburg area right now. Coach Phillips previews this Friday's tilt at Liberty. Coach Phillips also shared what he learned from his coaching influences (Bob Christmas, Kevin Saunders and more.).

Also, on Friday afternoon, I will have a comprehensive preview of the William Campbell-Gretna game, with words from some of the assistant coaches from each staff. Then on Saturday morning, hear complete and comprehensive postgame from the battle in Naruna.

Stay tuned to this podcast for opinions and upcoming features on "The Sports Buffet" as well. Also, stay tuned for a big announcement concerning "The Sports Buffet" podcast.

Great News

Great News. "The Sports Buffet" podcast is back. All computer problems that have fixed, the recording studio has been updated and now "The Sports Buffet" podcast is ready to go again. So, what that means is this: You are going to hear new stuff, old stuff and all the stuff in between. The name and content hasn't changed, we are just back from a long sabbatical. Be sure to visit "The Sports Buffet" for all your high school, college and pro sports needs.

If there is anything you want to hear, be sure to email me at TheSportsBuffet@verizon.net

More rivalry talk

More rivalry talk.

Mark Hanks (Head Boys Basketball Coach at Pulaski County, formerly Liberty Minutemen head coach)
Obviously the Salem-Pulaski County games. They have the largest attendance in this part of the state,football more specifically. I was there the night they beat us in overtime when we missed a 20 yd fg and Coach Hicks resigned that night only to come back and win a state championship a few years later.

From my days at Liberty, I really enjoyed coaching against Jim Hawley at JF. He always was light years ahead of me preparation wise and we had the studs to even it up !
that evening.

Paul Smith (Jefferson Forest Head Boys Basketball Coach)
In my short time here I do see that JF and Brookville is a big rivalry for the long time JF people. I can tell on game night that the game has a much different atmosphere. .

Rivalries

Jefferson Forest and Brookville battled last week, but this week features a rivalry for the Old-Timers. E.C. Glass will host G.W. Danville in a battle that marks the last Western Valley District game between the two, before the Hilltoppers drop down to the Seminole. Thus, I had recieved more comments on certain rivalries from the Central and Southwest Virginia area. Here are some more responses that I recieved to these questions

1. What do you think is the best high school rivalry and why?

2. What is your most memorable moment from a rivarly that you are involved in now (or one that you were involved in) and what made it memorable? (If you played/coached more then one sport, please specify the sport from your answer)

Warner Dyke (Head Girls Basketball & Head Golf Coach at Brookville High School)
1. For me, it would have to be brookville versus J.F. It doesnt matter the sport, it is always the biggest crowd of the year. Year in and year out in most sports it seems like we are competing for one of the top spots in the district with each other.

2. I know this sounds cliche but I really dont get wrapped uo in the rivaly's like the kids do. But I guess the best moment with J.F. for me would be the year that we were the only team (girls basketball) in the district to beat them.

Mike Cartolaro (Head Boys Basketball Coach at Altavista High School)
Well, most coaches will say it is one they are in. Certainly the one with us and gretna over the years has been good. Maybe the last couple of years it has lost a little of the shine, but I am not complaining since we have been fortunate enough to win those games. We had the V-T game in bristol: Virginia High and Tennessee High. That was very intense. We beat them on a half court shot one year, when both teams were very good we went to the state double a playoffs and they also qualified.

John Earich (William Campbell Assistant Head Coach for the Varsity Football team)
1. Massillon versus Canton McKinley in Ohio since 1894. Because Ohio football is the best in the nation.

2. Our victory over Gretna in 2002. 33-30 overtime. Watching Vernon Vassal do cartwheels after Josh Moon kicked the winning field goal.

More to come

More Rivalry Comments

The lateest comments on rivalries. The questions again

The questions
1. What do you think is the best high school rivalry and why?
2. What is your most memorable moment from a rivarly that you are/were involved in?

The newest answers

Paul Smith (Jefferson Forest Boys Basketball Head Coach)
Not being from this area for very long, it is hard to have a real "feel" for this. However, in my short time here I do see that JF and Brookville is a big rivalry for the long time JF people. I can tell on game night that the game has a much different atmosphere.

Mark Hanks (Pulaski County Head Boys Basketball Coach and former Liberty Minutemen Head Coach)
From my days at Liberty, I really enjoyed coaching against Jim Hawley at JF. He always was light years ahead of me preparation wise and we had the studs to even it up !

More to come

More on Rivalries

More responses from the questions sent out on rivalries.

The questions

1. What do you think is the best high school rivalry and why?

2. What is your most memorable moment from a rivarly that you are/were involved in?

The newest answers

Brantley Shields (Head Boys Basketball Coach at Appmattox, former Tunstall Trojans and Averett Basketball player)

2. Tunstall vs. Dan River in 1997-1998. We trailed in a game at home by 25 points headed into the 4th quarter and came back and won. The game was highlighted by a thunderous alley oop dunk by Lorenzo Preston off of an inbounds play under the basket. One of the greatest games I've ever been a part of.

Dave Close (Assistant Football Coach at Altavista High School)

1. The best High School Rivalry that I have ever seen is in Northeast Ohio, Canton McKinley v.s. Massilon. The game is played in Paul Brown Tiger Stadium (Massilon), or Faucet Stadium (McKinley) (were the Hall of Fame game is played). It is the most intense game that I have ever attended. It is considered to be one of the oldest and fiercest rivalries in the country. The stadiums are full(with nearly 20,000 people there) and the football is great. Massilon shuts down @ 5:00 on Fridays for there football games.

2. I have not been at Altavista long enough for any memories of Rivalries, but when I was at Rustburg, we played Liberty in 2006, we had just scored to tie the game with less than a minute left, we lined up in 2 tights & power backs, we sent Jake Wade in motion and threw a flat pass to him, he caught it and muscled his way into the endzone for a two point conversion to win the game.

Stewart Grant (Head Baseball Coach at Liberty (Bedford) High School, Former Athletic Director)

1. If you went with one sport in the area, it would be Gretna/WC in football. Both teams have had alot of success in this decade with both teams winning multiple state championships. If you went with two schools and all sports, it would be Brookville/JF. Both schools have winning traditions in multiple sports combined with the close proximity makes this a clear cut choice.

For an out of the area choice, this would have to be Graham/Bluefield in football. Both teams share the same city and 10,000 seat stadium that overflows when this game takes place. It has been ranked in the top ten nationally by ESPN for rivalry games.

Brad Bradley (Head Football Coach at William Campbell High School)

1. I would pick the William Campbell-Gretna game because every year it is a very competitive game that draws a huge crowd. It has turned into one of the biggest rival game in the state of Va. Whenever William Campbell and Gretna get together, it is a great atmosphere for high School football.

2. It would have to be in 2002 when we beat Gretna 33-30 in OT. Josh Moon kicked a field goal to win the game only after our defense had held Gretna 4 downs from the 10 yard line. That gave us our 2nd 10-0 undefeated season and led us to to the 1st ever state championship in school history.

More to come....

Greatest Rivalries Part 1

Here are some responses that I have gotten back to two questions I asked on what the greatest rivalries are in high school sports. Here are the two questions

1. What do you think is the best high school rivalry and why?

2. What is your most memorable moment from a rivarly that you are/were involved in?

Here are some of our first answers

Dan Stephens (Head Boys Basketball Coach-Heritage High School)

1. Well, the Sam Rayburn Texans and Pasadena Eagles, of course. The best since I've been a Virginian would have to be Heritage and E.C. Glass. Unfortunately, it is less about the game and more about being seen AT the game. A loud social event-some positive, some not so much.

2. My first exposure to the Heritage-E.C. Glass game as a coach was to walk into the hallway leading to the gym during the JV game and finding one of our varsity players sitting on the floor hyperventilating. I knew then that this wasn't just another game.

Ryan Gilleland (Assistant Baseball and Football Coach at Jefferson Forest High School. Also has served as head baseball coach and was Junior Varsity Boys Basketball coach for a spell as well)

1. Obviously, JF - Brookville. You can throw both teams records out in this rivalry in all sports. The emotion and passion to win this game is higher than any other game we play.

2. I remember in 1991 when JF-Brookville were both 9-0 in football and played against each other the last game of the year at Brookville. JF won the game in the last minute or so and was probably the craziest memory I have of the rivalry. For me, some of the best memories I have of playing against Brookville was scoring a touchdown my Junior year at Brookville as we won the game. In basketball my senior year, I remember playing at Brookville with Frank Beamer in the stands, there to see Anthony Poindexter. Anthony drove the lane late in the game and threw done a thunderous dunk against the Bees as we won the game. From baseball, we beat the Bees in the final game of the year my sophomore year to clinch the regular season Seminole District Championship at Brookville

Dwayne Hamlette (Assistant Football Coach and Former Football Player at William Campbell)

1. William Campbell and Gretna: For the simple fact that these two small areas produce great football teams year in and year out, and the 30 minutes distance helps too. People plan time off from work for these games and it is usually for the district and the winner and loser usually makes a deep playoff run. The really funny thing is both schools have trouble scheduling local teams to play them, especially the larger schools.

2. The rivalry between JF and William Campbell. We played them first the first game of the year my sophomore and junior year and it was a dog fight. We also ended up playing them in the playoffs my junior year and won on a deflected pass that was taken to the endzone. Our two teams didn't like each other at all. Before one of our battles at William Campbell, both teams were side by side under the goal post and had to be separated by the coaches....great times!

More to come. Keep checking back for more memories of great high school rivalries (from all over the map)

Rivalries

On the eve of the big Seminole District showdown between Brookville and Jefferson Forest, I thought it would be a good time to explore high school rivalries. I have inquires out to current and former high school coaches, athletes, athletic directors and so forth, to find out their favorite rivalries and the moments from those rivalries. I'll get it kicked off and share mine first.

Being a student manager in high school (at Jefferson Forest) for the football and volleyball teams I saw some good rivalries in the Seminole District. In my time as a broadcaster for WKDE (with primary focus on Altavista Boys Basketball and WIlliam Campbell Football), I have experienced new rivalries.

From my high school days, there was nothing better then a contest between Jefferson Forest and Brookville. It didn't really matter what the contest was, but the intensity between Jefferson Forest and Brookville was unmatched. No one memory sticks out to me, but just the collection of the years on the football field, in the gyms, wherever, when Jefferson Forest and Brookville met, there was a lot of intensity in the house.

Focusing on football, even before the game was to begin, I'd get pumped up (and I was just a manager. I can only imagine how the players felt) and by the time the game was ready to start, I was ready to go as well. I just remember how bad our guys wanted to beat Jeff Landrum, Jeff Woody, James Lomax, Peter Givens and so forth. On the other side, I am sure those guys wanted to beat Anthony Poindexter, Nick Mistretta, Jerton Evans and so on. From my eyes in the sky (broadcasting booth), watching William Campbell and Gretna, has probably been some of the more enjoyable high school games that I have seen in any sport. The intensity (from players and fans) and excitement of these games have been breathtaking.

From the volleyball/basketball standpoints, the crowds were hostile to the opposition. The students (both sides) were probably teetering on the border of rude to the athletes. From the broadcasting side, Altavista and Brookville have had their battles on the basketball court, but the best basketball rivalry in my opinion in the Dogwood/Seminole District area is Altavista and Gretna. The rivalry was at it's height (for me) during the Kenny Hunt era in A-Town, but even when it has been Huntless (which in Altavista and Gretna, to not have one Hunt in the game is near impossible) it's still been games to behold.

What will others say? Stay tuned and find out.