Home > Area Sports Blog > Archives > 2007 > December > 01 > Entry
Rocky Mount High observations
The Rocky Mount High Gryphons finished off a tremendous season Friday night with a 50-36 loss to Western Alamance in the 3-A Eastern Regional Final.
Apparently, some at Western Alamance have been reading the Telegram all week and did not like the coverage. Not so fast, my friend. The Telegram appreciates your readership, but the coverage is for a Rocky Mount audience. And the Gryphons came into the game fully expecting to win. To treat them as the underdog and Western Alamance as a steep favorite (neither of which were really all that true) would have been unfair and dishonest. And the comment about quarterback Donald Britt that had some rattled? Sarcasm, my friend. Sarcasm. It’s a literary technique. Get used to it. I doubt the Warriors truly needed a newspaper article to get fired up for the game. They’ve been here before, and they know what it is about. Bulletin board material gets you fired up for about 15 minutes, but reliance on it usually ends in defeat.
Back on the Rocky Mount end of things, a full round of kudos for Nick Hahula. When looking for reasons that the Gryphons pulled out of a 21-6 hole, look first at No. 44. His 83-yard run set up a score, he made a 35-yard extra point (a 15-yard penalty was assessed before the kick), and a 38-yard field goal that gave Rocky Mount the lead. Oh, how far this kid has come from the undersized freshman asked to just not mess it up during the 2005 season.
Rocky Mount had a difficult proposition defensively. Jacobi Jenkins, committed to ECU, could only guard one Warrior, after all. Putting him against 5-foot-8 Levon Curtis was the right choice, but it left 6-foot-4 receiver Kenneth Lindsay open. It’s just hard for the Gryphons to replicate a team like Western Alamance, since so few teams in Eastern North Carolina do throw the ball with regularity. The one that the Gryphons did play, Wilson Hunt, did not have nearly the same type of personel that Western Alamance did.
Permalink | Comments (6) | Categories: High Schools
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By Warrior Dad
December 1, 2007 8:46 AM | Link to this
Congratulations on a great season. My comments are not directed toward anyone with the Rocky Mount football team, it is against the idiots at The Telegram.
The football team has nothing to be ashamed of, they were two awesome football teams with alot of heart on that field last night. The running back you guys have is a freaking beast. I assume it will probably be WA versus RM again next year. Personally, I am not looking forward to it. Congratulations once again.
By gryphonanalysis86
December 1, 2007 10:45 AM | Link to this
I did not gather by following both school’s hometown newspaper’s coverage the week of the game that there was anything unusual or biased in what was said. Bottom line is the RM players, coaches and fans had every right to want revenge against a school that knocked them out of the play-offs the last three years. The Gryphons and their supporters had every right (like Western Alamance) to feel confident going into the game because of their performance on the field this season. I find it interesting that the Western radio broadcasters indicated that Western dominated RM except for the last half of the second quarter and the Times News Varsity website video highlights stated the Warriors “cruised” to the victory (http://www.timesnewsvarsity.com/articles/warriors215_article.xml/championshipstate.html) Any objective observer of the game would say that Western did not dominate nor cruise to the victory. This season RM had more speed and weapons to match Western and with added motivation led for what was to be a highly anticipated match-up. Bottom line is RM had not faced a team as dynamic and versatile as Western all season long. Western had three “playmakers” and you can’t key on all three. RM’s mistakes (turnovers) and maybe some possible “luck” by Western (one-handed catch by #10 on a long third down led to an eventual touchdown and the fumble recovery by #35 on a tackle for a loss that he recoverd and scored a long touchdown run) did RM in. RM had the momentum at 29-21 early in the third quarter but let Western Alamance back in it when a short “pooch kick” on the ensuing kick-off gave Western the ball at midfield. Like the last winning drive in 2006, Western did not need any help with a “short field”. Couple that with consecutive “three plays and out” on successive RM series led to the RM defense staying on the field a long time in the third quarter. With the success of the JV team the last two seasons, the number of returning sophomores and juniors, it is conceivable RM could be better next year. I am looking forward to 2008 and I would not mind playing Western again. Maybe fourth time is the charm! Congratulation to B.W. Holt, his staff and the Gryphons for an excelelnt 2007 season. Thanks for making Rocky Mount proud.
By doggpound
December 10, 2007 10:07 AM | Link to this
2008……RETURN OF THE ‘D-BLOCK !!!!!!!
By gryphonanalysis86
December 10, 2007 7:55 PM | Link to this
If Rocky Mount fans, players and coaches need anymore motivation for 2008 watch the video posted by a Westen Alamance supporter on Youtube.com. It is this year’s play-off game between the Warriors and the Gryphs with all the highlights from the Warior’s perspective. If you think the video makes the Gryphons look bad watch the other videos posted on Youtube of other WA games. Included is the championship game with North Gaston. WA was a hard team to stop offensively in 2007 due to the speed and elusiveness of #4, #35 and #10. Looking forward to another Gryphon play-off run in 2008! See link below. May need to copy and paste into your internet browser if it does not automatically play by clicking on it.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=rKB12CBHXLM
By done29
December 12, 2007 12:26 AM | Link to this
since there is no converation of this years’ basketball season, i have a special treat for one and all. want to see the future of rocky mount high school’s basketball, come out and support the edwards basketball teams on mondays and thursdays @ 4pm. you will be in for a treat, i promise all who attend.
By mdavis
December 12, 2007 12:35 PM | Link to this
Here is a link for you to watch highlights from 3A title game. You guys can actually watch NG scoring drives since youtube only shows WA highlights…although youtube is for WA fans to enjoy or just football fans in general. The link is http://www.thetimesnews.com/video/index.php?bcpid=1155236417&bclid=1155303119&bctid=1336727827