STAYING ALIVE

The Beat Goes On

Sorry for the late notice but if you don’t know by now, we, the Oak Ridge Wildcats got another win last Friday night 49-14 against the Cookeville Cavaliers to advance to the quarterfinals of the division 6A TN State Playoffs. 

We took our show on the road yet another week, leaving right after school to take an hour and some change bus ride (chartered during playoffs, sweeeeeeet) to Cookeville, TN which included an hour time change to the Central Time Zone of the world and put us in position for our game.  Therefore, the game started at 7 Central/8 Eastern Time and it seems as though that’s how we played.  Our team came out flat as if an hour had already passed fumbling on the first play of the game, throwing an interception for a touchdown on our 3^rd drive and being down 14-7 at the end of the 1^st quarter in our game.  It was quite the wake up call on the road and facing possibly the end of our season in the 2^nd round.  Nevertheless, our players fought back and had a lead at halftime 21-14 despite (not the greatest) field conditions, cold temperatures and a time change that took effect on our football team.  We went into the locker room at half, made some adjustments, refocused our team and put our team goals into perspective on how this 2^nd half would develop. 

After coming out after halftime with even colder temperatures, a more focused team and a great supporting community that travelled with us, we put everything on the line to keep our season alive.  Our defense decided to leave it all on the field causing 3 three turnovers and our offense came alive scoring on 4 out of 5 possessions in the second half including a fake punt that gave us momentum mid 3^rd quarter which resulted in the final score of 49-14 Oak Ridge. 

THA THRILLA IN MANILA PART 2

If you know a little bit about boxing you know about the “Thrilla in Manila” was the third and final boxing match between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier for the Heavyweight Boxing Championship of the World which took place in the Philippines. 

I have tagged this football game in comparison to this historical event because of its proportion to each respect school, the teams, the rivalry and the season.  Today the Oak Ridge Wildcats will be on the road facing the Riverdale Warriors (12-0, #1 in the mid State and #2 team in 6A).  Other than the respective records on these two teams for the year, there is an immense amount of rivalry, bad blood and competition between the two schools.  Historically, Riverdale has had Oak Ridge’s number bouncing them out of the playoffs numerous times in the late 90’s and early 2000’s up until last year where we went on the road as underdogs and pulled out a 28-21 victory to make a school record 2-5 against the Warriors in playoffs.  Needless to say it was unexpected by most, appreciated by some and completely enjoyed by us as we went on to the state semifinals from there. 

Now, in this 2011 season, all leads up to a rematch of the same teams, at the same place, with the same goal in mind and all that separates them is 48 minutes of war. There have been words exchanged by them via newspaper articles from last year’s game and there has been a different sense of focus on our part as we prepared for this game.  We know what is at stake and know the importance of this game on our season, our community and our goals. 

THESE WERE SOME OF MY CLASSROOM DECORATIONS FOR THIS WEEK'S PLAYOFF GAME.  THEY GET MORE AND MORE EXTRAVAGANT WITH THE FARTHER WE ADVANCE.  ELEMENTARY SCHOOL SUPPORT.

48 MINUTES OF WAR

The week of preparation for this week’s game has been a little up and down. With two straight days of rain we were inside the gym for Tuesday and Wednesday, which are considered the hardest workdays.  Riverdale is a mostly Wing-T offense which can create some trouble from a defensive standpoint, but can also line up in a spread look as well.  The defense has worked extremely hard, so has the scout team on giving a look similar to what they do for the support of our defense.  They have had a good week of practice.    From an offensive standpoint, with veterans all over the place, we feel as though we can move the ball in a variety ways and have looked sharp this week.  It will be on the offensive coaches (including this guy, Coach Rosser) to figure out how they plan to stop us and call plays, which will help our offense be successful.  It will be a hard fought game, intense, exciting and will go to the team that executes more efficiently.  At this point in the playoffs, there will be very few teams that will win by scheme.  It will come down to the players that are more discipline, have a stronger focus, play together and make the fewest mistakes.  Needless to say, I will take it back to when I was in high school and use what we called a game, “48 MINUTES OF WAR”.  After a two and some change hour bus ride there, I will once again do everything in my power to have our boys excited, pumped and ready to play in what will be the biggest game of the year for us. 

We have gone through a tough schedule, this being our 3rd undefeated opponent that is ranked in the top 3 of our district or state, but we are battle tested and battle approved to go into war tonight and leave everything we have on the field.  We took our lumps and bruises midway through the season and came out fine.  Now we look to click on all cylinders, play as a team and let the cards fall where they may.  We will be ready, we will play with heart and passion and we will never give up. 

I will be excited travelling back to middle TN where I started my teaching/coaching career and look forward to seeing friends that will come to our game and see the community of Oak Ridge support our team.  These are exciting times in the program and just another opportunity to continue to MAKE MEMORIES for these boys, the coaches, the people and the season.  We ask for grace and travelling mercy and God’s blessings on our game tonight. 

Stay tuned for an update from this great battle in the coming days.   Thanks for checking out the blog, stay blessed and keep smiling. 

B. Rosser Signing Out 

Another Opportunity to Make Memories

Good evening or whatever time of the day it may be when you read this.  I am here on this calm, cool Thursday night getting ready to get what I hope is a good night's rest before the big day and game tomorrow evening.  The Oak Ridge Wildcats will be going up against Cookeville High School tomorrow evening at their place @ 7 o'clock Central, 8 Eastern time.  The preparation has been done, film has been watched, practices have been completed and game plans have been finalized for tomorrow's Friday Night Lights showdown.  This will be the 2nd consecutive meeting of these two teams in the playoffs with the season on the line.  I'm sure the atmosphere will be intense, coaches/players will be pumped and fans will be cheering their teams on in a hope that their respectful school advances.  I feel really good about this week's plan, where our team is mentally and about the outcome on tomorrow night's game.

 This was how my classroom door and entrance was decorated for this week's playoff game.  It gets more elaborate as we advance.  Pretty cool.

A CRAZY WEEK

This has been quite the week.  It seems as the intensity picks up with football and every day being as crucial to the process of advancing as the next, the days at school become more stressful as well.  The demands of two jobs with such huge implications on the progress of students and athletes can have quite the effect on the teacher/coach on a daily basis.  Had my second (unannounced) evaluation of the year  (You can bet that was fun) and put took my players into second gear with their film study and preparation for our next opponent.  Needless to say, there were some nights I ended back up at my elementary school to do work just so I can get caught up for the next day.  And between sustaining an early morning workout regimen 3 times this week, it has made for some very very long days.
Nevertheless, I am here, survived the week, will get a good night's rest, will have breakfast with some of my players in the morning and will try to survive the craziness of a school day to make it to tomorrow's night game.  One thing holds true though...I did not lose my faith and I knew that my strength was coming from up above.  As I continuously circled through my Tye Tribbett, Kirk Franklin and other gospel artists in the car, apartment and gym, I kept my focus on HIM, praying and asking for his help and thanking him for the opportunities in which I have been given and to never complain for what I have.  I HAVE TRULY BEEN BLESSED BEYOND MEASURE.

SHOW ME MY OPPONENT

Cookeville provides an interesting challenge for us tomorrow night.  Seeing as thought I am an offensive coach, I have studied there defense extensively and have met with our head coach to find the best possible plan for our offense to be efficient.  They show multiple fronts on the defensive line (30, 40 and 50) with various positions at the linebacker level and play multiple coverages of 1, 0 and 3.  This will cause our lineman, QB and running back to talk before every play to know where everyone is with the possibility of blitzes and our receiver must be on alert and figure out how they are trying to defend us in the secondary.  There will be holes in the coverages and creases in the defense in which if we take advantage of will be golden opportunities for our team
Offensively, they also have multiple formations all being centered around the smokestack I formation or Kansas City I.  They do a bunch of unbalance formations, a little spread and some offset from the I formation with mostly run plays and some play action.  With what we have in plan, there should be very few places for them to run and very little time to throw the ball.  Let's go Defense!!!!!!!!!

In closing, we feel as though we should have the upper hand tomorrow night.  In my opinion, our team is still peaking and have yet to play their best game of the season which is definitely a good thing at this time of the year.  We continue to grow, mature and develop as a team who takes advantage of opportunities, makes plays when they come and go to battle for one another.  I will be extremely excited tomorrow night and will do everything in my power to make sure our kids are pumped up and take in this great experience they will never forget.

Check back this weekend for another update about Friday night and the game whether it's a win, lose or draw but we will give thanks in advance to the Lord for giving us this opportunity and claim the VICTORY!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Hope you enjoyed another one of my blogs and look forward to hearing from you on here or wherever you follow.  Remember you can keep up with me on facebook or twitter as well @CoachBR814.  By the way, 11/11/11 is tomorrow the coolest day of our lifetime so enjoy it for more reasons than just one. LOL.  Thanks again, much love and be blessed.

PEACE

Survival of the Fittest

Team Intro - Let's ride boys

Thanks for checking back in on the blog of Coach Rosser throughout the intense days of preparation and practice during the playoff season.  If you haven't heard by now, the Oak Ridge Wildcats kept their season alive this past Friday night with a win over #2 seed McMinn County 35-6 and are moving on to the second round of the Division 6A State Playoffs.  We are guaranteed at least one more episode of Friday Night Lights in which we will be traveling west this weekend (about an hour) to face #4 seed Cookeville High School who also won there first round playoff game.  We feel good about our performance this past weekend, have been in the film room to correct mistakes and to watch next week's opponent, we have had our first weight session and conditioning and are ready to start a new work week.

Pregame prayer with some of my players

WE MEET AGAIN

For all our new supporters and some old ones out there, this is a rematch between two teams that played each other last year in the playoffs.  Up until last year Oak Ridge went into a slump of playoffs and playoff victories.  Last year we squeaked into the playoffs as a #6 seed in which we were matched up with Cookeville High School and had to travel to their field for a first round playoff matchup.  With an inexperienced postseason team we went on the road and beat Cookeville 28-21 I believe and advanced to the 2nd round.  It was a hard fought game that could have went either way and we were fortunate enough to be on the winning side of this game and advance.
On the flip side, bringing someone else's season to an end in the playoffs is always a great feeling for the victor and the worse feeling for the loser.  As we had a sense of urgency in getting payback on McMinn County for beating us two years ago in the first round, I am sure Cookeville will be full of emotion at home and will be looking to end our season in return.

Coach Rosser talking to the offense

SHORT BUT SWEET

We are happy with the results of the weekend, but know that we have higher aspirations than just the 1st round and will work as hard as we possibly can to reach the highest point, State Championship game.  We came out of the game healthy, scored on most of our offensive possessions, caused a few turnovers and did what we had to do to win.  We are looking forward to another great week of practice, will have great weather and will have an intense week of practice.  At this point, we know now that is "GO HARD OR GO HOME" and we are not ready to go home.  We will keep the routine "same as usual" with additional film work for our players to learn their opponents and will keep pressing towards our goal.  With a great message at church with the reflection of "Remember your calling", I have my motivation to keep the kids focused, working hard and create relationships/memories in which they will never forget.  It has also motivated me to remember my purpose at work and to teach the students not just to be smarter, but to be responsible citizens in this world.  Though I am very fatigued at this point on many levels, my continued strength and energy comes from above and I will not lose my faith in God.

Thanks for tuning in again and look for another blog coming toward the end of the week before game time.  I will update you on our game plan, week of practice, evaluation of opponent, mindset of the team/coaches and my outlook on the game.  Until then, STAY THIRSTY MY FRIENDS and God Bless.  

Playoff Time in Oak Ridge

So, as you know and have hopefully read from the previous blog a few days ago, it is playoff time in the city of Oak Ridge, TN.  The Oak Ridge Wildcats finished the season on a 5 game win streak, finishing the season at 7-3 (5-1 in district) and have been invited to participate in the TSSAA 6A Division State Playoffs.  Now with the wins and losses recorded and the substance of our losses to some good competition, one would think we would be positioned in a place in which a home playoff game would be in our future.  This is one of the few tasks this coaching staff has yet to accomplish in our three year tenure and were looking forward to with this season's accomplishments.  To our surprise yet again for another year, we were (in my opinion) mistreated on our seeding and received a #7 seed in our quadrant for the playoffs.  We were seeded lower than some of our district opponents, who had fewer wins, more losses and less competitive teams.  Some of the opponents in which we beat pretty badly, ended up with higher seeds and are hosting home playoff games, as we were tagged as the #7 seed and will be on the road traveling to play #2 seed (8-2) McMinn County.  I am not worried about the opponent, just a little upset about our seed in the playoffs, how it affects our playoff run and on our fans and community.  Our kids were actually looking forward to playing at home for once in playoffs and starting the run off right in our own backyard.  As it is, the brackets have been set, teams are matched and playoffs go underway tomorrow evening.  We had the same type of set up last year as a 6-4 #5 seed in our quadrant and went on a nice run until the state semifinal game.  We would love nothing more than to do the same this year and get over that hump and get to the state championship game.  And now that I am off my soap box for this issue.

SHOUT OUT TO MY PEOPLES

Before I talk about this week of practice and my thoughts on our 1st round game I would like to give a special shout out to my favorite fans, that come to every game, are there every week, wear the Coach Rosser buttons, throw confetti and bring me snacks pre/post game, my peoples: Connie, Katie and Odie.  I love you guys and want to thank you for all the support the last two years.  It has been fun and we hope to make more memories starting tomorrow night. I got you Katie.  I see you Odie.  That's right miss Connie.  

BACK TO BUSINESS

Tomorrow night's game v. McMinn County involves a rematch of two years ago, our first year as a coaching staff in Oak Ridge, taking over a renewed Oak Ridge football team on the road to battle this team in the first round of the playoffs.  Unfortunately for us, we went into the game battered and bruised with our starting QB out, two freshman and 5 sophomores participating in one of the biggest games of their careers.  We had a hard fought game, which was a defensive battle which we lost 13-7 and ended our season in 2009.
This year is a bit of a different story.  We come into this game with an offense that is on a roll, averaging approx. 40 points/game and a defense that is settling into the scheme and believing in the philosophy at the right time.  With a focused and aggressive week of practice, I am very optimistic about this week's game and am looking forward to watching the Wildcats on the road tomorrow night.  We have done extensive film work, been on the board, continued conditioning, done our work in the weight room and revised our game plan to fit our team just right.  With the results from two years ago, I know the coaching staff is mentally conditioned and feel ready for a little payback tomorrow night.  This is a team that is definitely beatable.  We must take advantage of our opportunities when they are presented, do what our game plan has included, limit our mistakes and play with passion knowing that we don't want tomorrow to be our last Friday night.  Win or Lose there will be a follow up blog to the game and there will be updates via my twitter account.  Follow me @CoachBR814 or updates on Facebook.

Last but not least, I want to give a shout out to the faculty, students and staff at Glenwood Elementary School where I work.  Check out this picture of the decorations on my classroom door this morning when I arrived, done by Mrs. W (great supporter and proud parent of the program).  I mean, its pretty cool to see an environment such as that, an elementary school, so excited and supportive of one of their teachers and the results of his football team.  Thanks guys.

   

Last but not least, I want to thank any and everyone that followed the blog, read one blog or just looked at the site during the football season.  It has meant alot to me and has been a very fun activity thus far. (Thanks for the idea Miss L) The blog will continue, but just wanted to say a special thanks.  Please don't forget to leave a comment via my blog, facebook, email or just let me know you read it.  I am looking forward to continuing this and as always.  STAY THIRSTY MY FRIENDS.

PEACE

End of the Regular Season

Good evening, afternoon, morning, whenever you are reading this.  I have been away for two weeks and will get you caught up with the season, the school year and where I am in the world as of today, November 1st.  Before I start I must say every time I wrote the date on paper today, I thought about how cool it was to be all ones (11/1/11) and will be even cooler when its 11/11/11, LOL.  Don't take much for me to enjoy life.  But these dates will never be written or here again in life so hope you had a special day.

Anyways, a football update about the Oak Ridge High School Wildcats and the final two weeks of the season.  As you have been reading, we got off to a rough start of 2-3, lossing some close games and having some key injurties to our team.  As it seems, we were looking kind of shaky and were hoping that with our tough part of the schedule being completed we could make a run and hopefully have a chance at the playoffs.  Well, you will be happy to hear that we did finish the season winning 5 straight games and will be playing this Friday night in the first round of the TSSAA State Playoffs for the 6A Division.  I talked about us having a short week of practice as we were preparing for crosstown rivals and a TV game on Thursday night against Clinton high school.  Let's just say we are peaking at the right time.  The mercy rule was in effect at halftime (35-0) and one of my receivers/playmakers tied a school record of 6 touchdowns in one game as we went on to beat the Clinton HS Dragons 42-7.  It was our 3rd straight game bringing about the mercy rule on our opponent which means a running clock and needless to say, our team was clicking on all cylinders and brought bragging rights to the town of Oak Ridge for yet another year against our rivals.   Check out this video shot by a local group for our team for this game

The group that does this have done a spectacular job and it has been great watching these for our home games.  Hopefully there will be more to come.

Moving along
The last week of the season (last week) jumped on us quick.  We were on Fall Break from school and still practiced with our kids every morning from 9-11 with our usual weights, film study and meetings as a regular work week.  The kids responded well all being on time, coming ready to work and continued focused on the task at hand of finish the season on a good note.  Not to mention it was Senior Night and possibly the last game at our home field until next season, we wanted to make sure we showed our best for the home crowd and keep momentum heading into the playoffs.
Fortunately, we were able to keep our offense, defense and special teams moving along as we put the mercy rule in effect once again by halftime and rolled on to beat our opponents 42-7 as well in this game.  We were able to get everyone on our team in the game for the last home game and even had 3 seniors score touchdowns on there final game at Blankenship Field.  It was a sentimental, yet exciting night for all those in attendance, especially for the coaches, players and families of our kids.

So we finished the season on a 5 game win streak going 7-3 (5-1 in district) and our preparing for the playoffs.  There WILL be a blog coming before the end of the weeks to discuss playoff scenario, brackets, possibilities, gameplan and outlook on this Friday night.  Below is an attachment to a website which kind of gives some of our season outlook and some information about our football program as it pertains to the season, opponents, scores, stats, etc.

http://www.coacht.com/tennessee/inside/team.cfm?schoolid=373&sportid=1&seasonid=149


Thanks again for checking out my blog once again and please check in before the end of the week to check out the synopsis on this weekend before playoffs begin.  School year and my view on the world updates will come later.  Playoffs are just more interesting.  Go Hard or Go Home. It has been a fun ride and thanks for hanging on, cheering and just being intrigued by my team, my outlook and our results.  Talk to you soon, have a good night and God Bless.