In The Huddle

Here are a few of my thoughts about Western Alamance’s first state football title…

-Was there any doubt who the best team in Class 3-A was this year? In case you spent the last few weeks in a cave, here are a few things to think about.

At 16-0, Western Alamance was the only undefeated team in the classification. The Warriors were ranked atop the Associated Press Class 3-A poll all season. Second-ranked Rocky Mount, which received a handful of No. 1 votes, got bounced by the Warriors in the playoffs.

Western Alamance defeated Greensboro Dudley, the Class 3-AA champ, on its home field during the regular season.

Yep, the Warriors were by far the class of Class 3-A in 2007.

-One of the things that made Saturday’s onfield championship celebration so special was the presence of so many former players and their families. While the win didn’t give them the state title they fell short of, for all of Warrior Nation, Saturday’s win provided some vindication for those teams.

-Offensive coordinator Jeff Snuffer called a marvelous game less than three days after losing his brother to cancer. I know when there is a war raging overseas, using words like courage and strength outside of that context can become trite, especially when it comes to sports. But the fact that Snuffer was able to focus and be there for his team, and the Warriors to be there for him, showed real grit.

-If you thought there were a lot of those ‘WA’ stickers on cars around town before Saturday. Just wait.

-Never again will any Western Alamance player or coach have to field the question of when will they win a state title. Now they’ll get asked about winning a second one.

Here are a few newsflashes for you…

Western Alamance is good at football.

Some people disagree with President Bush.

The Bowl Championship Series has some football fans concerned.

Levon Curtis makes plays.

Britney Spears has made some questionable lifestyle choices.

Gas is expensive.

Donald Britt is hard to tackle.

Barry Bonds may have done steroids.

The Middle East has problems.

It doesn’t rain much anymore.
Western Alamance is good at football.

Yeah, Western Alamance. They’re pretty good.

I know Thanksgiving was last week, but here are a few things in the area sports journalism world I’m thankful for this time of year.

I’m thankful the forgettable football seasons of Duke, North Carolina and N.C. State are over.I’m thankful the potentially unforgettable basketball seasons of Duke, North Carolina,
N.C. State and Wake Forest have begun.I’m thankful that the Times-News Holiday Classic is still a month away. I’ve got a lot to get done between now and then.

I’m thankful that our area prep coaches are always respectful and classy toward me while I try to do my job. I’ve learned that’s not always the case elsewhere.

I’m thankful for the Times-News readers who provide valuable feedback in all its forms.

I’m thankful for agate clerks, who never get enough respect.

Most of all, I’m thankful for my mom and the other nine people that read this blog. Your Christmas cards are coming soon.

Do you ever have those moments when you realize that something has fundamentally changed in the world you live in and you’ve been too distracted to notice? You know, when you experience something and you’re left stunned, chewing on this new reality.

I get that each time I see a new 10-gallons-to-the-mile SUV or teenage girls running around the mall in outfits so revealing they’d make strippers blush.

I had one of those moments today when I heard Redskins safety Sean Taylor died from a gunshot wound suffered in a home invaision early Monday.

Taylor, who was 24, was shot by an intruder while his fiancé and baby daughter lay in bed in the family’s Florida home.

Don’t try to make to make too much sense out of this loss because there just isn’t any sense to be found. Someone gunned the man down to either get a piece of his wealth, settle some score or for just no reason at all.

He is the second NFL player do be killed by gun violence in the last year as Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams was murdered last December.

He is one of several high-profile athletes to be the victim of a home invasion recently as NBA players Antione Walker and Eddy Curry were robbed at gunpoint in their homes earlier this year.

These men excelled in athletics, something that is universally valued in our culture. Yet things got so desperate in their communities that they became marked men.

This reminds me of what goes on overseas. Several of the top international soccer stars hail from impoverished countries in South America and Africa. The star athletes have all the money and fame of their American counterparts, but have a greater number of worries.

Kidnappings of relatives in exchange for ransoms are common. Returns home, if they ever do return, involve complex security issues.

Their countrymen, crippled by poverty, have turned their sports heroes into targets.

I guess that’s us now.

Ok, so I get cold easy. Sue me.

You can call me all the names you want, but this I will own.

One time, my Maryland-born mom, tired of the lack of crisp autumn days and fresh, flowery spring mornings around here, bemoaned the lack of four distinct seasons.

Screw that, give me 80 degrees every day. No rain. I’ll pack the sunscreen.

If I could, I’d retire to Florida at age 29, wear Tony Soprano shirts, tear up par-3 courses and eat dinner at five. I don’t think my fiancé is down with plan, but if I win the lottery, it’s on.

So when Western Alamance was playing Hertford County in 40-degree temperatures on Friday night, I was a shivery mess while those of heartier stock around me were not.

On that note, here’s a short list of things as cold as I was at A.M. Primm Stadium on Friday night…

-Britney Spears’ career.

-The Duke-Notre Dame football rivalry.

-Bill Belichick’s heart.

-Michael Waltrip Racing.

-Dick Cheney’s Q rating.

So, yeah. I was cold. I’m going to go to the break room and stick my hands in the coffee to warm them back up. Don’t tell anyone.

So earlier this week I did something I hadn’t done … well, ever. I’ve been voting in the statewide prep football poll for The Associated Press for about six years now and one thing has remained constatnt.

Ok, Class 4-A, No 1. Charlotte Independence. Good. One spot down…

But this week, after Independence lost 21-20 to Matthews Butler, a seismic shock to the high school gridiron around here, I had to move them to … gasp … second.

It was strange.

It was like going to Zack’s and not getting a hot dog.

It was like a Western Alamance home game with only a modest crowd.

It was like a state championship weekend in football without an  Alamance County team.It was like someone other than Jeff Gordon or Jimmie Johnson winning a NASCAR race.

It was like seeing a Cummings team that runs the ball. (Wait, we’ve seen that.)

It was like me playing No. 15 at Southwick and not taking at least double.

Needless to say, it felt really weird.

Come to think of it, a combo dog does sound good right about now.

This week, the Friday night lights will shine on several games across the state that have crucial playoff implications. With the regular season wrapping up this week, teams will be playing for conference titles, perfect seasons and for the right to keep playing.

But for many teams, this week merely marks the end.

Three teams in our area, Bartlett Yancey, Southern Alamance and Williams already know what they’ll be doing when the playoffs under way.

All three will be on the outside looking in.

So when the games get started Friday night, they will be playing for pride.

Southern Alamance coach Daniel Barrow and Williams coach Sam Story said their teams have shown plenty of fight in practice this week.

“We’re treating it like our bowl game,” Barrow said.

Both coaches spoke of how the seniors would like to go out on a winning note and that a victory this week would set a good tone for spring workouts and next season.

But before that, they’ve got one more thing to take care of.

One more Friday night.

Jeez, these gas prices have been killing me. I’m sure I’m not alone. But you know who hasn’t had to complain much about a transportation bill?

The Southern Alamance football team, that’s who.

Here we are a few days shy of Halloween.

Western Alamance is playing its final regular season game and high school basketball coaches are making final preparations before practice begins and, oh yeah, the Patriots are venturing outside of the county lines for the first time this season.

Southern Alamance played all six of its home games already. Their only road games have been at Cummings, Western Alamance and Eastern Alamance.

Sure the Patriots finish with lengthy road trips to Northern Vance on Friday and
South Granville next week, but up until now, Patriots fans and players have been spoiled with short trips.

Frankly, I’m jealous.

As for this week, there’s a full slate of interesting games on tap. The only fly in the ointment could be rain. Drought implications notwithstanding, go where you go and do what you do so we can keep the weather clear so we can get these games in.

With Graham’s football team needing a strong finish to earn a berth in the Class 2-A playoffs, Red Devils’ coach Mike McCauley saw Friday night’s road trip to Cardinal Gibbons as a chance for his team to get away from distractions and renew its focus.

“I like road trips,” McCauley said. “I’m just not crazy about going to Cardinal Gibbons during the State Fair.”

One of the toughest things the Red Devils will have to deal with is the traffic surrounding the yearly festival that is held about mile from the
Raleigh campus of Cardinal Gibbons.

McCauley said the Red Devils will likely leave Graham at around 4:30. It should put Graham there in time for kickoff. The downside is that after a night spent in the shadow of the ferris wheel, the Red Devils may come back smelling like fried dough.