Pop Quiz- Allie Hopkins

I'm.  Exhausted.  I was at the stadium tonight at 6:30 to start my coverage of tonight's game between East Forsyth and Glenn.  It's now 1 in the morning- Suddenly Saturday.  Why am I up?  Well, because the East Forsyth Senior Class Grand Poobah sent me the answers to her Pop Quiz!  Tonight's contestant continues our streak of stellar participants, and she did a great job answering the questions.  I even gave her a chance to get back at our participant from Glenn.

Ed. Note:  Hannah, I really love coming to your school but East is going to do very bad things to your football team this year.  You're not the only one, so don't feel bad.

Anyhoo, this week turned into an Eastfest, so the only proper way to close it out is to introduce you to my new friend, Allie Hopkins!

1.     Identify yourself! Name, school, age and class please!

Allie Hopkins, East Forsyth High School, 17, SENIOR!

2.     What is your claim to fame? What do you do? (Sports, clubs, class offices, etc.)

I guess my claim to fame would be mainly through athletics and also through class office. I have been playing Varsity soccer since freshman year and I also played Varsity basketball. I wasn’t involved in the class office until this year where I am the Senior Class President! It’s so much fun and I’m involved in practically everything so I get to meet a lot of students, which helps.

3.     Back when I was in high school, my classmates failed to see my awesomeness so I never held a class office.  Tell us what Student Body President entails.

I had to work hard to help everyone see my awesomeness; it took a lot of campaigning! Student Body President has many jobs but my favorite would have to be doing the announcements every day after school, mainly because I get out of class early! I’m also in charge of senior deans and all the projects associated with it such as Blood Drives and Date Auction. Another duty I had was to decide the senior spirit wear which was also fun. I got us sunglasses this year! Finally, every Thursday afternoon I collaborate with the Captain of the super fans, Will Taylor to send out “Alert Now” messages which are recordings that go to every student’s home encouraging them to come out and support the Eagle athletics.

4.     What makes East Forsyth special to you?  Why does it stand out?
There are so many things about East Forsyth that are special to me. I love everything about it.  We
have a great student body, great teachers and administrators and just a great atmosphere in general. No
one likes school but we make the best of it! One thing that stands out to me is the support we get from
our principal. Mrs. Gainey supports our school spirit (as long as we follow the rules of course) and
even stands up to parents when they get annoyed with us standing and being loud. It’s great to know
that even your principal has school spirit and has your back.

5.     One Direction or Justin Bieber?

To be honest, I’m not a huge fan of either. Unlike most girls, I don’t have Bieber Fever and I’m not big on One Direction either. Most people think I’m crazy for it, but I guess I’m just not into that.

6.     I gave our participant from Glenn a chance to talk a little friendly junk.  In the interest of fairness, give me three reasons why East Forsyth is better than Glenn.

East Forsyth is all around 100 times better then Glenn, I don’t even know where to start. Our athletics are clearly better, our academics are better, our school is a family, our faculty rocks, we have more school spirit, and we have a better president! With the evidence presented, you can see that obviously the Eagles are better than the bobcats in every way you look at it. GO EAGLES!

7.     I covered the game at Mount Tabor a couple of weeks ago.  I certainly didn’t expect the stands to be full, especially full of students.  You guys travel pretty well!  Expound on your student section a little.

We take our student section at East Forsyth very seriously and we are very proud of it. We call our section the “Super Fans” and being a super fan is truly a lifestyle. We tailgate before every game which includes food, corn hole and pictures! We pick a theme every week and in order to stand in the Super Fan Section, you must be dressed up accordingly! We think it’s important to support our eagles no matter what, even if this means a road trip! There is nothing we love more than supporting our Eagle Athletics but our favorite is definitely the Friday Night Football!

8.     I’m guessing as President you have some idea of your future.  What are your plans after high school? (College, professional ambition, etc.)

I’m actually still trying to figure that out myself. I would love to play college soccer and that is my goal. I’m a hard worker so I do see that happening in my future. As for my professional ambition, I want to be lawyer! It will be a lot of work but I’m up for the challenge!

9.     I Googled “Allie Hopkins”.  Every article I saw mentioned you scoring goals!  How do you think playing team sports has helped you developed as a person and a leader?  

Playing sports has had a huge impact on the person I am today. Leadership generally comes natural to me and sports have helped me develop it into something positive. I’ve learned a lot about communication and teamwork, two vital aspects of life. Sports have also made me competitive and passionate, I love to win! I don’t know where or who I would be without athletics and that’s for sure!

Well, thank you, Allie!  What a great way to finish off a Football Friday! 
Want to do the Pop Quiz?  Know someone who should?  Stay tuned to the blog to find out where I'll be next!

49-6

I'm not going to hype the East Forsyth football team.  Nope.  If you came here hoping for a glowing game report recapping their 49-6 decimation of R.J. Reynolds tonight, you are going to be disappointed.  I'm not going to hype them.

Let someone else do it.

Lets' face it:  someone will.  LOTS of folks already are.  Have I seen a better team this year?  No.  Oh, heck no.  If I must, let me give you a quick game breakdown:

1. The highly regarded East rushing attack began their first offensive series with a halfback pass that went for a touchdown.
2. Shortly thereafter, highly mobile quarterback Garrison Duncan dropped back and threw another bomb for a touchdown.
3. The Eagles had 180 passing yards at half.
4. They scored five more touchdowns.
5. Total yards- a lot
6. Margin of victory- a lot
7. Defensive presence- oh, my

There you go.  Happy?

I stopped tracking plays after touchdown number four.  I became far more interested in the crazy student section and began to wonder just what kind of guys are on this East Forsyth team. I was fortunate enough to chat with Garrison Duncan after the game.  He helped enlighten me on some of the things that make these Eagles fly.  Here's some of what he had to say:

• On his reaction when the coaches put the halfback pass in the game plan:  "I liked it.  The receivers were excited, I was excited...we had a good week of practice coming in."
• On the closeness of the team:   "We just have a bunch of seniors.  All the seniors are friends and close friends...I see these guys every day of the week.  I've seen some of these guys 21, 28 days straight. "
• On confidence gained from winning big without the dominant running attack: "I liked it.  I didn't have to run that much, the running backs certainly didn't have to run that much.  Some of the receivers figured out some of the stuff they didn't know they could do."
• On the vocal student section: "They ARE our 12th man...I know multiple games they had rosters for the other teams, calling people by name.  They're really prepared this year."

Overall, a great night for football at Deaton-Thompson.  I really, really wanted to get some interaction with the Reynolds Rowdies, but the first play of the game pretty much jacked those plans up.  Also, I would be remiss if I didn't mention how much Coach Mike Muse is helping me, whether it's getting me more Twitter followers or printing me stat trackers.  Much like his students and athletes, I get better each time I interact with him.  I'm very grateful.

Have a great weekend, everyone!
John

Superfans!

I wrote a little about them a couple of weeks ago, when I was at Mount Tabor, but tonight they put on a show.  I'm not talking about Lavaughnte' Smith and Garrison Duncan (although they didn't do to shabby), I'm talking about the East Forsyth student section.  THIS is what I'm talking about.  They make the place FEEL like football. 

And they were the visitors tonight.  Yikes.

Meet my new friends:

Pop Quiz! Bailey Tyner- R.J. Reynolds High School

When I started this blog, I honestly never expected the kind of reception this blog has received so far.  I'm grateful to the administrators, students and student-athletes who are making this endeavor a lot of fun.  One such source of help is Reynolds AD Brad Fisher, who responded to my Twitter solicitation for Pop Quiz contestants in short order.  He assured me he would get a football player to participate (which, quite frankly, is cool because they've got bigger things to do this week). 

Imagine my surprise when my inbox received an email from one Bailey Tyner, the starting quarterback for the Demons.  He was ready and willing to do the Pop Quiz, and did a great job.  See for yourself:

1)     Identify yourself! Name, school, age and class please!

My name is Bailey Tyner, I go to Reynolds High School and I'm in the class of 2014.

2)     What is your claim to fame? What do you do? (Sports, clubs, class offices, etc.) 

I play football and baseball at Reynolds. I'm the varsity quarterback for the Demons and I'm also in Key Club, FCA and Spanish club.

3)     I grew up with a poster of Terry Bradshaw on my wall.  What quarterbacks/athletes are on your wall?  Why?

I always looked up to Nomar Garciaparra, who played for my favorite baseball team, the Red Sox. For football, Drew Brees is who I've looked up to since I was a kid. I looked up to him because he's not the biggest quarterback, but he's a winner, he's a great overall quarterback, he's a great leader and is a role model in his community. I also really like Cam Newton, he has all the confidence in the world and that's important for a quarterback.

4)     So, I watched some of your highlight videos.  How long have you been playing quarterback?  When did you know that the QB position was what you wanted to play?

I've been playing quarterback since Pop Warner for the South Fork Panthers. Going into my first season of football, I actually started out at Wide Receiver for the first game. After that first game the coach switched me to Quarterback, and since that day I knew that this was the position I wanted to play.

5)     One Direction or Justin Bieber?  Seriously.  Just between us. Nobody will know.

      Justin Bieber, definitely.   Not a big fan but I'd pick him over One Direction every time.

Ed. Note:  Big-time answer for Mr. Quarterback here…I expected “neither” for an answer.  Bonus points.

6)     Your high school is a registered historical landmark.  Apart from that, what makes Reynolds High School a special place?

The students, staff, clubs, athletic programs and the community are just a few of the things that make this school so special. There isn't a school in Forsyth County that is like Reynolds. The mixture of great academics, great art program, athletics and the diversity of the school are special. I'm very glad I go to this school and I'm proud to be a Demon.

7)     There’s a rumor of a “Gold-Out” at the stadium Friday night.  How much energy do the players get from the Reynolds Rowdies?

It definitely helps up get pumped up, we have a good group of Rowdies every year and this year isn't any different.

8)     What are your plans after high school? (College, professional ambition, etc.)

I want to play college football somewhere, so that's my main goal. If for some reason that doesn't work out, I still will go to college, and I want to major in Sports Management or Sports Medicine. Everybody wants to play professional sports, but I'd also want to be an athletic trainer, or work in the business side of sports or maybe even coach. My Dad's a graphic designer and I've got some interest in that, too.          

                                     

9)     If you couldn’t be a football player, what sport or activity would you choose?

      Probably just stick to baseball, which I've been playing since I was 4. I used to play the drums so I might pick that up again.

10) I’ll be there Friday against East.  Tell me what I shouldn’t miss about the experience.  What would you tell a first-time visitor to a Reynolds game to look for?

      Good thing you're going to be at this game because it's going to be an exciting one. Big games at DTS are always can't miss games. You're not going to want to miss a thing on Friday. The game time environment makes you want to go out on the field and strap up. You get into the game and it's just a great place to be on a Friday night. I'd tell a first-time visitor to look for our band which is good, our crazy rowdies who keep everybody pumped up,  two classy programs out on the field, great sportsmanship, great talent on both teams, an awesome game environment, amazing fans and to expect a great football game.

I tell you what, I'm starting to love this gig.  I'm so frustrated with hearing about the "sad state of our young people".  Each of our Pop Quiz contestants have multiple activities and aren't identified by one specific thing.  I'm looking forward to meeting more of the Triad's finest!

Want to take the Pop Quiz? Know someone who should?  Stay tuned to the blog to find out where we'll be next!

New Poll!

On Friday night I predicted on Twitter that West would return a punt back for a TD before the night was through.  I was right, and promptly anointed myself as "Footballdamus".  On the left side of the homepage is our first poll.  Click on what you think is the most appropriate answer!

Eagles are Flying

I'm looking forward to my first RJR game this year.  I've been in Deaton-Thompson stadium quite a few times, all to watch Parkland.  So, I'm pumped to see if the Reynolds Rowdies bring it to football like they do in basketball.  They're going to need to create all the energy they can, because word is starting to spread about the #5 East Forsyth Eagles.

According to the stats on www.maxpreps.com, the Eagles are averaging 338 rushing yards per game.  For the football novices, that's the equivalent to "a lot", or "a whole lot".  Tailback DeAnthony Neal is averaging over 80 yards per game, while his counterpart Lavaughnte' Smith is at a cool 122.  Even quarterback Garrison Duncan is running for over 80 yards per game.  Now, in order to dominate on the ground you obviously need a stout offensive line.  Thankfully, Coach Mike Muse keeps stats on "pancake blocks".  The Eagles' O-Line has delivered 26 pancakes over the last two games, which helps explain the rushing dominance.

How do you stop it? And if you do, what do you do about Duncan's throwing arm, which has been good for 187 yards per game so far this season? 

I'm anxious to see how Coach Hall and the Demons try to attack this athletic Eagles team.  Reynolds has to be brimming with confidence after their own 3-0 start to the season.  These are the games that make football great, for me.  If East wins, nobody will be surprised.  If Reynolds wins?

Well, that means I just covered the upset of the year in the Triad.  Not a bad gig, huh?

John



 

Battle of the Undefeateds!

I'm happy to announce that the Finally Friday!  Army (me) will be at Deaton-Thompson stadium on Friday for the game between East Forsyth and R.J. Reynolds.  Both teams are undefeated and coming off of blowout wins last Friday.  I'll have more of a game preview up later and, more importantly, the call for Pop Quiz participants!

I'm looking forward to a great night of football, and I hope to get there early and meet the boosters from both schools!