ROANOKE TIMES

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, February 28, 1993                   TAG: 9303010220
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: F-2   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short


DID COACH FORECAST A MUDDY FIELD?

"HE MADE a mistake. He's only human." How many times have we read these quotes from Tazewell County residents in dozens of newspaper articles in the past few weeks? But the point that bothered me most has never been seen in print.

The drive down to Richlands from Roanoke that Saturday morning was pleasant. It was a bright, sunshiny day, the roads were clear but with a fine layer of snow on the grass at the side of the road. Imagine our surprise when we arrived at the stadium after the game had begun to find that the center of the field was ankle deep in muck. The players' jerseys were so muddy the numbers were indecipherable, and one had to rely on the numbers on the helmets.

Salem, which has a fast, razzle-dazzle type of offense, never found its footing all day, while Richlands barreled down the middle on a sure-footed plan that gave them an easy win. There were a number of games played that day in Virginia, but this was the muddiest of all.

What strikes me funny now is this: How did Coach Vaught know what the field would be like a week before the game, when he placed the order for the three-fourths-inch cleats to be delivered on Friday? He was the only one who was absolutely sure that the field would be muddy. It is not against the law to prepare the field any way he wants, but to use illegal equipment to gain an advantage only assures us that the mistake that Vaught made was in thinking he would never get caught. He should have been fired outright! HOSHI DALAL ROANOKE



by Archana Subramaniam by CNB