Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, September 30, 1994 TAG: 9409300014
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-13 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RAY COX
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
He was shouting. He was using unsavory language. He was uttering dark threats. He was very unhappy.
The source of his almost boundless distress was a so-called scouting report he'd received from one of his colleagues on an opposing team.
For those who are unfamiliar with the ways of coaching, it is a fairly standard procedure to pick the brain of another coach (after your teams have already played) in order to be enlightened on the strategic nuances of an upcoming opponent.
One day, you may be called upon to return the favor.
So our pal telephones this guy he knows for a report on a team up in the mountains not too far from Culpeper. Our pal had reason to be worried about this foe because scores he'd seen in his newspaper indicated the team could deposit basketballs in the cylinder with great frequency.
``Oh, don't worry about them,'' said the other coach when our buddy called.
``Don't worry about them? What about these horrendous scores I'm seeing?''
``They haven't played anybody.''
What he meant by that, of course, was that the team that was so striking fear into the heart of our pal hadn't played anybody who was any good. The coach who was giving the scouting report had some state championships on his resume (and in fact has played teams from this little corner of the hoops universe on the way to the top), so he could afford to be just the slightest bit haughty.
``All right,'' our friend said. ``What do they like to do?''
``Simple stuff, mainly. They're really slow, for one thing. They never run the floor. They couldn't press if they ran a laundry. When you think about this team, think in terms of half court. They'll go down and run the offense, try to get it inside, and hope they're fouled.''
``Fine. I appreciate it. Good luck down the line and I hope we see you in regionals.''
Our man was feeling pretty smug now and he kept that attitude until about the first five minutes of the game. That's when he found out about the accuracy of the scouting report.
There wasn't any accuracy to it.
The other team ran circles around our guy's girls. Pressed. Ran. Pressed. Ran. They wouldn't have known a halfcourt offense from general district court.
The other team won by 20 and they were playing the whole floor right up until the final horn.
Our pal was so mad at the coach who delivered the bogus report that he wanted to drive the school bus across the mountain to the guy's house and pull up all his flowers.
Our pal, being a decent sort at heart, eventually settled down. But he couldn't stop thinking about this coach.
``Jeez,'' our friend said. ``Doesn't he have an ethics clause in his contract or something?''
ASSORTED FACTS, OCCASIONAL OPINIONS: Byron Gates, who has brought cheer to the hearts of Christiansburg High football partisans with his play at tight end in his first season with the team, was back at practice Monday after missing two games with a twisted knee. He's expected to play in the game with Giles this week. ... Even though Giles-Christiansburg is a nondistrict affair between teams in two different classifications, it is very big for both groups. For Christiansburg, a victory could erase many sour memories from the past two years and convince a lot of people the Blue Demons can win a big game. Even with an 18-game winning streak, there is concern in Giles about making the Group A Division 2 playoffs. The big Three Rivers District showdown with Radford is looming in a couple of weeks and as tough as Region C is in that division, nobody wants to have to worry about making the postseason as a wildcard.
Former Timesland athlete of the year Randy Lawrence, released from the Boston Red Sox organization this summer, is going to spring training at the invitation of the Chicago White Sox with the hope of catching on with that chain. Lawrence, meanwhile, is helping out with the football team at his alma mater, Christiansburg. ... Crystal Hubbard, who has been picking up the scoring slack for Radford High's basketball team team lately, is the daughter of Bill Hubbard, who by many accounts is as good a player as Auburn High ever had. Another Hubbard, Chuck, is a solidly-built tight end on the Bobcats football team. Good athletic genes in that family.
Marty Smith, a football-basketball-baseball guy at Giles the past several years, is playing baseball at Carson-Newman. ... Christiansburg sent two baseball players to Virginia Intermont, All Timesland left-handed pitcher Denny Self and second baseman Brock Keister.
by CNB