Full Story and Interviews
by Jeff Wolfe

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..Game Pictures....View From The Stands....Fan Fotos.
....by Steven Marcus.....by Ardent Cougar......by Jeff Wolfe...

Both head coaches agreed that the kicking game all but decided this non-district AA game between the Pulaski County Cougars and the Tazewell Bulldogs.

“We played most of the first half inside our own 20 yard-line,” said Tazewell Head Coach Harris Hart.  “That made it tough.  Pulaski County has a good program.  They should have stayed triple A,” he added.

The Cougars held the Bulldogs to three-and-out on the first series.  Alan Wheeling took the punt return to paydirt from beyond 50 yards to open scoring.  Josh Calfee had a long run for the second score.  Later he had a 54-yard run to the Bulldog 1 yard line.  Jeremy Porter performed the clean up duty for the TD, and John Hedge added the PAT for the 21-0 second quarter lead. 

Calfee scored again on a quick pitch that he took for 62 yards. Matt Roan had a great seal block downfield on the play.  He continues to fill the shoes left by Jeff King.  “I learned everything from him,” said Roan. “Coach got on us for playing sluggish in the second quarter, and we responded.” 

“Petersburg is going to be big, fast, and they like to hit. We’ve just got to practice hard,” Roan said, looking forward to next week’s game.

The Cougars drove to the Bull Dog 6-yard line when time remaining in the half forced a 21-yard field goal by Hedge, taking a commanding 31-0 lead.

Calfee caught a screen pass that scored from 53 yards out in the third quarter.

Tazewell ran the option well on PC during the game. Also, every pass Josh Thompson threw to fellow Bulldog Jake Graham was a great play. 

Lucas Nester had an interception that halted a promising third quarter drive by Tazewell.

“We studied that pass pattern in practice,” said Nester. I didn’t think that the quarterback was going to throw it. The receiver was on his knees, so I just reached out and got it.” 

Nester had two equipment issues tonight, one during the game, one after. In the second half, he and a Tazewell player got their helmets locked together. They were lying on the field while players from both teams were fascinated with the predicament, the football equivalent of getting a basketball stuck behind the rim. Coach Hicks could not recall ever seeing helmets become so inseparable. Both helmets had to be removed before the players could get loose. The official on the scene had a magician’s showmanship, displaying both sides the Siamese helmet before performing his slight of hand miracle separation. 

“The offensive tackle was coming to block me, when my legs were cut out from under me, then we both fell down,” said Nester. “He tried to get up, but I told him he had to wait.” 

After the game, Nester left the locker room barefoot. “I don’t want to get my new shoes muddy,” he explained.

The wet conditions were a factor tonight. Tazewell had a good drive stopped when the quarterback slipped on a deep drop. He completed the majority of his passes, but didn’t get a look at that one, and punting followed. 

The rain caused some PC running backs to fumble the ball at times, but none ended in turnovers.

Calfee had a 55-yard TD on a quick pitch left, cutting across the grain ten yards downfield.

Second team Cougar RB Derrick Burkes had TD runs of 35 and 47 yards on dive plays. Expect Burkes and Porter to be the RB/HB tandem for the 2002 season. 

Tazewell scored on the second team defense with a 75-yard TD run. The Bulldogs threatened with a swinging gate formation on the PAT, but settled for a single point kick after a PC timeout. 

“Our juniors work hard all week holding bags,” said Hicks. “We need to give them what they deserve.” He commented concerning the irrelevance of posting a shut out. 

Coach Hart spoke to his team on the field after the game, before kneeling with them and saying the Lord’s Prayer.

“You did everything we asked you to do,” Coach Hart told his pack. “You gave a good all-out effort. You have nothing to be ashamed of. You moved the ball very well at times. There are just a few mistakes we need to correct. We expect to see you at 9 a.m. tomorrow to prepare for Richlands, but mentally, you should begin to get ready for that game right now,” he encouraged. 

“I think Tazewell did a great job,” said Coach Hicks. 

“We have 16 seniors back this year. Next year, things will be different. They moved the ball the best on us of all the teams we have scrimmaged. They could have quit, but they didn’t. We needed this work in our opening game. We just had more horses tonight. We did a great job in the kicking game, and they had to start in the hole. I’m anxious to see how they do against Richlands next week. I wish them the best, and hope they win it all,” Hicks said. 

Post Script:

Keep this game and the move to AA ball in context, the Retro and Local theme. This writer found time tonight to catch up with the father-and-son former Cougar football game-film cameramen tandem of Dave and Mickey Hickman. 

Dave Hickman attended Christiansburg Industrial Institute (CII) in the 1940’s. “We played on a field that was used for growing grain in the off-season. When you dug your foot in, you might turn up a pumpkinseed or a corncob. The field was slanted. After the coin toss you might choose to run down hill, or pick the wind. In 1947 the field was grated level. We used old equipment from Virginia Tech. We always had a good team, winning about 7 of the 10 games.” 

“There weren’t state playoff’s in those days,” the younger Hickman said. “They played teams like Lucy Addison in Roanoke, Scott Memorial in Wytheville, Albert Harris in Martinsville, Dunbar in Lynchburg, and Suzie Gibson in Bedford,” he added. 

CII was the education center for blacks living in a several county area that included Pulaski, Montgomery and Giles Counties. As an institution, it opened during the Civil War Reconstruction due to the efforts of Colonel Shaffer, to teach black children how to read. Families were excited about being legally allowed to read. Children commuted by railway to old Cambria near present Christiansburg. 

A statue bust of Colonel Shaffer can be seen at Shaffer Memorial Baptist Church in Christiansburg. Rev. Suggs, the current pastor there, is the father of William Fleming and Virginia Tech star Lee Suggs. 

Before the turn of the century CII became a Normal school, which means that it taught people to be teachers. Early in the 1900’s, CII trained people to be industrious tradesmen. Later it served as a modern high school for blacks. Imagine leaving your county and passing several high schools on your way to school in the morning. That’s what Plessy v. Ferguson, separate-but-equal American education policy meant for blacks in the New River Valley: long commutes.

High School football history in Pulaski County starts with the histories of Dublin, Pulaski, and Christiansburg Industrial Institute. These teams played their closest available opponents, and the season ended when the district champion was crowned. These days, state playoffs follow district play. The Blue Ridge is the toughest AA district in the state. Each game will matter just like it is a playoff game. With a district like this, who needs a post season?