Glad I Saw the Game, But...

Watching Independence blow out to a 41-0 half-time lead (it was 27-0 before I got all the way in from the parking lot) and hold South Meck scoreless until 3:01 left in the third before having the reserves hold on for a 55-28 final tally isn't going to help me much in evaluating just how big a game the Butler-Independence shootout is going to be on November 6th. I got fully enlightened on that by the gentleman who was *very* ticked that even though he has obviously supported The Big I as completely as possible with "family packs" of tickets, he would be given no preference when tickets for that particular event went on sale.

That acknowledged "biggie" may well mark a changing of the guard in Mecklenburg high school football. While Butler has built a great rep, Big I has a fistful-plus of championship trophies to show anyone who thinks they rate being called the best. Langston Wertz Jr. (lwertz@charlotteobserver.com) has seen a lot more games than I and puts Butler ahead, and I wish his one man campaign to have the game played at 6000-seats-plus-great-scoreboard Providence High on Nov. 7th the best of luck. That he thinks the State selection committee will let them play Sat. and delay slotting the two teams for the playoffs even a few hours is probably a Quixotian quest.

Yes, the input of watching Anthony Carrothers go 16-25 for 288 yards and four TDs brought some perspective last Friday, and yes, I admit the first thought was, "You're kidding me, THAT is the QB?!" because he is probably 160 lbs. including his helmet and shoulder pads. The only time he looked like he had any size was when he tossed footballs on the sidelines to 2nd graders during halftime, the lucky students from a local elementary school gaining the privilege because of good behavior.

But when Carrothers throws it for real, you recognize he's a worthy heir to the lineage of excellence that has manned the position for many years at Big I. He has no problem making throws to the sidelines, and several went through receivers hands, probably because there was some real pace on them. On back-to-back throws he put it RIGHT ON the sideline flag from 50 yards out, getting a drop on the first and tough coverage knocking the second away. He snuck a screen pass in the mix for 17, then came an absolute bullet from 33 for the score that showed why he's for real. College scouts are reportedly looking at him, and while one has to wonder if the difference between high school and college linemen will allow for him to continue a la Chris Leak, here's hoping he gets a chance somewhere.

I recall young (yes he was, once upon a time) Bobby Bowden giving scholarships to something like 17 QBs when he took over at West Virginia, primarily because QBs are considered the best athletes and can be turned into players at almost any other position. That same scholarship story indicates Bobby gave all he had to out-of-staters, stating definitively that West Virginia didn't have anyone that rated a scholarship, which is why he didn't stay at WVU very long. You'd like to think Carrothers ability gets him such a shot as well.

Not that there's anything wrong with being "just" a really good player on a really good team. With all the hype about Butler's Christian LeMay, who I doubt I'll get to see this Friday because of commitments, one still wonders how good they are until teams that can really test them show up. LeMay's stats are relatively low yardage-wise, which you have to give their coach credit for. He is certainly super-accurate, going 9-11 for 177 and three TDs while Butler massacred Ardrey Kell 67-0, and playing just the first half shows restraint, even if receiver Anthony Short had 181 total yards and four touchdowns.

And people, if you haven't caught a HS football game in a while, do something about that, because the atmosphere will put you on the Memory Train. No, we might not *think* we were such silly teenagers, we definitely didn't have cell phones, but when the cheerleaders are shaking it and the dads in the stands are shouting encouragement to individual players for a hit, catch, block, or event of note, you can't help but remember "back in the day" yourself. I've got a baseline notion of what a top team and QB looks like now, but I also know teams like West Charlotte have massive O-lineman, and I didn't see that at Independence. Guess I will have to TIVO some of the college games and watch some playoff games in the near future to really know the deal.

Glenn S.