My day began at NC State watching Concord. Head Coach EZ Smith holds a special place in my heart from an all-access piece he let me do two years ago, when they began their playoff run en route to their first championship. That year Concord played at Wake Forest, so I was not able to be there to see it happen, so I wasn’t going miss my chance this year, and what a game it was. I arrived just after the half and it appeared the Spiders had everything well in hand but ended up having to go to overtime to lock down the second title for Coach Smith and his Spiders.

After the game I had to shed my professional hat for a moment to give the big guy a hug and tell him congratulations. Coach Smith is someone, who if you know him at all, you want to hug him! His kids were so excited, he had three vertically challenged rookies try to give the 6’4” coach the Gatorade ice bath and they nearly cut his head open when they smacked him with the cooler. It was all amazing to see and very heartwarming.

I left our crew at NC state to cover the Catholic game which did have the same happy ending and I know that coach Oddo and his team will be in the thick of the hunt again next year. I next traveled over to Duke’s Wallace Wade Stadium and made it just in time for the West Charlotte game which was not as fun to watch, sorry to say. The team they faced, Greenville Rose is like the Independence of the 4A ranks, riding a 36-game winning streak and back-to-back championships coming in. I can say however that despite the cold temperatures the West Charlotte band had it going on and the team did put up a fight giving the Lions a lot to build on going into next season.

With the temperature dropping Independence kicked off around 8 p.m. and the Patriots took care of business. No disrespect to Riverside but the Championship game had been the week before against Butler. The atmosphere of the game was nowhere near the atmosphere of Memorial Stadium and the game wasn’t nearly as exciting. While there was plenty of excitement from the players at the end, Coach Knotts was the most reserved I have ever seen him after a Championship game, and I have interviewed him after the last six. To me watching him coach his teams and conduct business is a little more like watching a gladiator vanquish his foe. It’s impressive and you certainly recognize the skills and intellect at work.

It was a great Championship Saturday, three of our area five area teams brought home the hardware, and the following Sunday on Sports Extra two of the coaches came in studio with their trophies to talk about the win. It was a great end to a great season of high school football and I can’t wait for next year when we get after it week after week on the Friday Night Blitz.

Many times when I go on TV or write a blog it’s easy for me to get lost in the work of it and forget for a moment that whatever I’m covering has as much impact on fans as it does me. The joy for me is in the doing of it, not thinking about who may be actually paying attention to it.
While perusing through our message boards, I saw this response to one of my Blitz Blogs…it read as follows:

Hi, I'm a civilian contractor working in Iraq just outside Baghdad. Can't wait to hear about the Charlotte area football teams and State Playoffs. Other than my family and friends, I miss Charlotte area football the most. Often times while being attacked we sit in the bunker and talk about High School Football and I always have the most to brag about. Go Independance, West Charlotte, Catholic, and Concord. I hope we make it a clean sweep. Will check Sunday morn. We're 8 hours ahead.
Posted by: Mike Lewallen at December 9, 2006 12:36 PM

First I hope that Mike was checking WCNC for all the updates on scores, and I hope that the three out of five championship results brought some joy to his day. As for Mike, I can’t begin to tell you the feelings it brings to me to know that my work in a small way mattered to him while he is working and sacrificing for me and all of us in such a dangerous environment. I have so much respect for all our people trying to make a difference in the world and places like Iraq, soldiers and civilian contractors alike.

I really love my job. I get to watch sports and many times be at great sporting events for a living and then turn around and share my take on it. While I’m still adjusting to how fast the internet makes that possible, whenever anyone responds to any story I cover, especially like Mike’s response, it’s the biggest gift I could ever receive.

Thanks for watching, thanks for reading and thanks for all the feedback!

Happy Holidays!

Ira

We always seem to be spoiled in this area as far as how many quality teams we have in the Championship games, year-in and year-out. In my 5 years here, it always seems that on Championship Saturday I would be happiest if I could divide myself into 4 for 5 pieces so I could be at every single game. The great thing is that because of all the resources we put into covering the Championships you don’t have to feel like you wish you could be in 4 or 5 places at the same time, if you tune into us on Saturday you’ll feel like you are in 5 places as we’ll have every game covered for you.

Championship Saturday is always a great day for me. It begins around 9 in the morning when I begin to make my way to the Triangle for a noon kick off, and it will be no different this Saturday. Concord plays at Carter Finley Stadium at noon and I’ll be there to watch legendary coach EZ Smith and his Spiders go for their 2nd State Title in 3 years. After that game, I’ll leave our Raleigh crew there to cover the Charlotte Catholic game and I’ll head over to Durham where West Charlotte will kick off at 4:30. Duke’s Wallace Wade Stadium is our main staging site this year where our set and Satellite Truck, will be. It’s our base of operations for big events when we are in the field. I’ll be broadcasting live from the 4-A site for our 6 and 11 p.m. newscasts. And trust me when I tell you we’ll pull it all together at 11 p.m., and we’ll have highlights from all five of our area teams.

It’s really amazing if you sit back and think about it. Three teams from Mecklenburg County alone and 5 in all from our viewing area. There is a great chance that we will be talking about 5 Championship trophies being won by our area schools.

We’ll talk to you again Saturday!

Ira

Alas, there is some rule by the state high school athletic association which evidently prohibits live telecasts of football games. So, unless you braved the chill along with approximately 20,000 other fans, you got to enjoy the buzz but missed out on the honey. Although I’m sure there will be a lot more fans, as the days go by, that claim they were one of the 20,000 attendees. By next year, that number will probably hit 50,000.

Any big game must have celebrities to make it complete – and Keyshawn Johnson, who spent much of the first half on the sidelines, drew a lot of looks. Partly because he’s a former number one NFL draft pick, partly because he plays wide receiver for the Panthers and partly because he had the guts to wear shorts on a night when temps were much closer to 32 degrees than 82 degrees.

The folks who were actually there witnessed something less than a classic. Independence, seemingly having learned their lesson well, jumped out to a 21-zip lead with a deft mix of hard running by Dequan Leak and the deep passing of Darryl McFadden. Butler, however, started to reprise the role of the Patriots – they stormed back with two touchdowns of their own, making it 21-14 with a couple of minutes left in the half.

Too much time, as it turned out, as Independence raced down the field to score with seconds remaining, taking a 28-14 lead and the Bulldog’s heart into the locker room. There would be no amazing comeback, no overtime drama and no fantastic finish.

The final was 49-23, and Independence had run their streak to 107 straight. A sign, unfurled along the stone façade, facing the Independence bench before the game, proved prophetic: “Remember, remember, the third of November, when Independence came back and made the Bulldogs surrender.”

But I had to get better because we have some awesome high school football games going on this weekend, as my 2nd favorite week of the season is here, the State semifinals! Championship Saturday is my favorite and the opening week of the season comes in 3rd.

The headline game is so big, it’s been moved from Friday night to Saturday night.
I’m so fired up for the Butler/Independence rematch Saturday at Memorial Stadium. There are some events that are not to be missed, a handful of games that I will always remember. The ones that I tell people with pride, “I was there”.

As you know, the first game was a classic, highlighted (and there were a ton of highlights) by Adam Irving’s diving interception in the end zone, which prevented Butler from taking a 28-0 lead and jump-starting the Patriots to 21 unanswered points, powering them to an epic, two-overtime comeback win, 30-24.

The quote from Independence head coach Tom Knotts following the game is still ringing in my ears, “We just showed a lot of character. A lot of teams would give up after being down 21 – 0, and I’m proud of that. We’re going to win the state championship, one way or another, it’s going to be a lot of blood, sweat, and tears, but we’re going to win it.”

That’s a prediction reminiscent of Broadway Joe Namath, as he quarterbacked the New York Jets to an upset win in Super Bowl III. If Independence wins, it won’t be an upset, but given all the talent on Butler and the way they played the Patriots the last time, I’m not so sure that if Butler wins, it’ll be an upset. This game is so big, I’ll be reporting live beforehand at 6 p.m. and after the game at 11 p.m. with all the highlights on Saturday night.

Friday night will be our final Blitz of the season and we’ll also have plenty of great highlights from the other playoff games. Langston will be in studio to take your questions and talk about the match-ups. I’m really looking forward to seeing the work of Willie Smart, one of our ace editors here at WCNC, who has put together a great music video tribute with highlights from the season that you won’t want to miss.

It’s been a great season on the Blitz and we’ll close it out in style this Friday night. See you then!

Ira

With the show becoming more interactive this year I’m starting to go with some urges… much to the pain I’m sure of my producer and our director. This past week I had Langston in the studio off the top of the show, but he wasn’t suppose to appear until after 4 or 5 highlights had been shown. Langston was still under deadline and he had covered the Country Day/Latin game which was the Blitz Game of the Week and our lead story. I decided on the fly to pull Langston in and ask him about the game. There was a problem with his microphone but all in all I liked the spontaneity. I’m not sure how our director felt, and I almost didn’t pull the trigger on Langston because we try to script the show a little bit, but I decided to let it all hang out and go for it and she rolled with it great!

Trust me though, the director is someone who you don’t want to have mad at you.

Also this week, loyal viewer Lee e-mailed in to give his Charlotte Catholic Cougars some love and nearly as soon as we received his e-mail, Langston and I were talking about it on the air. We’ll continue to add to our play book on the Blitz and I’m really excited about how the show will evolve next year. But until then, we have 2 more weeks of highlights to share with you on Friday Night and then on Championship Saturday, December 9th, we’ll and have highlights from all our area teams.

I get a lot of questions about my brackets. I’m beginning to cool off after a torrid start. In the 4AA bracket, though, it’s all good. I correctly picked 3 of the 4 quarterfinal teams with Davie County being the team I had counted out. I correctly called the great match-up that is our Game of the Week in Butler and Providence, but let’s see if my pick of the Panthers upsetting the Bulldogs comes through. In the 4A I was also 3 of 4… but West Charlotte’s upset of Crest (congratulations to Coach Gilchrist and crew) knocked out my state championship pick, so now I’m thinking the Lions will wear the crown. In the 3AA 2 out of 4 isn’t bad. Catholic is my pick to roll and they are surviving just fine. And in 3A I’m also 50% and my pick to win it all, the Concord Spiders are alive and kicking. In 2AA 2 out of 4 is again where I’m at and the Shelby Golden Lions who are pick to win it all are looking good. In the 2A bracket while I’m also 2 of 4, Newton Conover’s upset of Maiden blew my brackets up! Newton Conover is my new pick to make it to Winston Salem. Thank goodness I don’t have anything on the line except my reputation as a prognosticator which isn’t worth much to start with.

Good luck in week 3 of the playoffs and we’ll have all the best highlights for you Friday Night on the Blitz! See you then.

Ira

No complaints, though, I have been eagerly waiting for this game since I covered the last Country Day-Latin game. The crowds are already pouring in, and this game is going to be one to remember.

6:37 - I greet Ken Gunter, the voice of the Country Day Bucs. He questions who I am, and I re-introduce myself and tell him that we have met before. This is actually the third time we have gone through this process together, but I do not mind. After all, Ken does everything and anything for the Bucs, from announcing to stat tracking. Gunter is a jack-of-all-trades, and I can cut him some slack in not remembering a first year reporter.

6:41 – I strike up a conversation with some familiar Country Day faces in the press box. We make a feeble attempt at talking about something other than football, such as one man’s difficulties with getting his VCR to record, but it is not long before we are talking about this huge game. It is the NCISAA 3A Football Championship, and this might be one of the best Bucs-Hawks match-ups in a long time.

6:57 – The Hawks always look so uniform in their warm-ups, like they just walked straight out of boot camp or something. Combined with their jerseys, I feel like I am watching the Dallas Cowboys in the mid-90s, and their play on the field this season is no less different.

7:01 - Bucs are the first team to jog off the field to the locker room before the game begins. Coach Bob Witman, in his 17th year with the Bucs, walks off with his head down. I have to give respect to him. Witman is gritty, and the team he coaches is no different. I have had the pleasure of watching Country Day twice this season: at the Charlotte Catholic game and the last game against the Hawks. In both games, the Bucs were the underdogs, but barely showed that on the field, upsetting both teams. Witman is also humble. At the end of the Hawks win, Witman was nowhere to be found on the field. This aggravated myself and Cliff Mehrtens from the Observer. After searching high and low for the missing coach, we were left to write our stories about the upset win without quotes from the victorious leader. However, that is just the kind of guy Witman is, and I am sure the Bucs fans are more concerned with his production on field.

7:05 - Langston from the Observer arrives, and any attention that was paid to me before he arrived now ceases. Langston is one of the stars on our network's Friday Night Blitz, so I suppose I can voluntarily share my fame and glory as a press writer with him....for now.

7:06 - Ken walks over and pats Langston on the back. I try not to get jealous.

7:16 - Hard to say who I pick to win tonight. In spite of their loss the last time these two teams met, Latin still seems to be the favorite. I always like a good underdog story, and Country Day never seems to disappoint. There seems to be more confidence in the air on the Bucs part tonight, and I fear this might end up being their Achilles' heal for the game. I will go with 21 – 17, Hawks, and try my best not to edit this prediction throughout the game.

7:27 - Hawks win the coin toss, and elect to kick first. In a game like this, winning a coin toss could potentially prove to be a deciding factor – or not.

FIRST QUARTER

7:32 – Bucs Quarterback Matthew Miller does an acrobatic leap on a 3rd and 2 for the first down. Impressive. Miller always amazes me in being such a well-rounded player. He is a good passer, an excellent runner, and just when you think you have seen the last of him, he is great on defense.

7:41 – Both teams look conservative on the offense. They are starting strong, but fizzling out before they can even get into field goal range.

SECOND QUARTER

7:51 – Brenton Bersin intercepts Matthew Miller. Miller had already made a mistake of throwing where no receivers were before, and he paid for it this time. Latin has been pressuring the quarterback all game long, and it finally pays off in the 2nd Quarter

7:56 – Hawks score soon after a Bucs turnover. This cannot be good for Country Day, whose win in their last matchup was characterized by a very strong first half, and a struggle to hold their lead in the second.

7 – 0, Latin

8:01 – Fede and Miller attempt the option play that Hanson and Curtis are so consistently successful converting. The Bucs, not duplicating the Hawk's success, only advance 3 yards.

8:03 – Bucs quarterback Miller doubles his rushing total for the night with a 61-yard touchdown run. The excitement fizzles out though when Thomas Cavalaris misses the extra point. Latin holds onto a 1-point lead.

7 – 6, Latin

8:12 – With 2:43 left in the 2nd quarter, I spot an assistant coach walking over to kicker Thomas Cavalaris and jokingly knock him over the head. You can tell Cavalaris is mad at himself for missing the extra point, but I remember the last time I saw Cavalaris miss a kick (it was at the Country Day-Catholic game earlier in the season), he went on to win the game on his next attempt.

8:14 – With 1:18 left in the 2nd quarter, Tate Davis makes a crucial interception on the 2-yard line, preventing a Hawks touchdown and preserving the 1-point lead. That was crucial for the Bucs.

8:18 – Halftime. With the Hawks getting the ball at the half, Tate Davis' interception was imperative for the Bucs. It is the first time anyone not named Matthew Miller has stepped up in the clutch for the Bucs all game. Latin's potent offense was held to just one touchdown in the first half, so there is still a good chance for Country Day in this one.

8:29 – Overlooking my stat sheet, the Bucs' Miller is currently out-rushing the Hawks' Curtis, 119 to 92. Not bad for a quarterback.

THIRD QUARTER

8:42 – I do not know if that was planned or not, but the Hawks just turned a botched field goal attempt into a 20 yard touchdown pass. Following the fumble, the Hawks had two players open in the end zone. Grayson Caldwell of all people completes the touchdown pass.

14 – 6, Latin

8:45 – The Hawks just gave the Bucs a free ride on that play, a wide open bomb leading to a 60-yard Evan Helda touchdown. Too bad they could not convert the conversion though. This sets up an unusual score, and it will be interesting to see how this plays out.

14 – 12, Latin

8:54 – Matthew Miller on the interception on a 3rd and 15, gives them the ball at the halfway mark. I cannot believe how versatile Miller is. He is everywhere on that field!

8:58 – Matthew Miller passes it to Wood Breeden, 25yd pass with 1:24 to go. 25 yards from the end zone, Thomas Cavalaris starts practicing his kicks.

FOURTH QUARTRER

9:02 – On a 4th and 4, with 11:20 left in the 4th quarter, Thomas Cavalaris' 29-yard field goal is GOOD!!! History repeats itself, so far at least. I have a soft spot for the kicker position. Nothing like the silence of the crowd while the ball is in motion, followed by roars and cheers when it goes through the uprights. Country Day takes their first lead of the game.

15 – 14, Country Day

9:10 – Bradley Moodey fumbles the ball on the 24-yard line, but Braden Hanson dives and recovers. In field goal range now with 7:40 to play, that may have been the deciding factor between a win or a loss for the Hawks.

9:15 – Justin Curtis runs for a touchdown on a 3-yard run. A 22-yard completion on a 3rd and 14 capped the touchdown. Curtis had a much better first half, but he came up big here. Hanson too. The Hawks convert the 2-point conversion to Brenton Bersin. With 6:18 left, it is now do or die for the Bucs.
22 – 15, Latin

9:17 – 6 minutes to play. 80 yards. Can the Bucs do it? We will see.

9:25 – Unbelievable! It took a couple of goal line runs, but with 1:22 left, Matthew Miller just ran for a 1-yard touchdown and Thomas Cavalaris made the extra point this time.
22 – 22

9:28 – 1:15 to play, 65 yards. Can the Hawks do it? All they need is a field goal to win.

9:29 – MATTHEW MILLER DOES IT AGAIN! AN INTERCEPTION, and now it is the BUCS who can win this!!! 52.2 seconds left.

9:37 – That was too exciting, it is now OVERTIME and I am heading down to the field!

OVERTIME

10:24 – It was a great game, but Latin pulled it out in the first overtime, 28 - 25. I have to credit the Hawks, who scored on their drive without the help of Justin Curtis, who had to leave. It seemed like someone was swapping the speakers on a stereo system, as Latin drowned out the loud and jubilant Country Day crowd on the touchdown pass. On a side note, both of these teams have amazing fans. I do not think there was a single fan on either side that sat during this game, from the opening kickoff to the final play. That is showing heart.

It was all very exciting. So exciting, that when I called one of our producers, Joshua Nypaver, while I told him the score, I almost forgot to tell him who actually won. Sorry Josh!

My interviews have concluded, and they have cut the lights off on the field. While Langston heads over to the studio to record the Blitz, I will be heading home to send my article in. Good night!

Starting with my 4-AA West brackets, I was a whopping 50% overall, but the important thing is that the four winners I picked, Butler, Providence, Independence, and North Meck are the four teams I have slated to advance to the state quarterfinals.

In the 4-A brackets, I only missed one game! Alexander Central beat High Point but other than that it’s all good including the Crest Chargers, my pick to win it, are still alive after beating Concord Robinson.

In the 3-AA brackets I only missed in 3 of the 8 games and the big dawg, Charlotte Catholic is alive and well.

I would continue to go on in detail but I know it sounds like bragging – which it is. In short let me say that in the 3-A West brackets, my pick to win it all, the Concord Spiders, took care of business. Never mind that I picked all the games correctly. I couldn’t help but put that detail in.

However in the interest of humility, let me simply say in 2-AA my championship pick Shelby won. In the 2-A West brackets, my championship pick Maiden is still alive. With no disrespect to the 1-AA and 1-A folks, I didn’t take the time to pick those, and wish nothing but luck to all the kids in the playoffs. My picks are strictly for entertainment purposes – remember folks, no wagering.

Ok, so I know I’m tooting my own horn, but if you were as historically bad at picking games as I am, when it goes pretty well, well, I had to tell someone. And my wife just rolls her eyes at me.

Enjoy the playoffs and we’ll see you on the Blitz!

Ira

First, I cannot go forward with out saying what a great game it was at Memorial Stadium between Butler and Independence! While there may have been more drama throughout the game if the teams had traded touchdowns on the way to double overtime, but never mind that. The Patriots rallied from 21 down, just like against Providence last year to extend their winning streak to 103 games.

Now getting back to the playoffs, and my picks and some match-ups to look forward to - if I’m right! (I have to state for the record, I’m generally a sucker for schools I like or for teams with a better record or seed so I’m about as bad at picking brackets as a person can be.) Let’s start with the 4AA bracket where I predict Independence will roll to their 7th consecutive title, but the road will not be without plenty of drama. Butler opens up with a tough test against always prepared Scotland County, but the Bulldogs will advance all the way to the quarterfinals where I see an upset coming at the hands of Providence, who will also give Independence a serious run for their money in the semifinals. North Meck will also enjoy a good run but won’t get out of the quarterfinals where they will lose to the Patriots.

In the 4A bracket I see the Crest Chargers rolling all the way, but a very tough test awaits them in the second round against West Charlotte.

There are a lot of great possible games in the 3AA bracket if my picks pan out. The class of this field again will be the Charlotte Catholic Cougars but they will have their hands full against Kannapolis in the second round, and Olympic in the third round.

In the 3A bracket, I already said I’m a sucker for the sentimental pick but I like what the Concord Spiders are doing right now and I think head coach EZ Smith is primed for a second State Championship. Their biggest hurdle will be in the semifinals against a surging Hunter Huss team.

The undefeated Shelby Golden Lions will remain so and win the 2AA championship and Maiden will take it in the 2A bracket. I like Thomasville in the 1AA, and I give the nod to 10 and 0 Cherokee in the 1A.

In the end who knows if I’m right or wrong about the picks, but what I do know is we are going to have some great games to watch over the coming weeks and we’ll be there with you every step of the way. We’ll blow it up on Friday Night Blitz throughout the playoffs, as we do each and every Friday night. They call it March Madness, what do you think about November Nuttiness? If you have a better name, let me know!

See you on the Blitz!

Ira

Tiger Woods, Lance Armstrong, the Boston Celtics under Red Auerbach, the New York Yankees, to name just a few, represent athletes or teams that have so dominated their competition during a particular time, era or generation, that you either love them or hate them. Want to see them win every time, or root for their opposition no matter what.

Pencil the Independence Patriots in that category. With their 103 consecutive games win streak….their propensity to churn out Division 1 caliber players (Chris Leak, Joe Cox, Hakeem Nicks to name a few)…their highly motivated head coach.

You’re either with them or against them.

As many of you have read or heard, the Patriots’ win streak is the second longest such streak in high school football history in this country, THE longest streak among public high schools. Hate them or love them, it is hard not to appreciate that.

While I’ve lived in North Carolina for a couple of years now, I had yet to experience high school football here. I saw a few games while I lived in Florida, and witness the passion that the players brought to the game. I lived in New York and New Jersey, and while college football isn’t huge in the Northeast, they take their high school football very seriously. And I grew up in the Midwest – where football is part of the fabric of scholastic life.

Ira Cronin had been hammering me to sample the fine fare of football here, so I walked from my house in Elizabeth to Memorial Stadium Friday night, and with WCNC’s digital camera, witnessed one of the greatest comebacks in football I’ve ever seen. I’ve been to hundreds of college and professional football games, and this was as exciting a game as any.

In front of about 10,000 fans, Butler dominated the first half. Up 21-0 at the break, the fans from Indy were silent, stunned but yet seemed to anticipate a better second half for their team. But then again, the Patriots had no where to go but up. When I called Chris Sotardi, who was covering the game for the Blitz, I suggested his halftime headline should be, “Houston, we have no problem”. The Bulldog’s Ryan Houston had racked up 3 touchdowns, and the Patriots’ D had no answer.

The third quarter started, and when Butler got the ball, they were driving for a touchdown that most likely would have been, as intrepid producer/photographer Tom Butler said, the final nail in the coffin. During the drive, one of Butler’s most successful plays was a stop and go route, as Butler QB Jacob Charest would pump fake the cornerback, and hit his receiver as he broke out of his momentary stop. They tried the play a second time, throwing the ball down the left side, and into the end zone. Which is right where we were standing. I said to another member of the media standing next to me, “this ball is coming right at us” – it did.

Literally out of nowhere, the Patriots’ Adam Irving, sprinting from the hash mark, made a diving grab in the end zone, having the presence of mind to get one foot in as he flew out of bounds. I’m not trying to gush here – I do not know anyone on either team, and know of no one that attends either school – but that was one of the single greatest plays I’ve ever witnessed in person. I’ve been fortunate to cover Super Bowls, World Series, the Daytona 500, the NBA finals and the Stanley Cup finals, and that play would rank up there as any I’ve seen, given what was on the line, the moment and the athleticism displayed. And in that moment, the game changed.

You know the rest – two overtimes later and Independence’s streak was intact. Butler is a fine team, and will no doubt go far in the playoffs. But no matter who you root for, you have to appreciate what Independence, their players and their coaches have accomplished. And all of North Carolina should be proud.

But for us high school football devotees, it’s like Christmas twice – we had some games Friday night, and even more on Monday night. So Friday Night Blitz made a 15 minute cameo appearance to start our week.

I have to say slipping back into our 15 minute format almost didn’t seem right. It’s just not enough time talking about one of the greatest sporting events around the entire country - Friday night football. Our parent network didn’t create a new show this season called Friday Night Lights for nothing!

We’d love to cover every game in our area. We’re able to get to 14 of them, and while I’m not encouraging the North Carolina High School Athletic Association to sprinkle games throughout the week, it was nice to have multiple nights in order for us to cover more games.

The unpredictability of the sport is one its many charms – Country Day’s surprising come-from-behind win over Latin is just the latest example – which wrapped up the CISAA title. The way the sport brings out the best in student-athletes is another. Take Daryl Vereen – the North Meck senior running back rushed for a career-high 320 yards and three touchdowns, as his team clinched at least a share of its first ME-CA 6 4A conference championship since 1982 with a 45-28 victory Monday against Concord Robinson.

I’m really looking forward to a short week - this Friday night we have plenty of great games on the schedule, Butler vs. Independence being just one to mention.

See you on the Blitz!

Ira

A couple of e-mails came into the show with a funky looking e-mail address which I was informed after the show, were text messages. I find this so cool on many levels. First that technology is to the point where people can be part of the show no matter where they are, and the fact that people are beginning to do so is also very exciting to me.

We want the Friday Night Blitz to be part of your High School Football experience all week long, and especially on Friday night, obviously. Whether you’re getting score updates or sending them to us through the night or if you’re e-mailing or text messaging Langston and I during the show so we can get you the information you are looking for! So keep it up and special thanks to those who used this cool technology of Friday night.

It’s going to be another great Friday night this week! A major showdown between Country Day and Latin is our game of the week. The Hawks are undefeated, while the Buccaneers have just 2 losses. It’s just one of the many games that we will have covered for you.

See you on the Blitz!
Ira

As the World Series draws closer and closer and we’re waiting to see who will join the Tigers in the fall classic, the Bobcats have cranked up, the Panthers have won four in a row and we just finished with race week here at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

And oh yea, High School football is in full swing and the playoffs will be here before we know it!

It’s a week when I have really had to stop and think about what the Independence Patriots have done, winning 100 consecutive games.

When I arrived here in Charlotte five and a half years ago the winning streak was already underway. Amazing that I have never seen the Patriots lose a game.

I have seen a couple of squeakers, but in the end Tom Knotts and or, Bill Gieller have always walked away victorious.

Players have come and gone, and even the two coaches just mentioned have come and gone a season at a time, and here we are 100 games later and the Patriots look to be on a roll that just won’t end.

It will be very interesting to see what goes down when the Mustangs of Myers Park come calling this Friday night.

It’s an easy pick to say they should roll to another easy win but the reality is you never know what will happen until it goes down.

And while I’m sitting here writing about Tom Knotts, on one of the five televisions back here in the sports office, (yes, my life is rough. I watch sports in person or on TV and I get paid to talk about it), I’m listening to Arizona head coach Denny Green lose his mind after this week’s Monday Night game as his rant is played over and over again, a reminder how glad I am to cover the coaches I do in the local area.

On the High School front they are nearly all great to deal with, from E.Z. Smith to Roy Kirby to Chris Norman to Jim Oddo to the aforementioned coach Knotts, and the same can be said of John Fox.

And while I’m on current affairs, I would have a hard time thinking that if any of them had their players put on the kind of display seen in Miami over the weekend they would send a real message to their players.

Not some phony one week suspension against Duke. Nothing personal against Duke football.

Happy High School football everyone, along with everything else going on, it’s a great time of year! We’ll see you on the Blitz!

Ira

Whether I’m covering an event for work, or rooting for my favorite teams, I want to be as close to the action as possible. The ‘net does that, and with all the cool things like Podcasts and chats and instant messages, I get to hear from the fan much more than I used to, and that’s a good thing.

I even get to hear them in church. This past weekend an area player who attends the same services my family does, informed me on Sunday that I had butchered their quarterback’s name and that the quarterback wasn’t happy.

But can I just take a second here to say how glad I am that professional teams and college programs have people whose job it is to make sure people like me know how to say their athlete’s names correctly! For high school football, we’re talking about a lot of names! Red Raider fan has certainly not been shy with his opinions and I can honestly say our show is better because of it. So again, if you there is anything you want me to know about your team, make sure you’re telling me. Send an e-mail to, icronin@wcnc.com, or fridaynightblitz@wcnc.com, and we’ll get it straight!

It’s another big night looming on the Blitz, our game of the week is Independence at Providence, and if you have questions you want answered by Langston on the show you can e-mail them in anytime during the week. Last Friday night we had several great questions on the show and I think the more you the viewer are involved in the show, the better it is.

See you on the tube (and the internet)!

Ira

I’m also going to give some love to our WCNC.com interactive ace, even though he offered me $10 not to talk about him in this blog (which I would have taken him up on if he would have offered me $20, but extortion is not in my nature). So I’ll only refer to him as our “interactive ace”. Well, last week our interactive ace came back to the sports department with this very cool high tech device, the iPod. In the palm of his hand, he showed me the Friday Night Blitz Podcast! At this point in my career I am very used to seeing myself on TV, but I must say to see myself, and great high school football video in crystal clear video on an iPod was very impressive. I’m talking about the podcast, and not me per say. I have been resisting the cost of investing in one of those little beauties but after seeing the Blitz podcast , it’s only a matter of time before I spend the cash. Holly (my dear wife) if you are reading this, what a great stocking stuffer! I have seen the future and I am impressed. If you are iPod savvy and watch the Blitz, check it out and you can take the show with you where ever you go. If you’re not, have your kids get you savvy – it is so easy, and great to have as you run those errands over the weekend, watching the Blitz as you’re waiting in line at the hardware store.

This week, not only can I promise you a great High School Football show packed with all the great highlights, Olypmic at Charlotte Catholic, Weddington at Independence, Crest at Ashbrook, Hickory at Maiden, Vance at Berry, just to name a few… You can download the show and take it with you where ever you and your iPod roam.

See you on the Blitz!

Ira

The bad thing about the fall is there are SO MANY great things going on!

A quick update on my new friend, who from now on will be known as: “Devoted Red Raider fan”. After I had patched things up with him this past week I caught his attention again last Friday night, and this time for good reason. Perhaps he was onto something with that “hack” comment in the first place. I really need to talk to the people in South Carolina who decided it was a good idea to name their new school South Pointe. Now I know its South Pointe with an “E” on the end, which in print is a vastly different from South Point, without the “E”. But when it’s TV and I’m on set trying to talk through highlights and scores on the Friday Night Blitz faster than an auctioneer, it’s a little more complicated. Anyway…in the heat of battle last Friday night as the scores are blazing by, off the top of my head, which is always where I get in trouble, I referred to Belmont South Point as “Gastonia South Point”, thinking I needed to distinguish between the South Point in Gaston County, and the South Pointe in Rock Hill. It’s one of those times where what I meant to say, and what I said, were two different things and when you’re in the business of getting your facts straight it’s a terrible thing.

Stay with me people, I know I’m not from around here but after five years in the area I swear I’m learning. I have always said, I may be big, but I’m slow.  This story has a happy ending, Devoted Red Raider fan e-mailed me again, and corrected me along with some high compliments on our Friday Night Blitz, to which I am so thankful for. We do work hard and it’s all for you - the high school football fans. E-mails from the viewers are so essential to our show. Langston answered several questions this past week because we love having your input on the show.

It looks to be another great week with plenty of intriguing stories to watch. Independence is back in action playing at Vance with hopes to deliver another upset special. Charlotte Catholic looks to get back on track, Olympic is playing well coming off their win over Providence, and the Panthers are headed back home where they seem to play better and West Charlotte has put together a nice string of wins. We’ll be keeping an eye on all the action as it happens. See you on the Blitz!

Ira

This job always provides plenty enjoyable experiences with sports fans and there have been two that stand out recently. With football season starting, the Chase getting hot and baseball pennant races coming down the stretch, these are the busiest and most intense days of the year. But these particular comic relief moments made me laugh out loud and melted away the intensity and stress of it all.

The first came 5 weeks ago when a viewer e-mailed me suggesting I stop using so much goop in my hair, because on his new 57” inch high def. TV, it looked like, according to him, I had been rolling around in a grease pit all day. I explained to him that if my hair looking greasy was the only problem he saw when looking at me on a 57” high def. TV, I would be surprised. He should see what I look like first thing in the morning, staring back at myself in the bathroom mirror…..now that’s scary!

The second moment was last Friday night on the set of the Blitz. Langston Wertz from the Observer and I were getting e-mails from viewers to answer on the air, (which I love!) when a South Point Red Raider fan e-mailed me, disgusted that we didn’t show, or reference, a record field goal that happened late in the game against Kings Mountain. This fired-up fan wrapped up his e-mail by calling me “a hack”. I guess I subscribe to the “any publicity is good publicity” school of thinking, so I wrote him a nice e-mail in response.

Two points won him over – first, I explained to him that Lineberger Stadium is one of the best high school football atmospheres I have come across in all of North or South Carolina, (that’s the truth!) and second, if the record field goal happened after our crew left the game, he, (like all our fans!) needed to call me or e-mail the info so we can include it on the show. As much as we’d love to be, we just can’t be at every game in the area for their entirety. I should have asked him if he was the kicker’s father - and no matter, I love his passion for his team and took the “hack” comment as a sign of that love for his team.

Another great slate of games on the schedule for Friday Night and the Blitz will be bringing you the highlights at 11:15, right here online, and on WCNC-TV.

See you then!

Ira

I have to give out major props to Bob Whitman and the Country Day Buccaneers even though I don’t think coach Whitman or his kids want any part of it. Once again in what most of us on the outside would call a David vs. Goliath match up the Buccaneers gave 4-A power Northwestern a serious game, before losing in triple overtime on an extra point. I promise you that Country Day didn’t think of it as David vs. Goliath and they are still stewing about not winning the game. This really sets the stage for our Friday Night Blitz Game of the Week as these same Buccaneers travel to Charlotte Catholic. It’s a game the Cougars should win to extend their winning streak to 35 games, but I’m positive head football coach Jim Oddo will be make sure his players don’t overlook a very dangerous Country Day team.

Providence looked very impressive in their opener against Vance. The Cougars may have been slapped back to reality after their win at Concord but Coach Jeff Simpson will have Vance ready to rock this week, and they will have to be rockin’, as they host the second ranked team in the Observer’s Sweet 16, the Butler Bulldogs. Butler rolls in after demolishing North Meck 36-13 last week, thanks in big part to Ryan Houston’s 113 yards rushing and Jacob Charest’s 162 yards passing.

Order has been restored at Independence for the time being and the “I” is still on display on the helmets. You have to love Coach Knotts. The talented Patriots seem to be humble and focused which is a dangerous combination. Darryl McFadden threw for 156 yards and 2 touchdowns and the offense was balanced with Dequan Lead and Rico Carelock each rushing for a score and even the kicker Rob Ward added 3 field goals, as they thumped West Meck 58-0. The Patriots host Olympic this week.

I can’t wrap up without mentioning South Point’s thrilling comeback 34-27 win over Lincolnton. Sophomore quarterback Desmond Lowery was pressed into duty when the No. 2 and No. 3 quarterbacks quit mid-week and after a shaky first half Lowery settled in nicely. And I’m feeling a little sorry for the Wolves this week at practice. After the loss to the Red Raiders, coach Cloninger said his team must have gotten tired, and he would have to get them in better shape. We all know what that is code for.

On WCNC later this week, look for a feature on Maiden running back Tommy Henry who ran for 238 yards and scored 5 touchdowns in the Blue Devils win over West Lincoln.

See you on the Blitz!

Ira

While the state’s two longest winning streaks stayed intact both the Patriots and Cougars didn’t exactly look dominate which has to have their future opponents feeling some hope as they look at the schedule.

Head coach Tom Knotts said he was “embarrassed” by the Patriots effort in their 17-6 win over West Charlotte at Memorial Stadium. The biggest challenge for Knotts and his staff will be convincing this talented team that they can be beat, before it actually happens. If the players will bring themselves back to reality, they should be able to return to the high powered offensive machine that Knotts is known for coaching. The plus out of this game for Independence was the defense, which really only gave up the one big play resulting in West Charlotte’s only touchdown. And give the Lions credit, for going toe to toe with the Patriots and not letting the score get out of control. It will be very interesting to see how the Patriots fare in their home opener against West Meck.

Charlotte Catholic escaped their season opener at South Meck with a 15-8 win. Ben Herlocker was his usual stud self and the defense came up big to move the winning streak to 33. The Cougars play at Myers Park this week, and the Mustang’s have to be licking their chops and Coach Jim Ruark always has his team ready to go. I’m expecting a great game at Myers Park.

Some of the best high lights we had last Friday night came from Vance freshman quarterback Anthony Carothers who threw for 185 yards and four touchdowns in Concord against the Spiders. Look for E.Z. Smith to refocus his team as the Spiders play at Northwest Cabarrus and Vance steps onto another big stage as they travel to Providence for the Panthers opener.

The Ashbrook Greenwave looked impressive to me in person on Friday night in their 39-14 win over West Meck. Patrick Hall ran wild for 149 yards on 14 carries and 5 touchdowns, in just 3 quarters of work. The new dark green helmets also look very sharp.

Freedom at Shelby and Burns at Crest will also be some big match ups in Cleveland County this coming week. Gaston County will also host a huge game with Lincolnton playing at one of the best home field atmospheres that I have seen, Lineberger Stadium at South Point High School in Belmont. The Wolves are 1-0 after beating St. Stephen last week and the Red Raiders will be looking to prove something in their opener.

On stat patrol, Anson County hosts Gastonia Forestview and it will be fun to see how RB Michael Bowman follows up his 243 yard, 3 touchdown effort as the Bearcats host the Jaguars.

It’s going to be a great week and we’ll have you covered. We’ll bring you the highlights first on the Friday Night Blitz at 11:15 on WCNC-TV and .com. In the meantime, feel free to drop me a line!
Ira

And it's here in a big way.

No question the Panthers rule the football jungle here in the Charlotte region (and beyond), but ACC football with UNC, NC State, Clemson and Wake and the SEC with the Gamecocks are major parts of our lives, and major points of emphasis in our coverage.

We've always covered high school football with passion and excitement. But this year we will be adding to our award-winning show in many ways that will bring you closer to all the action. We’ll have more cameras, more microphones and more people in the field to bring you more highlights and interviews. We have always done it twice as good in half the time, but this year the Friday Night Blitz is beefing up and expanding to 30 minutes. And you can watch the Blitz again and again! We bring you the highlights first at 11:15, and you can find the entire show on the web and we will be re-playing the Friday Night Blitz, Saturday morning’s at 6am for you early risers!

We're kicking the whole season off with an hour-long special Thursday night at 8pm! Langston Wertz, Jr., and Cliff Mehrtens from the Charlotte Observer will be in the studio with me, and we'll be talking to coaches, players and taking questions from you, the fans, via e-mail. The Friday Night Blitz Kickoff Special will preview the season, with storylines to watch, star players to keep an eye on, and teams that will be making noise all the way to the state finals.

We're lucky that Mr. Wertz will be joining us in the studio every Friday night, starting this Friday. Having covered prep football here for years, he brings a unique perspective and outstanding reporting to the show. Our teammates at the Observer and Charlotte.com will also be kicking off the season with a Preps Plus section Thursday morning that will be something you'll want to keep with you until the season is over.

And keep WCNC.com's Friday Night Blitz section on your favorites list as well, as we'll have the Blitz Ticker with live scores throughout each Friday night, so even if you're at a game you can check scores from your cell too. We'll have the best plays of the week, the top games of the week, message boards for plenty of fan debate and all the highlights ready for you to watch.

Don't forget my blog either, every Tuesday. See you Thursday night!