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Post by apollo on Jun 16, 2012 6:09:01 GMT -6
Just a thought - does Hammond get kids from all over Hammond or is that just Morton? Seems like a lot of Gavit JH kids somehow end up in Hessville. I think that it is open across Hammond to attend HS, where ever you choose. If Morton continues to get the best athletes, the Hammond Vipers feeder plays on that turf field, and Morton is the only one with that turf field, it makes it harder on the other 3 schools, just a thought.
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Post by indianbacker on Jun 16, 2012 11:52:54 GMT -6
What about Portage? We have a new coach that will be better than the last two combined. He was a great caoch at Hobart until the morons there ran him out, and was great at Andrean too. Coach Mac is back at the place where it all started for him. The "other" Indians will be hard to beat, but I know that OUR Indians are going to compete in the DAC.
I don't know anything about these Hammond teams you are talking about. I don't know why anyone cares. Everybody knows that the DAC has the best football in Porter and Lake county.
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Post by richsapper on Jun 16, 2012 12:24:06 GMT -6
indianbacker, you are right Portage may very well be improved. The Duneland is tough, but it really starts with Lake Central. It doesn't have to end there either. Crown Point, Valpo, and Merrillville have a lot back too. Chesterton is always solid, and now Michigan City has a head coach and two former head coaches on staff. If they could get numbers out, they could be scary. Don't forget LaPorte is is pretty solid and has a tendency to fly a bit under the radar. The point is, that there are a lot of great teams. Portage could be tough, but until proven otherwise, Lake Central is the team to beat.
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Post by indianbacker on Jun 16, 2012 12:30:29 GMT -6
richsapper: I see what you mean, but Portage is still better than they are given credit for. The DAC is a great conference. It is the best conference in the state. Portage can win it. I see those boys working hard. I talk to their dads. They are excited and ready to whip on anyone who gets in their way.
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Post by julio on Jun 17, 2012 21:50:40 GMT -6
I know that Hammond has kids from all over the city just like Morton. They will see what is happening there and go to Hammond instead. It is already happening.
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Post by apollo on Jun 18, 2012 12:10:35 GMT -6
Portage has a very small Senior Group and there numbers and injuries last year at QB and on the line hurt them= see the Valpo and CP Game. They have talented kids- some are young, but the numbers game can be an issue in the pounding that you take in the DAC with the 12th graders, this goes back to the Peterson era with this class having low numbers, all the way thru after talking to a few former JH and HS Coaches. Hammond- I am glad that Gavit is no longer the Kansas City Athletics for the Yankees- IE Morton- but that isn't what I've heard from several HS Coaches.
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Post by indianbacker on Jun 18, 2012 13:55:07 GMT -6
apollo: seniors? That makes no difference. The young kids ate where its at. Also I heard Coach Mac got some players to play who wouldn't play for the guy who left. Portage is better than you think.
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Post by apollo on Jun 18, 2012 14:19:03 GMT -6
Yes, senior experience is a factor, call it what you like, CP's Peterson and Valpo's Kittridge ran thru Portage like they weren't there and there defenses stopped Portage's offense cold. Yes they have a talented underclassmen group, but there line depth was a serious problem last year. And you can't win in the offensive or defensive line in the Duneland with all young kids, believe it or not or running the wildcat and throwing up hail mary fly and crossing patterns and hoping track kids catch them. They had a couple of good games last year like Chesterton and Merrillville granted, but the quality linebacker play was stymied by the at the point of attack blocking and coleman running for his life on offense. I saw alot of Portage's season last year and they lacked depth and don't have alot of experience back but I agree they have a talented young group and will be stronger in 2013 with there new coach.
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Post by Admin75 on Jun 18, 2012 21:59:13 GMT -6
To steal and slightly twist a phrase "Experience isn't everything, but it helps" Apollo has a solid point: Portage may be improved, but they seem to have a long way to go. Even with a talented young group and a new coach, Portage has a long way to go. They should be competitive, and you may be right, they could be better than people are giving them credit for, but I am also not sure if they are quite the world beaters you are making them out to be either. Honestly, it is probably somewhere in the middle.
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Post by richsapper on Jun 19, 2012 18:48:10 GMT -6
Well, at very least you have to love the loyalty that both julio and indianbacker have for their teams. That is what makes sports so great...some of the passion that it invokes!
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Post by indianbacker on Jun 19, 2012 19:21:45 GMT -6
richsapper: I am not just a passionate fan, I tell you I know what I am saying Portage is much better. The DAC is a very hard league to play in. Lake Central is a good team, but it was just for one season. Merrillville, Crown Point, everybody but Michigan City and LaPorte are good. Apollo said something about Seniors and then talked about the kids from Crown Point and Valpo, but weren't they sophomores or juniors last year?
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Post by apollo on Jun 20, 2012 5:47:26 GMT -6
Yes they were underclassmen running behind an experienced line.
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Post by indianbacker on Jun 20, 2012 17:24:38 GMT -6
Apollo: that makes little difference . Portage is gaining experience now. Coach Mac will have them ready.
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Post by richsapper on Jun 20, 2012 22:18:24 GMT -6
wow, a lot of love for Portage and Hammond High on here. Both programs seem to be headed in the right direction, but they have some time to go. Indian Backer, you are passionate about your team, and I am sure that you probably do know some things that we don't I am not sure of what your connection to the program is, but I agree that Portage may be improved. That said, on other thing you said struck me, and that is the strength of the Duneland. You are right, it is tough. Lake Central, Crown Point, and Merrillville should be as good or better than last year. Valpo, Chesterton, LaPorte, Michigan City could all be improved too. It's hard to say how it will all pan out. I don't think very many people thought Lake Central would be THAT good last year. Who knows, maybe Portage will be a dark horse, but right now they are a little bit away from that.
Julio, Hammond? Again, love your passion, and I like what Coach Schreiber is doing there, but until proven otherwise no one in Hammond is better than Morton. The best athletes tend to go there and the feed programs seems to tend to go that way. Hammond had a nice season and should be right behind Morton, but not surpass then.
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Post by indianbacker on Jun 20, 2012 22:51:17 GMT -6
You wait and see. There are also teams without seniors who do good. Didn't Lake Central have mostly juniors?
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