So I keep hearing Harding is not what they were last year so is the report about them having 7 D1 in Observer recruits bad information or is this team just as loaded as last year with a new coach and QB. I know the big kid that went to SC was the best lineman i have seen since Pollard at PInecrest. The safety looked the part but I didn't see a lot from him but he went to state so I know he had talent.
Harding - Charlotte Football Gurus
- Thread starter JMACDE99
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Ur about right, key loss is greiner because he was the offense n defense coordinator last ur, o lineman gwynn is at so carolina...people think it was all crouch...this kid was benching 400lbs ams steamrolling people last yr. Murphy was their senior led qb st west point now. Not saying that they will b garinger but I could see maybe 2nd/3rd rd team. 6-8 wins...they still have talent there.
They will be very similar to their 2016 season, they were 5-7 including two losses by less than a touchdown. In Charlotte, they will be average, anywhere else in the state they could fight to win the conference.
Really agree with 704Cougars, come playoffs they could easily knock off an overrated triad team first round and make the second round third round may be a stretch because they would be facing a Charlotte team, or really good triad team in the second round
Really agree with 704Cougars, come playoffs they could easily knock off an overrated triad team first round and make the second round third round may be a stretch because they would be facing a Charlotte team, or really good triad team in the second round
Crouch alone would give them 4-5 wins if he runs the ball...plus the Faust kid is nice...they have a few players but they were already short of depth last season, greiner got every drop out of them...6-6, maybe 7-5 because they're n a weak conference.
The question is how much will Crouch run the ball this year. The kid had some surgery on his lower body off-season and is now projected as a LB by all major colleges. I actually saw the Harding JV squad play last year and it was no doubt the most underdeveloped JV team I have ever seen which means not a strong replenishment for the players lost. Gwynn was the absolute key last year to that running game. He flipped to wherever the point of attack would be and teams still could not stop it. New Coach who is not as dynamic a motivator as Greiner along with new QB does not bode well. I predict 5-6 wins.
7D1 kids is inaccurate although as you know if one kid gets a offer from a UNC Charlotte or Western Carolina they are suddenly a D1 recruit. Who knows if that is even true. I can tell you that beyond Crouch they had a rising junior at LB who was legit and a TE/OL kid who was undersized but very good. There is talent on the West side of Charlotte and always has been. The issue is coaching and there is a reason Griener left.
If Crouch is gonna carry it 25-30 times a game then they could get 7 wins on that schedule maybe even 8. If he gets 2nd level there are very few kids that can bring him down one on one. My gut tells me that Crouch plays defense and gets some goal line carries and they win 4-5 games. However- I was dead wrong on them last year so who knows.
If Crouch is gonna carry it 25-30 times a game then they could get 7 wins on that schedule maybe even 8. If he gets 2nd level there are very few kids that can bring him down one on one. My gut tells me that Crouch plays defense and gets some goal line carries and they win 4-5 games. However- I was dead wrong on them last year so who knows.
Harding has 15 starters returning with some of them playing both ways, which didn't seem to matter last year. New Coaching staff, with a underachieving JV program with very few if any players able to make a impact and no depth. They do have a pretty good kicker returning Alejandro Guevara, if they're able to keep games close. It could go either with them i believe. I definitely don't see them repeating. I wouldn't sleep on them though.
News article just came out with Crouch claiming he will be cutting his snaps at running back, and trying to focus on linebacker. Rationale from any Harding fans on that change? If anything play both sides to help your team, but as a coach I wouldn’t let my star offensive player change primarily to defense? Especially in the 4A/4AA division with traditionally a lot of players most schools try to avoid even letting their star players play both sides of the ball.
Hes the no.1 player in the country that jus lead ur school 2 its first championship in decades...if he doesnt wanna play rb anymore then he wont. Certain players have pull...and this is one.
As a Coach you wouldn't let a 5 star, who ran 35 to 40 carries a game, and played defense and won you a State Championship could now not change primarily to defense? His potential at the next level playing on the D-Side is through the roof. That wouldn't be your call. He made an excellent decision moving to the Defensive side.
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My mistake I guess, when I think of him I think of the Running Back Star and taking him away or cutting half his snaps combined with the players who graduated at QB, OL the offense becomes very limited does it not?
As a Coach I appreciate what the kid did for me the previous year, and understand the wear and tear on his body. The kid has been rehabbing since the end of season last year,from being a battering Ram. Finally 100% I also realize he has a very bright future ahead of him. I would just have to figure it out. The limited offense would have to take a back seat to his health.
I've seen this team the last two seasons at Harding when East Forsyth played them and then again at East Forsyth when they played Harding there in 2016. I remember standing with a group of friends who were talking with the East Forsyth Defensive Coordinator or DB Coach one leading up to the Harding game in 2016. I mostly listened then I spoke up and said something along the lines "Bet your happy getting Harding in the 1st rd Coach?" All I knew about the team was they had 5 or 6 wins. The East Forsyth DC basically gave me "that look" then said HAVE YOU EVER SEEN THIS TEAM? Followed by this maybe the best 15 seed or whatever they were in the history of the playoffs. I also remember him or one of the other coaches saying that they were just as big and athletic as a Mallard Creek or Butler only they have 30 kids and the others have 60. When Harding got off the bus I was in shock at how good they looked. Then once the game started I thought to myself Coach was spot on!
With all that said Harding could very well win 7 games then like you all said go on the road to Forsyth County and crush a team. People can say what they want this team is still very dangerous and like they always say to be the man you got to beat the man. Until they do Harding is still the defending champs!
