Alabama '05-'06

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steven-lamp
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Post by steven-lamp »

When are NAQT states? I really hope LAMP sends a team. Since David's on here now: David, why the heck aren't you guys registered?!
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Post by quizbowllee »

steven-lamp wrote:When are NAQT states? I really hope LAMP sends a team. Since David's on here now: David, why the heck aren't you guys registered?!
NAQT State is this Saturday.


I'm wondering about why some of the best teams aren't going - paticularly ASFA, CCA (last year's champs), Cullman, LAMP, Grissom, Hoover, etc, etc.

In one sense I'm relieved. I think we have a legitimate shot at winning no matter who is there, but with the current field our chances are much better. However, having the aforementioned teams there would add an extra bit of legitimacy to the "State Championship" moniker.

Personally, I put more stock in the NAQT title than the ASCA title, simply because I think NAQT tests knowledge more than ASCA. It is also linked to a legitimate National Championship tournament. However, apparently, some teams still don't see that NAQT is superior. I know this could look like sour grapes coming from me, but look back over my posts for the last 2 years, and you'll see that this opinion of mine hasn't changed in lieu of this year's ASCA results. I'd take the NAQT title over the ASCA title any day. Ideally, I'd like to see some team be the first to win both in the same year, thus becoming the "undisputed" state champion. That won't happen this year, though, if ASFA is not attending.

I figure that a lot of these teams simply have conflicts. Or perhaps they just didn't know about it. The folks at Marion really have not done the best job in the world in publicizing and keeping folks informed. I had to send about half-a-dozen e-mails just to get a response about where to go and when to be there.... I've also been trying to get an updated field for over a week, but my e-mails are not returned. But, anyone who took a notion could've gone to naqt.com as early as September and seen when and where the tournament was.

I've put in a bid to host NAQT State next year. I hope we get it. I'll make sure that it is REALLY well-publicized and will keep constant communication with all registered and/or interested teams.
Lee Henry
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Post by Golden Tiger 86 »

My prediction for Pickens County, Ashford, Shelby County, and more than likely my alma mater? Pain.
Slade Gilmer, 2004 Graduate of THE Russellville High School, 2009 Graduate of THE University of North Alabama
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Post by quizbowllee »

Golden Tiger 86 wrote:My prediction for Pickens County, Ashford, Shelby County, and more than likely my alma mater? Pain.
This made me laugh...

But, seriously, this is the kind of team that we tend to lose to this year. It would be absolutely par for us if we were undefeated going into the last round, had to play a team with no wins, and lost by 10 - thus losing the championship. That's the kind of thing that has happened to us exceedingly this year. I think it's karma for beating you in a similar manner a couple of years ago, Slade....

But, if we have to pay our karma toll, I guess I'd rather do it now than next year.
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Post by Golden Tiger 86 »

Ahh, well...that was a couple of years back, and we had fallen apart by the time we faced you...we were destroyed by Bob Jones and had barely beaten CCA and were probably (OK, definitely) overconfident going into that match. It still hurts to some extent, although losing ASCA a few weeks later to finish my career with no state title probably hurt a little more.

As for my alma mater. I have to say, the RHS team I saw looked very raw when I saw them (admittedly, only one time, and in a beatdown from Muscle Shoals). They definitely have the potential to be very, very good down the road, and I hope this tournament is a positive learning experience for them.

As for the other 3...well...I still predict pain.
Slade Gilmer, 2004 Graduate of THE Russellville High School, 2009 Graduate of THE University of North Alabama
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Post by Somerled »

quizbowllee wrote:I'm wondering about why some of the best teams aren't going - paticularly ASFA, CCA (last year's champs), Cullman, LAMP, Grissom, Hoover, etc, etc.
I can't speak for everybody, but there are four main reasons why we aren't going.

1. It is on Easter weekend which is a bad time for scheduling.

2. Marion is a hard place to get to from Huntsville and there aren't that many places to stay (which you may have some experience with, Lee) especially Easter weekend.

3. We are already qualifed for NAQT nationals.

4. In the past, it seemed more like an invitational rather than a State competition. If I remember correctly, last year there were 8 teams representing 7 schools. And they were trying hard to get more schools. I think that if they set up districts and regions, like ASCA does, where you would qualify to make it to State, more teams would be interested in attending. I think that if it were harder to make it to NAQT State winning State would mean more. As it is, I think it appears, somewhat, as just another invitational.

I hope it goes well Saturday. It looks like a good group of teams will be there competing. Good luck to all.

Regarding Russelville, I think that they will be very good in a couple of years. We played them at ASCA State, and it appeared that they knew a lot but were just a little slower on the buzzer. Attending competitons will fix that.
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Post by DZ_LAMP »

Dude i wish that we could go for certain but both our coaches and half the team cant go because of easter and other stuff. I tried to convince Samford to let one of our parents to drive Parker, Katrina, and me up there but she still has to get it approved and stuff.....so i dont know if we are going yet.
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Post by Matthew D »

I will have to admit with it being Easter weekend things would be harder. I would have been taking my new bunch there except for the fact that we helped with a tournament that that particular set of questions were used and I didn't catch it until after I had committed them to help. (have to do the PR work on occasion). On a side rant, I had very little interest in the Middle School NAQT State. While we don't have districts set up like ASCA I take the list of people that qualified from district for ASCA state and mailed out invitations, along with having it posted on the ASCA website. I only got bites from
Brindlee Mt
Us (Scottsboro)
Pizitz
Trinity Presbyterian School
Whitesburg Middle
Oxford
Now while I am not complaining that these schools took the chance and tried something new. I wished that we had more schools attending. I plan to host a NAQT middle school tournament every year if I am allowed to, just allow Alabama middle schoolers a chance to play with pyramidal style questions that test knowledge more than a fast buzzer.
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Post by quizbowllee »

Somerled wrote:In the past, it seemed more like an invitational rather than a State competition. If I remember correctly, last year there were 8 teams representing 7 schools. And they were trying hard to get more schools. I think that if they set up districts and regions, like ASCA does, where you would qualify to make it to State, more teams would be interested in attending. I think that if it were harder to make it to NAQT State winning State would mean more. As it is, I think it appears, somewhat, as just another invitational.
See, that's one of the main reasons why I like it more. You don't have to jump through some ridiculous hoops to go. ASCA dividing things into Districts and Regionals prior to state waters down the field. Most of the good teams in Alabama are in the Northern Region and the Birmingham Region. By only allowing x number of teams from those regions, plus x number from some REALLY weak regions, ASCA dilutes the overall field at state. You can't tell me you didn't play at least a few pitiful teams at ASCA state. And, according to ASCA, those teams "earned" the right to be there. How? By being the best team in a region with only bad teams. They weren't the best, they were the "least bad." Obviously, this affected us this year. However, it also affected CCA, Bob Jones, and ASFA last year - teams that were all in the top 3 this year. See my point?

At least at NAQT, anyone can go. If a team thinks that they have a shot, they can prove it by throwing their hats in the ring and putting their money where their mouths are. I like that. So what if a few weak teams go? They'll get trounced and all will work out. At least NAQT doesn't make those weak teams fill like they've accomplished something by placing 1st (or even 2nd) in a tournament where the toughest competition was Podunk High. Excuse my cynicism, but that really, really irks me....

When and if Brindlee Mountain gets to host NAQT State, we'll open up both the high school and middle school buildings and could accomodate over 100 teams if they choose. We could take every single school that is in ASCA. Bring them on.
Lee Henry
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Post by Somerled »

I think, though, that until it becomes harder to get to NAQT State, or it becomes much larger than it is, teams won't consider it more prestigious than other tournaments.

Therefore, I hope that you get to host it next year and get the word out to everybody that they need to be there. Maybe, if enough teams come, it will encourage other teams to come the next year. And then it will grow to where winning NAQT State will mean more than winning a regular invitational. Good luck on your bid to host NAQT State.
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Post by quizbowllee »

Hey, Matthew,

It occurred to me that we will probably never play you guys again... It's sorta sad in a way (and sort of a relief). There is the off chance that will come head-to-head at NAQT in Chicago, but the odds are really against it (roughly 100 teams there). Will you be going to PACE?

Anyway, the CCA/Brindlee Mountain rivalry has been fun and frustrating (for us, anyway). Looking back, I think that it came down to:

CCA - 7 wins (2 by 10 points or less - 5 complete massacres)
BMHS - 2 wins

It seems like you beat us more than that.. I'll have to look back through my notes tomorrow at school.
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Post by Golden Tiger 86 »

Somerled wrote:Regarding Russelville, I think that they will be very good in a couple of years. We played them at ASCA State, and it appeared that they knew a lot but were just a little slower on the buzzer. Attending competitons will fix that.
Yeah...I think Russellville has 5 or 6 freshmen on the team, so they're just getting the old "baptism by fire" treatment. My brother still talks to most of the team members, and one of them said y'all laid a whoopin' on them. I think that may be the best thing that can happen to them...let them see how good the big dogs are and let them work to get to that level.
Slade Gilmer, 2004 Graduate of THE Russellville High School, 2009 Graduate of THE University of North Alabama
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Post by DVader »

We won't be attending NAQT State because of the scheduling problems involved with Easter and the fact that we already qualified for NAQT Nationals. As for ASCA vs. NAQT State, I think its the "ridiculous hoops" that give ASCA its greater prestige. Laypeople (ie. the ones that can help fund your trip to nationals) will generally be more impressed if you tell them that you won a state tournament against over 100 teams from across the state in three rigorous levels of competition over the span of three months with a major cash prize than if you tell them you won a state tournament against 7 other teams or qualified for a national tournament by being in the top four at some invitational tournament. This difference can be summed up by my school's reaction to our recent victories last week: when we got second at Snead and qualified for NAQT, we got a mention in the announcements, but after we won ASCA State, the school held a surprise assembly/pep rally for the entire school to announce our victory. ASCA, even though its questions and format are inferior to NAQT and a good number of its procedures are flawed, has more gravitas with its different levels and cash prizes and state organization. NAQT State's lack of a statewide governing body's endorsement and being run by only one school also pushes it toward invitational status in the gravitas department. If NAQT adopted those three positive aspects of ASCA, it would be able to seriously challenge ASCA for the true state tournament rights. The tournament also needs to be held in a centralized and neutral location (like at a Bham college, hotel, or convention center similar to the state championships for practically every other major sport and competition in the state), which is why I don't think that Brindlee Mountain would be the best place for it, even though I'm sure Lee would run it very well. At the moment though, ASCA is a bigger deal than NAQT, but both have a lot of room for improvement.
David John Gagne,
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Post by Captain Cullman »

Cullman is not attending NAQT state because our team lacks motivation. I am willing to go to any quiz bowl tournament, no matter what the format, but the rest of my team does not like NAQT questions. If they would work harder to learn the format, I think they would enjoy playing it. What disappoints me most is that I ended my high school quiz bowl career on a heartbreaking 5 point loss.
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Post by quizbowllee »

In reply to David:

I guess we will just agree to disagree. I understand completely where you are coming from. However, I think that my opinions stem mainly from my experiences playing in college. ASCA was all that I knew before starting my college career. I was completely put off by the neg 5s and the pyramidal questions. At first, I couldn't wrap my mind around why a question would go on for 5 sentences only to end with "name this first President of the United States." I just didn't realize then that depth of knowledge was so important. Also, in college, with the (admittedly ironic) exception of NAQT, there is no requirement for attending Nationals. ACF is regarded among most players as the most prestigious and important National Championship. However, any team that is willing to go compete can do so.

Anyway, I grew to be a MUCH, MUCH better player in college than in high school. That's why when we talk about great high school players from Alabama's past on this board, I don't generally come up. I learned more in half a semester playing in college than in four years in high school....

In regards to ASCA vs. NAQT, I think it's just an ideology. As much as I prefer NAQT to ASCA, the kids on my team are even worse. They wouldn't even be in ASCA if I didn't make them. They hate it. Also, when we met this summer and discussed our goals for the coming year in Alabama, they were (in order of importance):

1 - Win NAQT State
2 - Win ASCA State
3 - Win ASCA Small Schools Championship

Because of these priorites, we spend 95% of practice time on NAQT packets (or packets from UTC, or other 20TU/20B format pyramidal questions). The week of an ASCA event, we might use ASCA questions from years past in practice for a day or two. This is usually met with groans from the team... And sarcastic biting comments about why almost every question is one or more of the following: (a) a hose (b) too short (c) wrong (d) just stupid.

Our administration is also aware of our goals. I'm quite sure that if we win Saturday, then the response at Brindlee Mountain will be similar to the response at ASFA when you won ASCA State. That's just where our priorities are.

At any rate, I whole-heartedly agree that NAQT State would look better if there were more teams there, especially more ASFA and CCA - caliber teams. However, I disagree that having districts, regionals, and state competitions make it more legitimate. Every team in the state had the opportunity to register for NAQT State, and I think that a lot of them chose not to, like Cullman, because (other than Daniel) they "don't like it." It seems that those who don't like it think that it is too hard. That speaks volumes.

As for Brindlee Mountain possibly hosting next year, I both agree and disagree with you. It would be better if it could be held at a neutral, preferably central location. However, I've noticed when looking at the results from various states on this board that most NAQT State Tournaments are hosted at high schools. Also, there probably isn't anyone in Alabama more familiar with NAQT and more of an NAQT advocate than I am - so it seems logical that we host it. There will always be those who question my integrity. That used to really upset me, but my skin has gotten thicker. I'm pretty sure that our record next year will speak for itself. My whole A team will be returning, whereas almost all the teams who have beaten us this year are losing at least their best players. BMHS might be given the opportunity to host, but I'll make sure that the tournament - as much as possible - is run by a neutral party. I'll publicize, get moderators, logisitics, etc, etc, but I will not rule on protests involving my team, etc.

Anyway, I'm glad we're discussing this. I think that it is important. I appreciate everyone's feedback so far, and I'm glad to see everyone giving their opinions.
Lee Henry
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West Point High School
President-Elect/Past President- Alabama Scholastic Competition Association (ASCA)
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Post by quizbowllee »

Got the update on the field for NAQT State:

Ashford
Bob Jones
Brindlee Mountain A
Brindlee Mountain B
Brindlee Mountain MS
Indian Springs
LAMP
Mountain Brook
Oak Mountain
Pickens County
Russellville
Shelby County

LAMP brings a bit more to the table. This is gonna be a good tournament, I think.
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Post by Somerled »

If more schools hosted NAQT style invitationals rather than ASCA style invitationals, there would be more interest in the NAQT State. As it is, a lot of schools write their own questions for their tournament, and ASCA questions are a lot easier to write than NAQT questions. And you don't have to pay for questions you write. I personally like NAQT better, but I think that playing both NAQT and ASCA makes you a better player. I think the speed that is emphasized in ASCA will help a team in NAQT. Just a thought.

Looks like a good field for NAQT State.
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Post by Somerled »

Lee,

That is sad that we will probably not play each other again. But there is hope that someone will get a master's degree at UAH. :grin:

Two comments about our record with you. First, I would say that the two wins you had would fall in the catagory of "complete massacres." Second, whenever we played you, it was by no means a foregone conclusion who would win. I always went in not knowing who would win. Every game we played with you was a good one.

Right now, we are not planning on attending PACE.
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Post by quizbowllee »

Somerled wrote:Lee,

That is sad that we will probably not play each other again. But there is hope that someone will get a master's degree at UAH. :grin:

Two comments about our record with you. First, I would say that the two wins you had would fall in the catagory of "complete massacres." Second, whenever we played you, it was by no means a foregone conclusion who would win. I always went in not knowing who would win. Every game we played with you was a good one.

Right now, we are not planning on attending PACE.
Sorry, Matt, but I'm pretty sure my playing days are over. Altough, it would be very cool to play on a team with you and Carter...

I'm probably gonna get my masters in ed. from the U. of Alabama.

Good luck at UAH, though. You really should get a team started there.
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Post by Somerled »

I have been thinking about starting a team at UAH. Possibly, my sophomore year. Where all do you play on a college team?
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Post by quizbowllee »

Somerled wrote:I have been thinking about starting a team at UAH. Possibly, my sophomore year. Where all do you play on a college team?
That's really up to you. Unfortunately, there are not really any college tournaments in Alabama (except for 2-year community colleges). UTC hosts literally about 6-7 tournaments a year, though. Also, Georgia Tech, Georgia, and U of Tenn. are all within driving distance of Huntsville.

Depending on how you approach the college game, it can be more fun a rewarding than high school. You guys will be eligible to compete in "Div. II" for the first two years that you play. You'll kick butt in Div. II. Once you have to move up, though, you'll have to step it up to a whole new level. You'll see :wink:

Anyway, I hope you get something started at UAH. Let me know if you need any advice or help, as I've got some experience in starting a college team from scratch.
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Post by AndyShootsAndyScores »

Results from Alabama NAQT State Championship are as follows:

1st place - Brindlee Mountain
2nd place - Indian Springs
3rd place - Bob Jones

Individual awards:

MVP - Andy of Brindlee Mountain - 535 pts.
2nd place - Can't remember her name but she was the captain for ISS - around 450 pts.?
3rd place - John of Bob Jones - around 350 pts.?
4th place - Matthew of Mountain Brook - not sure at all pts.

After the round robin phase of the tournament, BMHS, ISS, and Bob Jones all had an 8-1 record, with BMHS beating Bob Jones, Bob Jones beating ISS, and ISS beating BMHS.

Bob Jones and Springs played an 8 question shootout with bonuses. ISS won on a tie-breaker after tying at 130 points each.

We also played ISS on another 8 question shootout and won 210-0 to win the State title.

Overall, the tournament was well run. There weren't any huge delays and the readers were fairly experienced. The question quality was good as always and an improvement from last year's set.
Andy Knowles
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Post by STPickrell »

quizbowllee wrote:Anyway, I hope you get something started at UAH. Let me know if you need any advice or help, as I've got some experience in starting a college team from scratch.
I think we should make such a thread a sticky somewhere. There's many people on this forum who have experience in founding teams, with varying levels of support from fellow students, the administration, etc., as well as varying levels of success behind the buzzers.
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Post by Matthew D »

Congrat Andy, Mark, Amanda, and Decker... and last but not least Lee. Awesome job..
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Post by DVader »

Congrats to all y'all at Brindlee Mountain for being NAQT State Champions. I can't say that I'm surprised by the results; it looks like my law of revenge applied itself again (it states that a team will beat a certain team in the playoffs if they lost to them in the preliminaries). Well, now that all the major tournaments have passed, it is time to ask ourselves the two most important questions of this time: Who were the best teams this year and who will be good next year?

The 5 Best Teams This Year (IMHO)
5. Indian Springs: They showed how traditionally strong teams stay strong. After graduating their star players Evan and James, their group of sophomores really stepped it up and proved to be a formidable opponent.

4. Brindlee Mountain: The original sophomore team showed their might by winning NAQT State and placing highly at a lot of other tournaments, but their tendency to choke when the whole tournament was on the line held them back too often.

3. Covenant Christian: You may be wondering why they only made third. They were definitely the team to beat this year and widely favored to win state and did win a good number of tournaments, but faced three big upset losses in the playoffs, two to the next team on the list.

2. Bob Jones: The giantkillers: At ASCA State, they cooled Grissoms annual hot streak before it could take off, beat CCA, and gave us a run for our money in the finals. At other tournaments this year they had quite a few impressive performances and even beat us a couple of times. They did lose to Indian Springs at NAQT State but only by the barest of margins. With a little more luck they probably could have gone all the way at both states.

1. ASFA: This ranking may seem a little conceited but hear me out. We were the ASCA State champions and placed either first or second at every tournament we played in save one (LAMP), something no other team on the list can claim. We had a number of, well, odd losses, but we could really step it up when the tournament was on the line. Plus, we've either beaten or finished higher than every other team on this list at one tournament or another.

Honorable Mentions:
Hoover
Cullman
Grissom
LAMP
Mountain Brook

Teams to look out for next year:
Brindlee and ISS: The young teams are entering their prime now. Watch out.
ASFA: We're graduating 6 out of 8 on our varsity team (including me), but we have 4 strong players (2 current starters) ready to lead us on.
Bob Jones: Losing Santi, but they still have at least John I, who scored third highest at NAQT State.
Grissom and LAMP: They always find people to keep up their reps.

Questionable:
CCA: Graduating Carter and Matt, so will they continue on?

On a side note, Matt from CCA, can you get your coach to email the pictures y'all took of us at ASCA State to
[email protected]?
David John Gagne,
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Post by AndyShootsAndyScores »

My rankings for this year:

1) CCA
2) ASFA
3) Brindlee Mountain
4) Bob Jones
5) Indian Springs

Next year:

1) Brindlee Mountain
2) Grissom
3) Indian Springs
4) Bob Jones
5) LAMP

CCA may field a team next year, but I don't think it'll be the same strength as Carter and Matt. One of the twins on their team knows quite a bit of literature.

Next year's predictions could, however, take a complete U-turn. You never know when a team will suddenly come out of nowhere with a quiz bowl powerhouse. You can also not really predict accurately unless you've seen every school's teams.
Last edited by AndyShootsAndyScores on Sun Apr 16, 2006 10:52 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by quizbowllee »

I'll try to be as objective as possible in discussing the rankings you gave. For the most part, they're pretty good. I would, though, place us ahead of Bob Jones simply because we beat them by such huge margins whenever we play them. We beat them today at NAQT State 420-180. We beat them at the Athens State tournament by about 300. We also beat them at Hoover and UTC by somewhere around 200-300 points. The only time they beat us was at Austin (worst questions by far of the year) was by 5 or 10 points....

I joked with Santi today that they did the hard part for ASFA at ASCA State by beating Grissom and CCA... But, honestly, I think Bob Jones had incredible luck this year. Luck plays a big role, but I don't think that they are by any means the #2 best team in the state.

As for us, you're right, we choked a lot this year. But, on that last 8-question "mini-match" today against Springs, they finally played like the champions I've always known that they were. I dare say that they would've beaten ANYONE on those 8 questions - I KNOW they would've beaten me had I been playing. I almost wish we'd played that whole match, just to see how much they would've scored. I've never heard of anyone shutting out a team in a State Championship Match....

I hope this is a sign of things to come. They looked like they grew up today and played as a team.

I'll reserve my final rankings until I see how we all do at Nationals. We're going to both NAQT and PACE. I know CCA is going to NAQT. I imagine ASFA is going to NAQT and hopefully PACE, too. So, we'll have the opportunity to factor those performances in.
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Post by ASimPerson »

Multiple thoughts:

1) UAH guy: Good luck getting a team started at UAH. If UAH does get the whole "turning into a non-commuter college" thing down, then there'll be more people around campus who will be interested in a team.

As Lee pointed out, there are plenty of college tournaments around Huntsville, just not in Alabama. GT and Tennessee are around 4 hours away. UTC is about a 2 hour drive, as is Nashville if Vandy decides to run more college tournaments.

2) Bob Jones: Good job, guys.
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Post by Somerled »

Congratulations to Brindlee Mountain for winning NAQT State. And to Indian Springs and Bob Jones for finishing second and third. Sounded like it was a good tournament. Maybe next year, more teams will attend NAQT State.

Also, to all those who are wondering, CCA will have a team next year.
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Post by mf_2 »

Congrats for winning NAQT state, Lee!

I'm already looking forward to see the BMHS team play at the NAQT nationals. They must be really good right now...
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Post by quizbowllee »

Next year....

Well, I'm gonna go out on a hopeful and conceited limb and guess that Brindlee Mountain will be the best team in Alabama next year. We are, of course, returning all four of our starters: Andy Knowles, Amanda Hardin, Justin Decker, and Mark Morris. We're also moving a good group up from the middle school, including Kyle Clark, who was the #5 scorer at NAQT State, depsite being an 8th grader.

I think Indian Springs will be our closest adversary. I didn't realize that they will all be back, too... Are they juniors this year?

I think that some of the powerhouses of the last two years are going to fall hard. Cullman loses all four starters, and it seems that their under-classmen who will be moving up haven't really performed well when I've seen them. CCA loses Carter and Matthew and honestly I can only think of twice that I've ever seen anyone other than them answer a tossup for CCA. I don't know much about ASFA's team next year. Other than Peilong and David, I haven't seen much contribution from the others, but we'll see.

Some teams, like LAMP and Grissom always reload. I don't know who those teams are losing... Is Neel a senior? What about David from LAMP?

Bob Jones will still be decent. I've noticed that John always seems to get awards, but I never see him answer a lot. It seems to me that Andrew is always answering the tossups...

So, I'll make this bold prediction for next year:

1) Brindlee Mountain
2) Indian Springs
3) Bob Jones
4) LAMP

On the bubble: Grissom, ASFA, and Hoover
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Post by Captain Cullman »

Cullman loses all four starters, and it seems that their under-classmen who will be moving up haven't really performed well when I've seen them.

Actually, only three of our starters were seniors, but you are probably right anyway. In fact, I hope Cullman has a team next year because nobody besides the six who were on the team seemed interested. If Cullman has a team, they might be good if they work hard to learn what the seniors knew. Our freshmen member, Viet, could be really good if he successfully transitions from middle school knowledge to high school knowledge by next year.
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Post by Somerled »

AndyBrindlee Mountain wrote:One of the twins on their team knows quite a bit of literature.
They are not twins. They both know literature, though the older sister knows more than the younger. Unfortunately, she will also be graduating this year.

My top three picks for next year, in no particular order, are:

Brindlee Mountain
Indian Springs
Grissom
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Post by Neel6989 »

Jon and I are graduating. I'd be careful to count us out though, our highest scorer this year was Charlie (a sophomore). He outscored me at ASCA district, regional, and state.
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Post by AndyShootsAndyScores »

I don't remember Charlie at all. We only played you one this year and that could be why I don't really remember him. If he did outscore you he's probably going to be a good player next year then.
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Post by quizbowllee »

Neel6989 wrote:Jon and I are graduating. I'd be careful to count us out though, our highest scorer this year was Charlie (a sophomore). He outscored me at ASCA district, regional, and state.
I don't remember Charlie. But, I don't think that anyone on this board is foolish enough to ever count Grissom out. We'd still like to see Grissom attend more tournaments. I'd be very interested to see how Grissom would perform on NAQT questions.



On another note:

David, since you'll be representing Alabama in the Panasonic Tournament, will you still be attending one of the other National Tournaments?
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Post by Neel6989 »

Oh yeah, I just realized that I haven't actually congratulated ASFA yet. Well, congratulations! Have fun at Disney World. The actual Panasonic competition is absolutely awful, but the accomodations and the parks are great; I'm sure you guys will have a great time.
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Post by DVader »

We'll just be attending Panasonic and not the others mainly because most of the team will be out of the country when the other tournaments take place, and the school should cover our expenses for it. I watched the DVD of the championship match they sent us, and the questions were as bad as I imagined, but the other amenities the tournament offers should make up for that. Neel, what's the farthest Grissom ever made it there?
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Post by Neel6989 »

Daniel Thomas and Blake Stacy got top 6, I dont know the exactly place. Robbie's team got between 6th and 13th. I believe those are the farthest.

A lot of the teams there are all state teams so it's sort of hard for a school team such as ourselves to do very well.
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Post by quizbowllee »

DVader wrote:We'll just be attending Panasonic and not the others mainly because most of the team will be out of the country when the other tournaments take place, and the school should cover our expenses for it. I watched the DVD of the championship match they sent us, and the questions were as bad as I imagined, but the other amenities the tournament offers should make up for that. Neel, what's the farthest Grissom ever made it there?
I hate that you're not going to either NAQT or PACE. I was looking forward to our usual friendly banter. Good luck, though, at PANASONIC. And please give us a full account of the experience when you get back. I've asked people what it is like and they usually just get a weird look on their face and give a vague answer like "it's different." So, a better account would be nice.

So, is ANYONE other than us and CCA going to PACE and/or NAQT?

BTW - Whitesburg Middle School won the inaugual NAQT State Middle School Championship yesterday. Brindlee Mountain Middle took 2nd. Whitesburg was awesome on the NAQT questions, scoring over 300 ppg, which is better than most high school teams. They also seemed to really like the format and were talking about how it was so much more academic than ASCA. Maybe these kids will go to Grissom and start playing in more non-ASCA tournaments. Either way, Grissom is gonna be getting some great freshmen soon.
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Post by Matthew D »

I know several of the parents were talking that they would like it if Grissom would go to more tournaments like the one that we had on Saturday.
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Post by AndyShootsAndyScores »

On a different note, who do you all think is the best player ever from the state of Alabama? I've heard talk of Shiva from Grissom and Slade from Russellville, but only played Slade once and that was back in 8th grade. Besides them, I haven't heard much talk of anyone absolutely great at this game.
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Post by Golden Tiger 86 »

AndyBrindlee Mountain wrote:On a different note, who do you all think is the best player ever from the state of Alabama? I've heard talk of Shiva from Grissom and Slade from Russellville, but only played Slade once and that was back in 8th grade. Besides them, I haven't heard much talk of anyone absolutely great at this game.
Well, you are 1-0 lifetime against me, and Shiva is (at least) 3-1 all-time against me, so I'd say Shiva > me.
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Post by Matt Weiner »

AndyBrindlee Mountain wrote:On a different note, who do you all think is the best player ever from the state of Alabama? I've heard talk of Shiva from Grissom and Slade from Russellville, but only played Slade once and that was back in 8th grade. Besides them, I haven't heard much talk of anyone absolutely great at this game.
David from Indian Springs was a PACE NSC all-star in 2002.
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Post by Golden Tiger 86 »

Matt Weiner wrote:
AndyBrindlee Mountain wrote:On a different note, who do you all think is the best player ever from the state of Alabama? I've heard talk of Shiva from Grissom and Slade from Russellville, but only played Slade once and that was back in 8th grade. Besides them, I haven't heard much talk of anyone absolutely great at this game.
David from Indian Springs was a PACE NSC all-star in 2002.
Yeah...David Hill and George Nelson were great when I first started playing at the high school level.
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Post by steven-lamp »

I'll take David, Slade, and George for the tie. I played against Shiva, and he was damn good, but I think the other three were better because they proved themselves repeatedly at tournaments throughout the southeast.
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Post by quizbowllee »

I hate to bust anyone's bubble, but I really think that the best player in high school history in the state of Alabama was Ed Dean who played for Altamont from 1996-1999. That dude was a beast. I've yet to see anyone that good.

Of course, the problem here is that none of you are old enough to remember him.
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Post by Golden Tiger 86 »

quizbowllee wrote:I hate to bust anyone's bubble, but I really think that the best player in high school history in the state of Alabama was Ed Dean who played for Altamont from 1996-1999. That dude was a beast. I've yet to see anyone that good.

Of course, the problem here is that none of you are old enough to remember him.
I remember hearing stories about Ed Dean from Chris and Adam Pace...but, I came along a couple of years too late.
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Post by Neel6989 »

Slade, you are far too modest. I've only been around for three years but you're hands down the best Alabama player I've seen.
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Post by Golden Tiger 86 »

Neel6989 wrote:Slade, you are far too modest. I've only been around for three years but you're hands down the best Alabama player I've seen.
I try...but seriously, David and George were every bit as good, and were almost certainly better, than I ever was. Ed Dean and Charles Johnson (Auburn) were really, really good, too, if Adam and Chris Pace (two guys that have slipped through the cracks, to be honest) are to be believed
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