END OF YEAR DVD

I just spoke with Jerry Brooks. He has the year-end DVD complete and ready for sale. They are $10 each and contain the game vs. the Saints; the playoff game vs. the Cowboys; the Clinton Christmas Parade; trophy presentation and .... THE YEAR-END HIGHLIGHT REEL!

If you've never see what Jerry can do with that, then you are missing the boat! Take a look at the attached link from 2007. It's our championship game, but just after the 12 minute mark or so, you can see what he did last year!!

http://video.yahoo.com/watch/1446308/4958306

Jerry can be reached at 601-260-7523 (cell) or 601-925-5939 (home).

PS: Thanks again for the plaques. They're awesome!

CLARIFICATION!

Sorry, guys. I was wrong about the party after the parade! The party will be held at 308 E. College Street (just a couple of doors from The Vineyard). So, after the parade, the parents can simply go to the home and wait for us to get there. Shouldn't take us long to walk from the gym to the house. Thanks!

XMAS PARADE: PS

Please make sure your COLT wears their white jersey with some sort of long-sleeve shirt underneath. No shorts. Jeans or other long pants only. It should be too cold to have just shorts and/or jersey alone!!!!

Christmas Parade: UPDATE!

OK, guys…. Here’s the update on our upcoming Christmas Parade!

First, Tre’ Spencer’s dad has our truck and trailer available. BUT: we need a fully-charged car battery to charge the lights for the float. Can anybody provide this in order to keep me from buying one??? If so, please call me on my cell (601-842-1385)!

The floats will be lined up on FAIRMONT STREET starting at 4:00pm. Fairmont Street is directly behind the new Kroger and directly across from the Baptist Healthplex on Springridge Parkway. We have spot #30. You should find us easily.

Have your COLT at the float around 4pm as we begin the process of moving out around 4:30 or so. Leave them with us and then you can get a spot along the parade route to watch us! It would be awesome if the parents could sit somewhere near each other!

The parade route will be as follows:

Around 4:30-5:00pm: Floats pull out of Fairmont Street and make their way north to COLLEGE STREET.

Left on COLLEGE STREET (in front of First Baptist Church).

Right on MONROE STREET (beside First Baptist Church).

Left on the corner at the Clinton Police Station.

Left on the Brick Streets in downtown Clinton.

Ends at the round MC Gymnasium. We will be in the big parking lots next to the gym.

Afterwards, we will all make our way to Old Vineyard neighborhood (within 5 miles of that spot) to have a gathering at Tre’s home. Benji and I will ensure that we stay with all COLTS until the parents have arrived to “claim them”!

PS: Jerry Brooks, our team video guru, is welcome to ride with us to get any footage that he wants. More soon!

COLT Team Update: Nov. 22, 2008

Guys, we have a team invitation to go to Tre' Spencer's home immediately after the Christmas Parade on December 6th. The place will be in Old Vineyard (very close to where the parade route ends). We will have surprises for the boys.

More details soon about when and where to arrive for the parade. In the interim, please block off the hour after our parade for our end-of-the-year get-together, OK?

More soon! Keep checking between now and the beginning of December for details!

Thanks To Everyone!

Well, I sure wish the season would have ended on a better note. But, I am super-proud of these young men, and even more proud to be called one of their coaches. On behalf of Benji Barham, let me say that we really appreciate you parents allowing us to be part of their lives. They are all special to me.

See you at the Christmas Parade!

Thursday Game Is STILL ON

We ARE playing tonight. Just got back from the fields. You may want to have your Colt wear long sleeves under his jersey. See you at 6:30pm!

Who's Getting Fired Up For Tuesday??

I'm counting down the hours until our game on Tuesday. I sure hope you guys are, too. Be at the field an hour beforehand so that we can go over everything. Don't be late!

Begin thinking about how nice it would be to play on the articificial turf at Clinton High School! All we have to do is take care of business Tuesday; play our positions; fire off of the line; improve our power pushes; and we can play for the trophy.

See you guys Tuesday!

COLT Update: November 4th

First, I have a BIG apology. I was supposed to pick up Chris Brooks for practice and forgot. I owe him and his family a HUGE apology. So, it looks like I will have to run laps for Chris at our next practice! Let's see if Chris and the Brooks family forgives me....

Congrats to the Clinton Cowboys for beating Terry (Orange) 6-0. We will be playing them in our playoff game next Tuesday!

Practice Saturday at 9:30am on our usual field. Practice POWER PUSHES at correct angles, FIRING OFF THE LINE, and our quick offense. These are the things that can make us champs!

We will be participating in the Clinton Christmas Parade on December 6th at 6pm. Tre' Spencer's father has provided the truck and trailer. The remainder of the parents and players are encouraged to make decorations for our "float". Be creative and let's put our heads together over the next week to come up with an idea!

Parker Lee's mother is lining up "cheerleaders" for the Colts and our Tuesday game. Sounds great, huh?

We may have some pictures coming soon for the site. If you have some, email those to me at dirwin@bancinsure.com!

I will be in Utah and California until the day of the game. BUT, nothing will stop me from being there. Practice hard, be prepared, and work hard. THOSE are the things that will make us champs.

Happy Birthday To Ryan & Tre' !

Happy Birthday to Ryan Goff and Tre' Spencer! As coaches, Benji and I know whether we're on the right track by looking at our team AWAY from the football field. When we saw everybody show up for two birthday parties for their teammates in two separate days, then we felt pretty good that we were.

We are certainly blessed. We have kids that really get it. They understand that teamwork matters. They look at their teammates as friends .... and keep in mind that these kids don't regularly hang out together. We're 5th graders and 4th graders. We're white kids and black kids. We're BIG kids (some bigger than others) and smaller kids. But in the end? They will be there to celebrate with each other. And that feels good.

This year is something special that you will remember forever and compare to every other team you're on (baseball, soccer, football, etc.). Happy Birthday Ryan & Tre' ! Coach Benji and I are glad that we got you on our team!

Two More For You!

A Very COLT Christmas Parade

I've arranged for us to be able to have our very own float in the Clinton Christmas Parade. So, I would love to hear your thoughts on whether you would like to participate! I'll cover the cost of the entry and I can find someone to help us with the truck and trailer.

The 2007 Clinton Colts did this, and created a float with a HUGE goal post covered with lights. Every player that participated had a blast. Whaddya think? Want to have a Very Colt Christmas?

PS: Here's a pic from that parade....

Thank You For Coming For The Team Picture!

Thanks to each of you for devoting your Saturday to our football team. I know it's not easy, but it certainly means a lot to Coach Barham and me. Here are a few pics that I took. Hope you enjoy them!

COLT TEAM PICTURE

Just got a call to let us know that our team picture is 1:15 on Saturday (on our normal practice field). We're finalizing practice times now to coincide with the pictures.

PLEASE MAKE PLANS TO ATTEND!!! WE NEED YOU IN THIS PICTURE!

We will dress as if we were playing: Wear your full uniform!

Monday Game Vs Saints

As you know, I will not be there to watch you play! But, Coach Benji and Coach Bobby will be sure that everything flows as it should.

Ty Irwin will be sitting out due to a leg that still hurts. Hopefully, Dylan Moudy and Steven Martin will be back! Regardless, during this game, we really want you to:

Play your position at ALL times!
Practice your Power Pushes on the line. Don't get lazy!
Get to the line after each play as quickly as possible!
Give every play all that you have.

I'll be on the phone with somebody right after the game to find out how you guys did. I'll be thinking of you!

Saturday Practice & More

12:00pm - same field as normal

Also, I've been watching 5 games that have been taped by Jerry Brooks so far:

Colts v Cowboys I
Colts v Cowboys II
Colts v Terry Orange I
Colts v Pigg
Colts v Terry Orange II

He is selling the DVD for $20. It has all five games year-to-date on it. Parents: It is so very well worth the money! You and your child will have this forever! Remind me to talk about ordering on Saturday!

THURSDAY PRACTICE CANCELLED

Traceway is closed. We will practice Saturday. Time to be announced.

PLAYOFF TIMES ANNOUNCED

Nov 4th: GAME 1 - Titans (Orange) vs Cowboys; 6:15pm on Field 6
Nov 4th: GAME 2 - Pigg vs Saints; 7:30pm on Field 6

Nov 11th: Winner of GAME 2 vs Titans (Blue); 6:15pm on Field 6
Nov 11th: Winner of GAME 1 vs Colts; 7:30pm on Field 6

Nov 13th: CHAMPIONSHIP GAME AT CLINTON HS; 6:15pm

If the Colts win on the 11th, then we get to play on the Clinton High School artificial turf. Let's DO IT!

Keep Your Heads Up!

FIRST OF ALL: IT'S GOING TO BE OK!

As I mentioned after the game, this loss was my fault. That's right: Coach Delvan's fault. I did not adequately prepare and change our defensive scheme to meet the plays that they ran on us. And, I didn't have the right offensive ideas to go with Coach Benji's hard efforts to find something that worked.

But, this is the best thing that could happen to you. Really! Now we know how much it hurts to have someone score on us; to beat us; and to celebrate when we are feeling like we're not very good. NOW, when we practice, we will know why we've been practicing so hard; preparing ourselves; EARNING our victories.

Being undefeated does not mean that we don't have to be ready to play. We are still the favorite to be in the Championship game. Don't forget that. If you win the last 2 games of the season, you will forever be remembered as CHAMPION. If that means anything to you, then start preparing for those games and I promise that you won't care at all about what happened tonight.

I'm proud of each and every one of you. And so is Coach Benji. We played without Dylan and Steven. We put people in positions they had never played. We had people playing EVERY play of the game and still trying. We had injuries. But we didn't quit.

Don't quit now!

Do Not Relax

Coach Barham and I went to the Titans (Blue) vs Saints game last night. But we didn't stay long.

The Titans had the ball first and scored on their first play from scrimmage to make it 6-0. Then, they made the 2-pt conversion to make it 8-0.

The next play, the Titans intercepted a pass and returned it for a TD. 14-0.
The next play, the Titans intercepted a pass and returned it for a TD. 20-0.
The next play, the Saints fumbled and the Titans recovered.
The next play, the Titans scored an end-around TD and the 2pt conversion. 28-0.

And all of this was before the 2nd quarter.

We cannot let our guard down and make mistakes. If we do ANY of these against ANYBODY, then our plans of being CHAMPS will disappear quickly. Remember: being undefeated does not guarantee us of the championship.

STAY FOCUSED ON PLAYING HARD, "POSITION" FOOTBALL. We can do it!

IMPORTANT REGARDING GAME TIME TUES!

My mistake, guys. I had the time wrong on this site for our Tuesday game vs Titans (Orange). SO, please note that we play:

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 21
7:30pm (Be there at 7pm)

Thanks!

COLT UPDATE: SATURDAY

Good practice today, guys.

Remember: great teams don't just practice hard PHYSICALLY. They also practice hard MENTALLY. Having a great "game plan" for our opponents is something that we should, as coaches, always have for you. Now that you know what to expect on Tuesday, you should be even BETTER than usual. See you all Tuesday!

COLTS Appear on WJTV!

Thanks to Chris Brooks' dad for the "hook up"! The Colts appeared on the news tonight (WJTV) on the "Future Frenzy" portion of the sports. Chris was featured on a run and a Terry Titan was featured on one, too.

Hey.... where else can you sign up for REC football and catch yourself on the 10pm news???

PS: If Jerry gets us the link, I'll put it up on the website! Hint hint hint hint....

CONGRATULATIONS COLTS!

Our Colts continue our streak of scoreless games by beating PIGG 21-0 and tying TERRY TITANS (BLUE) 0-0 ! Our Colts played BACK-TO-BACK and still didn't allow any points against them.

We should be proud of these guys. They played their hearts out. From now on, just playing them "one at a time". Get ready for a rematch with the Titans (Orange). I know that it will be a pleasant rematch!

Injury Update:

Ryan Goff: Back injury. Seems to be OK. Will know more tomorrow.

Corbin Boler: Arm injury. Was hurting still at the end of the game. Should be OK by the end of the week.

Barrett Barham: Took a TON of hits from the Titans and kept getting up. Injuries all over, but is perfectly OK as of now! What a HECK of an interception against Pigg! Returned for TD!

Ty Irwin: Right shin area still hurt. Will know more later this week; hopefully no hospital visits. Also had a HECK of an interception against Pigg for a TD!

Malik Richardson: Leg. OK now.

These Colts are tough. Just wait until the championships!

NFC Playoff Picture

Tonight, the game between the Cowboys and the Titans (Orange) ended in a 6-6 tie. That means that they will play each other in the first round of the Championships at the end of the season. The winner will face the COLTS!

Colt Practice: October 11th

Due to the number of Colts that cannot make it on Saturday, we are cancelling practice for this weekend. We feel OK with this since most of our time would have been spent "fine-tuning" the offensive playbook. So, we will take Barrett, Konnor, Chris and Ty as a four-some on Tuesday before our first game, and let them run over the plays just to be able to run them effectively.

As for the line, all Colts should be prepared to play like we have been practicing. Remember: the way we hit the pad, and the way we hit each other in practice are the ways we should be hitting the opponents. If they do that, then we should be OK.

COLTS: We have faith in you and expect you to show the entire league who the best team is this year when we play the Titan (Blue) team. You can do it! See you all on Tuesday!

Colts v Cowboys; Part II

Coach Benji Barham gets ready to call another play in our rematch game against the Cowboys.

Congrats to the Colts offense so far this year. We've scored 60 points this year and allowed 0!

Isn't it great that these young men have come together so early in the year to become a true "team"? Just wearing the same jersey doesn't make you a team. These guys show that it's so much more than that.

Colts v Cowboys

What football-lover wouldn't like to see his offense look like this? This looks like a team that is prepared, thinking and ready. Don't you think?

Colts v Terry Orange (Game 1)

Ty Irwin breaks on the ball for the interception.

Notice that there are 7 Terry Titans standing around or on the ground. The majority of our defensive front is in their backfield! THAT is why we practice hard-and-fast movement when the ball is snapped. Let's keep this up!

Test For Pictures

Hopefully this will show up??

Games Tonight: October 7th

6:15pm: Titans Orange vs Saints
7:30pm: Pigg vs Titans Blue

Same fields. Come and support the Clinton teams as they take on Terry teams. Remember that we could really use both PIGG and SAINTS to win!

Refreshments For Next Tuesday

It's been mentioned that some parents would like to provide refreshments for next Tuesday. That would probably be a good idea since we will be playing "back-to-back". So, I will leave it to the parents to decide what to bring. You can either discuss this at our next practice or underneath this post.

Remember: We have 15 Colts. Water, Gatorade, Snicker Bars, and orange slices would be good between games. Thanks for thinking of the boys!

GAME NOTES: Colts v Cowboys (Oct 6)

Congratulations to the 2008 NFC DIVISION CHAMPIONS: CLINTON COLTS!

A great performance from both the offense and the defense last night to keep the Cowboys to very little in yardage; forcing more than one turnover; keeping them out of the endzone; and putting up our biggest score of the year!

We had practiced our "hurry-up" offense over the last three practices and it finally started "clicking" in the 2nd half of the game. We will get much better at this and really force our opponents to be in great shape mentally and physically to keep up with us!

We had a few injuries (Barrett Barham's knee, Parker Lee's ankle, Konnor Hawkins' ankle, Dylan Moudy's finger), but I expect that all should be OK by next Tuesday.

Congrats again, Colts! Keep playing like this and everyone will know who the best team is in our league!

Colts Videos

I haven't had a chance to speak with Chris Brooks' dad, but I expect that he will soon be offering videos of our games. I strongly encourage you to buy them because they not only are professionally done, but they will serve as a great reminder of the special team that we're building this year.

Also, if someone gets a chance to speak with him, remind him that we would love to have the Clinton High School football game recognition taped, too!

Colt Update: Saturday Oct 4th

Great practice today, team. Lots of great techniques and intensity on our hitting drills. We continue to get better in our "ONE MISSISSIPPI, TWO MISSISSIPPI" offensive plan.

Be ready for the COWBOYS on Monday. Come to the game with the attitude that you will hit harder than them, be more ready than them, and play EACH and EVERY PLAY as hard and smart as you can.

Remember to wear that jersey on Monday.

ONE-TWO-THREE: COLTS WIN

MONDAY, OCT 6th: Wear Jersey To School!

Encourage your COLT to wear their team jersey to school on Monday the 6th. Let's let EVERYONE know that we are a team and will be playing that night!

COLTS Recognized During CHS Football Game (Friday, Oct 17)

The Clinton Colts (and the other teams in 9/10 and 11/12 tackle) will get the chance to be introduced at the Clinton Arrows v Northwest Rankin football game on Friday, Oct 17th.

Tickets will be given out to allow you into the game for free. Kids are to be in the north endzone at 6:35pm and will run out with Coach Benji Barham when called.

Unfortunately, I will be out of town and unable to make it. BUT, let's be there cheering for them as they get recognized!!!!

GAME NOTES: Colts v Cowboys (Oct 6)

This is the REMATCH of the division leading CLINTON COLTS (2-0) and the Clinton Cowboys (1-2). The first game of the year saw the COLTS winning 22-0. BUT, they now have three games under them and we need to be ready! Game Notes:

1. If the COLTS win this game, we automatically win the Division and get the "bye" for the championship series!

2. This will be a SILENT NIGHT game. No yelling/speaking/talking to the kids during the game. If parents yell to/at/for the kids, then we will be assessed a 5 yard penalty. Second violation will be a 10 yard penalty. Afterwards, the parent must go to the parking lot.

3. Only one coach allowed on the field at any time, but he must remain 15 yards back from the players and not speak once the plays are called. No "adjustments", "reminders", "cheering", etc. We are pretty far along in that our defense already had no need for a defensive coach after the first possession of the 2nd game! And, our offensive line knows their schemes from hand-signals from the sidelines. There are teams that have TWO coaches on the field at all times! So, we should be ready for this game.

4. The City of Clinton will impose a 5 yard buffer zone between the playing field and the area where parents can sit. This is for the safety of the kids.

5. Starting Monday, the COLTS and the opposing teams will be on the opposite side of the field from the parents.

Get ready for a great game and let's support the COLTS as they try to keep their UNBEATEN and SCORELESS DEFENSIVE records in tact!

Welcome Colt Fans

Welcome to the new home of the

2008 CLINTON COLTS

Check in for news, updates, and messages!