Fulton Earns District 3-AA Basketball Championship

The Fulton Basketball team returned to the top of District 3-AA basketball with a 78-54 victory over Union Co. in the district championship game at Pigeon Forge. Freshman DaShawn McKinney led the Falcons with 17 points. It is Fulton's first district tournament championship since 2011. The Falcons were named district champions last year after the tournament championship was cancelled due to snow. Fulton is now 25-2 on the season. Region 2-AA Tournament action begins on Saturday, as Fulton hosts Kingston at the Jody Wright Arena. Tip-Off is at 7pm Saturday night. 

Terrence Cobb Returns to Pro Football With Saskatchewan Roughriders

How about a little good news tonight in Falcon Country? Former Falcon RB Terrance Cobb announced on social media yesterday that he has signed a contract with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League. Cobb went to training camp last year with the Roughriders before announcing his retirement due to a lingering foot injury. Cobb has never been one to let obstacles get in his way. He committed himself to make a comeback during the fall and is now on the verge of restarting his career. 

Cobb was an immediate impact player for the Fulton Falcons at the LB position. He was a member of Fulton's 2004 and 2006 championship teams, and had a rumble return for TD in the '06 BlueCross Bowl against David Lipscomb. Cobb teamed with Dennis Rogan in the Fulton backfield in 2006. Both players eventually signed NFL contracts. Cobb was Fulton's feature back in 2007's pass happy offense. Terrance saved his best for his last two high school games of his career. He had a 4 TD effort against David Lipscomb in the BlueCross Bowl, almost single-handedly keeping Fulton in the game. He was named offensive MVP in the losing effort. Cobb then became the MVP of the first Border Bowl All-Star game in Kentucky. 

Terrance spent a couple of years away from the game in order to focus on academics before joining the football team at the University of the Cumberlands. He became a legend at the school, and was named NAIA All-American twice. He rushed for 4,414 yards and 47 TDs in his career with the Patriots. His senior season was cut short with a foot injury. Terrance signed a Free Agent contact with the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2014 and played in a couple preseason games. He signed with the Oakland Raiders at the end of the 2014 season, and participated in off-season activities before signing with the CFL's Roughriders. 

Cobb as a Jaguar

Terrance Cobb is one of Fulton High School's greatest success stories. He has become a pro at overcoming adversity, and we know he will give his all to continue his football career. Saskatchewan is a long way from Knoxville, but Falcon Nation will be keeping a close eye on one of their favorite sons. 

http://www.riderville.com/players/terrance-cobb/794224/

Terrance Cobb bio from Roughriders. 

CBS Honors Zaevion Dobson During Super Bowl Pregame

Here is the feature on Zaevion Dobson that aired on CBS on February 7, 2016 during the Super Bowl 50 Pregame Show. 

The segment was introduced by NY Jets WR Brandon Marshall, who came to Knoxville to meet Zack Dobson. Marshall is a ten year NFL veteran, and is also working as a commentator. Producers and crew from CBS made several trips to Knoxville from New York in order to gather footage and interviews. Aerial MOB of Los Angleles provided the overhead drone footage. Brief audio clips from WKCS Radio's broadcasts of Fulton Football were also used in the piece. An incredible amount of work went into producing this documentary, including a great deal of organizational planning by Coach Rob Black. It is a fitting tribute to Zaevion, who has become known as "Knoxville's Hero." Countless people will have an opportunity to be inspired by his story.  It is our hope that this video will continue to spread so that people around the globe will remember the name Zaevion Dobson. 

On behalf of everyone at Fulton High School, we want to thank CBS and Brandon Marshall for their help in making this tribute possible. 

Here is some coverage from the NY Daily News

The Day Peyton Manning (Almost) Came To Fulton

Hats off to CBS Sports for an excellent piece on its Super Bowl 50 Pregame show about Zaevion Dobson. It is incredible to think about the number of people who have had the opportunity to hear his story. We will post a link to the video when it becomes available. It is a must see. 

We are just minutes away from what could be the last game in Peyton Manning's career. There is no doubt that Manning has been an incredible representative of the University of Tennessee and of Knoxville. This post deals with the time Peyton almost visited Fulton. Manning has been a long time spokesman for the St. Mary's/Mercy/Tennova hospitals and usually comes to Knoxville to film TV commercials in conjunction with his summer charity golf tournament. 

In the summer of 2008, St. Mary's hospital was transitioning to be a part of Mercy Health Partners. Producers wanted to film a commercial with Manning watching a game where the would be an injury. The tag line was "Mercy," a reference to the renamed hospital. The commercial would be filmed at Fulton, with actual players performing the football scenes. Players from William Blount would make up the opposition. Someone from the hospital had a connection to William Blount. There had to be special permission from the TSSAA to film the commercial, since football activities would be taking place during June. The TSSAA decreed that no visible marks of either team could be shown in the commercial. It wasn't hard to get plenty of willing players to be in the commercial, along with parents and cheerleaders to be extras. Everyone came to Fulton in the hopes of becoming a TV celebrity and to possibly see Peyton Manning. 

Cheerleaders on the field???

As is the case with most TV productions, filming was slow. It took several takes to get a crowd reaction shot in the stands. The football action in the commercial would be centered around a QB asking a devastating hit. Fulton QB Josh Compton was recruited to be sacked. Josh was driven to the ground at least ten times as the hit was filmed from every possible angle. Compton took a pretty good beating that night. 

The last scene to be filmed was the Peyton Manning scene, except Peyton was no where to be seen. Producers finally admitted that other commitments would keep Manning from attending the shoot, his part could be edited in post production. To film the scene, they needed a stand in for Manning. The only person at the stadium who was comparable in size to Peyton was Coach Rob Black. Coach Black got to be Peyton for a few minutes as the last scene was filmed. Coach Pete Stout also was used as an extra in that scene. Their job was to act as they had just witnessed the savage hit on Josh Compton. 

Coach Stout (on the right) feels mercy for the QB

Peyton never made it to Fulton, but the magic of editing made it seem as if he was at Bob Black Field. It took an eternity for the commercial to finally hit the air, and when it did, there was another disappointment. The football action that took a whole night to film comprised only four seconds of the commercial. MERCY! 

Watch the night Peyton almost came to Fulton here...

http://youtu.be/vAG7VsaEilM

Mercy Health combined St. Mary's and Baptist Hospitals. Now, in 2016, there is no more St. Mary's, no more Baptist Hospital, no more Mercy, Tennova is moving west, and Peyton is nearing retirement. Times do change. 

A Look at Fulton's #NSD2016 Signees

Today is National Signing Day. Here is a look at the Fulton players who will be signing today with colleges at 2:15 in the FHS Auditorium. These players will join the 17 other Falcons who were on college rosters in 2015. 

Kentel Williams

   Kentel's athletic and academic resume is impressive. He was a Class 4A Mr. Football Semi-Finalist, a two-time member of the TSWA All-State team, the District 3-AA MVP, and an MVP of the Border Bowl a few weeks ago. Kentel is magic with the ball in his hands. He accounted for 72 catches for 1324 yards and 12 TDs as a receiver in his career. He also got plenty of touches as the Wildcat QB for the Falcons. He rushed for 867 yards and 12 TDs in the past two seasons. Kentel also scored a combined eight TDs on Special Teams and Defense. His athleticism should allow him to be an instant contributor at the FCS level. We would call this an absolute steal for Austin Peay.

Matthew Gayle

   Matthew was one of the most improved players for Fulton over his four years with the Falcons. His 6'3" size has been appealing for college coaches, and he will join Kentel Williams at Austin Peay. Matthew became a key contributor for Fulton along the defensive front in the second half of his junior year. His performance as a rush end during the 2014 playoff run earned him a coveted spot on the All-PrepXtra Team. In his career at Fulton, Matthew recorded 89 tackles, 32 takles for loss, and an impressive 10.5 sacks. He was a vital part of the Fulton defense and impressed with a strong performance in the Toyota East vs. West Tennessee All-Star Classic. Matthew is a Fulton legacy player, as he counts great former Falcons Jackie and Marshall Walker as relatives.

Joe Kimber

Joe Kimber will be signing with Hutchinson Community College in Kansas. The Blue Dragons have one of the top overall JUCO athletic programs in America. Joe has a tremendous upside which caught the attention of local recruiting analysts and college coaches. Kimber sat out his sophomore year of football and returned to the team in 2014. He was a major part of Fulton's receiver rotation in 2015, catching 16 passes for 387 yards and  5TDs. His size and frame gives him the ability to make big plays. Joe's Pick-6 against Catholic in the regular season put the final nail in the coffin of the Irish. 

Congratulations also go to C/O 2014 Fulton QB Penny Smith who signed with Jacksonville State earlier today. Jacksonville St. played for the FCS Championship this year out of the Ohio Valley Conference. Penny started his college career at Chattanooga before transferring to a junior college last year. 

We expect several other Falcons to sign in the coming days as they work out their scholarship packages. Congratulations to all of these players on this big day in Falcon Country. 

Fulton National Signing Day Ceremony Set For Wednesday

   It looks like Austin Peay is the big winner at Fulton High School in competing for the services of the Class of 2016. Two Fulton players will be signing with the Governors during the National Signing Day Ceremony in the Auditorium at 2:15 Wednesday. WR/DB Kentel Williams announced his commitment to Austin-Peay on Monday Night, while DE/TE Matthew Gayle  committed to AP earlier. WR/DB Joe Kimber is set to sign with JUCO powerhouse Hutchinson Community College of Kansas on Wednesday. Several other Falcons are finalizing their college plans and could be ready to sign by Wednesday afternoon.

  Austin Peay has generated much excitement on the recruiting trail with the hiring of new Head Coach Will Healy. Healy previously was an assistant at Chattanooga where he closely recruited Fulton. Healy led the recruitment of Penny Smith and K.J. Roper to Chattanooga in the previous years. It wouldn't be a surprise to see more Fulton players make the trek to Clarksville in the coming years. AP is making a huge upgrade to their football facilities that should pay dividends in the coming years.

We will have a more detailed look at the Falcons who will be signing in tomorrow's blog. 

Fulton Basketball to Retire Jersey of All-Time Leading Scorer Jalen Steele

It is quite the coincidence that one of the last posts on this blog concerned the career of FHS basketball legend Jalen Steele. The Falcons will be retiring his jersey next week. 

   On Tuesday, February 9^th, the Fulton High Basketball team will retire Jalen Steele's number 24 jersey. Jalen is one of the most decorated players in Knoxville basketball history. He led the Falcons to back-to-back state championships in 2008 and 2009, and earned the Class AA Mr. Basketball award in 2010. Steele was a three-time All-State team member, and was the News-Sentinel PrepXtra Player of the Year twice. He is Fulton’s all-time leading scorer with 2400 career points. In Steele’s four years at Fulton, the Falcons compiled a record of 115-18. Steele signed to play college basketball at Mississippi State. He played three years in the SEC for the Bulldogs, and is now completing his college career at Lincoln Memorial University. Steele joins Bill Justus and James Gallman as the only Falcons to have their basketball jersey retired. The event will take place before the boy’s game versus Alcoa at approximately 8PM. 

Jalen Steele Career Profile

4 year starter

All District 3-AA (07, 08, 09, 10)

District Player of the Year (08, 09, 10)

District 3-AA tournament MVP (08,10)

Region 2-AA Tournament MVP (08, 09, 10)

2-Time State Champion (08, 09)

Class AA All State Tournament team (08, 09)

Class AA State Tournament MVP (09)

Class AA TSWA All State Team (08, 09, 10)

PrepXtra Sophomore of the year (08)

PrepXtra Player of the Year (09, 10)

Leading Scorer in Fulton High School History

2400 Career points

115-18 record in his four years at Fulton

Class AA Mr. Basketball (10)

Jalen Steele Lincoln Memorial Bio

Jalen is averaging 15.9 points per game for the Railsplitters, who are ranked 7th in the nation in NCAA D2 basketball.