EXECUTIVE SPORTS EDITOR:

Greg Pogue | pogue@dnj.com 615.278.5170

Sports
T h a t s quite a 48hour turnaround, especially when DAVIS other elements like Denvers high altitude and an ongoing conference race for both teams accompany the trip. Our (MTSU) men and women are the only teams that do this trip in our league, said Davis, the MTSU mens coach. Were never going to use fatigue as a factor, but the l i m i t e d preparation INSELL time is what gets me. We really stress scouting and gameplanning, but preparation changes on these trips. By land, MTSUs road trip would span more than 4,000 miles. Traveling by air, each

C1
TV/Radio | C2
Thursday, Feb. 21, 2008

MTSU begins rugged road trip at Denver

Blue Raider, Lady Raiders play at FAU on Saturday
By ADAM SPARKS sparks@dnj.com

MTSU BASKETBALL
team will spend about 20 hours combined from Wednesday to Sunday on a plane, on a bus going to and from the airport or awaiting a connecting flight during a layover. I dont know anybody who has this trip on their schedule but us, and I keep up with

Faced with the most challenging road trip of the Sun Belt season for any team, MTSU basketball coaches Kermit Davis and Rick Insell will try to keep their players minds off the mileage. MTSUs men and women play doubleheaders at Denver today and at Florida Atlantic in Boca Raton, Fla., Saturday.

scheduling, Insell said. This is going to be a challenge, but maybe thats what we need right now. Its just another small mountain to climb. A larger climb comes today, when both teams play Denver at an approximate altitude of 5,280 feet, where some athletes dread competing in thinner air. Neither coach has broached the subject with his players. All that does is give your players a crutch, Insell said.
See MTSU, page C3

GREG POGUE
Staff Columnist

MTSU road trip cant be a good thing

As the MTSU men and women teams criss-cross the country this week, there is disagreement on how well the current Sun Belt Conference basketball scheduling configuration is working. Certainly, flying to Denver Wednesday to play Thursday, followed by a flight Friday from Denver to Miami to play Saturday, then flying home Sunday, isnt ideal. Its difficult on the players and athletic department budgets. But its the reality for a farflung conference with 13 member schools residing in three different time zones. And theres the rub. The odd number doesnt allow for a balanced schedule where natural travel partners can alleviate such nomadic sojourns as the one the Blue Raiders are now traveling. Its competitive issues versus financial issues, MTSU athletic director Chris Massaro says. Sometimes, they just dont match up. There is a sentiment among (Sun Belt) athletic directors and coaches for change or, at least, some modification. That wont come until a season after next at the earliest, according to Sun Belt commissioner Wright Waters, who noted the three-year scheduling scheme is in its second year. He feels the current scheduling plan is working, even with such cumbersome trips like MTSU is on this week. Making the trip from Denver to Miami for the Blue Raiders to play Florida Atlantic is even more puzzling considering they were recently in south Florida for a one-game turnaround against Florida International. Common sense would say play those natural travel partners during one trip on a Thursday and Saturday. What we are doing now is incredibly more fair, Waters counters. We could make our schedule so we could save money with travel partners, but we would create huge gaps in scheduling. And the money you would ultimately save in travel could cost yourself money in marketing your product.

HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL

Cut above
a
Siegels Tyler Cutter 9 points shy of breaking school scoring record
By ROGER GARFIELD rgarfield@dnj.com

The request was merely formulaic. Sick with the flu, Michael Cutter had to take the day off as coach of his sons eighth-grade AAU team, so he asked the father of another team member to fill in for him. But Cutter knew it wasnt entirely necessary not with his son Tyler playing point guard. I said, If you have issues with the offense or whatever, you can ask Tyler, because he knows every position, Cutter remembers telling the substitute coach. Siegel point guard Tyler Cutter is eight points shy of breaking Jimmy The dad called me the next day Odens career scoring mark of 1,437 and said, Well, you were right points. about Tyler I basically let GP Pts Avg. him coach the team. He called Fresh. 20 49 2.4 all the timeouts, he knew what 312 8.6 36 Soph. 526 18.1 29 Junior offense and defense they were Senior 33 542 16.4 supposed to be in. He did it all. Totals 118 1,429 12.1 Hes been that way since he was 5 years old. Tyler Cutter, now 18, remains the consummate floor general barking out orders to his teammates, talking strategy with his coach after whistles, taking the big shot when he has to, and, all the while, finding the open man. Cutter has been a starter in Siegels lineup for the past three seasons, helping guide the Stars to the state tournament in 2006, enduring a losing season last year and now facilitating a balanced and high-powered attack primed for a run in the Region 4-AAA tournament.

Quite a career for Cutter

Whenever that ends, run Cutter will likely finish his career as Siegels all-time leading scorer his current total of 1,429 points is eight behind Jimmy Odens 1,437 before shifting his focus to the collegiate level, where he will join Indiana State of the Missouri Valley Conference in the fall. Cutters play of late he averaged 26 points per game in the District 7-AAA tournament suggests he isnt looking ahead to his career as a Sycamore just yet. In fact, the 6-0, 175pounder believes this Siegel team (2211) may have a characteristic the 2006 state tournament quarterfinalist squad did not: more depth. Our five might not be as strong as that five, but our eight or nine is probably stronger than our eight or nine from that (2006) team, he said.

A born baller
Cutter grew up in Florence, Ky., just outside of Cincinnati, and his dad coached him from his first YMCA league at 4 years old. Id say from the beginning he was a natural, Michael said. Michaels roots may have had something to do with
See CUTTER, page C3

DNJ file photo by Aaron Thompson

Scharsch takes over as Spring Hills football coach

Former Eagleville coach moving up to 3A ranks
By ROGER GARFIELD rgarfield@dnj.com

Competitive advantage?
MTSU mens coach Kermit Davis has two major concerns with the current plan. He doesnt like it that consenting schools can move games to gain competitive advantage. The only way a game should be allowed to move once the schedule comes out is for a facilities conflict or television, he says. And MTSU is totally against men-women doubleheaders. Time was, men would play at home and women would be on the road on the same day against the same schools, meaning there would be at least two home games per week, men or women. The league has requested schools provide travel costs for a three-year period after this season for discussion at the league spring meetings in May. Is there an ideal situation when you have a 13-team league? Probably not. But flying all over the country like MTSU teams are doing this week cant be good.
Greg Pogue is executive sports editor of The Daily News Journal. E-mail him at pogue@dnj.com.

More than three months after resigning as Eaglevilles football coach, Jason Scharsch has landed on his feet. Scharsch officially took over as the head coach at Spring Hill Wednesday and said he was thrilled about making the leap from Class A to Class AAA.

I was very excited about the possibility of coming over here because SCHARSCH of the athletes theyve got, Scharsch said. Theres a solid bunch of assistant coaches here right now. I dont have to go out and find an entire staff. Its just a matter of getting our stuff transferred and getting

our terminology to mesh. Scharsch takes over a Raiders program that went 1-9 in 2007 and 6-6 in 2006, eventually falling to Region 5-3A foe David Lipscomb in the playoffs. He succeeds fouryear coach Travis McKnight, who left to join the military full-time. Its a tough region with a lot of good football teams and a lot of good coaches in it, Scharsch said. Im very excited about our kids. Theyre very hungry. Scharsch was the only head

coach in Eagleville football history before stepping down Nov. 6. In six seasons, Scharschs teams compiled a 26-36 record and reached the playoffs once, in 2005. The Eagles went 2-8 in 2007. Former Smyrna assistant Steve Carson was announced as Scharschs successor Dec. 20. Spring Hill, which won the 1986 Class A state championship, presents a new challenge for Scharsch, who built the Eagleville program from the ground up. Its different, and thats re-

ally the only thing you can say about it, Scharsch said. Theres good and bad about starting one from scratch. Over there, it was always a first for everything, and basically you got to make a lot of decisions on the direction things were going to go. Over here, theres things already in place. ... Were going to be super simple. Its going to be blocking and tackling. Those are the things that need to be improved more than anything, and the staff agrees.
Roger Garfield, 615-278-5168

Inside
College Football I C2
Columnist John Adams says Fulmer should be fired

Coming Tomorrow:
MTSUs mens, womens basketball teams face Denver on the road High school region tournaments preview

NFL I C2
Titans put the franchise tag on Haynesworth

Basketball I C3
No. 2 Tennessee routs Auburn at home

CALICO

Former MTSU and Tennessee Titans wide receiver Tyrone Calico was arrested early Wednesday in Nashville and charged with driving under the influence and violation of the implied consent law. According to police, Calico was stopped around 2:30 a.m. for weaving just south of downtown at the corner of Ridley Boulevard and Hamilton Avenue.

SCOREBOARD
NBAScoring Leaders
James, Clev. Bryant, LAL Iverson, Den. Anthony, Den. Wade, Mia. 30.2 27.9 26.5 26.3 24.3 For the big picture, check out the Scoreboard, page C5 Page editor: Monte Hale Jr.