1969 Newton County
From 8-11-14
As we approach the1969 season, we felt that we had another outstanding basketball team that would carry on the Ram tradition. We were returning our outstanding senior center Thad Blankenship, one if the best young guards in the state Bubba Hill, & a young Tony Harris, who had grown six inches in the past year.
We had probably one of the toughest schedules we had played in 11 years. In our 3rd game of the season, we lost at Lakeside to a very strong team, the night before Thanksgiving. We scheduled a tough practice for the next morning to show our players that "you don't lose at Newton County!" But when a tired & sleepy Blankenship came into my office & said, "Coach, it's not that we didn't try--those boys were good!", my attitude changed---& we shot around for a few minutes and I wished them a "Happy Thanksgiving"! There wasn't a day that season that we didn't spend some time getting ready for Atlanta's Carver High School! The Carver team was so strong that we felt if we could play with them, we could play with anybody! A part of our practice each day was against 9 players, with chairs on the floor, in order to simulate the quickness and pressure defense of Carver. One of the games that still stands out during the season was when we defeated a strong a Burney Harris team of Athens, & the noise was so loud in the gym that their players were playing with their fingers in their ears! We rolled through the sub-region tournament with double-digit wins over Winder & Burney Harris. In the semi-finals of the region tournament we defeated Hart Co., 77-51, and won the title with a 51-34 victory over Stephens Co. This set the stage for state tournament play as we went in with a 21-4 record, and ranked #5 in the state! In the opening game, we defeated East Rome 57-50, setting up the "game of the year" against Carver, who was ranked #1 in the state and was averaging a "unbelievable" state-record 110 points per game! We had practiced controlling the ball in order to slow down their potent offense, but their pressure defense made it almost impossible to do. This was THE game, on the biggest stage, that a player practices years in which to be a part! The game had received much publicity, was being broadcast state-wide, and with 7,000 people packed into Ga. Tech Coliseum, they actually stopped selling tickets and didn't let anyone in until the Newton Co.-Carver fans exited! (Even though you plan ahead, some things are beyond your control!). Blankenship was still weak from being ill, & when Harris fouled out, Carver squeaked through, 66-61, on their way to the State Championship! Blankenship (21.3ppg&13.4rpg) & Harris (12ppg&14rpg) were named All-State. Four Newton Rams players were named to the All-region team--Blankenship (3rd time), Harris, defensive specialist Jim Gainer, & Bubba Hill (14ppg). The seniors' 4-year record was 107-18, 3 region championships & 4 trips to the state tournament! The NCHS Rams'11-year record was 306 wins, 36 losses, 28 different titles, 7 Region Championships, 1 State Runner-up, & 1 State Championship!
