Grumble Jones September Scenario GJ164 They Held Their Line

With August past us, we move into September and the start of the new NFL Season. As a huge NFL fan, I always look forward to Fall and the start of the new season. Been a Dallas Cowboys fan since 1972 and am still with them, despite their difficulties these many years (decades). As a child, I read everything I could get my hands on regarding the NFL. And I grew up reading about Y.A. Tittle, Bart Starr, Ken Dawson, Gayle Sayers, Roger Staubach, Craig Morton, Johnny Unitas, Otto Graham, Joe Theismann and so many other greats of the '60's and '70's. Personally...my two favorite Super Bowls were Super Bowls 10 and 13...Cowboys vs Steelers. My Cowboys didn't win...but man were those fun games to watch. And Jackie Smith...nearly won it for us in Super Bowl 13. Moving to St. Louis familiarized me more with Jackie Smith who had been a long-time Cardinal and who is still much loved in St. Louis along with Jim Hart and Conrad Dobler to name a few.

Growing up the 1960's and 1970's the NFL had just made the transition to Super Bowl games beginning in 1966. I started playing school team football in Bristol, Tennessee in 1974 as 9 year old. I played for the Haynesfield Redskins (now the Hurricanes...go figure). 

My grandparents came up from Florida to watch to my first game under the lights. I was a safety, so was on the sideline watching our offense. One of my neighbors, Todd Walton was our quarterback. He went on a sweep and was tackled right in front of me..and screaming in agony as his leg was broken. Todd was taken away in an ambulance...you can imagine the effect this had on the parents of fourth graders witnessing this.

My exploits as a fourth-grade football player consisted of fielding a punt before being creamed and recovering a fumble when they put me in at left tackle. I was a scrawny kid...completely unsuited for the position of left tackle. 52 years later I can still remember the face the kid playing defensive tackle who repeatedly knocked me on my butt play after play.

Going into 5th Grade...I found my rhythm as an end. I discovered that I loved catching footballs. I would score twice that year on 2 point conversions and have a total of 4 points to my football career.

In 6th grade I was a split-end and did absolutely nothing. We got crushed that year...but I had some fantastic coaches from East Tennessee State University and a policeman named "Bear" who we all loved.

In 7th grade, I attended Vance Jr. High...home of the Jr. Vikings. August practices started at 2:30 PM and ended around 5:00 PM. I would walk home after showering in our field house. There was a high embankment at one end of our practice field and I became very familiar with running up and down it. I was one of 4 Wing Backs. We each played a down in every sequence. We would carry the plan into the huddle. As a result, we had to know every play and were always standing next to our coaches during offensive. We had our play, 440 Out, which was basically a juke and then a streak down the sideline. Our quarterback didn't have an arm, so on the 440 Out...he pitched the ball to our fullback (we had those in the '70's) and he would throw the ball towards the endzone...and we had run under it. 

We had the best tailback in the conference and so the wingbacks were responsible for cracking back on linebackers and opening the end for our tailback. My one and only Clipping Penalty came from trying to execute a crackback and it cost us a touchdown. Coach was unhappy with me as I recall. 

We were undefeated going into a game against Independence in Johnson City, TN. It was the only game where my play was called...I streaked down the right sideline and had slipped by the cornerback. Ball was thrown high and I had to dive for it...I landed fully stretched out and the ball hit my hands and bounced out. Our coaches had the best tailback in the conference so never threw another pass the rest of the season. Didn't need to pass anyway. But that particular game went to two overtimes before we lost. 

 

We would meet Independence again for the conference championship game, which was played at the "Stone Castle"...Bristol, Tennessee's High School football stadium and home of the 1972 National Champion Tennessee High Vikings. Yep...NATIONAL Champs baby!

I only got to play that one game in the stadium...but we won and were the conference champions at the 7th Grade Level.

There was something special about being connected with the program that produced a National Championship level team.

Many of our coaches and assistant coaches were part of that program and drilled us from 7th and 8th grade level  to continue that legacy of winning.

I was signed up to play for the 8th grade team, but my father was transferred to St. Louis (Webster Groves, MO) and I never played team football again...I had a destiny with a board game...called Squad Leader.

The 1972 National Champion - Tennessee High Vikings.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyZ3aT_JMvc

The 1976 Haynesfield Redskins 6th Grade Football Team...not quite champions...but good times had by all.

My best friend in those days was #77 (Bill Martin)...we played miniatures together and would also play Squad Leader and had a very memorable game at a Holiday Inn in Kansas City...when we spent a weekend together at Worlds of Fun. Got my first ever Panzerfaust kill against a T-34/76...you know what they say...you never forget your first Panzerfaust Kill!!!

Bill's older brother played for the Philadelphia Eagles if memory serves. Bill's football career was ended by a severe staph infection from a boil on his leg. After a lengthy hospital stay, he recovered and thankfully didn't lose the leg.

In this picture, Bill celebrates a victory in a 1/76 Airfix Napoleonic Battle. In 1979, Bill and I wrote a set of Napoleonic Rules that I use to this day. Super simple and fun.

Bill Martin and I remained friends through college...he at Virginia Tech and me at Valparaiso. Then we lost contact and have not communicated since 1984.

It's funny how strong the memories of your early wargaming experiences are after so many years. Our Napoleonic Games were a riot to play and our WWII Angriff game on the Russian Front was hugely entertaining. 

In the late 1970's and early 1980's miniature gaming still was the dominant kind of wargaming that I indulged in. I absolutely loved it. I still enjoy dabbling with miniatures...but mainly enjoy that by myself. 

I tried to solo ASL many times...but for me it's not fun without a live opponent.

Ok...this post was supposed to be all about the latest Grumble Jones Scenario...but sometimes...I kinda like to see where my thoughts take me. I really loved football and wish I had been big enough to play more of it...but it wasn't in the cards for me. 

And looking back...I would much rather have played wargames and D&D than played football. Neither one hurts your knees!!

This month's scenario is courtesy of Osprey Publishing's outstanding Romania 1944. As always, I highly recommend grabbing a copy. This book covers that point in time where the Romanians had to rethink their friendship with Nazi Germany.

The scenario I put together involves one of the final times the Romanians stood against the Russians before switching sides. 

The Romanians were capable soldiers and their cavalry, and mountain troops were quite good in action. Like many of Germany's Eastern Front Allies, they lacked the quality of weapons and anti-tank elements that the German possessed. 

At Stalingrad the Romanians would receive a great deal of blame for the fall of the northern shoulder...but it should be remembered that the lackluster 22nd Panzer Division constituted their primary armor division and performed very poorly in the campaign.

At any rate, this scenario redresses some of that unfounded criticism of Romanian combat performance. In this particular instance, the Romanians would successfully stymy the Russian assault as they held their hilltop trenches. The Russians would punch a hole in the line...but through a sector on the left flank of the Romanians that had been exited by the Germans, who pulled back. As always, I hope this scenario will capture the flavor of that engagement.

As always, these monthly "Basement Quality" Scenarios are offered for fun only and as a thank you to the readers of this blog.

Remember to open pictures in a new window in order to maximize the size. 

All Grumble Jones scenarios are available from the ASL Archive website. 

               (Just search on Grumble Jones)

Grumble Jones August Scenario GJ163 Guderian's Foxes

July has passed and with it...a small part of myself. On July 1st, I was finally severed from Crescent Energy. Crescent, based in Houston had acquired my company, Vital Energy in November of 2025 and I was part of the Supply Chain Transition Team. I basically worked remotely for the entirety of this year and coordinated all the movement of Vital Energy supplier contracts to Crescent Energy. On July 1st, I went to our office in downtown Tulsa to wait turn in my laptop, badge and receive my severance agreement. Saying goodbye to a job I loved and a team of coworkers yet again...left me hollowed out for most of July...and so far, despite over 50 job applications...no one has yet invited me for an interview. I did everything they told me too...I put in the time, gave up evenings...weekends...achieved...got the certifications and my Six Sigma Black Belt and 38 years of experience...and still no one will give me 30 seconds to make a case for hiring me. I won't lie...this process really breaks you...but we'll see where fate takes me.

Five minutes later and my time with Vital Energy was over...

It's funny how life and ASL often collide...rolling Boxcars happens with frequency in both. Fortunately...I didn't casualty reduce...but I might be disrupted....

This month's scenario comes from the pages of Jason D. Mark's Guderian's Foxes. Like all of his books...a gem to behold. Early Barbarossa pictures of the 29th in action are some of the most interesting I have seen. And the frequency of burial pictures paints a vivid picture of the losses the Germans began sustaining at the very start of their ill-conceived war in the east.

Like so many unthinking military planners...they believed a few hard blows would collapse the regime. Well...we all know which regime ultimately collapsed.

There is also a series of pictures of a captured Soviet Commissar. His demeanor changes from a neutral hopefulness to a stark realization of his impeding execution. 

Jason D. Mark's and Leaping Horseman Books has given us another amazing volume of the war on the Eastern Front. 

This month's scenario depicts the effort of encircled Soviet forces to breakout. The pictures in the books show the utter devastation wrought on the Soviets as they are wiped out in the open ground and gullies. Sadly, many of the Soviets had families attempting to escape with them, packed in trucks and T-34's. They too were killed in the fighting. Designing an action like this can be challenging to present it in such a way that both sides can prevail. It's an exit scenario...but only just barely. The Soviets can win at game end if they control 2 of 3 available exit hexes. They don't have to exit the board...only control the exit hexes...which will be a very challenging task. Hopefully, the balanced energy will be present.

As always, these monthly "Basement Quality" Scenarios are offered for fun only and as a thank you to the readers of this blog.

Remember to open pictures in a new window in order to maximize the size. 

All Grumble Jones scenarios are available from the ASL Archive website. 

               (Just search on Grumble Jones)

Grumble Jones AAR for Crucible of Steel Scenarios on the YouTube page.

We welcome Professor Rollwright back to the blog after a long absence. The good professor has been on sabbatical, and we are happy to have him back in the saddle and you will be seeing him regularly now. 

The four scenarios covered in this month's AAR are:

BFP-90 Early Morning Action

BFP-89 Relentless Pressure

BFP-87 Fork in the Road

BFP-79 A Hard Push

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvM3ZkxatlA&t=40s

Grumble Jones July Scenario GJ162 You Will Engage the Enemy

(AI derived image of Japanese Infantry hauling Type 92 INF Gun on the Kokoda Trail.)

The August scenario comes to us courtesy of the Osprey Campaign Series.

As long-time readers know...I'm a big fan of the Osprey Campaign Series. These books are filled with great content and much of can easily be tailored for an ASL scenario.

Like all of their volumes, Kokoda 1942-43 is outstanding. Great photos, narrative, maps, and color plates. Kokoda remains a campaign that I know relatively little about. As I build my WWII library...I've determined to fill it out with the Campaign series books. And in fact, I have been donating many of my hard back books...as an example I gave Dan my existing hard bound book on Cassino in lieu of the Osprey volume I recently purchased on Ebay. A quarter of the shelf space, more illustrations, photos and much easier to read.

Like ASL itself, Osprey is quickly covering nearly every imaginable WWII campaign. Up for pre-order currently is Madagascar. Cannot wait to see that one. 

I designed this scenario as a DASL...because I really enjoy seeing how far you can take DASL for creating quick contact scenarios that are fun and easy to grok. The victory conditions require that the Japanese manhandle two artillery pieces with an LOS to a specific hex in the Allied setup zone. So...this is a little different. The Japanese have a 2 to 1 advantage in squads...so a defense in depth will be required less a single Banzai Charge take out the whole Allied line. This is a tricky one as the Japanese have to manhandle into some open hexes in order to gain the necessary LOS. Hopefully this will be a fun scenario for both sides and not feel to difficult for one side or the other.  Time is also a factor...so bad manhandling rolls could hurt the Japanese...but adding a squad to the effort is advisable.

As always, these monthly "Basement Quality" Scenarios are offered for fun only and as a thank you to the readers of this blog.

Remember to open pictures in a new window in order to maximize the size. 

All Grumble Jones scenarios are available from the ASL Archive website. 

               (Just search on Grumble Jones)

YouTube AAR for Critical Hit's Gettysburg Turning Point 1863 - ID4 At Will Fire

 

AAR for Critical Hit's Gettysburg Turning Point 1863 - At Will Fire ID4

AAR Slides for Schwerpunkt SP96 Husum Hotfoot

This will blogpost will provide the slides from the recent AAR on YouTube for Schwerpunkt SP96 Husum Hotfoot.This will allow readers and viewers to have easy access to refer to images that were used for the YouTube video. I will continue to add these slides to mesh with the You Tube AAR's.

Additionally, I may redo some older AAR's with YouTube videos. AAR's for such scenarios as Fighting Withdrawal and Subterranean Quarry will be the first to receive this redo. 

In other news, work progresses on the Halloween Scenario and also a mini-scenario pack based on the Remagen Bridge...complete with an excellent printable map designed by Rick Reinesch. So...some fun things to look forward to.