Pt. Pleasant back to eight AAA games on 2013 slate

POINT PLEASANT, W.Va. — After making the Class AAA state playoffs last year, Point Pleasant knows it can compete at that level. Just one year removed from the top tier of Class AA, the Big Blacks finished 8-2 in 2012 before falling to Morgantown in the first round of the playoffs.

Along with last year’s success, the returning talent this season gives head coach David Darst reason to believe his team can surprise even more people this year at the AAA level.

Special mention all-state running back Chase Walton and honorable mention quarterback Aden Yates return for the Big Blacks. Darst said Yates was impressive throughout the summer practice period — he’s expected to benefit from a stable of skill players to throw to, including Walton.

“He’s the kind of kid that can do it all for us,” Darst said of Walton. “He catches the ball so well. Overall, our strength is our depth at running back and receiver. We use our running backs as receivers a good bit in our offense.”

But what also has Darst hyped up is the offensive line.

“Our offensive line is going to be younger, but we’re going to be a lot bigger than we have been in a while,” he said. “I’m excited about that.”

Year two back in Class AAA will feature a different schedule than last year. Instead of playing just five Class AAA teams this year, the Big Blacks will face eight.

A renewed rivalry with Ripley will highlight the new-look AAA slate.

“We haven’t played Ripley in a long time,” Darst said. “It used to be one of the longest rivalry games in the history of West Virginia. We play for the Oaken Bucket, so we’re back playing for the Oaken Bucket this year. Everybody is excited about that.”

Along with Ripley, Point Pleasant will square off against Winfield, Lincoln County and Logan, among others.

“We are blessed with seven home games this year, which is really nice,” Darst said. “We got to get out and win some ball games early, starting with Lincoln County. Winfield has a nice squad with (Chris) Turner. He’s a real nice football player. They will be definitely be a test for us.

“Later in the year we have Brooke on the schedule,” Darst continued. “They will be a tough football team. We have Oak Hill and Jalen Jones coming to Point Pleasant for a game on the turf.”

But the game that could be the most critical to Point Pleasant’s playoff chances is a late season Saturday afternoon showdown with Lewis County.

“That could be a big deciding factor in points and where we finish up for the year,” Darst said.

– Wes McKinney