By: Jack Withrow, WVMetroNews.com
AAA No. 2 Hurricane (4-0) at AAA No. 5 Spring Valley (4-1), Friday – 7:00
Senior quarterback Dylan Plumley and the undefeated Redskins are coming off a week of rest and it may have been the perfect time for it. Hurricane’s upcoming schedule could arguably be the toughest in the state as the Redskins head out on the road to Spring Valley, Capital and Huntington in the next three weeks. Those three schools have a combined record of 12-3 and all are in the top five of this week’s WVSSAC playoff ratings.
“Our mindset is to take one game at a time, don’t worry about anyone else besides the opponent we’re playing that week,” said Plumley.
Plumley (34-of-61 completions, 528 yards) has been a solid leader in his first year as the Redskins’ quarterback, but quickly points to James McDougale as one of the keys to the early season success. McDougale had a breakout game earlier in the year as he rushed for 224 yards on just 12 carries and three touchdowns in a win over Cabell Midland.
Hurricane, ranked No. 2 in the WVSSAC playoff ratings, will travel to Wayne County on Friday night to face fellow Mountain State Athletic Conference foe Spring Valley. The Timberwolves (4-1) are No. 5 in this week’s WVSSAC playoff ratings.
Last Friday, Spring Valley went on the road to defeat South Charleston 29-15. After a close first half, the Timberwolves were able to put together two scoring drives while their defense limited the Black Eagles offensive touches.
Spring Valley boasts one of the best ground games in the state as quarterback Derek Johnson leads the team with 69 carries for 653 yards & nine touchdowns. Running back Mason Brubeck has added 436 yards on 55 attempts.
“He’s the fastest kid I’ve ever had,” said head coach Brad Dingess when asked about his quarterback. “He sees the field real well and he’s just an all-purpose type of kid.”
In the last meeting between the two schools, Hurricane defeated Spring Valley 43-42 in the last regular season game of the 2014 campaign. The Redskins have a 6-5 edge over the Timberwolves in the series.
AA No. 9 Sissonville (3-1) at AA No. 9 Winfield (3-1), Friday – 7:30
An old rivalry will be renewed as Sissonville will travel down to Putnam County on Friday night to battle Winfield in a key Cardinal Conference matchup. Both teams enter Week 6 with 3-1 records, tied at No. 9 in the WVSSAC playoff ratings.
Sissonville opened the season with four straight home games, with its only setback to undefeated Mingo Central, 52-22. Second year head coach Marc Wilson will now take his team on the road for five consecutive weeks; however, he points to his senior laden team as a positive.
Senior running back Austin Cook and senior quarterback Chance Brown are two of the top rushers in the Cardinal Conference with Cook rushing for 628 yards on 99 carries and Brown contributing 388 yards on 44 attempts. Brown has also thrown for 768 yards while hooking up with Bryce Taylor 10 times for 186 yards and two scores.
Winfield had to come from behind once again last week for their third victory of the season as the Generals downed visiting Wayne 23-22. Chase McVey drilled a 24-yard field goal and the Generals were able to hold off a late Pioneers drive to secure the win.
Winfield coach Craig Snyder knows his team has a challenge defending a talented Sissonville team.
“Sissonville is a good football team. They’re super skilled offensively,” said Snyder. “What strikes me the most is they have a disciplined offensive line and Cook is so explosive.”
Snyder also has his share of explosive weapons as junior Andrew Huff is one of the top rushing quarterbacks in the Cardinal Conference with 399 yards on 55 carries and nine touchdowns. At 6-foot-3, 190 pounds, Huff is becoming a challenge for opposing defenses to slow down when the Generals go to their Ram set offense.
This will be the 33rd meeting between the two schools as Winfield holds a slim 18-15 record over Sissonville. The last time they met was in 2007 as the Indians defeated the Generals 13-9.
Tug Valley (3-2) at A No. 4 Buffalo (4-0), Friday – 7:30
Buffalo is No. 4 in this week’s WVSSAC playoff ratings and will look to continue their undefeated season as they play host to Tug Valley on Friday night.
Buffalo, coming off an open week, is averaging 50.8 points per game, holding its opponents to just 11.0 points a contest.
Senior running back Dylan Lucas has set the world on fire in the first four games with 1,473 all-purpose yards and 22 touchdowns. Lucas, who is getting mentions as a possible Kennedy Award and MetroNews Player of the Year candidate, has rushed for 1,043 yards on just 57 carries.
Tug Valley (3-2) comes into Friday night’s game at No. 17 in the WVSSAC playoff ratings as the Panthers’ offense averages 32.2 point per game. The majority of the offense has come on the ground with running back Dawson Elia (5-foot-7, 149 pounds) carrying the ball 68 times for 553 yards and eight touchdowns while Noah Lucas (5-10, 220) has 40 carries for 379 yards and six scores.
Last year, Buffalo shutout Tug Valley, 19-0 in Naugatuck. Friday night’s game will kick off at 7:30 at Bison Field.
AA No. 15 Liberty-Raleigh (3-1) at AAA No. 10 Riverside (3-2), Friday – 7:00
Important game for both teams as Riverside will welcome Class AA No. 15 Liberty-Raleigh to Quincy on Friday night.
Coach Zach Davis and his Warriors picked up their third victory of the season with a convincing win over St. Albans, 49-28. Quarterback Mark Scites accounted for four touchdowns as the Warriors rolled up 439 yards against the Red Dragons. Scites finished with nine carries for 76 yards and two rushing touchdowns as freshman running back Caden Easterling added 96 yards and a score.
Liberty rallied for a 38-33 victory over visiting Clay County last Friday night as quarterback Jacob Bailey had a big night.
The former all-state receiver rushed for 225 yards and three touchdowns while completing 3-of-6 passes for 79 yards and two more scores. Bailey also added an 80-yard kickoff return for a touchdown.
This will be the first meeting between the two schools.
Other Friday night matchups in the Kanawha Valley:
St. Albans (1-4) at AAA No. 11 Wheeling Park (3-2), Friday – 7:30
AAA No. 15 George Washington (2-3) at Woodrow Wilson (1-3), Friday – 7:00
Poca (0-5) at AA No. 9 Herbert Hoover (3-1), Friday – 7:30
Chapmanville (3-2) at Nitro (1-3), Friday – 7:00
AAA No. 3 Capital (4-1) OPEN
AAA No. 13 South Charleston (2-3) OPEN