Each Friday night as I watch the scores from high school games come into us at GAMENIGHT, I find myself wondering what has happened to all the great defensive teams we used to see. Now I am confident all coaches are coaching defense, because “defense wins championships”, right? Well, if that is the case, our state is being blessed with a lot of offensive talent this year!
For example, let’s look at six of the teams that are currently ranked high in their classification……three in Class AAA, two in Class AA and one in Class A. First of all in the big schools classification…..the Capital Cougars are 4-0 and have defeated their first four opponents by a combined score of 210-66, or to break it down per game, the Cougars have outscored their opponents by an average of 52-16! The Black Eagles of South Charleston, who lost to Capital last Friday night, have been putting a lot of points on the scoreboard as well, having outscored their first five opponents 237-103, an average of 47-21 per game. South Charleston currently checks in with a 4-1 record. Also in Class AAA, the Knights of Cabell Midland are off to a 5-0 start and have outscored their opponents 243-91, an average of 49-18 per game. The numbers don’t go down when you shift down to the smaller schools. In Class AA, the undefeated Bluefield Beavers have outscored their first four opponents 222-123, an average of 55-31 per game and the undefeated Red Devils of Ravenswood have been victorious in their first four games by a combined score of 201-85, an average of 50-21. In Class A, the Blue Devils of St. Marys have played four games, won four games and have outscoreded their opponents 188-33, an average of 47-8.
Now I know we just threw out a lot of numbers and sometimes, numbers don’t mean a whole lot. However, the scoreboards across the state are really lighting up each and every weekend and you have to ask yourself how long can teams continue to just outscore each other! I remember several years ago when a team put 21 points on the opposing team, they usually won…..seems like now they’re just going to halftime!
Well, after a crazy weekend of high school football last week our total number of undefeated teams in the state dropped from 16 to just 11. Tasting defeat for the first time this season was South Charleston, Jefferson, Mingo Central, Williamstown and Meadow Bridge. This weekend, we may see a few more bite the dust. Looking ahead, there are once again some very promising games across West Virginia. In Class AAA, the high scoring Capital Cougars will take on another tough team from the Mountain State Athletic Conference this Friday night as the Huntington Highlanders pay a visit to University of Charleston Stadium. Head Coach Billy Seals and crew are currrently 2-2 with tough losses to Spring Valley by one point and Cabell Midland by just five. Last year, Huntington defeated Capital 24-10. Also in Class AAA, the undefeated Knights of Cabell Midland will hit the highway and travel to 3-1 Beckley Woodrow Wilson where the only mark so far on Coach John Lilly and the Flying Eagles this season has been to the aforementioned Highlanders of Huntington. The Flying Eagles are loaded with talent this season and have been led by Seniors Brent Osborne, Troy Lilly and Ronald Blanks, Jr.! Speaking of Osborne, the senior quarterback has accounted for 100 of Beckley’s 140 points this season. He has scored on 13 rushing touchdowns, 1 passing touchdown and has kicked 16 of 18 extra points. Another big game in Class AAA will find the Patriots of Parkersburg South traveling to Mason County to battle the undefeated Big Blacks of Point Pleasant. In Class AA this weekend, the Wayne Pioneers will welcome Class AAA power Morgantown to Pioneer Field and that should be a battle down to the final horn. Both teams are extremely talented and both are coming off impressive games. Wayne defeated Mingo Central last Friday night and they did so with starting quarterback Grant Ferguson on the sidelines because of a concussion he suffered in their loss to Point Pleasant. And even though Morgantown lost last week to Martinsburg, they played a heck of a game that saw the Mohigans leading by 11 with just a little over four minutes left in the game. In Class A, this weekend, undefeated St. Marys will hit the road after an off week and travel to Williamstown to battle the once beaten Yellow Jackets. This game will feature two of the very best teams in Class A this year.
Don’t forget to catch all the scores of all the games on our website at wvmetronews.com and be sure and tune in GAMENIGHT on Friday night!