Finally – the chaos is over. It’s been a long couple of weeks for the teams involved, but we will finally have a 2010 Class AAA state high school football champion on Saturday night. So, let’s look at the matchup between the Brooke Bruins and Martinsburg Bulldogs.
MARTINSBURG
RECORD: 13-0
RANKING: 2
LAST CHAMPIONSHIP APPEARANCE: 2006 (34-6 loss to Parkersburg)
PREVIOUS CHAMPIONSHIP GAME APPEARANCES: 4 (2001, 2003, 2004, 2006)
STATE TITLES: 0
THIS YEAR’S ROAD TO WHEELING:
ROUND ONE – Defeated No. 15 Lewis County 54-0
QUARTERFINALS – Defeated No. 7 Bridgeport 31-7
SEMIFINALS – Defeated No. 3 Morgantown 24-10
Martinsburg spent last week practicing, but not knowing what team it should be practicing for. The Bulldogs clearly got the short end of the stick when it came to all the court rulings surrounding which team it would be facing – they were thrown into the middle of a situation they had absolutely nothing to do with. Regardless, it’ll be interesting to see how the Bulldogs come out on Saturday – will they be able to use some of that frustration that’s undoubtedly built up over the past week to set the tone early?
Looking at the season for Martinsburg, the Bulldogs breezed through the second half of their schedule after several early tough tests in the regular season. In the playoffs, quarterback Brandon Ashenfelter, receiver Cedric Brown and running back David Gladden have provided a solid offensive balance to get the Bulldogs back to the state title game. In the semifinals against Morgantown, Martinsburg blocked two punts – one of those was returned for a touchdown. The Bulldogs will be looking for their first ever state football championship this week.
BROOKE
RECORD: 11-2
RANKING: 8
LAST CHAMPIONSHIP APPEARANCE: 2009 (28-7 loss to South Charleston)
PREVIOUS TITLE GAMES: 8 (1980, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1989, 1990, 1992, 2009)
STATE TITLES: 3 (1985, 1987, 1990)
THIS YEAR’S ROAD TO WHEELING:
ROUND ONE – Defeated No. 9 Nicholas County 49-13
QUARTERFINALS – Defeated No. 1 George Washington 28-21
SEMIFINALS – Advanced into title game with a South Charleston forfeit following the Black Eagles’ use of suspended players by the WVSSAC.
The Bruins are back in the Class AAA state title game for the second year in a row. Last year, Brooke fell in the state championship to South Charleston 28-7. This year, the Bruins finished up the regular season with an 8-2 record, becoming a dangerous No. 8 seed.
And with all the drama the South Charleston situation, what the Brooke did in the quarterfinals against top seed and previously undefeated George Washington has kind of been pushed to the side. In that contest, the Bruins stormed back in the second half to knock off GW 28-21 after trailing by 14 at the break. Overall, Brooke forced seven turnovers in that quarterfinal win – five of them coming in the second half.
Offensively, the Bruins are led by Ian Morris and Ryan Lazear – the two combined for 217 rushing yards in that win over GW.
Brooke and Martinsburg do have two common opponents on the year – Musselman and Morgantown. The Bruins defeated Musselman 49-21 on November 5th. Martinsburg, meanwhile, knocked off Musselman 35-14 on October 29th.
Looking at the matchup with Morgantown, Brooke fell to the Mohigans 44-20 while Martinsburg defeated Morgantown in the semifinals 24-10.
Kickoff on Saturday night is set for 7:00.