The Class AA state title game features a couple of teams that have grown accustomed to facing each other in the Cardinal Conference as No. 1 Pt. Pleasant (13-0) faces No. 6 Wayne (11-2) on Friday night.
Pt. Pleasant has won two straight in the series, including a 16-14 win this year back on September 30th. It was a loss that sent a spark into the Pioneers as Wayne went on to win eight straight – their lowest offensive point total since that loss to Pt. Pleasant was a 38 point showing in the quarterfinals of the playoffs against Keyser.
“There’s no greater learning tool than looking at the end of the game at the scoreboard and you see what mistakes do,” said Wayne head coach Tom Harmon. “You’d like to win and learn, but it’s certainly a slap in the face and a reality check (after a loss).”
Harmon, meanwhile, says overall things have simply come together for his team following those two early season losses – the other setback coming to Chesapeake, Ohio 14-8.
“I think we’ve been somewhat of a work in progress and I think as our experienced guys got used to the positions they were playing, the new guys got their feet on the ground good, we’ve been playing some pretty good football,” Harmon said. “It’s been a work in progress and we’ve played some decent teams over the year. And as this playoff run has gone along, I think we’ve played some pretty good football.”
And they certainly have – in the semifinals, Wayne pounded No. 2 Shady Spring 52-9, holding the Tigers to just 61 first half yards and 169 yards for the game. The Pioneers were led by junior running back Brandon Spurlock in the game who had 114 yards in the first half and four touchdowns – he didn’t play in the second half as his team held a 36-3 lead at the break.
While his team has been on a roll of late, Harmon says they can’t get overcome with too much confidence or too much emotion on Friday.
“(We have to) relax and not let the environment overcome us,” he said. “We need to make sure we understand the things that got us there and why we’ve played football –don’t need to do a whole lot more than that, just keep your emotions in check, know what your assignments are and play aggressive.”
The Pioneers, meanwhile, have made frequent trips to the state title game – Friday’s game will be Wayne’s fifth trip to the championship in Class AA since 2000. The Pioneers won the state title back in 2006, defeating Tolsia 33-6.
For Pt. Pleasant, however, postseason success on the football field has been limited – the Big Blacks’ opening round playoff win over Ritchie County earlier this year was the school’s first playoff win since 1979.
“A lot of times in the past, especially when we were AAA, our kids were just tickled to death to be in the playoffs,” said Pt. Pleasant head coach Dave Darst.
The Big Blacks fell in the first round of the playoffs a year ago, losing to Roane County 33-28. It was a loss that Darst said actually did his team a lot of good.
“Our kids were saying this is not fun – it’s not fun to go to the playoffs if we’re not going to do something,” Darst said. “We said, ‘alright guys, here’s what we have to do.’ The offseason was tremendous for us in the weight room – we had to run them out.”
Pt. Pleasant is led on the year by senior quarterback Eric Roberts – he had his lowest yardage total of the year, however, in the semifinal win over Chapmanville, but still threw for two touchdowns. A bulk of Pt. Pleasant’s offense in that win, meanwhile, came from sophomore running back Teran Barnitz who finished with 107 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries.
“We’ve been blessed to have some young kids that were right there on the edge of being a good football player step in,” Darst said.
Friday night’s game will kickoff at 7:30 from Wheeling Island Stadium. The two teams, meanwhile, are tied in the all-time series against each other 8-8-1.