Hard to believe, but we have reached the final week of the regular season for the 2016 high school football campaign! And, after the dust settles this weekend, then and only then will we have a complete and accurate list of the top 16 teams in each classification that will be moving on into tournament play.
This final weekend shows 48 games left to be played and 23 teams will be idle having wrapped up regular season play for 2016. We will take a look at some of the key games in just a moment, but first let’s look back on what happened last week! Entering play in week #10 we had 19 teams that had already clinched a spot in the first round of the playoffs. There were 7 in Class AAA…..7 in Class AA and 5 in Class A. Entering play last week, we also had 26 teams that were in control of their own fate as to whether they made the playoffs or not. We had 9 teams in Class AAA…..9 teams in Class AA and 8 teams in Class A going into play last week knowing if they won out they would be in the playoffs starting next week. However, that did not happen for a lot of those teams that were in control. Of the 9 teams in Class AAA that were in control, 5 of them lost. In Class AA, only 2 of the 9 in control were defeated and in Class A, of the 8 teams in control only 2 lost last week.
So, as we head into the final week of play, once again several teams will make the playoffs for certain IF they win! Let’s take a look at some key games coming up this final weekend of play:
In Class AAA, a big game will find (6-3) George Washington at (7-2) Capital. The Patriots upended a good Hurricane program last Friday night by a final score of 35-2 and for George Washington, that marked their 5th straight victory. Also in Class AAA this weekend, the Princeton Tigers will take their (5-4) record on the road to face a very talented and undefeated Class AA team in the Point Pleasant Big Blacks. A win by Princeton would guarantee a spot in next week’s playoff round.
In Class AA, (6-3) Liberty Harrison will look to pick up win number seven when they host the Bearcats of Grafton. Grafton needs a win just to finish the year at (5-5) and Liberty needs the points the win would bring. The Huskies of North Marion will try to get back in the playoff picture as they hit the road to battle the Lincoln Cougars. Lincoln will be looking to notch win #8 of what has been a very good season so far!
In Class A, East Hardy will try to complete a perfect (10-0) season when they welcome Class AA Petersburg. The Vikings have proven to be a very tough out as they will bring an impressive (6-3) mark to town and will be looking for a playoff berth themselves. Also in the small schools division, Williamstown will hope to finish on a high note as they take their (7-2) record on the road and make their way to Tolsia to take on a very talented (7-1) Rebel squad.
There are several important games being played this weekend so try to pick one out and be in attendance. And then after the games, turn on High School GAMENIGHT for all the scores and a look at the playoff brackets! Don’t forget all the info can also be found at wvmetronews.com!
Talk to you Friday night!