MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — There haven’t been many competitive games for Bridgeport or Herbert Hoover en route to their meeting in the Class AAA championship game (Noon Saturday on the MetroNews TV App). The Indians have won each of their 13 games by 28 points or more. The Huskies have won 11 of their 13 games by at least two touchdowns.
No. 4 Herbert Hoover (13-0) is two years removed from playing in the Class AA final, when they fell to Independence.
“We’re so proud of our kids and we’re excited for our school and our community to have this experience,” said Herbert Hoover head coach Joey Fields. “We were here two years ago. We want to play a little better than the last time we were here and give ourselves a chance to win. I think we’ve got the right guys in the locker room that are preparing each day to do that.”
The Huskies entered the season with some well-known skill players but their biggest improvement throughout the year has come up front on their offensive line. That group will face the ultimate test Saturday against a Bridgeport defensive front that allows just 44.7 rushing yards per game.
“Football is about this, and it is very simple — it is about blocking, tackling and getting off blocks. It is about winning the line of scrimmage. That’s a tall task when you are playing the Indians. That’s got to be the main focus.
“Those are guys you would want taking your daughter to prom. Maybe you want your son to be like them. Those are good kids from tackle to tackle, and the other kids we play there as well.”
In quarterback Dane Hatfield’s four-year tenure leading the Herbert Hoover offense, the Huskies have advanced to the state finals twice and posted two perfect regular seasons. This season, Hatfield has passed for 1,727 yards with 16 touchdowns. He has also rushed for 2.093 yards and 37 scores while averaging 20 rushing attempts per game.
“We are going to get our best football players the ball with our best plays. That’s our guy and we feel comfortable with that. He’s a tough kid. There’s a lot of quarterbacks that have talent but there’s no one tougher than that kid that I have been around in 16 years of high school football.”
Perhaps the biggest year-to-year improvement for No. 3 Bridgeport (13-0) this fall has come on the back end of their defense. Facing a number of pass-heavy offenses, the Indians are yielding just 114 passing yards per game, down from 168 yards per game in 2023.
“It has been humongous,” said Bridgeport head coach Tyler Phares. “It has allowed us to do more things up front. It has allowed us to play freer up front because a lot of times, we were trying to help those guys as much as we can. Coach (Casey) Stewart, Coach (Chase) Moore and all of those guys have done a fantastic job with Coach (Sean) Snider getting our secondary playing at a very high level right now.”
Herbert Hoover’s offense averages 45.4 points per game and Phares says a good mix of talent and schematics allow for their success.
“Their quarterback Dane Hatfield is a very, very solid player,” Phares said. “Their scheme is very good and it is very sound. They are going to attack you where you are not lined up well or where they see a weakness.”
Buoyed by a deep and talented offensive line, backs Josh Love, Alex Moses, Tim Jeffress and Jack Spatafore have combined for 3,673 rushing yards and 75 touchdowns.
“That’s the goal of the offense,” Phares said. “You want to be able to get the ball to multiple kids. And then when you’ve got other kids that are standing on the sideline that can come in and give you a boost too, that’s huge. We’re running four or five backs right now that can all carry the football for us.”
With an average victory margin of nearly fifty points per game, Phares has noticed a constant search for individual and collective improvement throughout the roster.
“It is just the expectations of the program,” Phares said. “The kids know we are always looking to get better no matter what facet of the game it is or what the situation is.
“You only have so much time to play high school football. So you don’t want to waste any of it.”