VIENNA, W.Va. — The state’s premier football program heads to University of Charleston Stadium on Friday in search of their 12th state championship. All of Martinsburg’s previous 11 titles have been won since 2010. This year started off different than most as the Bulldogs dropped their first two games, losing consecutive contests for the first time in a decade. Those losses came to state heavyweight Huntington and New Jersey state finalist Camden. 10-time state champion head coach Dave Walker saw a shift after the team’s slow start.
“We weren’t happy with our work that we put in in August,” Walker said. “We felt like we just didn’t practice well. I don’t know if coaches don’t talk enough about practice. But that is really the secret to success.
“Starting out 0-2 and kind of looking in the mirror and saying, ‘You know what, it doesn’t matter what happened in the past. This is a new year’. Our guys, their effort and their attitude got a lot better.”
Once again, the Bulldogs will bring a deep and talented roster to the title game as they seek a third consecutive title. Junior Boston Todd has accounted for 1,547 yards from scrimmage and 24 touchdowns. Sophomore Kevin Myers and junior Kingston McDonald-Gibson have formed a formidable running back combo. They have totaled 1,438 yards and 16 scores.
“We’ve got a 1-2 punch with [McDonald-Gibson] and Kevin Myers. Kingston was a kid who started at corner for us last year as a sophomore. He’s got really good speed. He kind of played receiver. It was one of those things where we needed to put him where we feel like we needed to get him involved. I felt like that would be a good fit for him. He’s kind of grown into it.”
After the graduation of MetroNews Player of the Year Koi Fagan, junior Brian Dick has stepped into the starting quarterback spot and he has accounted for 2,947 total yards and 41 total touchdowns.
“He is kind of a throwback-type kid. He just doesn’t say a whole lot and he just goes to work. He maybe doesn’t get the credit he deserves because he is a really good player. I am really proud of the work he has done with the way he carries himself. He really just leads by example.”
In their sixth year under head coach Sean Biser, the Mohigans have increased their win total in each of the last five seasons. Biser says players in previous classes have been integral in building the program to where it currently stands.
“We have challenged each team and they have left it better than they have found it,” Biser said. “I think that is kind of a building process. It involves those guys too, not just the guys on this team. This is what we have been working towards, for sure.”
Following Morgantown’s semifinal win over Jefferson to secure their first spot in a title game since 2005, Biser says the team’s celebration was pretty short.
“I told them at the end that we have about 30 seconds to enjoy this victory and then we need to get ready to play the next one,” Biser said. “We’ve got a huge challenge set in front of us. I think they understand and we talked about that. This was not the end-all game. There’s a lot of pressure to make it to the final game. It is just one step on where we want to go.”
Sophomore signal caller and Division I prospect Maddox Twigg has accounted for 3,086 total yards and 41 total touchdowns this season, with 15 of those coming in three playoff games.
“We knew he was going to grow in the offense,” Biser said. “We knew he was going to get better as the season went on. He has really stepped up and really took on the role as a leader. When they are on the field, the kids look at him and they know we have a chance when he is back there.”
A host of skill players have emerged for the Mohigans throughout the course of the season.
“We kind of knew we had Carter Cooper coming back. Jayden Smalls hadn’t really done a lot the year before. So he has really improved and stepped up. Then there’s other guys that have played huge roles and made plays — Owen Young and Tanzer George have really made some plays along the way. And then Isaiah Thompson has been really steady at running back. And we have Zaiden Lockett back there as well.”
Morgantown is looking to avenge their lone loss of the season. On October 10th, the Bulldogs defeated the Mohigans, 34-6.
“Sean does a great job and their kids play hard. They are very well-coached,” Walker said. “The score was a little misleading when we played last time. They have gotten better and they are healthy. I think they were banged up when we played them the first time. I think it is going to be a great game.”
“We’ve got to play a clean game. We can’t be on the five-yard line or the one-yard line and have a false start and things like that,” Biser said. “You can’t do that against those guys. They are too well-coached. And they are too good athletically to put yourself behind the chains. We’ve got to do that, number one. We’ve got to tackle well and do a little bit better job tackling than we did the first time.”