Friday Blitz
Published 4:30 pm Thursday, November 11, 2010
The Fuqua School Falcons overcame the bruises to their bodies in the second half of last week's road contest at Hampton Christian Academy to stave off one big bruise to their ego in a 30-7 victory over HCS.
Their reward is a home contest against Greenbrier Christian as the second seed in the four-team Virginia Independent Schools Football Association Division IV Playoffs. Had Fuqua lost, this week's game may well have shifted to Chesapeake.
But, the Falcons regrouped, and scored 24 unanswered points in the second half to put a good ending on their second-consecutive 8-2 regular-season campaign.
Now, Fuqua will face an unfamiliar foe this week in Greenbrier Christian Academy. The Gators outlasted Chincoteague 7-6 last week. Greenbrier started the season 5-0, but ran into difficulty in the back half of its schedule – due in large part to the up-tick in competition, rather than an in-house issue.
The Gators are led on offense by junior tailback TJ Reynard, who is averaging a little over 100 yards per game. He scored all but three of his team-high 14 touchdowns in the first five games of the season, and before last week's 160-yard performance, was held under 100-yards in four-straight contests.
Junior quarterback Nick Jesse has proven to be able to pass the ball enough to keep defenses honest. He's 34-72 on the season for 44 yards, and was 3-5 for 19 yards in last week's game against Chincoteague. He has two scoring throws on the season. As a team, the Gators average 18.9 points per game, while giving up a respectable 20.8 ppg.
Fuqua got 151 yards and three touchdowns from junior quarterback Charles Williams, who suffered a thigh bruise in the first half, but worked it out well enough in the intermission to score two of his three touchdowns in the second half.
The Falcons got two touchdowns from Carter Cunningham (one on a 50-yard interception return, and the other on the offensive end). Cunningham and Williams alternated at the quarterback position – something that worked well in the Falcons' 50-44 loss to Hampton Roads Academy two weeks ago. Expect the two to continue to switch out in order to switch things up, and to rest tailback Larry Haskins if needed. Fuqua is averaging 37.4 points per game, while giving up 19.5 ppg.
Williams leads the Falcons with 1,678 yards on the season on just 117 carries (167.7 per game and a whopping 14.3 yards per carry). He has accounted for 26 rushing touchdowns, and 36 overall, combining rushing, passing, defense and special teams.
This time of year, games come down to which team is able to tough through the injuries. On paper it looks like the Falcons should be in good position to move on to a VISFA D-IV State Championship rematch against Blessed Sacrament-Huguenot, but nothing is a given in the playoffs. A high-scoring game will benefit the homestanding Falcons.
Radio: WVHL 92.9 FM/www.wvhl.net
Friday's Senior Night contest against Central of Lunenburg is critical for the Buckingham Knights if they want a deep run into the playoffs. Buckingham is already in the four-team Region B, Division 2 field, but the Knights can finish anywhere from second to fourth. They would like to host a first-round game next Friday, and, perhaps more importantly, they'd like to put off a potential meeting with Region B front-runner Gretna until the second week of the playoffs.
To ensure a home game, Buckingham will need to win Friday, and will need help from Madison County, which will travel to Clarke County Friday. A Clarke victory would likely give it enough points to edge Buckingham for the second spot, but it's going to be close.
Central didn't do Buckingham any favors last week, when the Chargers lost 9-7 to Randolph-Henry. Central's loss, combined with Buckingham's loss to Amelia ensured that the Knights can finish no higher than second in the James River District standings. Should Central defeat Buckingham, the Chargers will claim the JRD title, based on its head-to-head victory over Amelia. Should Buckingham win, Amelia (which faces Charles City in a non-district contest Friday) will win the league, based on last Friday's game.
The Chargers are still alive for a Region B, Division 1 playoff berth through the JRD title, but would really need some assistance with a loss.
Central's only score in last week's loss came on a 21-yard run by Brandon Townsend early in the game. From there, the Statesmen, who lost 50-14 to BCHS three weeks ago, were able to frustrate the Chargers and pull the upset with a late score.
Buckingham turned the ball over three times and gave up two punt returns for touchdowns in last week's loss to Amelia. The BCHS defense held Amelia tailback Tyrell Banks in check, with the exception of a 67-yard touchdown run, though Banks was the one that did score on the two punt returns.
Both scores came as a result of low-driving punts – a result of punting out of less than stellar field position. Senior punter Michael Layman has a number of punts downed inside his opponents' ten-yard-line. Buckingham's ability to put Layman in a position to boot a high kick will be critical for the Knights, should they have to punt.
Buckingham will need a big game from senior tailback Maurice Taylor, who had 204 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries in last week's loss, but the Knights have proven to be most effective when junior quarterback Tarian Ayers is able to balance out the run with the pass. Ayers was 5-19 for 58 yards and an interception (along with a rushing touchdown) last week, as BC's receivers faced a very physical Amelia secondary.
How physical both teams' defensive backs are allowed to play this week, will go a long way in deciding who comes out on top. The playoffs may not start until next week, and only one of the two teams are playing for a district title, but expect a late-round playoff atmosphere in Buckingham this Friday. Nothing will come easy for either team.
Radio: none
Randolph-Henry played the role of the spoiler to a tee in last week's 9-7 victory over Central of Lunenburg. Not only did the Statesmen thwart Central's chances at a JRD Title for at least a week, but they also knocked Buckingham out of the district title hunt.
No longer playing as a spoiler, the Statesmen can now focus on a winning campaign. Meanwhile, Cumberland, after a bye week, is hoping to salvage a disappointing season that fell short of expectations.
Nothing can be done about that now, but the Dukes, who are relatively young in several critical spots, can give themselves something to build on heading into the offseason with a home victory over the Statesmen.
A number of starters who were injured over the last couple of weeks should return to the lineup for Senior Night, including the quarterback/receiver combination of Devonte Booker and Rashawn Sims. Cumberland was forced to become one-dimensional with Sims on the sideline, and unfortunately for the Dukes, the remaining dimension was toward a running game that could never gain enough traction, though it did show signs of improvement over the last few weeks.
That could wind up turning into a blessing moving forward for the Dukes, who are looking to avoid their first winless JRD campaign since the 2000 season. Both teams have played well in spots over the season, but haven't proven to be consistent enough to qualify for the postseason.
When two teams are playing out the string, it's hard to get a trend on which team will have an advantage. Based on last week's performance, the first thought would go to the Statesmen, but did they play their Super Bowl last week? Did the week off give Cumberland enough motivation to leave the field for the final time in 2010 with a victory in hand. Or was the sound of bouncing orange rubber balls too great to focus on the task still at hand?
When it comes down to it, both teams have put too much into the season since practices began in the 100-degree August heat. Expect both teams to put basketball off until Monday, and expect a closely-played contest that has a lot more on the line than a district title or a playoff berth. Both are playing for pride.
Radio: WFLO 95.7 FM
Randolph-Macon @ Hampden-Sydney 1 p.m., Everett Stadium, Hampden-Sydney
For the 116th time, the Hampden-Sydney Tigers will face Randolph-Macon in what's known as the “South's Oldest Small-College Rivalry,” or just simply, “The Game.”
Contrary to what was thought in August, the traditional season-finale will not be what decides the Old Dominion Athletic Conference championship. Washington & Lee sewed that up last week. However, the Tigers are still playing for one of seven available Pool C (at-large) spots to the Division III Playoffs.
Randolph-Macon's loss to Bridgewater last week, eliminated the Jackets from playoff contention, but they can still get a good consolation prize by eliminating the Tigers from the postseason conversation.
Hampden-Sydney suffered its first regular-season loss since losing to the Jackets in 1998 last week at W&L. The Tigers fell 38-27, and also fell out of the two Division III National Polls. Even with the demotion, the Tigers managed to be the top team among “others receiving votes,” so a victory over a 7-2 Randolph-Macon team should put them back among the top-25, and in the running for a playoff berth.
None of that matters, when Randolph-Macon is in the opponent's locker room. Bragging rights carry a lot of weight among the program, and a playoff appearance is just the icing on the cake.
It will be “Senior Day” at Everett Stadium. Twenty Tigers will play their final regular-season game for the Tigers. They have accounted for 35 victories over their four years, to become the winningest class in school history, ahead of the 1970-73 class, which won 34 games.
To get a victory, the Tigers will again have to concentrate on taking care of the football. Quarterback Travis Lane was 29-52 on the afternoon for 295 yards and three touchdowns, but threw four interceptions, as the Tigers squandered an early lead against the deliberate rushing attack of the Generals.
Randolph-Macon's offense is more conventional, but interceptions was what kept the Yellow Jackets in last year's 34-27 H-SC victory in Ashland. If H-SC can keep its turnover count to two, the Tigers should have a good shot at winning their 60th game in the historic series (H-SC leads the all-time series 59-45-11).
Radio: WFLO 95.7 FM/www.hsc.edu/athletics
