The varsity football teams for Prince Edward County High School and Fuqua School produced regular season performances this year that have put them where they are now — in the playoffs. Both teams will be on the road Friday with kickoffs scheduled for 7 p.m.

No. 13 Prince Edward (5-5) at No. 5 East Rockingham (7-3)

The Prince Edward Eagles return to the postseason after having been there last in 2014 when they took on eventual state runner-up Wilson Memorial High School and lost 49-0.

“That was a new experience for a lot of us, and I want to say we’re better prepared (this year),” Prince Edward Head Coach James Ford said.

He noted prep has been going well for an East Rockingham Eagles team that has looked impressive on film.

“They’re a very good football team,” he said. “They’re really well-coached.”

They have only three losses, but one of them came against Stuarts Draft High School, the top-ranked team in the region and fellow member of the Shenandoah District.

Ford said East Rockingham favors the passing game on offense.

“They’ve got a really good quarterback; he’s a four-year starter,” he said, referring to senior Jaylen McNair.

McNair has a strong receiving corps to work with, featuring senior Javon Butler, senior Logan Comer and junior Chris Rogers.

“You could tell that they’re very well-versed in what they’re doing throwing the football,” Ford said. “And then again, that doesn’t take away from their running game, because they’ve got three good tailbacks who can all run the ball, and the quarterback runs the ball very well also.”

On defense, East Rockingham is quite solid and assignment sound, Ford said.

Prince Edward has been cultivating a postseason focus, putting behind it last week’s 34-28 upset loss to Buckingham County High School.

“I think we’ve been trying to get dialed in, trying to get a sense of urgency about us because we realize this is a one-game season now,” Ford said.

Players who have been playing through minor injuries are getting healthy, and starting senior left tackle Isaiah Marshall, who has been out for several weeks, hopes to return in the postseason.

No. 3 Fuqua (6-3) vs. No. 2 Roanoke Catholic (8-1)

The Falcons finished their regular season strong, with 20- and 36-point victories, but now they must take on the team that handed them their biggest loss of the year — a 43-point defeat on Oct. 10.

“They’re a good team,” Fuqua Head Coach Ben Manis said of the Celtics. “They’re probably the best team in our division.”

The Celtics are known for their remarkable proficiency at the Delaware Wing-T offense, which translates into a strong running game.

“They’re probably one of the better teams at it,” Manis said. “They’ve always been pretty good up front as far as offensive/defensive linemen, but I can tell you they probably have some of the better skill kids now than they’ve ever had in the past.”

He noted Roanoke Catholic has a fullback and a left side wing back who are probably its two best running backs and who gave the Falcons a tremendous amount of trouble Oct. 10.

The Delaware Wing-T features lots of misdirection, which means opposing defenses need to be disciplined and have defenders who focus on and stick to specific assignments.

“They’re much better trying to trick you than they are trying to run right at you,” Manis said of the Celtics.

The key will be taking away their top two or three plays, he said.

They like to use plays like the buck sweep and also the criss cross, which features more than one handoff before the final runner is revealed, and it can be difficult determining where the football is headed.

“They usually pull it out late in the game,” Manis said of the criss cross.

And Fuqua’s defense cannot afford to forget about the passing game.

“They probably run 85 or 90 percent of the time, and when they do pass, everybody’s so sucked up into the run game that there seems to be somebody always open,” Manis said. “Just because of how well they run the ball, you kind of have to pack the box to stop it.”

For the Falcons to avoid another blowout loss, he said they need to play their game. In the prior meeting, Roanoke Catholic had jumped to a 21-0 lead before the Fuqua offense had even started driving downfield.

The Falcons will have to face the Celtics this time without star senior quarterback Devin Allen, who has been sidedlined by an ankle injury.

Junior Billy French will look for opportunities the defense gives to pass, while possibly senior Ed Newman and some other players will also spend some time behind center.

“We’re a little bit banged up, a little bit beat up from a long season, but we’ve got the kids we’ve got, and we’re going to work them,” Manis said. “They seem to be kind of getting the grasp of what we want to do this time.”

The game will be played at Vineyard Park, which Manis described as “a kind of a mud bowl.”