Some really big matchups all across the board this weekend in Virginia High School Football as we unofficially start the second half of the season following the VHSL's first release of power ratings. Crazy thing on this October 15th date, it's still 81 degrees outside my house in Virginia Beach. Go figure! That means two weeks from now, it'll dip into low 40's. Pretty much how it goes, right?
Before we tackle these matchups, let's review the Picks battle between yours truly and my ESPN Radio 94.1 Saturday morning co-host, Coach Ed Young...
Both Matt Hatfield and Coach Ed Young proved victorious on their Thursday night '757' flavor picks as Woodside beat Bethel 21-7 and Warhill edged Poquoson 14-13.
Here's an update on how things stand for the season...
Hatfield's Thursday Night 10/14/21 Total: 2-0 (100%)
Hatfield's Tidewater Season Total: 115-21 (84.6%)
Hatfield's Season Total: 193-43 (81.8%)
Coach Young's Thursday Night 10/14/21 Total: 2-0 (100%)
Coach Young's Tidewater Season Total: 109-27 (80.1%)
Now on to the action for the weekend of Oct. 15-16, 2021...
Game of the Week:
King’s Fork (5-0) at Oscar Smith (4-1) . . . Hard to believe that the only unbeaten team in the Southeastern District at this stage of the football season is not Oscar Smith and someone else. That somebody else is King’s Fork, coached by former Tigers assistant Anthony Joffrion. Not only did Joffrion play at Ocean Lakes for current Oscar Smith Head Coach Chris Scott, but he was also on the King’s Fork staff when the Bulldogs stunned Oscar Smith – 29-13 – back in 2007 to halt a 99-game Southeastern District winning streak by the Tigers.
Even though King’s Fork got hit for 16 points by Deep Creek in last week’s 15-point triumph, consider a couple of things about how strong they’ve been on the defensive side of the ball. The week before, Deep Creek scored 73 on Lakeland. For the year, King’s Fork is giving up just 5.4 PPG and that includes holding a 6-1 Western Branch team that’s averaging four touchdowns a contest out of the end zone. A total of 11 different King’s Fork defenders have made a stop behind the line of scrimmage, none more influential than Virginia Tech commit Kyree Moyston (37 tackles, 16 TFL, 9 sacks) and Tavias Higgs (20 stops, 8 TFL, 6 sacks).
In addition to Moyston and Higgs, the Oscar Smith offensive line will have to be able to block Bravion Campbell and Jason Cole, who together have 77 total stops, 10 for loss and five sacks. If stalwart center Maarten Woudsma is not back from injury for the Tigers, it could require them going to some formation looks with an extra blocker and relying on a run game that is producing very well this year behind Kevon King (47Car. 604Yds. 13 TD’s). It wouldn’t even be a surprise to see Smith incorporate one of their shifty receivers and possibly even four-star DB Sherrod Covil, a Clemson recruit, into the game-plan to run the ball on occasion.
After a remarkable junior year where he completed nearly 73% of his passes for 1739 yards and a 25-0 TD/Int. ratio during an abbreviated campaign, Tigers QB and ODU commit Ethan Vasko has almost tailed off from his torrid pace a season ago. So far, he’s completed 47 of 88 passes for 844 yards with an 8-1 TD/Int. ratio, not locking into just one wideout and spraying it around, often finding Amonte Jones and Jamauri ‘Bam’ Knox. Of course, Vasko’s mobility is a weapon as well. Over the previous two seasons combined, he ran for 1066 yards and 16 TD’s.
To me, King’s Fork’s chances come down to a couple of things. One, can their secondary hold up when the Tigers go for that big strike off play-action and get off the field on third or even fourth down? Oscar Smith stays aggressive, and while the Bulldogs have a legit pass rush, they don’t want to get caught being over aggressive and playing into the Tigers’ hands.
On offense, the Bulldogs have to finish drives. The trio of junior QB Cameron Butler (29 of 41 for 570Yds. 7-1 TD/Int. ratio; 34Car. 345Yds. 4 TD’s), freshman RB Javon Ford (52Car. 410Yds. 3 TD’s) and junior WR Kaletri Boyd (10Rec. 260Yds. 4 TD’s) pace their attack that’s putting up 30.6 PPG. That’s still over 10 PPG fewer than a Tigers team that suffered a shutout loss to an out-of-state foe.
There’s no mistaking how purely dominant the Oscar Smith defense has been under Scott. Since his arrival in 2019, the Tigers have shut out 12 of the 20 Southeastern District opponents that they’ve faced. So while they did give up 49 points to St. John Bosco Prep of California earlier this season in a running clock loss where they were torched for 383 passing yards by three different quarterbacks, that was against a nationally-ranked foe of a different caliber. This Tigers defense knows how to deliver in big spots, and this is one where all three levels, particularly that secondary headed up by Covil and Brown, should be up for the challenge.
Matt Hatfield Says – Oscar Smith 30-13
Coach Ed Young Says – Oscar Smith 28-14
Other Matchups to Watch Around VA:
Liberty Christian (5-0) at Heritage-Lynchburg (5-1) . . . This game has everything you’d want from two Seminole District heavyweights, who might run into each other again come playoff time. After all, it was LCA winning 30-14 in the postseason in the spring on their way to reaching the State Semis, whereas Heritage prevailed 20-7 in November of 2019 in a regular season clash. Brad Bradley’s Pioneers have had some real tough battles with E.C. Glass, Rustburg and most recently outlasted Brookville 30-23 in double-overtime. They’ve overcome some injuries and still found a way to win, showing major progress from 52-12 drubbing at the hands of Dinwiddie in early September.
Liberty Christian has been absolutely dominant all year long and Frank Rocco’s Bulldogs handled Brookville 35-7 in one of their closer games this year. While UVA commit Davis Lane at QB (480 pass yards, 6-0 TD/Int. ratio) isn’t putting up quite the aerial numbers that Heritage’s Kameron Burns (52 of 77 for 801Yds. 5-6 TD/Int. ratio) is, he’s a threat to run and has a massive offensive line in front of him, led by five-star OT Zach Rice.
Rajan Booker and Zach Steele (92Att. 640Yds. 8 TD’s) give the Pioneers a fine 1-2 punch on the ground. LCA counters with a host of guys who can run or catch the ball with one of the more dynamic threats being Jaylin Belford (36Car. 379Yds. 6 TD’s; 14Rec. 221Yds. TD). Tight end Dillon Stowers, an Army commit, will test the middle of the Heritage defense.
A key takeaway in the second half and whichever team holds up better against the run is the one that should hold the upper hand by game’s end.
Matt Hatfield Says – Liberty Christian 42-28
Green Run (6-0) at Bayside (5-1) . . . There’s no question that the story of the Beach District this year has been Green Run, which is humming offensively at 41 points per game and a win away from matching first 7-0 start since 2008. Brandon Williams’ Stallions have been simply lethal passing the football, thanks to the sterling play of QB Xavier Davis (86 of 123 for 1573Yds. 23-0 TD/Int. ratio) and his cast of big-play receivers that feature UNC commit Tayon Holloway (30Rec. 351Yds. 10 TD’s), Keylen ‘Brodie’ Adams (23Rec. 460Yds. 7 TD’s) and Tasean Young-Stieff (14Rec. 250Yds. 4 TD’s).
But somewhat lost in the Beach District conversation is how well Bayside has been playing, particularly on defense where Jon White’s Marlins are giving up just 6 PPG – that’s third best in the Hampton Roads area behind only King’s Fork (5.4 PPG allowed) and Phoebus (4.2 PPG allowed), two undefeated teams. Their lone loss came to Cox, 17-13 back on September 10th, in a contest where the go-ahead touchdown got called back late on a penalty and the Marlins fell despite out-gaining the opposition 256-124. Furthermore, one of the four touchdowns scored on Bayside this year came via special teams by Tallwood a week ago, and the Marlins have yet to allow a TD in either the first quarter or third period all season.
To have any chance at winning this game, the Bayside defense must create turnovers and generate points off of them. Ten different players for the Bayside defense have come up with a takeaway and of their 18 takeaways, DB Rahsaan Arzola leads the way with four interceptions. DE Javontay Martin and DB’s Leon Griffin III and Jalen Miller all have scored a defensive touchdown this season for the Marlins. Green Run will want to take pressure off of Davis and the passing game by establishing their running game with Sammy Wiggins (57Att. 381Yds. 2 TD’s) against a tough front allowing just 40.7 yards rushing per game and 1.4 yards per attempt.
With a prolific offense, the Green Run defense may be getting slept on to an extent as the Stallions are allowing just 11 PPG and each of their secondary starters has a pick-six this year, led by Wayne Washington’s 5 INT’s. In the middle of the defense, linebackers Zakai Hall (66 tackles), Jaydon Reed (38 tackles) and SS/LB Tyler Baker (35 tackles) will look to do their part to force Bayside to be one-dimensional and rely on their passing game.
The Marlins have thrown for 220-plus yards in three of the past four games, but it’ll be important that Mike Myers (79 of 151 for 1029Yds. 11-6 TD/Int. ratio) avoids locking into one receiver and spreads the ball around to Miller, Griffin, Tajon Reese (19Rec. 338Yds. 3 TD’s) and Aaron Evans (20Rec. 273Yds. 4 TD’s). Both Kempsville, which fell to Green Run 21-13, and Ocean Lakes, which lost to the Stallions 27-12 earlier this month, kept within a score of the Beach District’s top team into the fourth quarter. Bayside knows that staying balanced offensively, controlling the clock and winning the turnover battle are vital to having a chance at prevailing. However, doing each is certainly a big ask against an explosive, high-octane team.
Matt Hatfield Says – Green Run 37-13
Coach Ed Young Says – Green Run 28-18
Lafayette (5-0) at King William (4-1) . . . This is a big matchup for Andy Linn’s reigning Class 3 State Champion Rams as they hit the road to take on a potent King William team that is one of the favorites out of Region 2A and has just one blemish this year, 13-6 to a Goochland program used to making State Playoff runs. Scott Moore’s Cavaliers have some explosive players, none maybe more than speedster and Wake Forest commit Demond Claiborne. In addition, dual-threat QB Jayveon Robinson can make things happen with his arm or feet.
King William showed what it can do when it handled Norcom 37-12 in Portsmouth. Lafayette is a different animal offensively, though, averaging 41.8 points per game. While the Rams almost always run the ball very well, their passing game continues to evolve, even without two of their better weapons from a season ago (Mike Green is now at UVA and Donald Gatling transferred to Phoebus). Jaylen Pretlow has 22 receptions for 590 yards and 11 TD’s, becoming the go-to target for QB Luke Hanson, a UVA baseball commit with 710 yards passing and 12 TD’s through the air.
The Lafayette defense, led by two-way standout in DeMarcus Lawrence (42 tackles) will definitely be tested by the King William home-run hitters in the backfield in Robinson and Claiborne as well as dependable receivers Tre Robinson and Kavontay Hayes. But the same can be said, perhaps doubly, for the King William defense. Whether the Cavaliers have enough depth and forces in the trenches to put Lafayette in binds offensively should ultimately determine the competitiveness of this matchup.
Matt Hatfield Says – Lafayette 35-22
Coach Ed Young Says – Lafayette 40-20
Marsel T. Mason Says – King William 36-24
Lake Braddock (5-1) at Robinson (6-0) . . . Full Preview from Jim McGrath Here.
Matt Hatfield Says – Robinson 41-37
South County (6-0) at West Springfield (5-1) . . . More from Jim McGrath Here.
Matt Hatfield Says – South County 35-14
Madison (5-1) at Centreville (5-1) . . . More from Jim McGrath Here.
Matt Hatfield Says – Madison 14-13
Louisa (6-1) at Western Albemarle (6-0) . . . More from Robert Edmonds Here.
Matt Hatfield Says – Louisa 25-22
Robert Edmonds Says – Western Albemarle 28-21
Heritage (3-2) at Douglas Freeman (3-1) . . . See More form Byron Jones & Danny Lewis in the Richmond Region Forecast Here.
Matt Hatfield Says – Hermitage 21-17
Danny Lewis Says – Douglas Freeman 24-17
Byron Jones – Douglas Freeman 28-24
Manchester (4-1) at Midlothian (5-0) . . . See More form Byron Jones & Danny Lewis in the Richmond Region Forecast Here.
Matt Hatfield Says – Manchester 28-13
Danny Lewis Says – Manchester 31-20
Byron Jones Says – Manchester 35-31
Hopewell (3-2) at Thomas Dale (5-1) . . . See More form Byron Jones & Danny Lewis in the Richmond Region Forecast Here.
Matt Hatfield Says – Thomas Dale 26-20
Danny Lewis Says – Thomas Dale 28-24
Byron Jones Says – Thomas Dale 35-31
Virginia High (5-0) at Graham (5-0) . . . The G-Men are enjoying their first 5-0 start since 1990, and while Derrick Patterson’s Bearcats of Virginia High are one of the best stories of the season with Stevie Thomas (825 yards, 18 TD’s rushing), this is a big step up in caliber of competition. Graham still has one of the most explosive playmakers in Xayvion Turner-Bradshaw, mammoth OT and UVA commit Brody Meadows in the trenches, plus a defense that is gaining confidence with each outing.
Matt Hatfield Says – Graham 40-24
Osbourn (5-2) at Patriot (4-2) . . .
Matt Hatfield Says – Patriot 24-21
Colonial Forge (3-3) at Mountain View (6-0) . . . Going out on a limb here because Mountain View has been the better team thus far this year, the Wildcats have RB Ike Daniels and don’t usually get tripped up at home. But this is a game that Colonial Forge absolutely needs and could be the time where they rise up to spring an upset.
Matt Hatfield Says – Colonial Forge 28-27
Rural Retreat (3-2) at Chilhowie (5-0) . . .
Matt Hatfield Says – Chilhowie 27-16
Rest of Tidewater Slate:
Princess Anne (1-3) at Cox (3-3) . . . Falcons would’ve been 4-2 if not for having to forfeit a win over First Colonial due to the usage of an ineligible player. George Ballance (57 tackles) leads a Cox defense looking for its third shutout this month.
Matt Hatfield Says – Cox 35-0
Coach Ed Young Says – Cox 30-6
Tallwood (1-5) at First Colonial (2-5) . . . Patriots QB Noah McNamara has thrown for 771 yards this year, but he’s also been picked off 13 times.
Matt Hatfield Says – Tallwood 27-7
Coach Ed Young Says – Tallwood 24-16
Landstown (0-5) at Kellam (2-4) . . . While beaten soundly by Green Run 34-7 a week ago, the Kellam offense did managed to rack up 232 total yards with 23 first downs and seven third down conversions.
Matt Hatfield Says – Kellam 15-6
Coach Ed Young Says – Kellam 22-18
Salem-VB (3-2) at Ocean Lakes (4-2) . . . The Dolphins could certainly have the Beach District’s Defensive Player of the Year in linebacker Jahleel Culbreath (50 tackles, 21 for loss), but they have given up 63 points the past two weeks in losses to Green Run and Kempsville. Meanwhile, the Salem offense was only putting up 12 PPG before last week’s eruption in a 47-8 rout of First Colonial.
Matt Hatfield Says – Salem 17-16
Coach Ed Young Says – Ocean Lakes 20-18
Norcom (0-3) at Booker T. Washington (4-1) . . . Back in April, the Bookers lost to Norcom 36-8, which happened to be the last time the Greyhounds won a game. Slowing down a BTW offense with a running back in Jerome Jones who has gone over 200 yards rushing on multiple occasions will be a tough chore for Norcom on the road.
Matt Hatfield Says – Booker T. Washington 27-12
Coach Ed Young Says – Booker T. Washington 20-20
Lake Taylor (3-3) at Churchland (4-2) . . . Both teams were beaten recently by almost identical scores by Maury; 48-13 in the case for Churchland and 48-12 in Lake Taylor’s case just two weeks earlier. The Truckers have lost 11 in a row in this head-to-head series – including the past two Region 4A Championship games – with the Titans, who last fell to Churchland by a count of 44-37 back in 2010. Keep an eye on the matchup with Truckers DB Kaleb Gallop (2 INT’s with a TD) checking Titans 6’6” sophomore WR Elijah Washington (14Rec. 187Yds. 5 TD’s).
Matt Hatfield Says – Churchland 30-28
Coach Ed Young Says – Lake Taylor 28-24
Granby (0-5) at Norview (3-3) . . . All three losses this season for Ian Rapanick’s Pilots – to Lake Taylor, Churchland and Booker T. Washington – have been by ten points or less. Only loss for Granby has been by fewer than 24 points and that was 12-7 at Manor last Friday.
Matt Hatfield Says – Norview 32-6
Coach Ed Young Says – Norview 42-0
Deep Creek (4-2) at Nansemond River (2-3) . . . Warriors QB Nolan James had three rushing touchdowns in last Saturday’s 21-20 win over Lakeland, a team that lost to Deep Creek 73-50 just eight days earlier. The Hornets also have a kicking game with Moana Gibson, who has connected on three field goals, including one from 41 yards out.
Matt Hatfield Says – Deep Creek 34-18
Coach Ed Young Says – Deep Creek 30-20
Great Bridge (0-4) at Grassfield (0-7) . . . Although the Grizzlies have been shut out on four occasions this year, two of their losses to Churchland and Hickory were by seven points or less. Furthermore, they haven’t lost to Great Bridge since 2014 in a 25-24 squeaker.
Matt Hatfield Says – Grassfield 17-7
Coach Ed Young Says – Grassfield 24-13
Indian River (2-2) at Lakeland (2-4) . . . Nine different defenders were in on 10 tackles for loss a week ago for Indian River as they nearly erased a 14-point fourth quarter deficit before getting stopped on fourth-and-goal from the 1 against Western Branch. Their defense will be expected to come up big against the Southeastern District’s leading rusher in Damarion Jordan (95Att. 850Yds. 10 TD’s) of Lakeland, which hasn’t beaten the Braves since 2012.
Matt Hatfield Says – Indian River 22-8
Coach Ed Young Says – Indian River 30-28
Western Branch (6-1) at Hickory (2-4) . . . Rather quietly, Brandon Still (28Rec. 415Yds. 3 TD’s) of Hickory has turned into one of the area’s top pass catchers. His chances may be few and far between, though, against an opportunistic Bruins secondary, led by D-1 junior corner Paul Billups and safety Kaleb Broadbent (4INT’s).
Matt Hatfield Says – Western Branch 42-10
Coach Ed Young Says – Western Branch 48-6
Menchville (2-3) at Gloucester (1-5) . . . Can the Dukes build off last week’s 42-0 shutout of Denbigh? They’ll need to get KJ Williams and Carson Smith to run the ball effectively so that Menchville’s formidable passing game with QB Kevin White Jr. (466Yds. 6-4 TD/Int. ratio) and WR Amir Harrison (10Rec. 252Yds. 4 TD’s) doesn’t take control of things.
Matt Hatfield Says – Menchville 26-16
Coach Ed Young Says – Menchville 24-20
Kecoughtan (3-2) at Phoebus (6-0) . . . Jeff Super’s Warriors still have to be sick over the fact they out-gained Bethel 169-55 a week ago and lost a sloppy game that featured 34 penalties. Phoebus takes advantage of lackluster spells, and in particular their passing game with WR’s Jalen Mayo (17Rec. 351Yds. 5 TD’s) and Kymari Gray (12Rec. 281Yds. 11 TD’s) torching defensive backfields.
Matt Hatfield Says – Phoebus 45-7
Coach Ed Young Says – Phoebus 48-6
Warwick (3-4) at Heritage-NN (0-2) . . . The Hurricanes haven’t played since September 17, due to a school shooting that has kept them sidelined the past few weeks. Warwick had its second highest offensive output of the season in a 32-30 overtime loss to Woodside last weekend. Raiders RB Bryce Buchanan (101Att. 821Yds. 7 TD’s) is eying the 1000-yard rushing plateau.
Matt Hatfield Says – Warwick 32-8
Coach Ed Young Says – Warwick 42-12
New Kent (2-4) at Grafton (1-5) . . . In last week’s 36-21 loss to York, Trojans QB Ashton Whitlow accounted for three touchdowns, including a 52-yard bomb to Ryan Gray. Those two might be able to connect against a Grafton defense allowing 37.4 PPG over the past five contests.
Matt Hatfield Says – New Kent 28-7
Coach Ed Young Says – New Kent 38-0
York (5-1) at Jamestown (1-4) . . . Does the Jamestown defense have the answer for the leading rusher in Tidewater in Jordin Lennon (108Car. 1066Yds. 16 TD’s)? Probably not, considering the Eagles are just 1-8 the last nine meetings with Doug Pereira’s Falcons. While Pereira’s been the constant for York, there have been five different Jamestown coaches during that span.
Matt Hatfield Says – York 44-15
Coach Ed Young Says – York 38-6
Tabb (1-5) at Smithfield (1-3) . . . Coach Brent Ashley of Tabb achieved his first win in a 26-0 shutout of Grafton last week. To make it two in a row, his Tigers will need to corral Packers RB Charles Spratley (43Car. 335Yds. 2 TD’s) and pass catcher Dereyon Goodwin (15Rec. 295Yds. 3 TD’s).
Matt Hatfield Says – Smithfield 20-19
Coach Ed Young Says – Smithfield 24-20
SATURDAY’S ACTION for 10/15/21:
Denbigh (0-6) at Hampton (5-1) . . . A tough Hampton defense headed up by senior linebacker Marcus Triggs gave them a chance to win in last weekend’s close 14-7 loss to Phoebus, where the Crabbers were stopped inside the 5 in the fourth quarter. They don’t face nearly as hard of a foe as Denbigh comes in having been outscored 259-7 in its five games that they’ve played (not counting the forfeit loss to Phoebus).
Matt Hatfield Says – Hampton 50-0
Coach Ed Young Says – Hampton 44-0
Before we tackle these matchups, let's review the Picks battle between yours truly and my ESPN Radio 94.1 Saturday morning co-host, Coach Ed Young...
Both Matt Hatfield and Coach Ed Young proved victorious on their Thursday night '757' flavor picks as Woodside beat Bethel 21-7 and Warhill edged Poquoson 14-13.
Here's an update on how things stand for the season...
Hatfield's Thursday Night 10/14/21 Total: 2-0 (100%)
Hatfield's Tidewater Season Total: 115-21 (84.6%)
Hatfield's Season Total: 193-43 (81.8%)
Coach Young's Thursday Night 10/14/21 Total: 2-0 (100%)
Coach Young's Tidewater Season Total: 109-27 (80.1%)
Now on to the action for the weekend of Oct. 15-16, 2021...
Game of the Week:
King’s Fork (5-0) at Oscar Smith (4-1) . . . Hard to believe that the only unbeaten team in the Southeastern District at this stage of the football season is not Oscar Smith and someone else. That somebody else is King’s Fork, coached by former Tigers assistant Anthony Joffrion. Not only did Joffrion play at Ocean Lakes for current Oscar Smith Head Coach Chris Scott, but he was also on the King’s Fork staff when the Bulldogs stunned Oscar Smith – 29-13 – back in 2007 to halt a 99-game Southeastern District winning streak by the Tigers.
Even though King’s Fork got hit for 16 points by Deep Creek in last week’s 15-point triumph, consider a couple of things about how strong they’ve been on the defensive side of the ball. The week before, Deep Creek scored 73 on Lakeland. For the year, King’s Fork is giving up just 5.4 PPG and that includes holding a 6-1 Western Branch team that’s averaging four touchdowns a contest out of the end zone. A total of 11 different King’s Fork defenders have made a stop behind the line of scrimmage, none more influential than Virginia Tech commit Kyree Moyston (37 tackles, 16 TFL, 9 sacks) and Tavias Higgs (20 stops, 8 TFL, 6 sacks).
In addition to Moyston and Higgs, the Oscar Smith offensive line will have to be able to block Bravion Campbell and Jason Cole, who together have 77 total stops, 10 for loss and five sacks. If stalwart center Maarten Woudsma is not back from injury for the Tigers, it could require them going to some formation looks with an extra blocker and relying on a run game that is producing very well this year behind Kevon King (47Car. 604Yds. 13 TD’s). It wouldn’t even be a surprise to see Smith incorporate one of their shifty receivers and possibly even four-star DB Sherrod Covil, a Clemson recruit, into the game-plan to run the ball on occasion.
After a remarkable junior year where he completed nearly 73% of his passes for 1739 yards and a 25-0 TD/Int. ratio during an abbreviated campaign, Tigers QB and ODU commit Ethan Vasko has almost tailed off from his torrid pace a season ago. So far, he’s completed 47 of 88 passes for 844 yards with an 8-1 TD/Int. ratio, not locking into just one wideout and spraying it around, often finding Amonte Jones and Jamauri ‘Bam’ Knox. Of course, Vasko’s mobility is a weapon as well. Over the previous two seasons combined, he ran for 1066 yards and 16 TD’s.
To me, King’s Fork’s chances come down to a couple of things. One, can their secondary hold up when the Tigers go for that big strike off play-action and get off the field on third or even fourth down? Oscar Smith stays aggressive, and while the Bulldogs have a legit pass rush, they don’t want to get caught being over aggressive and playing into the Tigers’ hands.
On offense, the Bulldogs have to finish drives. The trio of junior QB Cameron Butler (29 of 41 for 570Yds. 7-1 TD/Int. ratio; 34Car. 345Yds. 4 TD’s), freshman RB Javon Ford (52Car. 410Yds. 3 TD’s) and junior WR Kaletri Boyd (10Rec. 260Yds. 4 TD’s) pace their attack that’s putting up 30.6 PPG. That’s still over 10 PPG fewer than a Tigers team that suffered a shutout loss to an out-of-state foe.
There’s no mistaking how purely dominant the Oscar Smith defense has been under Scott. Since his arrival in 2019, the Tigers have shut out 12 of the 20 Southeastern District opponents that they’ve faced. So while they did give up 49 points to St. John Bosco Prep of California earlier this season in a running clock loss where they were torched for 383 passing yards by three different quarterbacks, that was against a nationally-ranked foe of a different caliber. This Tigers defense knows how to deliver in big spots, and this is one where all three levels, particularly that secondary headed up by Covil and Brown, should be up for the challenge.
Matt Hatfield Says – Oscar Smith 30-13
Coach Ed Young Says – Oscar Smith 28-14
Other Matchups to Watch Around VA:
Liberty Christian (5-0) at Heritage-Lynchburg (5-1) . . . This game has everything you’d want from two Seminole District heavyweights, who might run into each other again come playoff time. After all, it was LCA winning 30-14 in the postseason in the spring on their way to reaching the State Semis, whereas Heritage prevailed 20-7 in November of 2019 in a regular season clash. Brad Bradley’s Pioneers have had some real tough battles with E.C. Glass, Rustburg and most recently outlasted Brookville 30-23 in double-overtime. They’ve overcome some injuries and still found a way to win, showing major progress from 52-12 drubbing at the hands of Dinwiddie in early September.
Liberty Christian has been absolutely dominant all year long and Frank Rocco’s Bulldogs handled Brookville 35-7 in one of their closer games this year. While UVA commit Davis Lane at QB (480 pass yards, 6-0 TD/Int. ratio) isn’t putting up quite the aerial numbers that Heritage’s Kameron Burns (52 of 77 for 801Yds. 5-6 TD/Int. ratio) is, he’s a threat to run and has a massive offensive line in front of him, led by five-star OT Zach Rice.
Rajan Booker and Zach Steele (92Att. 640Yds. 8 TD’s) give the Pioneers a fine 1-2 punch on the ground. LCA counters with a host of guys who can run or catch the ball with one of the more dynamic threats being Jaylin Belford (36Car. 379Yds. 6 TD’s; 14Rec. 221Yds. TD). Tight end Dillon Stowers, an Army commit, will test the middle of the Heritage defense.
A key takeaway in the second half and whichever team holds up better against the run is the one that should hold the upper hand by game’s end.
Matt Hatfield Says – Liberty Christian 42-28
Green Run (6-0) at Bayside (5-1) . . . There’s no question that the story of the Beach District this year has been Green Run, which is humming offensively at 41 points per game and a win away from matching first 7-0 start since 2008. Brandon Williams’ Stallions have been simply lethal passing the football, thanks to the sterling play of QB Xavier Davis (86 of 123 for 1573Yds. 23-0 TD/Int. ratio) and his cast of big-play receivers that feature UNC commit Tayon Holloway (30Rec. 351Yds. 10 TD’s), Keylen ‘Brodie’ Adams (23Rec. 460Yds. 7 TD’s) and Tasean Young-Stieff (14Rec. 250Yds. 4 TD’s).
But somewhat lost in the Beach District conversation is how well Bayside has been playing, particularly on defense where Jon White’s Marlins are giving up just 6 PPG – that’s third best in the Hampton Roads area behind only King’s Fork (5.4 PPG allowed) and Phoebus (4.2 PPG allowed), two undefeated teams. Their lone loss came to Cox, 17-13 back on September 10th, in a contest where the go-ahead touchdown got called back late on a penalty and the Marlins fell despite out-gaining the opposition 256-124. Furthermore, one of the four touchdowns scored on Bayside this year came via special teams by Tallwood a week ago, and the Marlins have yet to allow a TD in either the first quarter or third period all season.
To have any chance at winning this game, the Bayside defense must create turnovers and generate points off of them. Ten different players for the Bayside defense have come up with a takeaway and of their 18 takeaways, DB Rahsaan Arzola leads the way with four interceptions. DE Javontay Martin and DB’s Leon Griffin III and Jalen Miller all have scored a defensive touchdown this season for the Marlins. Green Run will want to take pressure off of Davis and the passing game by establishing their running game with Sammy Wiggins (57Att. 381Yds. 2 TD’s) against a tough front allowing just 40.7 yards rushing per game and 1.4 yards per attempt.
With a prolific offense, the Green Run defense may be getting slept on to an extent as the Stallions are allowing just 11 PPG and each of their secondary starters has a pick-six this year, led by Wayne Washington’s 5 INT’s. In the middle of the defense, linebackers Zakai Hall (66 tackles), Jaydon Reed (38 tackles) and SS/LB Tyler Baker (35 tackles) will look to do their part to force Bayside to be one-dimensional and rely on their passing game.
The Marlins have thrown for 220-plus yards in three of the past four games, but it’ll be important that Mike Myers (79 of 151 for 1029Yds. 11-6 TD/Int. ratio) avoids locking into one receiver and spreads the ball around to Miller, Griffin, Tajon Reese (19Rec. 338Yds. 3 TD’s) and Aaron Evans (20Rec. 273Yds. 4 TD’s). Both Kempsville, which fell to Green Run 21-13, and Ocean Lakes, which lost to the Stallions 27-12 earlier this month, kept within a score of the Beach District’s top team into the fourth quarter. Bayside knows that staying balanced offensively, controlling the clock and winning the turnover battle are vital to having a chance at prevailing. However, doing each is certainly a big ask against an explosive, high-octane team.
Matt Hatfield Says – Green Run 37-13
Coach Ed Young Says – Green Run 28-18
Lafayette (5-0) at King William (4-1) . . . This is a big matchup for Andy Linn’s reigning Class 3 State Champion Rams as they hit the road to take on a potent King William team that is one of the favorites out of Region 2A and has just one blemish this year, 13-6 to a Goochland program used to making State Playoff runs. Scott Moore’s Cavaliers have some explosive players, none maybe more than speedster and Wake Forest commit Demond Claiborne. In addition, dual-threat QB Jayveon Robinson can make things happen with his arm or feet.
King William showed what it can do when it handled Norcom 37-12 in Portsmouth. Lafayette is a different animal offensively, though, averaging 41.8 points per game. While the Rams almost always run the ball very well, their passing game continues to evolve, even without two of their better weapons from a season ago (Mike Green is now at UVA and Donald Gatling transferred to Phoebus). Jaylen Pretlow has 22 receptions for 590 yards and 11 TD’s, becoming the go-to target for QB Luke Hanson, a UVA baseball commit with 710 yards passing and 12 TD’s through the air.
The Lafayette defense, led by two-way standout in DeMarcus Lawrence (42 tackles) will definitely be tested by the King William home-run hitters in the backfield in Robinson and Claiborne as well as dependable receivers Tre Robinson and Kavontay Hayes. But the same can be said, perhaps doubly, for the King William defense. Whether the Cavaliers have enough depth and forces in the trenches to put Lafayette in binds offensively should ultimately determine the competitiveness of this matchup.
Matt Hatfield Says – Lafayette 35-22
Coach Ed Young Says – Lafayette 40-20
Marsel T. Mason Says – King William 36-24
Lake Braddock (5-1) at Robinson (6-0) . . . Full Preview from Jim McGrath Here.
Matt Hatfield Says – Robinson 41-37
South County (6-0) at West Springfield (5-1) . . . More from Jim McGrath Here.
Matt Hatfield Says – South County 35-14
Madison (5-1) at Centreville (5-1) . . . More from Jim McGrath Here.
Matt Hatfield Says – Madison 14-13
Louisa (6-1) at Western Albemarle (6-0) . . . More from Robert Edmonds Here.
Matt Hatfield Says – Louisa 25-22
Robert Edmonds Says – Western Albemarle 28-21
Heritage (3-2) at Douglas Freeman (3-1) . . . See More form Byron Jones & Danny Lewis in the Richmond Region Forecast Here.
Matt Hatfield Says – Hermitage 21-17
Danny Lewis Says – Douglas Freeman 24-17
Byron Jones – Douglas Freeman 28-24
Manchester (4-1) at Midlothian (5-0) . . . See More form Byron Jones & Danny Lewis in the Richmond Region Forecast Here.
Matt Hatfield Says – Manchester 28-13
Danny Lewis Says – Manchester 31-20
Byron Jones Says – Manchester 35-31
Hopewell (3-2) at Thomas Dale (5-1) . . . See More form Byron Jones & Danny Lewis in the Richmond Region Forecast Here.
Matt Hatfield Says – Thomas Dale 26-20
Danny Lewis Says – Thomas Dale 28-24
Byron Jones Says – Thomas Dale 35-31
Virginia High (5-0) at Graham (5-0) . . . The G-Men are enjoying their first 5-0 start since 1990, and while Derrick Patterson’s Bearcats of Virginia High are one of the best stories of the season with Stevie Thomas (825 yards, 18 TD’s rushing), this is a big step up in caliber of competition. Graham still has one of the most explosive playmakers in Xayvion Turner-Bradshaw, mammoth OT and UVA commit Brody Meadows in the trenches, plus a defense that is gaining confidence with each outing.
Matt Hatfield Says – Graham 40-24
Osbourn (5-2) at Patriot (4-2) . . .
Matt Hatfield Says – Patriot 24-21
Colonial Forge (3-3) at Mountain View (6-0) . . . Going out on a limb here because Mountain View has been the better team thus far this year, the Wildcats have RB Ike Daniels and don’t usually get tripped up at home. But this is a game that Colonial Forge absolutely needs and could be the time where they rise up to spring an upset.
Matt Hatfield Says – Colonial Forge 28-27
Rural Retreat (3-2) at Chilhowie (5-0) . . .
Matt Hatfield Says – Chilhowie 27-16
Rest of Tidewater Slate:
Princess Anne (1-3) at Cox (3-3) . . . Falcons would’ve been 4-2 if not for having to forfeit a win over First Colonial due to the usage of an ineligible player. George Ballance (57 tackles) leads a Cox defense looking for its third shutout this month.
Matt Hatfield Says – Cox 35-0
Coach Ed Young Says – Cox 30-6
Tallwood (1-5) at First Colonial (2-5) . . . Patriots QB Noah McNamara has thrown for 771 yards this year, but he’s also been picked off 13 times.
Matt Hatfield Says – Tallwood 27-7
Coach Ed Young Says – Tallwood 24-16
Landstown (0-5) at Kellam (2-4) . . . While beaten soundly by Green Run 34-7 a week ago, the Kellam offense did managed to rack up 232 total yards with 23 first downs and seven third down conversions.
Matt Hatfield Says – Kellam 15-6
Coach Ed Young Says – Kellam 22-18
Salem-VB (3-2) at Ocean Lakes (4-2) . . . The Dolphins could certainly have the Beach District’s Defensive Player of the Year in linebacker Jahleel Culbreath (50 tackles, 21 for loss), but they have given up 63 points the past two weeks in losses to Green Run and Kempsville. Meanwhile, the Salem offense was only putting up 12 PPG before last week’s eruption in a 47-8 rout of First Colonial.
Matt Hatfield Says – Salem 17-16
Coach Ed Young Says – Ocean Lakes 20-18
Norcom (0-3) at Booker T. Washington (4-1) . . . Back in April, the Bookers lost to Norcom 36-8, which happened to be the last time the Greyhounds won a game. Slowing down a BTW offense with a running back in Jerome Jones who has gone over 200 yards rushing on multiple occasions will be a tough chore for Norcom on the road.
Matt Hatfield Says – Booker T. Washington 27-12
Coach Ed Young Says – Booker T. Washington 20-20
Lake Taylor (3-3) at Churchland (4-2) . . . Both teams were beaten recently by almost identical scores by Maury; 48-13 in the case for Churchland and 48-12 in Lake Taylor’s case just two weeks earlier. The Truckers have lost 11 in a row in this head-to-head series – including the past two Region 4A Championship games – with the Titans, who last fell to Churchland by a count of 44-37 back in 2010. Keep an eye on the matchup with Truckers DB Kaleb Gallop (2 INT’s with a TD) checking Titans 6’6” sophomore WR Elijah Washington (14Rec. 187Yds. 5 TD’s).
Matt Hatfield Says – Churchland 30-28
Coach Ed Young Says – Lake Taylor 28-24
Granby (0-5) at Norview (3-3) . . . All three losses this season for Ian Rapanick’s Pilots – to Lake Taylor, Churchland and Booker T. Washington – have been by ten points or less. Only loss for Granby has been by fewer than 24 points and that was 12-7 at Manor last Friday.
Matt Hatfield Says – Norview 32-6
Coach Ed Young Says – Norview 42-0
Deep Creek (4-2) at Nansemond River (2-3) . . . Warriors QB Nolan James had three rushing touchdowns in last Saturday’s 21-20 win over Lakeland, a team that lost to Deep Creek 73-50 just eight days earlier. The Hornets also have a kicking game with Moana Gibson, who has connected on three field goals, including one from 41 yards out.
Matt Hatfield Says – Deep Creek 34-18
Coach Ed Young Says – Deep Creek 30-20
Great Bridge (0-4) at Grassfield (0-7) . . . Although the Grizzlies have been shut out on four occasions this year, two of their losses to Churchland and Hickory were by seven points or less. Furthermore, they haven’t lost to Great Bridge since 2014 in a 25-24 squeaker.
Matt Hatfield Says – Grassfield 17-7
Coach Ed Young Says – Grassfield 24-13
Indian River (2-2) at Lakeland (2-4) . . . Nine different defenders were in on 10 tackles for loss a week ago for Indian River as they nearly erased a 14-point fourth quarter deficit before getting stopped on fourth-and-goal from the 1 against Western Branch. Their defense will be expected to come up big against the Southeastern District’s leading rusher in Damarion Jordan (95Att. 850Yds. 10 TD’s) of Lakeland, which hasn’t beaten the Braves since 2012.
Matt Hatfield Says – Indian River 22-8
Coach Ed Young Says – Indian River 30-28
Western Branch (6-1) at Hickory (2-4) . . . Rather quietly, Brandon Still (28Rec. 415Yds. 3 TD’s) of Hickory has turned into one of the area’s top pass catchers. His chances may be few and far between, though, against an opportunistic Bruins secondary, led by D-1 junior corner Paul Billups and safety Kaleb Broadbent (4INT’s).
Matt Hatfield Says – Western Branch 42-10
Coach Ed Young Says – Western Branch 48-6
Menchville (2-3) at Gloucester (1-5) . . . Can the Dukes build off last week’s 42-0 shutout of Denbigh? They’ll need to get KJ Williams and Carson Smith to run the ball effectively so that Menchville’s formidable passing game with QB Kevin White Jr. (466Yds. 6-4 TD/Int. ratio) and WR Amir Harrison (10Rec. 252Yds. 4 TD’s) doesn’t take control of things.
Matt Hatfield Says – Menchville 26-16
Coach Ed Young Says – Menchville 24-20
Kecoughtan (3-2) at Phoebus (6-0) . . . Jeff Super’s Warriors still have to be sick over the fact they out-gained Bethel 169-55 a week ago and lost a sloppy game that featured 34 penalties. Phoebus takes advantage of lackluster spells, and in particular their passing game with WR’s Jalen Mayo (17Rec. 351Yds. 5 TD’s) and Kymari Gray (12Rec. 281Yds. 11 TD’s) torching defensive backfields.
Matt Hatfield Says – Phoebus 45-7
Coach Ed Young Says – Phoebus 48-6
Warwick (3-4) at Heritage-NN (0-2) . . . The Hurricanes haven’t played since September 17, due to a school shooting that has kept them sidelined the past few weeks. Warwick had its second highest offensive output of the season in a 32-30 overtime loss to Woodside last weekend. Raiders RB Bryce Buchanan (101Att. 821Yds. 7 TD’s) is eying the 1000-yard rushing plateau.
Matt Hatfield Says – Warwick 32-8
Coach Ed Young Says – Warwick 42-12
New Kent (2-4) at Grafton (1-5) . . . In last week’s 36-21 loss to York, Trojans QB Ashton Whitlow accounted for three touchdowns, including a 52-yard bomb to Ryan Gray. Those two might be able to connect against a Grafton defense allowing 37.4 PPG over the past five contests.
Matt Hatfield Says – New Kent 28-7
Coach Ed Young Says – New Kent 38-0
York (5-1) at Jamestown (1-4) . . . Does the Jamestown defense have the answer for the leading rusher in Tidewater in Jordin Lennon (108Car. 1066Yds. 16 TD’s)? Probably not, considering the Eagles are just 1-8 the last nine meetings with Doug Pereira’s Falcons. While Pereira’s been the constant for York, there have been five different Jamestown coaches during that span.
Matt Hatfield Says – York 44-15
Coach Ed Young Says – York 38-6
Tabb (1-5) at Smithfield (1-3) . . . Coach Brent Ashley of Tabb achieved his first win in a 26-0 shutout of Grafton last week. To make it two in a row, his Tigers will need to corral Packers RB Charles Spratley (43Car. 335Yds. 2 TD’s) and pass catcher Dereyon Goodwin (15Rec. 295Yds. 3 TD’s).
Matt Hatfield Says – Smithfield 20-19
Coach Ed Young Says – Smithfield 24-20
SATURDAY’S ACTION for 10/15/21:
Denbigh (0-6) at Hampton (5-1) . . . A tough Hampton defense headed up by senior linebacker Marcus Triggs gave them a chance to win in last weekend’s close 14-7 loss to Phoebus, where the Crabbers were stopped inside the 5 in the fourth quarter. They don’t face nearly as hard of a foe as Denbigh comes in having been outscored 259-7 in its five games that they’ve played (not counting the forfeit loss to Phoebus).
Matt Hatfield Says – Hampton 50-0
Coach Ed Young Says – Hampton 44-0
