We have now had five weeks of our Shenandoah teams playing everybody they could find to play, from the Northern Neck deep down toward Roanoke and beyond. In some ways it has been interesting to see new teams on the various schedules and get a handle on how the quality of football measures up around the state, but chances are the six teams involved are more than ready to start beating up on each other in front of larger rivalry-fueled crowds.
So if they can hang in there for this final week of non-district action, they will get their collective wishes starting on the 11th. But at least we have a dandy this week to highlight the slate, as well as one or two that will feature first-time ever match-ups and therefore an air of mystery to them. For local folks, you have your choice of home games at Staunton, Stuarts Draft, and Wilson, although that decision should be a no-brainer in terms of where the best game will likely be played.
Here is the slate for this weekend, with the forecast calling for a cooler night with maybe a slight chance of rain.........
Buffalo Gap finally gets the week off after being the first team in the league to have played five games. The Bison came out of that with a respectable 3-2 record and likely will still have post-season hopes when we get to that point.
Fort Defiance at Broadway: The 2-2 Indians, who compete at the 3-A level, should be able to match the Bison's overall record as well as their success Friday night in Gobblerville. Not really sure what is going on up there this year, but it is beginning to look like Waynesboro will be their only hope for picking up a win and even that might be tough. Expect an easy Indian win in this one.
Riverheads at Skyline: The standings that just came out this morning show the Gladiators with a commanding lead in the 1-B standings as well as being number one in all of Class 1. If they keep winning, that should not change, especially since they have three games remaining against Class 3 opponents. This one however is one that quite seriously could pose a challenge for the Big Red simply because there is no history to draw from.......first-time meeting, no common opponents, playing on the road against a much bigger school......lots of reasons there to consider this one a trap game. The Northwestern District website is not as up to date as some, so the only score I have found for Skyline was an early 32-7 win over Broadway. But as just mentioned the Gobblers are having a seriously down year. On paper the Gladiators "should" prevail in this one, and maybe even easily, but we all know the games are not played on paper. One thing we can guarantee the Skyline folks is a big gate, due to how well Big Red fans travel. (And RHS fans, if you don't mind going out of your way a little bit, there is a Roy Rogers on the opposite end of Front Royal!!!!)
Lord Botetourt at Staunton: Another example of those far-reaching games that the poor ADs had to pull together this season just to fill the schedule. LB is one of the premier teams in the Roanoke area and in most of their recent games against teams from around here, they have had great success, so I expect it to be a long night for the local boys, which may only add salt to the wounds that are likely lingering from Friday's somewhat controversial loss to Central Woodstock. Coach Phillips appears to have his troops on the right track in his first season, but this one I fear will not go their way.
Luray at Stuarts Draft: Despite my lengthy RHS discussion above, this is THE GAME fans will be keeping an eye on Friday night, no matter where they might actually be sitting at the time. Any time you have two unbeatens clashing at the midway point of the season, it will be a classic. Add in the fact that the new rankings have Luray just a smidge ahead of the Cougars in the 2-B standings and each team will want to stake its claim to that top spot. There was a time I was considering the Draft to be over-hyped, since shutouts over Waynesboro and Covington did not seem to prove much. But call me a believer after their win at Clarke County, so if they get by this one, which I predict they will, there just "might" be another Battle of the Unbeatens in their future several weeks from now.
Turner Ashby at Wilson: The Knights were cruising along at 3-0 the other week before that surprising overtime loss to Staunton took some wind out of their sails. But they had a bye week to recover and will be more than ready to get back on the winning track at the expense of the Hornets. Although Wilson has its supporters on here, I still don't see them as a major threat and the Knights should leave Fishersville with a solid 4-1 record in their pockets.
So if they can hang in there for this final week of non-district action, they will get their collective wishes starting on the 11th. But at least we have a dandy this week to highlight the slate, as well as one or two that will feature first-time ever match-ups and therefore an air of mystery to them. For local folks, you have your choice of home games at Staunton, Stuarts Draft, and Wilson, although that decision should be a no-brainer in terms of where the best game will likely be played.
Here is the slate for this weekend, with the forecast calling for a cooler night with maybe a slight chance of rain.........
Buffalo Gap finally gets the week off after being the first team in the league to have played five games. The Bison came out of that with a respectable 3-2 record and likely will still have post-season hopes when we get to that point.
Fort Defiance at Broadway: The 2-2 Indians, who compete at the 3-A level, should be able to match the Bison's overall record as well as their success Friday night in Gobblerville. Not really sure what is going on up there this year, but it is beginning to look like Waynesboro will be their only hope for picking up a win and even that might be tough. Expect an easy Indian win in this one.
Riverheads at Skyline: The standings that just came out this morning show the Gladiators with a commanding lead in the 1-B standings as well as being number one in all of Class 1. If they keep winning, that should not change, especially since they have three games remaining against Class 3 opponents. This one however is one that quite seriously could pose a challenge for the Big Red simply because there is no history to draw from.......first-time meeting, no common opponents, playing on the road against a much bigger school......lots of reasons there to consider this one a trap game. The Northwestern District website is not as up to date as some, so the only score I have found for Skyline was an early 32-7 win over Broadway. But as just mentioned the Gobblers are having a seriously down year. On paper the Gladiators "should" prevail in this one, and maybe even easily, but we all know the games are not played on paper. One thing we can guarantee the Skyline folks is a big gate, due to how well Big Red fans travel. (And RHS fans, if you don't mind going out of your way a little bit, there is a Roy Rogers on the opposite end of Front Royal!!!!)
Lord Botetourt at Staunton: Another example of those far-reaching games that the poor ADs had to pull together this season just to fill the schedule. LB is one of the premier teams in the Roanoke area and in most of their recent games against teams from around here, they have had great success, so I expect it to be a long night for the local boys, which may only add salt to the wounds that are likely lingering from Friday's somewhat controversial loss to Central Woodstock. Coach Phillips appears to have his troops on the right track in his first season, but this one I fear will not go their way.
Luray at Stuarts Draft: Despite my lengthy RHS discussion above, this is THE GAME fans will be keeping an eye on Friday night, no matter where they might actually be sitting at the time. Any time you have two unbeatens clashing at the midway point of the season, it will be a classic. Add in the fact that the new rankings have Luray just a smidge ahead of the Cougars in the 2-B standings and each team will want to stake its claim to that top spot. There was a time I was considering the Draft to be over-hyped, since shutouts over Waynesboro and Covington did not seem to prove much. But call me a believer after their win at Clarke County, so if they get by this one, which I predict they will, there just "might" be another Battle of the Unbeatens in their future several weeks from now.
Turner Ashby at Wilson: The Knights were cruising along at 3-0 the other week before that surprising overtime loss to Staunton took some wind out of their sails. But they had a bye week to recover and will be more than ready to get back on the winning track at the expense of the Hornets. Although Wilson has its supporters on here, I still don't see them as a major threat and the Knights should leave Fishersville with a solid 4-1 record in their pockets.
