The Shenandoah District consists of four Augusta County teams and four from what we call "up north", meaning Rockingham, Shenandoah, and Page Counties. So for this, the next-to-last week of the regular season, the schedule will work out so that the four Augusta schools will each be matched up against one of the others.
However, I am sorry to say that for the second week in a row, there will not really be a competitive game in the bunch. Oh there might be one or two of them where the underdog team really "thinks" it has a chance, or at least some of their fans may think that, but no, when you read your papers on Saturday or tune in here, all four of them will have been decided by at least three touchdowns. Take that to the bank. But looking ahead to the final week of the season, the story will be different, as we will have the much-anticipated Riverheads/Stuarts Draft game, and two of the other three that week could be good ones as well, so the season will wrap up with some major excitement.
But first things first, so taking a look at this week's games.......
Riverheads at Stonewall Jackson- On paper this could be whatever degree of massacre the Big Red wants it to be. A score up into the 60s, 70s or even higher would be possible, but my gut feeling is that the RHS coaching staff will think of the big picture, referring to next week's showdown, and that the prime goal this week will be to leave Quicksburg with as healthy a team as possible. So don't be surprised if the Gladiators experiment further with the passing game, as they have done the past two weeks, and definitely don't be surprised if they substitute early and often. I don't think they would go so far as to rest the starters completely, but I fully expect a game only in the 40s or lower, with more scoring done by subs than starters.
Luray at Stuarts Draft- The Cougars are the other unbeaten half of next week's big game, so they too may have that same goal...to stay healthy. There have been times this season when Luray looked like a force to be reckoned with, but after losing big to Riverheads and again just this past Friday to East Rock, I think the Dogs are looking at no higher than a fifth-place finish in the district, but that should still be good enough to make the 1-A East playoffs. This is one of the two games this week where there "might be" some hope, but not in this corner. I say the Cougars will not be looking ahead to Riverheads and will stay focused enough to pull this one out by about a 34-7 count.
East Rock at Wilson- This is the other game in which the underdog may think they are ready to pull off the upset, and with this being Senior Night at the Hive, that is fully understandable. They may actually stay with the Eagles for a while, but McNair and company can score at any time and the Green and White will just not be able to keep pace for four full quarters. This could be the closest game of the four, but I will still go with the visitors 35-13.
Page County at Buffalo Gap- As we know, Page made some major noise in the early season, but as the district schedule progressed, it became obvious that they were still not quite ready to make a big push within the Shenandoah. But still you cannot help but be excited for them as a program, and that was enhanced by their JVs giving a good account of themselves, at least in the one game where I saw them in action. I will give them at least a shot to beat Wilson on Senior Night next week, and if they could pull that one off, they would finish 4-6 on the season and for them, one game below .500 would have to be considered a huge improvement. But in this next game, the Bison will be too much. Expect a high scoring game in this one, something like 54-22.
However, I am sorry to say that for the second week in a row, there will not really be a competitive game in the bunch. Oh there might be one or two of them where the underdog team really "thinks" it has a chance, or at least some of their fans may think that, but no, when you read your papers on Saturday or tune in here, all four of them will have been decided by at least three touchdowns. Take that to the bank. But looking ahead to the final week of the season, the story will be different, as we will have the much-anticipated Riverheads/Stuarts Draft game, and two of the other three that week could be good ones as well, so the season will wrap up with some major excitement.
But first things first, so taking a look at this week's games.......
Riverheads at Stonewall Jackson- On paper this could be whatever degree of massacre the Big Red wants it to be. A score up into the 60s, 70s or even higher would be possible, but my gut feeling is that the RHS coaching staff will think of the big picture, referring to next week's showdown, and that the prime goal this week will be to leave Quicksburg with as healthy a team as possible. So don't be surprised if the Gladiators experiment further with the passing game, as they have done the past two weeks, and definitely don't be surprised if they substitute early and often. I don't think they would go so far as to rest the starters completely, but I fully expect a game only in the 40s or lower, with more scoring done by subs than starters.
Luray at Stuarts Draft- The Cougars are the other unbeaten half of next week's big game, so they too may have that same goal...to stay healthy. There have been times this season when Luray looked like a force to be reckoned with, but after losing big to Riverheads and again just this past Friday to East Rock, I think the Dogs are looking at no higher than a fifth-place finish in the district, but that should still be good enough to make the 1-A East playoffs. This is one of the two games this week where there "might be" some hope, but not in this corner. I say the Cougars will not be looking ahead to Riverheads and will stay focused enough to pull this one out by about a 34-7 count.
East Rock at Wilson- This is the other game in which the underdog may think they are ready to pull off the upset, and with this being Senior Night at the Hive, that is fully understandable. They may actually stay with the Eagles for a while, but McNair and company can score at any time and the Green and White will just not be able to keep pace for four full quarters. This could be the closest game of the four, but I will still go with the visitors 35-13.
Page County at Buffalo Gap- As we know, Page made some major noise in the early season, but as the district schedule progressed, it became obvious that they were still not quite ready to make a big push within the Shenandoah. But still you cannot help but be excited for them as a program, and that was enhanced by their JVs giving a good account of themselves, at least in the one game where I saw them in action. I will give them at least a shot to beat Wilson on Senior Night next week, and if they could pull that one off, they would finish 4-6 on the season and for them, one game below .500 would have to be considered a huge improvement. But in this next game, the Bison will be too much. Expect a high scoring game in this one, something like 54-22.
