Thoughts on Region A

[24kGoldPurpleBlack]

Rapp seems to be the team to beat, after watching a scouting both teams this year, Rapp and Essex both have talent, I do feel like Essex has regressed a bit this year and Rapp has taken the forefront of the district and Region. Essex has some good athletes but I think Rapp has a tougher more hard nosed group of kids. Seeing the #2 Madison for Rapp in person that kid has some game breaking speed and has a tough O line with good size with a pretty quick Qb in #1, they don't seem to run anything complex they just line it up and beat you and wear you down. Defensively theyre quick and get to the ball. My colleague tells me they will be the team to see Altavista in the state semi. From what I saw on film they look like mirror images of each other besides Altavista having a much larger runningback....they have Westmoreland for a 3rd time this year this week

Essex is good but Im not sure they have the pieces in place to get back to state this year and that's tough to say considering they returned a few All state, All region, All district guys. I know someone said that injuries plagued them this year but with their schedule they've shown their hand when going against Rapp and Westmoreland at full strength. From what I've heard from a few people other than #1 theqb for Essex who was out early in the season but has been back no one else has had significant injuries they've just been "sore". They have a few good running backs with #2 Holmes for them being similar in size to Madison for Rapp but I think Madison runs harder. They also have a good size kid #6 who i was shocked to learn hes a freshman. Looks about 6'2 and at least 215 he had some good runs and then after that seems to be runners by committee. The qb was out with what I talked about being one of those "sore" injuries but I dont think hes been as much a factor as he was last year. The O line has size but is inconsistent the defense looked okay but there are some holes and arent nearly as good as last years unit...they have Middlesex this week... whats your thoughts on Region A..whats the outlook on the other regions

 

[Fairlawncat]

Essex is tried and true and battle tested for many years with deep playoff runs. I have not seen Essex this year, but I've seen Rapp and Rapp is awesome. I still wouldn't put it past Essex to top Rapp in a close game and win Region A. Not saying they will, but wouldn't be a surprise because Essex has been there and done that for so long in big playoff games and there's still something to be said about that experience. Rapp apparently is the better team this year by a thin margin, but that margin can possibly be made up for when considering Essex's experience and the "moment" is not too big for Essex. Will it be too big for Rapp? We will see.

 

[24kGoldPurpleBlack]

Essex is tried and true and battle tested for many years with deep playoff runs. I have not seen Essex this year, but I've seen Rapp and Rapp is awesome. I still wouldn't put it past Essex to top Rapp in a close game and go on to win Region A. Not saying they will, but wouldn't be a surprise because Essex has been there and done that for so long in big playoff games and there's still something to be said about that experience. Rapp apparently is the better team this year by a thin margin, but that margin can possibly be made up for when considering Essex's experience and the "moment" is not too big for Essex. Will it be too big for Rapp? We will

Im going to be out West with family for the next week so Im going to watch some Region C teams action. Lets hope we see another Essex and Rapp matchup. I wanted to catch Altavista and Gap game I havent seen them in person since the beginning of the season.

 

[offmylawn]

Rapp is the team to beat in Region A.

 

[24kGoldPurpleBlack]

Rapp is the team to beat in Region A.

I would have to agree right now, I just don't think Essex has enough for them this year and maybe the next 2 years. They have to get past Middlesex 1st which I think will give them a run for their money. It's odd to me that they were the clear favorites and returned a lot of key pieces and have seemed to allow Rappahannock to pass them. I know most are looking at the record but the eye test tells me they aren't as good as 8-1 and have a lot of holes on offense and defense. They have a bunch of coaches and the kids just don't seem as tough. Mentally or physically...can Essex and company bring their best game the next few weeks and make it back to state or are we crowning a new Region A champ. As for Region B I hang my hat on Altavista as that being my ladies alma mater. Buckle up boys its going to get rough here soon

 

[RappriverEHS]

I’m not sure what meets your eye test but Essex has only given up 50 points in 10 games. Rapp and Weatmoreland both scored 14, which was enough for Rapp. Essex had costly turnovers in both those games, a few against Rapp on their side of the field.

I don’t think Essex has any problems with Middlesex this week. I see Essex making the right adjustments when they face Rappahannock again. Similar to riverheads beating Stuart’s draft after losing to them in the playoffs.

 

[kwhs95fan]

Essex can pick the score against Middlesex. Middlesex has a really great RB in Jacquan Griffin, who has close to 2K yards and over 30 TDs, but he's the only weapon they have. The Middlesex defense is pretty bad though. They give up over 30 points a game, including 72 to Rappahannock earlier in the season. Essex 56 Middlesex 14

As for Rapp vs Westmoreland, I think the difference in these two teams is in the trenches. Westmoreland will need to force turnovers and get ahead early, if they want a different outcome than the previous 2 games. Rappahannock 42 Westmoreland 20