I'm pulling for the Little Giants this week. I'm more familiar with them than I am with Western Albemarle, as I have only seen them play one time this year.
I have always thought that the Waynesboro football program was a sleeping giant for our area (not just because of their mascot) and now they believe that they can win for probably the first time since Blair was on the team (in the 90s). I give a lot of credit to their coaching staff (particularly Coach Mac and Coach Goforth).
WA caught Waynesboro early in the year after their blowout loss to the Wilson Hornets, and I don't think Waynesboro believed in themselves back then and they have gotten a lot better since week 2, but I'm sure WA has as well. Just look at what they did to Broadway on their home field last week, and Broadway is actually a pretty difficult place to play (they were also undefeated at home this year) compared to their game midseason. Waynesboro has a very dynamic offense and they can show you many different looks and have success out of so many formations. With that being said, the Western Offense has a lot of weapons as well. Broadway's offense is a poor man's version of WA to me, so Waynesboro will have to deal with a number of weapons as well as another good QB this week. The key to a Waynesboro victory is to not turn the ball over and make things east for WA. You can't give WA a short field either, as they have a kicker who will make you pay. I saw him kicking 40-50 yarders in warmups.
I don't think WA will have great success on the deep passes (due to the speed on the edges and the S for 'boro), but if they are able to establish the run game early, the mid range play-action game could be a weakness for the little giants.
Some players to watch for Waynesboro: #17 QB Chris Baker is a dual threat tank. He's got the size of former RE Lee QB Javon Chisley, but is a pass first guy. #1 Michael Brown is one of their athletes who can hurt you from different positions on offense. #13 Steffan Thornton can also line up in the backfield or as a wide-out/slot and he can do it all (block, run fast, catch, and elusive). #20 Dominique Gray is their fullback (and a solid linebacker) and most teams overlook him due to the other offensive weapons, and he is a straight ahead runner who isn't the biggest fullback you will see but he has a great forward lean for a RB. Their center #51 Matt Everidge is the anchor of their offense and also on their defense where he is a tough linebacker. One player who really stand out on D to me is #6 Jadaciss Williams, he is a ballhawk and does a good job defending the deep ball.
I won't do the same breakdown for Western since I only saw them once, but I will say that I was very impressed with their QB Sam Hearn, and their receivers. The game I saw, they had a pick 6 and the defense created a number of turnovers. I seem to remember them having a pretty big center, but he was needing help/double teams with the noseguard all game.
My prediction is: 35-24 Waynesboro (almost the reverse of their previous matchup)
