Over the last three years the tide has turned for the area triple-A schools. Beckley and Princeton have a pair of playoff streaks they’re looking to extend and Greenbrier East joined those two in the postseason in 2021.
The start of the 2023 campaign looks promising for three of the area triple-A schools as they step into the spotlight for their Week 3 matchups.
Pedigo’s Tree FlourishesÂ
Former Princeton head coach Chris Pedigo spent the last two years saying that if he stepped down at any point, his coaching staff could continue to lead the program he rebuilt in the right direction.
Turns out he has an eye for talent!
When Princeton welcomes Oak Hill on Friday, it will be a matchup of two undefeated Class AAA schools, but there’s more to the story. Keith Taylor, one of Pedigo’s assistants, is at the helm in Princeton. Leading the Red Devils is Pedigo’s former defensive coordinator Davon Marion, who applied for the job Pedigo once held before an opportunity opened in his home county.
There’s optimism on both sides.
Princeton boasts two of the top players in the state in Dom Collins and Eli Campbell and Oak Hill is coming off a stunning win against reigning Class AA state champion Independence, a game in which the Red Devils trailed by two scores at one point.
A win on either side goes a long ways but likely means a little more to Oak Hill. Both of the Red Devils’ victories have come against quality Class AA programs but that isn’t beneficial in regards to playoff points. Princeton has a win over Class AA and AAA school.
On the personnel side Princeton boasts a dynamic offensive attack, featuring Collins, Marquel Lowe, Brad Mossor and Chance Barker. Flanked by the aforementioned trio, Barker leads the area in passing yards (488) and touchdown pass (5). All three of his top targets have over 100 yards receiving on the season while Lowe boasts 174 on the ground as well. But they’re not just efficient on offense. Collins has two punt returns for touchdowns, adding to the five other scores he’s added on the ground and through the air.
Oak Hill is balanced as well even if it doesn’t have the eye-popping numbers. Malachi Lewis threw four touchdowns passes last week while J.D. Mauritz and James Green have 100 yards each on the ground. Last year’s meeting between the two teams yielded a 20-17 triple-overtime thriller, won by the Tigers in Oak Hill.
Signature gamesÂ
The other two triple-A schools in the area have a shot at making waves. Beckley travels to Parkersburg South, the Class AAA runner-up a year ago while Greenbrier East hosts Bluefield.
A 2-0 start isn’t new for Beckley which has achieved that record three times now since 2018. A 3-0 start has been harder to achieve with the last one coming in 2012. This one won’t be easy either. South has scored 83 and 72 points in its two games, meaning the Flying Eagles have their work cut out for them. There is one way to help combat this though – ball control. The Flying Eagles love to run the ball and have given seemingly every kid in the school district a carry on offense. That strategy keeps the offense fresh and more importantly can keep South’s explosive offense on the sideline.
Meanwhile in Fairlea, Greenbrier East is the lone triple-A school without a win. The Spartans aim to change their fortunes when they host Bluefield and this is probably as good a shot as they’ll have to knock off the Beavers. Bluefield is 0-2 as well but has probably played a top-5 schedule in terms of difficulty in any class through two weeks with losses to defending VHSL 2A champion Graham (14-9) and Class AAA Princeton (27-6).
Here’s the kicker for the Beavers – their top three running backs are all out Friday.
Gerrard Wade, Jeff King and Kisean Smith all suffered injuries against Princeton meaning the Beavers will be rolling with a combination of underclassmen who haven’t touched the ball this season as well as a pair of unconventional backs. As much as that hurts Bluefield’s offense, it’s more of a blow to its defense which has been quietly good this season against top competition. Wade is a loss at LB while King and Smith are defensive backs.
Getting a win here is crucial for Bluefield’s playoff hopes though. The Beavers, already in an 0-2 hole, need the bonus points from beating a triple-A squad even if the WVSSAC’s new rating system works in their favor. The program has proven it can go on the road and win but those points can make all the difference. Last season the Beavers snuck in at 15 and had to travel to Independence, where they lost a one-score game. They were the only team to play Independence close all season, raising the question of how far could they have gone had they played anybody else?
A win is even more important for Greenbrier East, which already has a double-A loss. Spartans QB Brody Hamric is second in the area in passing, and with the injuries Bluefield has suffered East may want to test that secondary early.
Over the mountainÂ
Shady Spring-Summers County has quietly become a rivalry matchup with the results to back that. The last two games, both won by Shady, have been decided by one score. Prior to that Summers won in 2020 when Chris Vicars was the head coach. Vicars now helps out with Shady Spring as does John Smith, one of his assistants when the two were in Hinton.
Shady is coming off an emotional comeback win against Nicholas County while Summers took its lumps against Greenbrier West. Both teams have shown their willingness to throw the ball with Brady Green (Shady Spring) and Brandan Isaac (Summers) at No. 3 and 4, respectively, on the local passing yards leaderboard with over 300 each. This could be a shootout or could be an opportunity to establish a ground game. Shady comes in with a size advantage and Summers has yielded 698 yards on the ground through two games, suggesting this is Shady’s opportunity to build confidence in its running attack.
Summers has been a wing-T team under Josh Evans over the last two years but his current group seems better suited for the spread. Provided his team is healthy enough, he might opt to roll with the ground game and see if it yields success.
Around the area
Rounding out the rest of Week 3 slate is James Monroe at PikeView, Wyoming East at Nicholas County, Mingo Central at Liberty, Man at Westside, Paden City at Montcalm and Meadow Bridge at Midland Trail.
James Monroe returns from a bye looking to rack up more bonus points against a double-A foe. Westside aims for a bounce back win against a solid Man team and Nicholas County aims for its first win against Wyoming East. Last but not least, Midland Trail hosts Meadow Bridge in matchup of 2-0 teams. In a crowded Class A field, this matchup is meaningful for the points the winner gets. Fayette County bragging rights never hurt either.
