By Tom Bragg, For Lootpress.com
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – If George Washington wanted to keep pace with the pack in the race for a spot in the Class AAA state playoffs, the Patriots needed a win last week at Parkersburg.
It took a team effort on both sides of the ball to pull it off, but junior Hunter Giacomo came up with the biggest plays of the game as GW left Stadium Field with a 22-11 victory over the Big Reds.
Giacomo scored on a long touchdown pass from Patriots quarterback Abe Fenwick in the first quarter then helped put the game out of reach in the second half with an interception returned for a touchdown in a win that made GW (3-3) jump to No. 13 in the Class AAA playoff ratings this week.
For his efforts, Giacomo has been named the Lootpress Kanawha Valley Player of the Week.
The award is sponsored by Dutch Miller Auto Group.
George Washington was able to grab the early lead against Parkersburg thanks to a heads up play by the Patriots quarterback to find Giacomo deep down the middle of the field.
Both defensive lines had good games on Friday, and on this play the Big Reds flushed Fenwick out of the pocket and forced him to scramble to his left. The left-handed quarterback showed off his legs and bought enough time for Giacomo to get separation from the Parkersburg defensive backs on a deep post pattern.
Fenwick showed off his arm and threw a near perfect pass over the top of the defense and into Giacomo’s hands on his way to a 60-yard touchdown.
“I just had a little post route and I saw [Fenwick] scrambling,” Giamoco said. “I came across the field and I knew he would see me. He threw a great ball, and I had to go up and get it and make a play for him.”
Late in the third quarter with the score 9-3, Parkersburg appeared to have some momentum working in its favor before Giacomo stepped in front of a pass from Big Reds quarterback David Parsons and took it 65 yards the other way for a touchdown. It gave the Patriots a 15-3 cushion and proved to be the game-winning score in a tight battle between longtime Mountain State Athletic Conference rivals.
“We needed it,” Giacomo said. “I saw the route, read it and jumped right in front of it and took it took it to the crib. We needed it, man. I put it on all my linemen making a play and making the ball come out early.”
Veteran George Washington head coach Steve Edwards Jr. said when Giacomo is playing well, good things happen for his Patriots.
“This kid is as good as there is [in the MSAC],” Edwards said. “He came out and he showed out. I’m really proud of him. He needed a game like this. When he plays like this, we play like that.”
Scott running back Preston Cooper, who ran the ball 26 times for 166 yards and three touchdowns in the Skyhawks’ win against previously unbeaten Mingo Central, won this week’s Community Choice fan vote, receiving nearly 15,000 votes. Cooper advances to the Community Choice poll, which will be conducted after the regular season with the winner of that poll awarded a $500 scholarship by the Lootpress Foundation.
Kanawha Valley Player of the Week winners
Week 1: Josh Moody, Nitro
Week 2: Chase Massey, Winfield
Week 3: Dane Hatfield, Herbert Hoover
Week 4: Preston Bonnett, Poca
Week 5: Matt Frye, Scott
Week 6: Hunter Giacomo, George Washington
Community Choice Players of the Week
Week 1: Trey Lester, Sherman
Week 2: Chase Massey, Winfield
Week 3: Caden Ray, Riverside
Week 4: Noah Vellaithambi, Hurricane
Week 5: Blake Fisher, Herbert Hoover
Week 6: Preston Cooper, Scott
