There will be plenty of phrases to describe the football battle at H.E. Comer Jr. Sports Complex Friday afternoon.
Plowboys versus City boys. Public school versus private school, or even north versus south to name a few.
However, the phrase that matters most will be, No. 1 James Monroe versus No. 5 Wheeling Central for a spot in the WVSSAC Class A state championship game.
“The nice thing about practicing over Thanksgiving is you know you are in the state semifinal playoff game,” James Monroe head coach John Mustain said. “It is definitely a big deal.”
It’s no secret this time of year that when you advance to the next round of the playoffs, the challenge gets even bigger.
Wheeling Central, without a doubt, will be the toughest test to date for the undefeated Mavericks.
“You are talking about a school that has a ton of tradition. You just know they are going to be very athletic because they always are,” Mustain said of the Maroon Knights. “The main thing is you hope your kids come out and play to their capabilities and stay focused on what they are doing. The rest will be what it is going to be.”
Central enters the contest with a 10-1 record and has outscored their opponents 89-21 so far in the playoffs. The only regular season loss for the Knights came against Beaver Local High School which is a Class AAAA in Ohio.
“We are playing good ball. We are executing the offense and we are playing aggressive defense,” Wheeling Central head coach Mike Young said. “This time of year, if you are able to do that, you are going to win some games. The kids have put a lot of heart into it and have tried to do a good job.”
Wheeling Central will bring an experienced team to Lindside that is still stinging from a semifinal loss last year at Ritchie County.
“I have a senior oriented team with a senior backfield. Up front we have a nice veteran line back from last year. That makes a difference in the season because the games are won and lost up front,” Young said. “We have good team chemistry all the way around between the guys in the trenches and the guys getting all the ink. That is huge, being able to share the wealth and enjoy it.”
Senior Payton Hildebrand leads the Maroon Knights under center. Hildebrand has only thrown the ball 81 times, but he has a 60 percent completion rate that includes 16 touchdowns and only four interceptions.
“He shared time last year with Michael Toepfer who graduated last year. The job was his coming in and we knew that. (Payton) is just very efficient and has a good attitude,” Young said. “He is very knowledgeable of the game. It’s like having a coach on the field with him at quarterback. He is able to read defenses really well, which is nice.”
Hildebrand’s main target is also the top rushing threat for Wheeling Central. Senior Lorenzo Ferrera has rushed for 1,494 yards, while adding 473 more through the air.
“He is definitely a spark every time he touches the ball. Riley Watkins is too and we have a couple of guys out there. One of them is lightning and the other is thunder,” Young said about Ferrera and Watkins. “They make noise either way. I am just proud of how they compliment each other and how they support each other.”
Young also stated he had a good idea that Ferrera was going to be a special player early in his career.
“We saw his potential his sophomore year when he started to come into his own. We have been able to capitalize on his ability to break long runs,” Young said. “He will be the first one to tell you he has to have the line in front of him.”
Mustain had nothing but good things to say about Ferrera, but also said Central was far from a one-trick pony.
“He is a tough runner and they block really well for him. They have a really good scheme and a good attack,” Mustain said. “He is definitely their go-to guy, but just like last week, you can’t focus on just one player because they have other people out there that can do good things for them.”
James Monroe has no shortage of weapons themselves and the Plowboys will come to play Friday afternoon.
Much of the success for the Mavericks this season can be attributed to the play of the guys in the trenches which was a concern to start the season.
“We felt like that was an area that needed a lot of focus coming into the season. They really seem like they have improved as the season has gone along,” Mustain said. “We still feel like we can get better, but if you ask me what has improved the most this season, I would definitely say the offesnive line.”
The boys up front have paved the way for Cooper Ridgeway to rush for over 1,300 yards and Braydie Carr to pile up 812 more yards. The dynamic duo has combined for 28 touchdowns on the season.
Another key to the success this season for the Mavs has been their ability to establish the run early in games.
“Hopefully we can again this week. We have some good running backs ourselves. Cooper, Braydie and Chaz Boggs also runs the ball for us,” Mustain said. “All three of them are pretty good runners. Hopefully we can get a big game out of them.”
When James Monroe can establish the run and force more defenders in the box, sophomore quarterback Layton Dowdy has made team pay with a myriad of weapons on the outside.
Dowdy is completing 67 percent of his throws which have amassed nearly 1,600 yards and gone for 23 touchdowns against just four picks.
The main target for Dowdy has been Eli Allen who has nearly 600 yards this year and has scored 10 touchdowns. While Allen often draws double and triple coverage, James Monroe has used Carr and Ridgeway very effectively in the passing game. Boggs and Nick Pitzer are additional scoring threats on the outside.
Both teams have been solid this season on defense and executing the fundamentals. Both coaches believe that will be the key to the game Friday.
“We have to get off the ball and execute. The biggest thing today is the execution of blocking and tackling,” Young said. “I think in most cases I have seen being in the playoffs the number of times and with the number of wins that we have that you have to have success in the fundamentals. Ball security is huge, but blocking and tackling is the bottom line to winning and losing.”
In the first-ever meeting between the two schools, Mustain sees the clash as tight battle.
“It could be a pretty evenly matched game. You have to cut out the mistakes and do well on special teams. You just have to get out there and play ball and do the best you can,” Mustain said. “You are looking at a team that was in the semifinals last year, so they will be hungry. Hopefully we will be a little more hungry. They are wanting to get back to Wheeling in more ways than one.”
The winner of the game Friday will advance to the Class A championship game at Wheeling Island Stadium, Sat. Dec. 3, against the winner of No. 6 Williamstown and No. 10 Doddridge County.