This Week’s Matchups
Published 12:00 am Friday, October 28, 2005
Symmes Valley at Guyan Valley
Even though Symmes Valley had to settle for second place in the Southern Ohio Conference this season, the Vikings won't have to settle for a 10-game season.
The Vikings, 6-3, need at win at Guyan Valley, 5-3, in order to clinch a Division VI playoff berth.
The two teams share a common opponent. Symmes Valley beat South Gallia 48-26 while Guyan Valley lost to South Gallia 29-14.
The Wildcats are led by tailback Kenneth Nelson, fullback Jeremy Johnson and quarterback Brandon Frazier.
“He's lefthanded and he throws the ball well on run pretty well,” Vikings coach Rusty Webb said. ‘But I think their tailback is their best kid. He runs pretty well. And their fullback has pretty good size.”
The key for the Vikings will be moving the football.
“Their defensive line has good size and their defense flies to the football. We have to block them or there won't be much room to run,” Webb said.
This will be the final game in Guyan Valley history. The Lincoln County school is scheduled to consolidate with Harts, Hamlin and Duval.
Chesapeake at River Valley
The Chesapeake Panthers could be prone to fumbles this week. They'll be holding the football with their fingers crossed.
Chesapeake (5-4, 3-1) has to beat the last-place Raiders and then hope Coal Grove can pull off a win over Rock Hill and create a two-way tie for the championship.
The Panthers have won the OVC the last three seasons. They saw their hopes of a playoff berth also disappear with last week's loss.
South Point at Fairland
Dueling quarterbacks.
South Point junior Chris Smith has thrown for more than 1,000 yards this season while his Fairland counterpart Rich Staggs had surpassed the 2,000-yard mark.
Look for some passing - and offense - in this game.
South Point can use a win over Fairland to give the Pointers their first winning season since capturing the league championship in 2001 when Brent Wilcoxon was the head coach.
Wilcoxon is now the head coach at Fairland.
Harts, W.Va. at Green
Green (5-4) is looking for its first winning season since 1990. The Bobcats have had only one non-losing season - they were 5-5 under Dave Shoupe five years ago - during that span.
“We've got a good opportunity if we go with the right approach,” second-year Green coach Kevin Sheridan said.
Harts (3-5) and Green have one common opponent. Harts lost 39-14 to Portsmouth Notre Dame in the first game of the season. Green beat Notre Dame 26-0.
Green fullback Mark Castro is closing in on 1,000-yards rushing for the second straight season. Castro, who began the season at tackle, has 194 carries for 878 yards.
DeSales at Ironton
Friday's game will mark the end of this series between two of the state's top programs.
Ironton (8-1) will re-enter the Southeastern Ohio Athletic League next year and the two teams do not have corresponding open dates.
Although the Division III Stallions hold an 8-2 lead in the series, only one game has been a blowout. DeSales won 40-0 in 2003.
Last season, Ironton had an excellent chance to win. A dropped interception that would have been a touchdown, a blocked punt that led to the winning score by DeSales, and a fumble inside the Stallions 25-yard line near the end of the game kept Ironton from pulling off the upset.
DeSales uses an option-style offense triggered by quarterback Matt Mangini and fullback Justin Moore, but its strong, aggressive defense is the team's strength.