East Surry at West Stokes
In what could be the first real competitive matchup between these two longtime rivals the Cards make the short trip to King to face a rivalitized West team. West is looking the best they have in quite a while. With Coach Taylor running their offense it allows Johnson to focus more on thedefense which has always been for his betterment. West is clicking with the Air Raid decently well. QB isn’t the best West’s had but he is a gamer and it helps he has a solid WR core to make it work. They will put up a lot of good numbers this year for sure.
East meanwhile had to fight for one last week over MA in Mayberry which is the first true time Lowman’s been tested in the regular season in a long time. This will prove helpful come November as East will have to face more wide open offenses with athletes in the playoffs. West meanwhile provides a test of both athleticism and strength. Their line will be closer to East’s size for a change which will give them almost a looking in the mirror situation.
Much like last week I expect this one to be close. West has a lot of seniors like East does. West has some incentive to play well here for the first time in a few years. East meanwhile is trying to adjust to a new era still and manage expectations. They almost let it slip last week. East’s staff is going to have to focus hard to prep their guys this week; West is not a team to sleep on for dang sure.
I think East’s line is a little better at the end of the day and if their defense keeps playing well it will be hard to overcome. However West does have the athletes to make it close and even get the upset. A good solid performance here for West will help them gain so much confidence heading into conference play because they will face speed and size from Reidsivlle, NF, HP Andrews, and the other 2 Rockingham schools.
SC at MA
This game isn’t gonna be much of matchup so not much of a write up here. SC is super, super young and they are struggling bad on defense. MA will be able to cruise by what they want here. I expect a lot of JV kids to get playing time. SC might score if their QB can get a throw or two off but I don’t see it.
Forbush at Starmount
The battle for Yadkin county looks the most wide open it has in a term. Forbush has struggled more than they have in quite a while the past 2 weeks especially last week as they got humiliated by a surprisingly good Trinity squad who reversed 2021’s score onto the Falcons. Don’t know if it’s the youth movement for the birds or lower #’s but they just don’t seem to be clicking. By looking at the stats it looks like their O line is struggling; that hasn’t happened in a good while. However they haven’t faced any downwards teams yet so it’s truly hard to say if they aren’t good or just notto the level of those two teams they have played.
Starmount meanwhile is struggling in an entirely different way. They finally reached into some offensive consistency last week but their defense has just been awful the past 2 games as they haven’t been able to keep anyone out of the goal-line at all. Offensively their run game woke up and played beautiful last week as Dezern woke up and ran for his best game so far but they couldn’t seem to keep CSD’s razzle dazzle down at all. The game was close to OT there for a bit before he pulled an ultimate hero and ran it home for paydirt. The team around him has got to step up and play complete or else he will wear himself out by conference time.
This game will truly answer a ton for both teams. On paper Forbush looks to be a solid pick due to their history and close play. However Starmount has been due a win here. These squads have played some doozies in middle school ball the past few years. One year it went into several OT’s before the Bush won. Starmount hasn’t been able to shake that demon off their shoulders and honestly that provides them with a ton of motivation to play with. However they have to be a lot better than what they have been. If they do pull this off then they are set for a run in later season. If Forbush pulls this out then they will be better than we expect and a pain again for another year.
Maybe I’m crazy but my gut tell me to pick the Rams in an upset so I will do so.
North Wilkes at East Wilkes
In a rare undefeated Wilkes county battle these two squads meet with a lot on the line.
North’s had their best start in a long time as they have rolled over two teams that have always been thornes in their backs. They dominated Elkin in a game they should have won but their late win over Ashe was huge for that program. It proved to be a hard fight that depended on the pass; their RB had a decent night but Winkler their QB won them that game. Ashe also lost their QB as he got injured and in came his younger brother who had a trial by fire. North exploited that managed to hold them off. They have a ton of momentum and the most they have had since 2013.
East meanwhile has had a bi-polar year so far. Week 1 they played down and let West stay in the game with them when they shoulda had a shut out. Last week however they woke up and ran all over Surry Central to a solid 35-7 near shutout win. East has more variety out of their offense and runs a true team offense. However it’s easy to say that they haven't came close to their potential yet.
This one can go either way honestly. North has the momentum and the attention, plus that RB is really good. However their defense is still quite suspect without winning the game for them yet fully, and they have to find ways to get more physical in the trenches. They’ve had the easier schedule too. East played West in the opener who will be a pest to a lot of people this year and East dominated the game despite the score. North meanwhile had a lot of luck with Peters the elder getting hurt.
I see this one going two ways: one team puts together a complete game while the other doesn’t, or it’s a shootout like Ashe vs North was. East has played 2 complete games, while NW has one. That sometimes will just do enough. However with these rivalry games you just never know; in 2016 East was miles better and North pulled out a close one. I wouldn’t be surprised with a North win either.
Ashe County at West Wilkes
Needless to say things could be a lot better for the Huskies. They let a win slip very late and they lost their QB for the year with an injury. His brother who is only a freshman came in and played very, very hard despite the loss but his inexperience on the stage showed. However there is still talent in Huskie land as they have a very underrated RB and an experienced WR core to play with. However their defense has to go to improve for them to truly contend.
This week they get a great test as they head to Millers Creek to play West Wilkes off a solid win over Elkin. Ashe has a lot of ? marks going forward due to the QB spot as the youngin’ is gonna have to take some lumps the next few weeks for sure. This week they will face a big and physical wing T squad who loves to run it at you and they have MA soon too. That Ashe defense will either bend or give up after those games. In order for them to have anything for their conference foes they gotta fight hard in these two games.
Ashe has a very solid shot at winning this game as they have more experience but I’m not sold on their line fully yet and the QB has got to find his groove. West meanwhile will use this as a test of consistency. They face a very solid program in Central Davidson next week. They don’t need any letdowns here.
McMichael at South Stokes
In what has always been a long running rivalry these two have always played real hard despite neither being consistently good programs. At one point in the 90’s they shared a head coach, he started at one and went to the other with no success at either. They are both a lot alike in many ways.
McMichael has learned how to fight early with a tough start to the season while South’s had much easier faire with Bishop last week. McMichael actually beat Bartlett Yancy in 2 OT’s last week in a game BY choked away. McMichael didn’t have any business winning that one but they fought from a halftime deficit to the win in a 2 OT game decided by a 2 point conversion. That HC has really turned their program around into a hard fighting one. They haven’t been that stubborn in a long time if ever. South meanwhile is still learning the ropes to how to be truly competitive consistently.
McMichael should roll here by whatever they want. If they come into the game bigheaded or in a blah state however Dave will find ways to keep the kids motivated and it will be closer than we expect. McMichael should be a solid thorn to a lot of teams in the Mid State. Them vs West Stokes is gonna be super fun.
