William Fleming (0-1) at Albemarle (1-0), 7 p.m. Friday
The Basics: Albemarle wasn’t thrilled with the second half of the Patriots’ win over Harrisonburg, but AHS’s first half against a playoff team last spring showed that if the Patriots can put together four quarters every week they’re going to be serious contenders. This week they get a major test, welcoming Class 5 state semifinalist William Fleming. The Colonels fell to Stone Bridge to end the spring season and dropped last week’s clash with Heritage, another state power so you know William Fleming led by former Monticello defensive coordinator Jamar Lovelace is going to be hungry coming into this one. That means the Patriots are going to have to be sharp and can’t afford a letdown like what they had in the second half against Harrisonburg. Sophomore quarterback Amaje Parker was brilliant in the first half against Harrisonburg and frankly didn’t play bad after the break, and he and Eb McCarthy will have to give the Patriots a big bump as a one-two punch in the ground game.
Key Matchup: Albemarle’s secondary goes toe-to-toe with probably Southwest Virginia’s fastest man, the 55-meter indoor hurdles state champion Micah Jones. The Patriots’ defensive backs are proven, seasoned and talented, particularly corners Malik Washington and Jacob Terry, who has an interception last week. They’ll have to work together to hold Jones in check, the speedster hauled in an 83-yard touchdown a week ago against Heritage and finished with
Who to Watch: Albemarle’s Christian Humes. Humes had several nice grabs as a wideout and nearly made a leaping interception against Harrisonburg early in the first quarter, he just couldn’t come down with it. Even among a loaded wideout/defensive back corps for the Patriots, Humes stands out.
The Line: Fleming by 1. Colonels get the edge here, but Albemarle has the tools and the defense to take them down to the wire and potentially pull off an upset.
James Monroe (1-0) at Charlottesville (0-1), 7 p.m. Friday at Fluvanna County
The Basics: After a fast start against Western Albemarle, the Black Knights stumbled and surrendered 40-straight points to the Warriors. Now they face the tall task of trying to bounce back while playing what should have been a home game on the road at Fluvanna against James Monroe, a squad coming off a win over Stafford that wasn’t pretty. These games are usually physical and often fun but last time they locked up in 2019, the Yellow Jackets rolled. Can Charlottesville take some of the magic it had in the first quarter against the Warriors and multiply it?
Key Matchup: Charlottesville’s front seven looks to contain Devin Parker. You’ve got to tackle soundly to win any football game but particularly against James Monroe, who has multiple threats to run the ball from any spot on the field. Parker had three touchdowns and while he didn’t stack up yards on his 14 carries, he clearly has a nose for the end zone. Charlottesville has its work cut out for it.
Who to Watch: Charlottesville’s Semaj Dennis. Dennis’ scoop and score against Western gave the Black Knights a huge boost in the early going. Can he come up with more impact plays along the defensive line like that?
The Line: James Monroe by 14. Challenging matchup for the Black Knights who are looking to get going.
Orange County (1-0) at Culpeper (0-1), 7 p.m. Friday
The Basics: Orange County answered the question of whether they could translate their talent and explosiveness into actual wins emphatically last week with a home win in a shootout with Courtland. Now the next question becomes, can they repeat it? Can they do it on the road? The Blue Devils are coming off a blowout loss to rival Eastern View, so you can expect they’ll be hungry and excited to lock up with the Hornets. But Orange counters with a balanced offense led by Paul Poirier and Bryant Chiles. If that tandem is clicking again in the ground game and Poirier shreds Culpeper like he did Courtland, Orange is going to be on the right path to cause some havoc in this game and eventually the Jefferson District race.
Key Matchup: Orange’s front seven takes on Culpeper running back Malachi Terrell. While the Hornets’ offense was clicking, the defense doesn’t want to be in position to give up more than 30 points each week like they did against Courtland. That’ll start with trying to limit Terrell, who had 92 yards against Eastern View. Chiles led the Hornets in tackles last week, he’ll likely play a critical role again this week if they want to slow down the Culpeper run game.
Who to Watch: Orange freshman wideout Sheldon Robinson. Will Lewis had a big night for the Hornets last week including a huge 27-yard catch and dive into the endzone, but Robinson was the breakout star with a team high seven catches for 97 yards. There were a lot of questions about who would replace Doug Newsome and Donald Brooks. Robinson and Lewis provided some early answers last week.
The Line: Orange by 7. The Hornets’ offense should carry them here.
Collegiate (0-0) at Goochland (1-0), 7 p.m. Friday
The Basics: New season, same story: Goochland’s defense just doesn’t give up many points. After a spring where the Bulldogs surrendered less than 10 points per game, Goochland’s defense was stout against King William in a season opening 13-6 win. That means it’ll be strength-on-strength as a potentially explosive Collegiate offense comes to town. It’s hard to know what the Cougars will really look like because they haven’t played a game in more than a year after missing all of last school year due to the pandemic. Trying to find
Key Matchup: Goochland’s stingy front seven takes on Collegiate running back Donovan Williams. Williams was a productive, speedy running back as a sophomore. Can the Bulldogs’ talented defensive line group led by Kai Burton and De’Andre Robinson put the clamps on Williams?
Who to Watch: Goochland’s Omarion Quarles. As usual, another Bulldog comes out of the woodwork to make an impact. Quarles was in on seven tackles and scored one of Goochland’s two touchdowns with Gabe Liptak notching the other. Every year, there are new names and every year those players step up to give Goochland similar results.
The Line: Goochland by 7. The Bulldogs’ defense is stifling, that’s a big lift here.
Fluvanna (0-1) at Spotsylvania (0-1), 7 p.m. Friday
The Basics: This will pit two teams hungry for a win after dropping their season openers, and the Flucos should be happy with where the defense is after holding a potentially explosive Broadway squad to just seven points in the first three quarters last week, but the offense is going to have to get things going to keep the defense fresh for the stretch run, and that’s got to start with not turning the ball over. A pair of later picks sealed the Flucos’ fate against the Gobblers.
Key Matchup: Fluvanna’s defense takes on Spotsylvania’s ground game. The Knights want to move the ball on the ground, and loading up against the run is imperative. That helped Riverbend limit Spotsy to less than 150 yards of total offense last week, the bulk of it surrendered on a 51-yard touchdown over the top, but that’s the price you pay to take away a team’s strength.
Who to Watch: Fluvanna’s backfield. Outside of Kobe Edmonds’ long touchdown run, the Flucos didn’t seem to have many playmakers step up against the Gobblers. The Flucos need to find some fast during this crazy challenging first half of the year.
The Line: Spotsylvania by 7. The Flucos face a brutal schedule in the first half of this season.
Rockbridge (1-0) at Western Albemarle (1-0), 7 p.m. Friday
The Basics: Western bounced back from a dysfunctional start against Charlottesville to score 40-straight points and pick up a critical season opening win. Now they’ll host for a second straight week, this time against Rockbridge, a team that went unbeaten during the shortened spring regular season campaign before falling to Heritage in the first round of the playoffs. The Warriors can’t afford another slow start, and that means they’ve got to take care of the ball as turnovers hurt in the early going. Look for that to have been an emphasis this week in practice and for that deficiency to be shored up. Kaden Morrow’s 184 yards on the ground also bode well for Western in the post Austin Shifflett era and he isn’t handling the load alone, Bubba Shifflett and Kyle Keyton showed some solid ability to move the ball on the ground too.
Key Matchup: Western’s secondary takes on Turner Cook. When Rockbridge quarterback Miller Jay puts the ball in the air, he wants to find Turner Cook and they connected with a touchdown in the win over Parry McCluer last week. Can the Warriors’ secondary clamp down again after holding Charlottesville to just 38 passing yards a week ago.
Who to Watch: Western’s Joey Burch. He’s a receiver, he’s a return specialist, he’s a defensive back. Burch can impact a game in so many different ways for the Warriors and he did it all last week in the win over Charlottesville, including the diving catch and run for a touchdown and his 65-yard punt return for a score.
The Line: Western Albemarle by 7. If the first quarter against CHS was an anomaly, and that’s very possible, the Warriors should take care of business here.
Monticello (0-1) at Wilson Memorial (0-0), 7 p.m. Friday
The Basics: Things didn’t go exactly to plan last week on the road against Rustburg for the Mustangs and now they’ll take on a playoff team from the spring, which means Monticello has to take a leap forward fast.
Key Matchup: Monticello’s front seven takes on Wilson running back Ryan Mundie. A week after surrendering 264 yards to Rustburg on the ground, the Mustangs take on Mundie, a speedy, hard-running sophomore who had a strong freshman campaign for Wilson. The Mustangs will have to shore things up quickly.
Who to Watch: Monticello’s Ethan Roach. In his first action as a starter, Roach completed more than 63 percent of his passes and threw for 154 yards. The Mustangs need to cut down on turnovers, but the passing game showed promise against Rustburg.
The Line: Wilson by 7. Look for the Mustangs to take some steps forward this week.
Central Woodstock (1-0) at Madison County (0-0), 7 p.m. Friday
The Basics: Madison County opens up with Central-Woodstock, a team that’s a bit of a mystery after going 1-3 this spring but that’s coming off a solid 49-15 win over Page County. This one could be a challenge for the Mountaineers, but it’s a good measuring stick for how much improvement Madison has made. Look
Key Matchup: Madison’s front seven takes on Central running back Isaiah Dyer. In just four games this spring, Dyer rushed for more than 400 yards. The Mountaineers have to figure out how to stop the run to turn things around, and it starts Friday against a stout running back.
Who to Watch: Madison’s Wade Fox. Fox is going to have to get going with his legs and his arm if the Mountaineers’ offense is going to get a jumpstart this year.
The Line: Central by 14. Central just has too much depth for the Mountaineers, but Madison should show improvement.
Hargrave (1-0) at St. Anne’s-Belfield (0-1), 7 p.m. Friday
The Basics: STAB’s first full season back in 11-man football got started with a tough matchup against an experienced Fork Union squad with a size and speed advantage over the Saints. Still, STAB saw some positives, as they moved the ball well at times on offense. While Hargrave hammered Fuqua in the Tigers’ opener, STAB should matchup well here,
Key Matchup: STAB’s front seven takes on Hargrave’s rushing attack. No matter how Hargrave approaches the ground game, the Saints have to figure out a way to be more stout against the run than they were against Fork Union. That’ll almost surely come with time as a young, undersized STAB defense gains experience.
Who to Watch: STAB’s receivers. While the Saints rebuild the ground game after graduating Gabe Decker and Amani Woods who’ve been carrying the load for awhile, the Saints’ young receivers like Austin Wiliford and Braden White showed promise with some nice grabs against Fork Union. Can they continue to step up?
The Line: STAB by 7. The Saints get a great chance to bounce back here.
Covenant (0-1) at Southampton Academy (1-1), 7 p.m. Friday
The Basics: The Eagles’ opener against Blessed Sacrament was two-fold problematic. For one, the Eagles didn’t get to finish it due to a rising heat index. For another, turnovers compounded in the first half after a week where the Eagles got very little chance to practice and Blessed Sacrament built a big first half lead. Now with just a half of experience, they’ll hit the road to face Southampton Academy, who has split their first two games. With very little varsity experience on the roster, the Eagles are definitely looking for improvement as the year goes on and a strong effort against Southampton would definitely help give that process a spark.
Key Matchup: Covenant’s run defense takes on Southampton’s rushing attack. The Eagles struggled defensively against Blessed Sacrament’s relic offense rushing attack though admittedly the heat and back-to-back turnovers played a role. They’ll have to shore that up this week.
Who to Watch: Covenant’s Chase Campbell. Campbell is a big tight end who’s clearly tough to bring down in the open field. He had a couple of catches including a touchdown in the loss to Blessed Sacrament and he’ll need to continue to contribute to get the offense going.
The Line: Covenant by 7. The Eagles bounce back here.
Blue Ridge (0-0) at Nansemond Suffolk Academy (1-1), 7 p.m. Friday
The Basics: The Barons are flat out searching for playmakers as they re-tool almost completely the roster after a year of practicing without. They’ll face a familiar foe in NSA, a team they’ve matched up with in the regular season and playoffs in recent years. The Saints have the advantage of having two games under their belt, going 1-1 with the loss coming to North Cross. If the Barons can figure things out quickly, they’ve got a good chance to get off on the right foot here.
Key Matchup: Blue Ridge’s front seven looks to corral NSA running back George Pettaway. Pettaway can flat out play. The four-star running back has offers from Penn State, North Carolina and Oregon among others. The Barons’ new-look front seven will have its work cut out for it.
Who to Watch: Blue Ridge’s Tanner Rocha. Rocha is likely to be one of those playmakers the Barons are searching for. He was a contributor to the state finalist squad as a sophomore and should play a significant role this year.
The Line: Blue Ridge by 7. The Barons have a lot of unknowns, but they’ve been masters at figuring that out over the years.
Spotswood (0-0) at William Monroe (0-0), 7 p.m. Friday
The Basics: William Monroe tried to play on Saturday. And then Monday. But weather had no interest in letting the Dragons finish a game with Stuarts Draft that could get replayed at a later date. Now the Dragons turn their attention to another Valley foe, Spotswood’s Blazers that struggled this spring and went 1-5. Mitchell Morris should finally get his first win or loss as a head coach in the books with this one, and playing at home could give the Dragons a major boost.
Key Matchup: William Monroe front seven takes on Spotswood’s Tre Holsapple. Holsapple has emerged in preseason practice as a potential ground threat for the Blazers, so the Dragons will have to make sure they’ve got their eyes on Holsapple on each and every play.
Who to Watch: William Monroe’s Daelan Powell-Jackson. Powell-Jackson hauled in a long touchdown pass from Davien Griffieth against Stuarts Draft for the Dragons’ lone touchdown. If he can combine with Shea Jeffers and give the receiving corps some scoring punch, it’ll be a huge boost for the Dragons’ offense.
The Line: William Monroe by 1. The Dragons should play inspired football here.
Courtland (0-1) at Louisa County (1-0), 7:30 p.m. Friday
The Basics: After one week, the Lions appear to be who we thought they were. Stingy defense? Check. Dual threat quarterback in Landon Wilson? Check. Dynamic playmaker in Jordan Smith? Check. Offensive line that can impose its will? Check. The Lions stuck to the ground and rang up 292 rushing yards against Huguneot and the defense allowed a grand total of three first downs. Sure there were too many penalties and two fumbles, so probably a lot more of those than the Lions would like, but other than that? An excellent start. Look for Louisa to keep sticking to that formula until someone makes them divert from it. Why fix what isn’t broken? This is a classic out-of-district matchup, a respectful rivalry that’s renewed each season.
Key Matchup: Cortland’s linebackers look to try and clamp down on Louisa quarterback Landon Wilson. A week after facing Orange’s dual threat Paul Poirier, Courtland goes toe-to-toe with Wilson, who’s coming off a four-touchdown night against Huguenot.
Who to Watch: Louisa’s entire defense. Huguenot is not a power by any means, but if there was anyone who thought that the Lions’ defense might be in for a year of slippage, allowing just 59 total yards of offense probably answered that question. The Lions are challenging to run on, it’s tough to pass on them. Once again there just aren’t many good answers.
The Line: Louisa County by 21. History of this rivalry aside, Lions should roll here.
Fork Union (1-0) at St. Michael the Archangel (1-0), 7 p.m. Saturday
The Basics: A rematch of the two-game series these two schools split last fall pits two teams coming off lopsided wins in week one, with FUMA rolling past STAB and St. Michael beating Fishburne. The Blue Devils’ experience, size and savvy showed against the Saints, but St. Michael has some similar attributes. Last year the Blue Devils wore down St. Michael in the first clash. Can their depth have a similar impact in this one?
Key Matchup: Fork Union’s front seven goes toe-to-toe with St. Michael’s ground attack. Based on last season, the Archangels are going to try and impose their will physically on offense. That’ll be a new challenge for the Blue Devils after STAB tried to move the ball largely through the air last week. How FUMA holds up will be a good indicator for how the rest of their season is going to go, because a ton of excellent running backs await the Blue Devils in the Prep League.
Who to Watch: Fork Union’s Jackson Bolduc. If week one ends up being accurate, Bolduc is a weapon. He had a pick six, a long punt return and helped the Blue Devils hold a STAB squad working out the kinks of a transition to the spread offense largely in check. If Bolduc plays that way every week, he’s a game-changing presence.
The Line: Fork Union by 7. The Blue Devils seem to have things pretty locked in right now with a multi-faceted run game and some dynamic defenders.
