MASON-Two old scrimmage rivals-No. 3 Wahama and No. 6 Greenbrier West-will tangle for real in a Class A quarterfinal round contest at Point Pleasant High School at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday.
"We used to scrimmage them (Greenbrier West) every year in a Grid-o-Rama at Midland Trail," Wahama head coach Ed Cromley said. "This game will have a little bit more riding on it than those games."
Wahama (11-0) is coming off of a 38-0 victory over No. 14 Buffalo while Greenbrier West eliminated No. 11 Meadow Bridge from the postseason with a 48-6 victory.
"They are very large and strong up front and the quarterback is very quick," continued Cromley. "They line up in a full house backfield and they have some bodies that can lead their running backs into the hole."
That quarterback is junior Malik Boatwright and all the 160-pounder has done this season is rush for 1,599 yards and 17 touchdowns on 176 attempts and complete 15-of-34 passes for 344 yards and four touchdowns.
"He (Boatwright) is probably the best athlete on our team," said Cavaliers head coach Lewis McClung. "He'll run some tailback as well. We like to get the ball to him as much as possible."
Fact Box
W.Va. Prep Football Playoffs
Class AAA
First Round
No. 1 Cabell Midland 52, No. 16 Oak Hill 20
No. 8 Spring Valley 31, No. 9 Wheeling Park 7
No. 4 Huntington 69, No. 13 Elkins 32
No. 5 Morgantown 49, No. 12 Point Pleasant 28
No. 2 Martinsburg 39, No. 16 Woodrow Wilson 0
No. 10 Musselman 42, No. 7 Capital 23
No. 3 George Washington 35, No. 14 Hurricane 10
No. 11 Lewis County 24, No. 6 University 23
Quarterfinal Round
No. 8 Spring Valley (8-3) at No. 1 Cabell Midland (11-0), 7:30 p.m. Friday
No. 5 Morgantown (9-2) at No. 4 Huntington (9-2), 7:30 p.m. Friday
No. 10 Musselman (8-3) at No. 2 Martinsburg (10-1), 7:30 p.m. Friday
No. 11 Lewis County (9-2) at No. 3 George Washington (9-2), 7:30 p.m. Friday
Semifinal Round
Cabell Midland/Spring Valley winner vs. Huntington/Morgantown winner, TBA
Martinsburg/Musselman winner vs. George Washington/Lewis County winner, TBA
Championship
at Wheeling Island Stadium, 12 noon, Saturday, Dec. 1
Class AA
First Round
No. 1 Wayne 63, No. 16 Clay County 24
No. 9 Nicholas County 31, No. 8 Ritchie County 7
No. 4 Robert C. Byrd 27, No. 13 Braxton County 21
No. 5 Bluefield 63, No. 12 Roane County 27
No. 2 Keyser 61, No. 15 Mingo Central 14
No. 7 Scott 46-16, No. 10 Wyoming East 16
No. 3 Bridgeport 54, No. 14 River View 6
No. 6 Frankfort 38, No. 11 Summers County 7
Quarterfinal Round
No. 9 Nicholas County (7-3) at No. 1 Wayne (11-0), 7:30 p.m. Friday
No. 5 Bluefield (9-2) at No. 4 Robert C. Byrd (10-1), 7:30 p.m. Friday
No. 7 Scott (8-3) at No. 2 Keyser (10-1), 1:30 p.m. Saturday
No. 6 Frankfort (9-2) at No. 3 Bridgeport (9-2), 7:30 p.m. Friday
Semifinal Round
Wayne/Nicholas County winner vs. Robert C. Byrd/Bluefield winner, TBA
Keyser/Scott winner vs. Bridgeport/Frankfort winner, TBA
Championship
at Wheeling Island Stadium, 7:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 30
Class A
First Round
No. 1 Tucker County 27, No. 16 Moorefield 14
No. 8 Clay-Battelle 33, No. 9 Valley (F) 28
No. 4 Madonna 58, No. 13 Tug Valley 12
No. 5 St. Marys 40, No. 12 Wirt County 14
No. 2 Magnolia 34, No. 15 Williamstown 7
No. 7 East Hardy 60, No. 10 Wheeling Central 34
No. 3 Wahama 38, No. 14 Buffalo 0
No. 6 Greenbrier West 48, No. 11 Meadow Bridge 6
Quarterfinal Round
No. 8 Clay-Battelle (10-1) at No. 1 Tucker County (11-0), 1:30 p.m. Saturday
No. 5 St. Marys (10-1) at No. 4 Madonna (10-1), 7:30 p.m. Friday
No. 7 East Hardy (10-1) at No. 2 Magnolia (10-1), 7:30 p.m. Saturday
No. 6 Greenbrier West (10-1) at No. 3 Wahama (11-0), 1:30 p.m. Saturday
Semifinal Round
Tucker County/Clay-Battelle winner vs. Madonna/St. Marys winner, TBA
Magnolia/East Hardy winner vs. Wahama/Greenbrier West winner, TBA
Championship
at Wheeling Island Stadium, 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 1
Should defenses spend too much time concentrating on Boatwright, however, Greenbrier West has another 1,000 yard rusher in senior Tyler Parker, who has 1,053 yards and has crossed the goal line on 18 occasions.
"You've got to get on them," said Cromley. "You can't miss a tackle or they will be down the field and into the end zone before you know it. You've just got to be close to your fundamentals. Get off of the blocks and wrap up."
Of course the Cavaliers won't be the only team on the artificial surface at Point Pleasant High School with a pair of outstanding running backs.
The White Falcons' Kane Roush and Zach Wamsley lead the Mid-Ohio Valley in scoring with 162 and 158 points, respectively. Roush has carried the football 94 times for 1,460 and 22 touchdowns while Wamsley has 151 attempts for 1,070 yards and 20 scores.
"It's not like we keep secrets," quipped Cromley. "Both those kids had outstanding seasons on our junior varsity team last year and when they had a chance to come up to the varsity they played well.
"He (Wamsley) is a throwback player. He is quick enough to get through the line, but he is tough enough that he will punish the person trying to tackle him. Roush is just a competitor. I haven't seen too many people who can run with him."
Making things easier for his two backfield mates is senior quarterback Trenton Gibbs.
In his final season as a White Falcon the 195-pounder has completed 49-of-92 attempts for 987 yards and 12 touchdowns while rushing 81 times for 557 yards and five scores. His favorite target has been Roush, who has 16 catches for 256 yards and two touchdowns, but also look for junior Wyatt Zuspan (10-163, 3 TDs) and senior Austin Cole (8-208, 3 TDs) to see plenty of footballs sailing in their directions.
"I think that he (Gibbs) has done a great job of handling the team this year," said the coach. "We've had a history of developing quarterbacks. As a sophomore we don't ask them to win the game for us. As a junior we expect them to contribute a little bit more.
"By the time they are a senior, they are ready to lead our team and that is just what Trenton has done this year."
The key, according to both coaches, is which team's offensive and defensive lines win the battle at the line of scrimmage.
"They (Wahama) play like us," said McClung. "We are very similar teams. They like to run the football and we like to run the football. They want to stop the run and we want to stop the run."
