Due to the luck of the draw and of course some stellar play on Friday night, all five Shenandoah District teams that made the playoffs will be in action in this week's second round. Of course Riverheads will be making its first appearance, due to receiving a first-round bye, but the other four won their games Friday night and fortunately the brackets are working out so that none of them have to play each other this week. Here are my thoughts:
Essex at Riverheads- This one has its own separate thread and probably deserves to. It should be quite a game. Since the two don't know each other, have never played one another, and don't have any common opponents, my guess is that it will come down to who has done the better scouting job and who makes the better adjustments during the course of the game.
Luray at Sussex Central- Luray pretty much makes annual playoff trips back east, and whether they win or lose, they help the rest of us around here to get a handle on how our brand of football compares to the way they play down there. So again there will be little or nothing to go on, so therefore who could make an accurate prediction? Sussex will be favored, but for obvious reasons, I will be a huge Bulldog fan, at least for that one night.
Madison County at Stuarts Draft- This one could be an offensive explosion. Does Madison still bring and fire that obnoxious rifle? If so, I am glad I will be otherwise occupied. For neutral fans in the Augusta County area, this might be just as good a game as the Riverheads one to choose to attend, or what the heck, the two schools are only about 8 miles apart, so just drive from one to the other at halftime!
Central Woodstock at East Rockingham- On paper this one looks like an absolute toss-up. Others may know more than I do, but I have nothing to go on. Other than knowing of course that if the Falcons cannot defend the pass and/or keep the ball for an extended period of time, they will be in for a long, disappointing ride back home. Those are the only two ways you can beat the Eagles.
Buffalo Gap at Clarke County- These two can get together before the game and share memories of what it was like last year to play Appomattox and whether or not they want to try that again this year, considering that the Raiders obliterated both of them on consecutive weekends. So by playing one another this week, we know that at least one of them will not have to worry about Appo this season. Prior to Friday night, I might have gone with Clarke easily on this one, but since Lee held its own against them for three quarters, something tells me Gap will give a good account of themselves as well.
In case you can't tell, what I am really trying to say is "It's the playoffs folks, and anybody can and probably will beat anybody on any given night." I am just proud that our district still has five teams alive and I wish them all the best.
Essex at Riverheads- This one has its own separate thread and probably deserves to. It should be quite a game. Since the two don't know each other, have never played one another, and don't have any common opponents, my guess is that it will come down to who has done the better scouting job and who makes the better adjustments during the course of the game.
Luray at Sussex Central- Luray pretty much makes annual playoff trips back east, and whether they win or lose, they help the rest of us around here to get a handle on how our brand of football compares to the way they play down there. So again there will be little or nothing to go on, so therefore who could make an accurate prediction? Sussex will be favored, but for obvious reasons, I will be a huge Bulldog fan, at least for that one night.
Madison County at Stuarts Draft- This one could be an offensive explosion. Does Madison still bring and fire that obnoxious rifle? If so, I am glad I will be otherwise occupied. For neutral fans in the Augusta County area, this might be just as good a game as the Riverheads one to choose to attend, or what the heck, the two schools are only about 8 miles apart, so just drive from one to the other at halftime!
Central Woodstock at East Rockingham- On paper this one looks like an absolute toss-up. Others may know more than I do, but I have nothing to go on. Other than knowing of course that if the Falcons cannot defend the pass and/or keep the ball for an extended period of time, they will be in for a long, disappointing ride back home. Those are the only two ways you can beat the Eagles.
Buffalo Gap at Clarke County- These two can get together before the game and share memories of what it was like last year to play Appomattox and whether or not they want to try that again this year, considering that the Raiders obliterated both of them on consecutive weekends. So by playing one another this week, we know that at least one of them will not have to worry about Appo this season. Prior to Friday night, I might have gone with Clarke easily on this one, but since Lee held its own against them for three quarters, something tells me Gap will give a good account of themselves as well.
In case you can't tell, what I am really trying to say is "It's the playoffs folks, and anybody can and probably will beat anybody on any given night." I am just proud that our district still has five teams alive and I wish them all the best.