#5 Mt. View (8-1) at #11 Greenbrier West (6-3)
Friday, November 5, 7:30 PM
Cavalier Field
Radio: WRLB 95.3 FM (7 PM)
Series: Tied 1-1
Last Meeting: (11/8/2019) Greenbrier West 44 Mt. View 12
Last Week: With the promise of a guaranteed playoff spot on the line, Greenbrier West suffered their worst loss since the 2018 season.
Midland Trail, needing two wins and some help to have a chance at qualifying for the playoff field, defeated the Cavaliers 33-8. The Patriots held Ty Nickell to 54 yards rushing, breaking a string of seven straight games with at least 100 yards rushing for the junior tailback. Nickell did get the sole Cavalier touchdown of the night, a one-yard score in the third quarter that got Greenbrier West to within 11 points at 19-8, but the Patriots padded their lead from that point scoring 14 unanswered.
The Cavaliers had a rough night in the passing department with Cole Vandall throwing two interceptions and Kadin Parker adding another. Two of the three interceptions occurred in the endzone, with each quarterback throwing one a piece. One bright spot for the West offense was Chase McClung who tallied career-highs in receptions with 5 and yards with 109. The 100-yard receiving night was McClung’s first.
Defensively, the Cavaliers got a stellar effort from sophomore Daron Vaughan. Vaughan finished with 10 total tackles, a sack, and a tackle for loss. Nickell led Greenbrier West with a career-high 24 tackles, 16 solo. The Cavaliers had eight different players record tackles for loss but allowed a season-high 245 yards on the ground. Senior Josh Jones had seven total tackles in his first game since week two of the season.
Mt. View demolished Westside 51-0 at Vic Nystrom Stadium. Tony Bailey ran past the Renegades with 104 yards and a touchdown on only five carries. Jason Haggerty pulled down a 64-yard touchdown reception for the Golden Knights. Mt. View was able to score on defense as well with a Jaylen Hall 44-yard interception return and a Johnathan Huff 45-yard fumble recovery. The Golden Knights locked down a playoff berth with the victory.
The Matchup: Greenbrier West will look to run the football and control the clock against an explosive Mt. View squad. The Golden Knights are averaging 37 points per game, the best output in program history. They’re not bad defensively either, shutting out three opponents and only giving up an average of 9.9 points per game. Their highest yield of the season was 22 points to Tazewell which happens to be the Golden Knights only loss. Greenbrier West is averaging a very respectable 32.3 points per game while allowing only 12.9 per game. The Cavaliers have posted five 30-plus point games in 2021.
Greenbrier West averages 285 yards rushing per game, and they’ll look to add to that total tonight. Nickell leads the Cavaliers with 1,351 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns. Vandall, Parker, and Marcus Adkins will contribute heavily to the ground attack. The trio has 5, 4, and 2 rushing touchdowns, respectively. McClung has 19 catches for 417 yards and four touchdowns, but he probably wouldn’t be a great pick this week if you were playing high school fantasy football.
Mt. View has a sure-fire candidate for Class A All-State in 5’10”, 150 lb. senior wide receiver Tony Bailey. Bailey has 35 receptions for 616 yards and 11 touchdowns. Bailey’s rushing numbers are a little more modest with only 167 yards and one touchdown, but his average per carry is an eye-popping 20.9 yards. If you don’t remember Bailey, flashback to the last meeting between these schools. After a time-consuming opening drive by the Cavaliers resulted in a John Parks touchdown, Bailey whiffed on fielding a kickoff and had to retreat to his own 13-yard line to retrieve it. 87-yards later, Bailey had a kickoff return touchdown. The receiving threats don’t stop with Bailey, though. Justin Haggerty has 19 receptions for 368 yards and 6 touchdowns, Hall has 12 catches for 351 yards and 3 scores, and Jason Haggerty is capable if called upon.
The high school football season has reached November. Teams that run the football, play good defense, and limit turnovers have the most success. If the Cavaliers can tackle in open space and keep the Golden Knights in front of them, it can be a special night. A win gives the Cavaliers a legitimate shot at hosting a playoff game and it would be Greenbrier West’s first victory over a top five rated team since the 2016 season.
Miscellaneous: Senior night activities will be observed before the game. Senior Cavalier football players are Colby Winnings, Josh Jones, Elijah Perkins, Jayden Robinson, Joey Terry, Chase Franklin, Tucker Gibson, Mason Thornton, Dale Treadway, and Chase McClung.
Official football playoff pairings will be announced on Sunday by the WVSSAC.
The Greenbrier West Competition Cheer team will be performing in Regionals on Saturday at Riverside High School. Competition starts at 10 A.M., doors open at 9 A.M. The Region 3 Section 2 champion Cavalier volleyball team will be competing in Regionals at the Charleston Catholic Athletic Facility on Saturday at 6 P.M.
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