Lake Taylor won last week 41-0. Bethel won last week 41-0. What do you get when those two teams meet in the second week of the season? Another blowout. The Titans came in as a favorite. Very few had the expectation that Lake Taylor would win by more than seven touchdowns.
The Indian River Braves are working hard to improve on a 2011 season that they see as an off year. The Braves were loaded with talent, but didn’t put the pieces together last season. The talent is there again this year. Can Indian River show improvement in the W-L column?
This week gives us our sixth year in a row of Peninsula District vs. Eastern District matchups with two of the games running on Thursday night. Maury hosts Woodside at Powhatan Field in Norfolk while Bethel hosts Lake Taylor at Darling Stadium in Hampton.
Gloucester football has had a tough run in the Peninsula District. They haven’t had a winning season in more than a decade. They last hit the five win mark in 2005. Before that, it was 2000 when they also went 5-5. Nothing’s easy for the Dukes when they have to come down and play teams from Newport News and Hampton.
Rome wasn’t built in a day. The Deep Creek Hornets hit a low last year when the team went winless. They have a new outlook in 2012 and new hope of winning with former Grassfield Assistant Coach Calvin Copeland in the fold as the head coach of the football program. It may take some time, but this program’s going to turn around.
Ocean Lakes lineman Alex Skidmore is an imposing figure. The Dolphin tackle is excelling on the field and in the classroom, with a selection as an All-Beach District second teamer in 2011 and a perfect SAT score to boot. He’s a role model to his classmates and now all of the hard work is paying off. Alex landed his first athletic scholarship offer this weekend.
Congratulations to this week’s Freedom Ford Player of the Week, Quatez Ruffin of Phoebus High School. In the fan voting, Ruffin narrowly edged Ocean Lakes wide out Andre Dessenburg. All of the nominees had astounding performances last week, but Ruffin took the prize with his performance in an impressive win over Warwick.
The Monarchs had a blow out win in their opener on Saturday night, and ODU won big with recruits on Saturday as well. Many locals visited and the night was capped by a local commitment. Ocean Lakes DL Demetri McGill was in attendance. He discussed his interest in the home team and the other schools in his top five.
There’s still time to vote for the Freedom Ford Player of the Week on recruit757. Throughout the regular season, fans will select the Freedom Ford Player of the Week for the region. Go to recruit757 on Facebook now to register your vote.
On opening night of the football season, Old Dominion had a little uncharacteristic trouble early on. The Monarchs poured it on in the second half, outscoring Duquesne 47-3 in the final two quarters. ODU won on the field, rolling to a 57-23 victory over the Dukes. They also won in the recruiting game with a pick up of one of Oscar Smith’s top athletes.
