It’s been a long time since Altavista has been a contender in the Dogwood District, dominated by Gretna and William Campbell for the past decade.
The Colonels (5-1, 1-1 Dogwood), whose only loss was to the Hawks, come into tonight’s district duel against Appomattox (5-1, 2-0) with as many wins as they had last year and the most since 1998, when they finished 6-4.
That was the year before the Raiders, who are tied with Gretna (5-1, 2-0) atop the district race, won their last district title.
“They’re a very good test,” Appomattox second-year coach Ben Martin said of the Colonels. “I don’t see a lot of weaknesses in their defense. Personally, I think they’re the best defense we’ve faced up to this point.”
Defensive end Jerrell Jordan anchors a line that has been stingy against the run and Chris Clark and Daelyn Myers solidify a linebacking corps that is as hard-hitting as any in the district besides Gretna.
“They’re very physical from what I’ve seen on film,” Martin said. “They run a 3-5 and they bring a lot of blitzes from a lot of different angles, to try to confuse your linemen up front, and they’ve been able to get a lot of pressure on teams in the backfield. They (also) have a lot of speed and a lot of athleticism from the defensive back position.”
The Raiders have been rolling offensively behind senior quarterback Kenny Scott (66 carries, 589 yards, 8 TDs; 30-45 passing for 587 yards, 6 TDs), running back Joe Reed (67 carries, 523 yards, 8 TDs) and wide receiver Neal Thomas (13 catches, 352 yards, 4 TDs).
“They’ve got very good team speed all the way across the board, offensively and defensively,” Altavista coach Mike Scharnus said. “Defensively, we’re going to have to play aggressive, but also be very disciplined.”
Though the triple option attack is based on the run, Scharnus knows Scott is proficient through the air as well.
“They’re not just a running team,” he said. “They’ve got the ability to throw out of the short passing game, and they’re a threat to go deep also.”
Altavista counters with a potent running game led by Johnny Wimbish (79 carries, 465 yards, 5 TDs), who shifted from quarterback to the slot/tailback spot in last week’s 37-12 rout of Dan River, and tailback Chris Clark (58 carries, 359 yards, 8 TDs).
New QB Rick Adams, called up from the JV squad last week, connected with Jarrod Hunt (12 catches, 177 yards, 6 TDs) five times last week for 87 yards and three scores.
“We’ve got to be able to move the ball on the ground and in the air and see what works for us the best,” Scharnus said.
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