Week Three's Most Sizzling Performances...
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Adrian Smith - University
Friday night the University Hawks headed into Buckhannon looking to get back on track after a week two upset to East Fairmont…and that’s exactly what happened. Among the standout performers who helped coach John Kelley’s troops right the ship against NCAC rival Buckhannon-Upshur was running back Adrian Smith. On the night, the explosive senior paced the UHS ground game with 177 yards on only 16 carries (an 11 yard average). Smith twice reached the endzone, including a highlight reel 69-yard scoring burst in the third quarter to put the game away for good. To round out his performance Smith added a pair of drive-killing interceptions for the Hawks.
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R.J. Beach - Clay-Battelle
When you’ve got a thoroughbred, you run him. That’s exactly what Clay-Battelle coach Ryan Wilson did Friday night as standout R.J. Beach carried the ball a career high 25 times for 257 yards against Paden City. Behind the blocking of a seasoned offensive line and fullback Levi Sanders – who took enough time off between pancaking PCHS defenders to rack up over 100 yards and two touchdowns himself - Beach struck paydirt three times and led the way for a Cee-Bees’ ground game that churned out more than 400 yards in a decisive win over the Wildcats.
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Jordan Griffin - Robert C. Byrd
Don’t start believing that RCB head coach Bryan Fisher has streamlined his offensive approach just yet. After upsetting Fairmont Senior in the season opener on the strength of a punishing ground game that had many believing Fisher might have abandoned his penchant for the passing game, the high flying Eagles returned to their old form against North Marion Friday night and the biggest beneficiary of that was Jordan Griffin. In one the state’s top performances, the Byrd junior hauled in four touchdown catches against the Huskies – all in the first half. On the night, Griffin grabbed 7 passes for 204 yards to eclipse Matt Godfrey’s previous RCB school record of 195 yards receiving, established in 2004. By the way, Byrd also racked up more than 200 yards on the ground…again.
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Erick Robey - Liberty
What does Erick Robey mean to the Liberty offense? Perhaps the best answer to that question can be found by pulling one fact from Robey’s stat line against Webster County last week…On the night the LHS workhorse carried 33 times against the Highlanders, but most telling from those numbers was that more than one-third of Robey’s attempts came in the final period with the game still undecided. In fact, Mountaineer coach Chris Colombo called Robey’s number 12 times in the 4th quarter alone to close out a 34-22 LHS victory. Robey finished the night with 198 yards and three touchdowns to help propel Liberty to a 3-0 start for the third straight year.
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Derek Long - Morgantown
In one of the area’s most anticipated match-ups of the week, Morgantown’s Derek Long stole the show. On the offensive side, the Mohigans’ senior running back racked up more than 200 yards from scrimmage in an effort that included 179 rushing yards on only 15 carries and two touchdowns, one of which was a pivotal 57-yard burst in the third quarter which came with MHS clinging to a 7-point lead and fighting to turn the tide of the game back in their favor. The senior standout demonstrated his versatility by adding another 27 yards on 4 catches as a safety valve for quarterback Charlie Russell in the MHS passing game. As a defensive back, Long shined as well - intercepting a pair of Polar Bear passes.
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Honorable Mention
Derek Sevier, East Fairmont; Cody Gilmore, RCB; Kyle Allard, Fairmont Senior; Joey Farris, Lincoln; Eli Cottrill, Lincoln; Nick Stewart, Philip Barbour; Preston Musgrave, Notre Dame, Josh Smith, Elkins
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