Weddington your 2018 3AA State Champions

CHAPEL HILL- There is a certain ambience that surrounds a championship game maybe it was the steady rain that was falling or maybe it was how the fog sat perfectly on top of the press box. The feeling was there that this game between the Weddington Warriors and Southeast Guilford Falcons would be one for the ages.

As we walked onto the field at hallowed Keenan Memorial Stadium on the campus of the University of North Carolina, both teams were going through their pregame routines, trying to keep everything as normal as possible on a night that was anything but normal. As the Warriors went through their drills you could faintly hear in the back ground rap artist Meek Mill's Dreams And Nightmares blaring from a pair of Beats headphones. You could see it in their eyes, the focus was at an all time high.

The intensity coming from the Southeast Guilford Falcons during the warm up period was very impressive, it was almost machine like, they seemed to be on a mission. For the Falcons if nerves were a problem, it sure did not show.

As the rain continued to fall, the students and supporters made their way to their seats, the captains for both teams marched to the midfield logo. Weddington won the toss and chose the differ to the 2nd half, which meant we got to see the explosive Southeast Guilford offense out of the gate lead by their dual threat senior quarterback Ryan Douglas.

The Falcons first drive did not go according to the script. Ryan Douglas took a deep shot down the field and had Octavious Benton wide open but the ball was just slightly over thrown as it grazed his finger tips as he tried to stretch for it. The Weddington defense did their part and now it was up to the offense.

Senior quarterback Whitner Litton looked to the sidelines for instruction, his team had excellent field position to start the game. After a false start on the 1st play from scrimmage which can be attested to championship jitters. Litton roared back and threw a beautiful strike down the left sideline into the waiting hands of his favorite target senior Max Brimigion to take the early lead, after an Ian Williams extra point the Warriors led 7-0.

The second drive for each team was the same result as the first, Southeast Guilford still could not getting anything going against the very aggressive Warrior front seven. For the Warriors they could not have asked for a better start to the game. After the Will Shipley touchdown run was called back due to a penalty, Coach Andy Capone dug deep into his bag of tricks and pulled out a tone setter. Senior James Shipley took the reverse hand off from Litton, he saw his younger brother Will streaking down the left sideline, James seemed to use all of his might as he heaved it to his brother, who made a beautiful catch and than somehow shook off a Kyree Burns attempted tackle. Two drives for the Warrior offense two touchdowns and a 14-0 lead.

As we entered the second quarter the struggles for the Falcons of Southeast Guilford continued, The penalties did not help there cause and neither did the fact that they were in constant 3rd down and long situations and against a stout Warrior defensive line, that is not a situation that you want to be in. For the Warriors on the other hand the offense was running like a finely tuned machine, thanks to another Litton touchdown pass this time to James Shipley they now held a three touchdown lead, and if Southeast Guilford didn't act quickly this one could be out of hand.

The Falcons answered the bell, on the next defensive possession defensive lineman Quantez Mansfield intercepted an errant Litton pass on an attempted screen. It was the shot in the arm the Falcons needed. Unfortunately for them any momentum they had would quickly be erased as the Johnathan Medlin missed a field goal right before the half. The story of the 1st half was that Weddington held Ryan Douglas to zero passing yards in the half, a feat we would have said before the game would have been nearly impossible.

Whatever halftime speech Head Coach Kennedy Tinsley gave his team worked, becuase the Falcons came out and hit the Warriors in the mouth. After forcing a a Weddington punt, Ryan Douglas and his offense went to work, he finally was able to complete his first pass of the game, but more importantly for Southeast Guilford, Douglas scrambled in for a 12 yard touchdown run. Just like that we had a ball game again with the Warriors lead dwindling down to 20-7. The 3rd quarter might have been the worst quarter for the Warriors all season, multiple fumbles and terrible penalties kept Southeast Guilford in the game the Falcons were just not able to capitalize on the Warrior mistakes. Weddington seemed to go into a play not to lose mode, instead of trying to put the game away. They attempted multiple runs up the middle but how no success running on a very powerful Falcon defensive line.

The 4th quarter started out with a bang for Weddington as Will Shipley lined up in the Wildcat formation as the quarterback and just barely got the ball over the one yard line to extend the lead to 27-7. After a great defensive stand by the Warriors the turnover problem reared its ugly head again as senior running back Wayne Dixie put the ball on the turf and Southeast Guilford recovered. All it took was one 83 yard pitch and catch from Ryan Douglas to Tyler Hoff and 14 seconds off the game clock to put the Falcons right back in it now only trailing 27-14. That seemed to be the wake up call that the Warriors needed as they were able to intercept Douglas on the final two possessions to wrap up the game, final score being 27-14.

This one will go down in the history books as the mud bow as the teams combined for 8 turnovers. For Weddington it is not very often you can come out with a victory let alone a victory in a championship game when you have 5 turnovers, but that speaks to the resilience and the heart of the entire Warrior program. What Coach Capone was able to in his first season is nothing less of spectacular. The job he and his staff have done with this group of young men, a team so many people counted out when legendary coach Tim Carson left for a job in South Carolina will be remembered for years throughout Union County. You could tell how much this meant to Coach Capone in the press conference after the game he said "it's a special group, one i will remember forever".

For the Southeast Guilford Falcons this one no doubt stings, not being able to turn more of the Warrior turnovers into points will no doubt stay with this group throughout the off season. During the press conference after the game you could see how upset Coach Tinsley was, but make no mistake this is a young team, this is not the last team these Falcons will be on this stage. They are headed in the right direction and that is a testament to the entire culture of the program. Falcons hold your heads high, you had an incredible season one you will remember forever.

For Weddington it truly is like a fairy tale ending, when the journey started against Charlotte Ardrey Kell in the brutal August heat to where in ended on the rain soaked field against Southeast Guilford at Keenan Memorial Stadium, this is something you will remember for the rest of your life, for a lot of you seniors this is the very last time you will ever strap it up. But every coach, player, and assistant don't ever forget you are champions, and that is something that can never be taken away.

Congratulations

R.M. Mitcham

Game MVP James Shipley, 1 passing touchdown, 1 receiving touchdown, 1 interception

East Forsyth Punched Their Ticket to Durham

KERNERSVILLE - As we walked into Fred E. Lewis stadium on Friday night this did not feel like your average regional final game. Maybe it was the chill in the December night sky or maybe it was an aura of confidence that just seemed to fill the air throughout the stadium. Something just felt different on this night.

We stated earlier in the week the entire town of Kernersville very well could be at this ball game. No doubt a hyperbole but we expected standing room only and let us be the first to tell you that is exactly what we received. This is a community that wants a winner so badly. This East Forsyth Eagle team that has been so close to getting to the big dance the last few years, with none being closer than the 2015 match up with Charlotte Mallard Creek, when they had victory snatched from them at the very last moment.

Coach Todd Willert and his entire team had a different look to them, physically they looked the same, but emotionally you could sense it, tonight was going to be different, tonight they were going to impose their will and deliver a regional championship to the community that has supported them through all the close calls over the years. As the Eagles walked through the bleachers the crowd roared with excitement, you could feel the energy. Tonight was going to be different.

The visiting Porter Ridge Pirates won the toss and elected to receive the ball, they wanted to set the tone and quiet this electric crowd. The Coastal Carolina University Commit Grayson McCall led his troops to the line and looked to attack early and often with their high powered shotgun option attack. First drive was a three and out for the Pirates and the Eagles looked even faster on the field than they did on film this week. For the Eagles it was now the offenses turn. They drove down to the Pirate 5 yard line with relative ease and facing a 4th down and short, Coach Willert decided to roll the dice and go for it, but it was all for not as the Porter Ridge defense came up with a huge stop and you just knew we were in for a great game. Two plays later any momentum the Pirates had would be quickly taken away as running back Kirkland Harris was tackled in the end zone for a safety.

It was an early 2-0 lead for the Eagles, a lead that they would not relinquish for the remainder of the evening. After the Porter Ridge safety punt and only a few offensive plays running back Ahmani Marshall took it all the way to the house for a 33 yard touchdown to extend the lead to 9-0 and you could see the jubilation throughout the stadium.

As the 1st quarter wore on, the need for the Pirates to get something going on offense was imperative. For the night they were in the negative category when it came to yardage. The defense on the other hand was playing incredible considering the amount of time that they had been on the field, and after a successful 3rd down stop it looked as though they were going to force East Forsyth to punt and receive decent field position.

Not so fast my friend Coach Willert dug into his bag of tricks and called a gutsy fake punt from his own 27 yard line, Khalid Martin took the snap and took it all the way in for a touchdown to extend the lead to 16-0, when i say Fred E. Lewis stadium was electric that is an understatement, you could not hear yourself think, with how much emotion and excitement was coming out of the fans.

The 2nd quarter brought on more scoring from the Eagles, this time it was courtesy of kicker Andrew Conrad on what looked to be about a 30 yard field goal to extend the lead to 19-0 mid way throughout the 2nd quarter.

There was no quit in this Porter Ridge Pirate team, facing an uphill climb to get back in the game, the Grayson McCall offense marched down the field and Kirkland Harris found his way into the end zone on a 7 yard run to cut the lead to 19-7 right before the half.

The Pirate Team that came out in the 2nd half was a completely different team than we saw in the first half. Not only did they get a big stop on defense but Sophomore running back Brandon Perry decided to make Friday Night his coming out party as he is a name you will certainly be seeing a lot of over the next two seasons. Perry scored on a 13 yard run, and that cut the Eagles lead to 19-14 and the Band of Pirates were rocking. Everything was shaping over to be an exciting finish to this regional final.

Someone did not tell Mizell Hall that though, as he took the ensuing kick off 97 yards back to the house for the score to extend the lead 25-14. Any hope the Pirate Faithful had was slowly starting to be ripped away, as the Eagles who had not won a State Championship in any of these players lifetimes would not let this be the same outcome as so many past playoff failures.

As the 4th quarter wore on you could sense the urgency coming from the Porter Ridge sideline, the ensuing drive for the Pirates came down to a 4th and 3 with the ball game on the line, but the Eagle defense as it had all night won the battle of the line of scrimmage and stopped the Pirates for a 1 yard loss. That would do it for the Pirates 2018 season. All the hard work that the coaches and players had put in all season long would come to an end on a bitterly cold night in Kernersville.

The Eagles would score one more time to put the final nail in the coffin, once again it was Ahmani Marshall with the score and that would put the final score at 32-14.

You could see the emotion just spill out of the coaches, fans, and the players. A community that has waited for so long and came so painstakingly close in recent years has finally made it back to the State Championship Game. The amount of emotion from the entire community is what High School Football is all about, it was truly a beautiful sight.

Make no mistake though as happy as the entire team and community was, they are not going to settle with just appearing in the Championship Game, they want to take a championship back home to Kernersville, and come Saturday December 15th at 7:00 P.M. against Scotland County they will have their opportunity.

For the Porter Ridge Pirates this is only the beginning, the foundation is in place to be competitive year in and year out, they have the right Coach leading the way, and the fan support is second to none, congratulations to the Pirates on a successful season.

R.M. Mitcham

Players of the game:

East Forsyth: Ahmani Marshall with 2 rushing touchdowns.

Porter Ridge: Brnadon Perry 1 touchdown and 77 yards rushing.

Weddington rolls past Watauga

BOONE - Jack Groce Stadium erupted, every fan on the home side of the stadium was on their feet, and with six minutes left in the first quarter after a long and methodical drive, the Watauga Pioneers struck first. Thanks to a Bryce Satterfield touchdown run. The Pioneer faithful were electric, you could tell how much this game meant to them just from atmosphere inside the stadium. The Pioneers on the field  looked every bit as good as they did when we were watching film throughout the week.

Next it was Weddington's turn. The Warriors relied on the ground game exclusively on their first drive of the game, with both Will Shipley and Wayne Dixie taking turns running through the Pioneer defense. Weddington's first drive was capped off by a Will Shipley 10-yard touchdown. With the score all tied at 7, this third round playoff game had the feeling of an instant classic.

The ensuing drive for the Pioneers did not end so favorably, tasked with a 4th down and short, Head Coach Ryan Habich elected to roll the dice and go for the 1st down. A gutsy call but one we agreed with wholeheartedly, unfortunately for his team the Weddington defensive line controlled the line of scrimmage and came through with a huge stop, and that was the turning point in the game, going forward it was all Weddington.

The second quarter was more of the same for the Weddington, allow your veteran offensive line to control the line of scrimmage and hand it off to Will Shipley and Wayne Dixie and watch them grind out positive yardage, they each had a touchdown in the quarter. For Watauga it was hard for them to gain any positive momentum, the Warrior defense just kept coming with with big stop after big stop and come half time the Warriors held a 21 to 7 advantage. The biggest shock in the 1st half was that Weddington had not even attempted to pass the football, the were starting the express their will against a Watauga defensive line that just could not stop their two headed rushing attack.

The third quarter started off about as well as you could have hoped for if you were  Warrior fan. Will Shipley scored his 3rd touchdown of the night, and you could feel the emotion start coming out of Jack Groce Stadium.

Watauga came out of the half like a team who knew its season was slowly starting to slip away, the Pioneers played with such intensity and passion, they just could not stop the Warriors rushing attack. The first offensive drive of the 2nd half for Watauga was off to a great start. The Pioneers were driving the ball down the field, but just as they are starting to gain some momentum, they bust out a trick play and Jackson Greene throws an interception right into Max Brimigion's waiting arms.

Warrior quarterback Whitner Litton only threw the football twice all game, they were both completions and they were both touchdowns to his favorite target Max Brimigion.

Come 4th quarter time it was an insurmountable lead for the Warriors as they led 42 to 7. The Warriors at that point put in more of the second and third team players as they could gain valuable playoff experience. For Watauga Junior tailback Jaiden Bond scored a late touchdown to make the score more respectable at 42 to 14, and that turned out to be the final score in Boone.
Players of the game:

Teams line up to shake hands, after the final whistle.

Weddington: Will Shipley 3 touchdowns, and 165 yards rushing.

Watauga: Jaiden Bond 1 touchdown and 105 yards rushing.

Watauga will no doubt be back in contention next season, this team returns multiple starters, and having another off season to prepare and get better will help than tremendously. This team is a lot better than the final score indicated.

For Weddington, next is a trip to Mount Tabor for the 3AA Western Final. The Spartans will be Weddington's toughest test yet.