This North Carolina high school football season is different for many teams
Here’s a crazy thought: We’re already a third of the way through the regular season?
What’s even crazier, however, is that we still have a handful of teams who have yet to kick off a game, and many schools around the state have only played a single contest since the opening weekend of action.
Since then, some schools already look to be in playoff form, such as Julius Chambers in Charlotte and Cardinal Gibbons in Raleigh, yet other programs are struggling with participation numbers and games are being canceled due to team shutdowns resulting from exposure to COVID-19.
These are such unprecedented times that we are facing and given the uncertainty of which teams the pandemic will affect, it’s almost hard for me to pick the top games of the week to write about, mostly because a multitude of games are being postponed or canceled each week, with some of them getting nixed as late as one hour before the scheduled kickoff, and most all of them due to the effects of the pandemic.
The jobs of coaches and trainers changed drastically back in the spring season when numerous protocols were put into place to help protect the student-athletes and keep everyone safe, but the jobs of coaches encompass more than just teaching the players the fundamentals of the game or installing plays and formations for the upcoming week.
Coaches are teaching players to be safe away from the team as well. For Sanderson head coach Jeremy Buck, keeping his players safe takes on a more personal meaning.
Buck was only hours away from potentially being transferred to the ICU while struggling with the effects of Covid-19 and pneumonia, and while being a teacher and a football coach are important jobs that he takes seriously, he also learned the importance of protecting himself and his team and he reinforces those protective measures daily to his players.
“We are able to refer back to my situation and about the importance of protecting ourselves,” Buck said. “We know how important it is to mask-up because this is serious business, it’s not a joke or a game to play around with, so it’s a big deal around here.”
Like many other programs that are facing the effects of the virus, his program lost two weeks of the season to quarantine, and his players have potentially lost two games from their season that have yet to be made up.
In the Triad, West Forsyth coach Adrian Snow also preaches the importance of taking precautions, because like Buck, he too was sidelined because of the virus, and while his team hasn’t missed practice time or games, his illness has also become a teaching point to his players about how serious this pandemic can be, and how close it can hit home.
“Do everything in your power to protect yourself,” Snow said. “That means being careful about being in tight spaces with a lot of people and making sure that you wear your mask indoors.”
Top story lines for Week 4
▪ Two weeks ago, head coach Jupiter Wilson took his up-and-coming Hickory Ridge team into Keffer Stadium and faced Charlotte Catholic, the four-time defending state champions. His Ragin’ Bulls came up short in that game but rallied back with a convincing 27-7 win over 3A power South Point a week ago.
His squad will get another opportunity to take down a state power on Friday night, this time against the two-time defending champion Chambers Cougars. On paper, it looks to be an uphill battle for Hickory Ridge, but this battle-hardened team just might be up for the challenge of giving the Cougars a run for the win.
To beat Chambers these days, it’s more than just trying to stop reigning Mr. Football, Daylan Smothers, out of the backfield. Hickory Ridge will also have to keep tabs on lightning-fast receiver K.C. Concepcion and force quarterback Anshon Camp out of his comfort zone, and to top it all off, they’ll have to find a way to help quarterback Alex Bentley and the potent Bulls offense crack the code to one of the most physical defenses in the state.
▪ In Raleigh, Cardinal Gibbons has started out of the gate very strong, posting a 2-1 record with that lone setback being a competitive 35-29 loss to Chambers. Going for career coaching win number 101, Steven Wright and his Crusaders will have to deal with the run-heavy, and ultra-physical Wake Forest Cougars.
To come away with the win, Gibbons will have to find a way to stop one of the most exciting players in the state, the shifty and elusive Mikey DiPasquale.
About the Author
Chris Hughes, 44, has loved high school football since he was kid growing up in Kannapolis. He coached for eight years at South Rowan and Fayetteville Byrd. He’s covered high school football since 2007. Reach Chris with story ideas and comments at chughes@carolinapreps.com or @guruchrishughes on Twitter
This story was originally published September 8, 2021 at 7:00 AM.