An examination of the more noteworthy outcomes from the first Friday of high school football season:
Class AAA
Martinsburg 40, Salem (Va.) 7: Despite not scoring an offensive touchdown in the first half, the Class AAA No. 1 Bulldogs did score on a blocked punt for a touchdown, converted on two field goals from Brent Terwilliger, and let their defense take care of business against a very talented #4 AAAA Spartans. In the second half, Martinsburg’s offense got things going. Zion Grantham ran for 12 yards, Ezra Bagent ran for 1 yard, Murphy Clement ran for 71 yards, and Ezra Bagent threw a 27-yard pass in the end zone to Jameer Hunter. An impressive win by the Bulldogs in week 1.
John Marshall 16 University 14: Noah Braham, a West Virginia recruit, scored a rushing touchdown for the Class AAA No. 7 Hawks, but he later sustained an injury during the team’s tight season-opening victory. In Mark Cisar’s 1st game as the Monarchs’ head coach, UHS managed to overcome Jacob Coffield’s 20-yard pass in the end zone to Wesley Hughes and Klypsan Wallace’s 14-yard touchdown run to defeat John Marshall. A blocked punt that went through the end zone for safety in the 2nd quarter was essential to the outcome.
29 Spring Valley, 28 Huntington (UPSET) With only four minutes remaining and the ball on their own two-yard line, Spring Valley needed to drive the length of the field to tie the game with Huntington. The Timberwolves would then punch back. The No. 5 Spring Valley Highlanders defeated the No. 2 Highlanders, 29-28, thanks to a 98-yard touchdown drive and a two-point convert.
George Washington 28, Cabell Midland 21 (UPSET) GW defeated the #3-ranked Knights in the fourth quarter thanks to one of the Knights’ two costly red-zone turnovers. The first one occurred after Jones lost possession and GW’s Anthony Valentine recovered it with 9:57 left. The Patriots were ahead at that point, 28-14, but Cabell Midland forced a three-and-out and recovered the ball in 1:05, then moved the ball 53 yards on eight rushing plays, the last of which was Wolfe’s 1-yard touchdown run. The Knights were down 28-21 after Olivia Charles’ third of three point-after attempts, and they never looked back.
Class AA
Evan Roach carried for 208 yards and 4 touchdowns on just 26 attempts for Point Pleasant, which defeated Greenbrier East 30–7 in their season-opener. The Black Knights ranked No. 5 in Class AA, held the Spartans without a point through the first three quarters. The biggest touchdown run by Roach was 14 yards, and the other three came on rushes of 1, 13, and 3. Point Pleasant outrushed Greenbrier East 412-56 in the victory as Gavin Jeffers added 120 rushing yards on 18 carries. The Spartans were nearly shut out until Lucas McCallister caught a 58-yard td pass from Ian Cline.
Scott 34, Herbert Hoover19: One year after Hoover dominated the regular season, the Skyhawks scored 28 consecutive points to finish the contest and defeat the Class AA No. 4 Huskies. Isaiah Bush played a key role in the win by picking off three passes and returning two of them for scores. Additionally, Bush caught a 15-yard touchdown pass from Matt Frye to give Scott a 20-19 lead. In the fourth quarter, Carson Brinegar caught a 19-yard touchdown pass on a tip to himself. With just under six minutes left, Bush returned an interception 54 yards for a score to help Scott seal the victory.
Roane County 30, St. Marys 20: The Raiders scored 2 touchdowns in the first quarter thanks to three interceptions, one of which was returned 25 yards by Matthew Shaffer. In the RCHS triumph, Jacob Greathouse also had an interception. The Raiders have defeated the Class A No. 6 Blue Devils for the second consecutive year.
Dylan Ours rushed for four touchdowns and carried the ball for 167 yards as the two-time reigning Class AA state champions, #1 Fairmont Senior, kicked up their current championship defense with a win against Lewis County. Fairmont Senior defeated Lewis County 42-6. Gavin Michael scored a touchdown after he picked off a pass.
Class A
Riley Watkins led #1 Wheeling Central Catholic to a 24-7 victory over Ambridge on Friday night at Moe Rubenstein Stadium in Week 1 of high school football action in the Beaver Valley. Watkins ran for 132 yards and grabbed three catches for 45 yards and a touchdown. On a rush by running back Zappula Lewis, Ambridge scored the game’s first touchdown early in the second quarter, but that was all the Bridgers would manage all night. On a pass from Payton Hildebrand, Watkins then scored from 23 yards out to tie the game at the half. Running back Lorenzo Ferrera of Wheeling C.C. scored a touchdown against Ambridge in the second half from 67 and three yards away, and Eli Tucker made a 33-yard field goal to give Wheeling the victory to start the season for the second consecutive year.
Tyler Consolidated 41, Ritchie County 0: Sean Winfrey’s 279 rushing yards and two touchdowns helped the Silver Knights dominate the Rebels, the reigning state champions. The performance of Tyler was also greatly aided by Jayden Helmick, whose touchdown runs of 2 and 18 yards, along with a TD reception of 11 yards, allowing TCHS to lead 22-0 at the half. Ritchie, Class A No. 4, was outgained by Tyler, 439-144.
The No. 3 Doddridge County Bulldogs of never trailed as Trenton Hoffman hurled touchdowns of 4 and 51 yards to Gabe Stewart and Landon Thomas, respectively, in the first half as the Bulldogs defeated South Harrison 25-6 . 6. Huffman scored the fourth and final touchdown for the Bulldogs on a 1-yard run, while Seth Richards added a 6-yard rushing touchdown. The Hawks’ lone points in the loss came from a 2-yard rush by Caden Davis.
Ty Nickell carried the ball 23 times for 237 yards and three scores as the Cavaliers romped to a victory in Charmco that was cut short by bad weather, Greenbrier West 33, Buffalo 0. For GWHS, Cole Vandall scored on a 24-yard run, and Dalton Heath caught a 10-yard touchdown pass from Tucker Lilly. The Cavaliers ran for 314 yards in total on 32 attempts.
Webster County 28, Richwood 20: Eddie Williams won his first game as head coach of Webster County as the Highlanders claimed victory in the Battle for the Wagon Wheel. Peyton Amos scored on a return, intercepted three passes, and had a touchdown reception.
Williamstown defeated Waterford, Ohio, 46–22 behind two touchdowns on the ground and 132 yards via the air from Max Molessa as the Yellowjackets avenged their season-opening defeat from 2021.
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We will have Week 2 updated rankings and previews on Tuesday.
