Pics & Previews
James River (1-1) at Parry McCluer(2-0) WHEN: 7 p.m. Friday WHERE: Robert E. Williams Field in Buena Vista. Tickets are $7. LAST MEETING: Behind running back Gavin Binns, who rushed for 297 yards and scored three touchdowns, James River exploded for 21 points in the third quarter and rolled past the Blues, 35-7, in Buchanan. The game was tied 7-7 at halftime, but the Knights scored on their first three possessions of the second half, with Binns doing the bulk of the damage (he was the only JR runner with positive yardage in the game). The Blues were whistled for 15 penalties in the game, 14 in the first half, and never got on track offensively, mustering only 132 yards on the ground.
SCOUTING THE KNIGHTS: Just like last year, James River is off to a 1-1 start after beginning the season with a victory over Auburn and falling to Blacksburg, 16-14, last Friday. Binns graduated and is no longer in the lineup for the Knights, so sophomore quarterback Merit Hammons and sophomore fullback Ashton Orange have taken over the bulk of the offensive load in James River’s veer offense. In the first three games, Hammons has accounted for three of James River’s five touchdowns. He threw for one and ran in another in the victory over Auburn while running in a score in the loss to Blacksburg. A number of other runners will handle the ball for James River, including senior Sam Wilson, who rushed for nearly 60 yards and scored a touchdown last week. Defensively, the Knights will mostly run out of a 4-4 set, though if history proves true, they will bring extra defenders into the box to try to stop PM’s running game.
SCOUTING THE BLUES: Parry McCluer overcame 10 penalties and four fumbles to roll past Page County, 31-14, last Friday night in Shenandaoh. The Blues did surrender a long kickoff return for a touchdown for the second straight week, but the PM defense continued to be stout. The Blues allowed only 123 yards of total offense to the Panthers and all but shut down the powerful Page running game, giving up just 110 yards on the ground. In two games thus far, Parry McCluer has allowed an average of just 119 total yards per game. Meanwhile, the starting backfield accounted for three more touchdowns, with Brody Coleman, Parker Snider and Thomas Conner all finding the end zone, and Snider went over 100 yards for the second straight game.
THE NEWS-GAZETTE’S PICK: James River and Parry McCluer first met way back in 1970 and have played every year since, with the Blues holding a 35-20-1 edge in the series. The Blues will not have to contend with Binns in this game, but they will have to cut down the penalties, which killed all momentum last season against the Knights and really hampered the offense in last week’s contest against Page County, and find a way to stop James River’s option attack. Do that, and the Blues should eke out a 21-14 win.
