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CALCUTTA -- Andrew Connor is quite familiar with the coach that will be on the other side of the field tonight when his Redskins take on Beaver Local.
Connor and Beavers coach Mike McKenzie have been coaching against one another a long time, going back to McKenzie's time at Edison.
"He's a coach that I know very well and respect very much," Connor said of McKenzie. "It starts with all the different things he does offensively. He keeps you guessing by varying his formations. They have a very explosive quarterback and we're going to have to prepared for a lot of different things they do."
His familiar foe has a formidable team this year, coming into tonight's showdown with a 1-1 record, dropping a 27-15 contest to rival East Liverpool in the opener before traveling to Barnesville and knocking off the Shamrocks, 36-15.
"You know from the common opponent and you know from having coached against (McKenzie) for such a long time that they like to spread the field vertically, and they like to set up the run," Connor said. "They had a strong game against East Liverpool, both teams went back and forth, and they're coming off a big win against Barnesville. Beaver is moving in the right direction."
The Redskins, on the other hand, are still looking for their first win of the season after tough home losses to Cambridge and the Potters in the first two weeks.
Connor's message to his team despite the setbacks is a simple one - keep working.
"When you face adversity, you've got two options," he said. "You can feel sorry for yourself, or you can work to get better. Our kids have came to practice ready to go work. I told them we have to keep doing the little things, and we have to keep working to get better. It's mistakes that are killing us, it's not our effort."
So far, the Redskins are led by Jeremy Brown's 104 yards and score on 18 carries. David Ferroni has thrown for 176 yards and a score.
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. tonight on Beaver Local's new artificial turf.
Change of plans; Brooke
traveling to Point Pleasant
POINT PLEASANT -- Things changing is par for the course in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. No one knows that more than Brooke and head coach Mac McLean, who's Bruins had to find a replacement this week.
Rather than facing University on Friday, due to Monongalia County moving into the red portion of the state's COVID map, the Bruins instead will head to Point Pleasant.
"I think most coaches and athletic directors right now with the situation that we're in, you've got to have feelers out and keep an eye on that map every single day and have a few connections with people to say, 'Hey, if we're both stuck, we're gonna get together,'" McLean said of the finding a new opponent. "Sean Blumette has been real good at that for Brooke High School this fall. It's just something we have to do. We can't complain about it too much."
The Bruins started off strong with a 40-7 home win over Hedgesville last week.
The Big Blacks dropped their opener to Oak Glen, who the Bruins are slated to see later this season, by a 36-13 count.
"I know the tradition down there. Point Pleasant is a respected program in the state of West Virginia," McLean said. "We've got one (game) film of them against Oak Glen. It's hard to deny the talent on Oak Glen, but if you take away a couple of their home runs, it could have been a different ball game. I think once they found their footing they played pretty well. We expect to see a good football team."
In the win over Hedgesville, Drake Hukill ran for 113 yards on 10 carries, while Josh Shorts threw for 87 yards and two scores. Joey Fuscardo hauled in two of those passes for 60 yards and a score.
Golden Bears face
another test in Keyser
NEW MANCHESTER -- After a successful season-opening trip to Point Pleasant to open the season, the Golden Bears return to the Bears Den on Friday night to host another Class AA foe in Keyser.
"It's gonna be great," Oak Glen head coach Ted Arneault said of playing at home for the first time. "All the pent-up anxiety and not knowing what is going to happen the next day, to actually be able to be out on our home field and be able to play a football game is going to be special."
The Golden Tornado is 1-0 after knocking off Berkeley Springs 61-33 in their opener.
"They are historically very physical," Arneault said. "They are very good inside the tackles, they don't do a lot of complex things defensively, but they are simple and very good at what they do. They play a lot of cover-3, cover-1, they blitz, nothing overly complicated.
"They have a quarterback, fullback and running back that are all very impressive. Their offensive line has great technique."
Keyser went 10-2 last year, falling to Bluefield in the second round of the playoffs.
While they are a new opponent for the Golden Bears, the Golden Tornado has defeated Weir High in each of the last four seasons.
"Something I have always admired about Keyser is Weir High had some pretty good football teams, and they were never able to overcome them," Arneault said.
In the opening win, Hunter Patterson ran for a 64-yard touchdown and Paxton Shuman rushed for 111 yards and a score.
"I was very, very impressed with how well we were able to execute against Point Pleasant, who I think is a good football team, especially in the first half," Arneault said. "I think we caught them off guard a little bit. I was very happy we were able to get a lot of kids in the game in the second half."
Edison looks for pot of gold against Shamrocks
BARNESVILLE -- For the first time since 2002, Edison enters Week 3 of a season with a 2-0 record, having won both games on the road to boot.
"This group has earned that," O'Brien said the milestone. "They committed to what we have done all summer, and this group wanted to leave their own mark on the program. We're really proud of what they have accomplished. It's something to be proud of, but we can't be complacent with it. It's something to build on and gain confidence from, but there's a lot of work to be done."
The Wildcats will try to go a perfect 3 for 3 away from home again Friday, traveling to Barenesville to take on the 1-1 Shamrocks.
Barnesville topped Buckeye Local, 35-0, on the road in Week 1, then dropped a 36-15 decision to Beaver Local at home.
Leading Edison so far is Tyler Griffith with 143 yards and three touchdowns on the ground, followed closely by Ethan Waggoner with 131 yards and a score. Gage Cline has thrown for 108 yards and a score.
Huskies go on the road
BELLAIRE -- After starting the season with convincing wins over Catholic Central and Toronto inside the friendly confines of Wagner Field, Harrison Central travels for the first time in 2020 with a Saturday afternoon trip to Bellaire.
The Big Reds also are 2-0, setting up an early season battle of the unbeatens.
Bellaire also played its first two games of the season at home, knocking off River ,28-14, in Week 1 and then Shadyside, 20-13, in Week 2.
The Big Reds won last year's meeting, 27-13, in Cadiz and edged the Huskies, 14-7, the last time they met in Bellaire in 2018. Overall, Bellaire has won the last four meetings, with Harrison Central's last victory against Bellaire coming on the road, 21-3, in 2015.
Senior quarterback Kobe Mitchell is the second leading passer in the Herald-Star/Daily Times coverage area through two weeks with 298 yards and four touchdown passes, while not throwing an interception. He has added an additional 81 yards and two scores with his feet, as well as a pick-six.
Breakout sensation James Brooks leads the area with 297 rushing yards and five scores on just 12 carries through two games, while half of Trevor Carman's six catches have gone for six-pointers. He's racked up 170 receiving yards.
Kickoff is set for 12:30 p.m. on Saturday at Nelson Field.
(Grimm can be reached at agrimm@heraldstaronline.com)