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From The Bleachers 2000:
Friday, November 10, 7:30pm - Patrick Henry Patriots (Northwestern Region Semifinal, Home): Series:
PC leads 17-11.
In Coach Joel Hicks' first year here, 1979, the Cougars went 9-3. Two of those 3 losses were to the Patriots (who I believe had Willis White on the sidelines), who made it all the way to the finals. Just as the case is this time, the 2 meetings occurred within a span of 3 games. After losing to PH 21-9 in the final game of the regular season, PC went on the road and defeated State No. 1 G.W. Danville 7-0, then lost the rematch with the Patriots 14-7 in the Region Final at Victory Stadium. This season, 21 years later, it's the Cougars' turn to have a chance to accomplish the same feat. With the apparent loss of Frank Cobbs as Fullback and Safety, questions about the defensive scheme against the pass, and trying to find out what happened to the rushing attack that had ripped through 9 opponents, Coach Hicks and his staff have their work cut out for them this week. Coming back home to Dobson Stadium will help things. Of course, the Patriots have their work cut out for them as well. They squeaked by William Fleming 16-14 last week. Have they been able to shake off the 56-14 punishment? Division 5 Playoffs: (The team ratings in parentheses are Gilliam's Ratings for Division 5) Northwestern
Region
Eastern
Region
Central
Region
Northern Region
Semifinal Matchups:
Championship
Game:
Final Cougar Regular Season Stats: Average
beginning margin: +11 (best: +54 worst: -49)
Average
Cougar first downs per game: 20
Average
Cougar rushing game: 51 rushes, 404 yards, 7.97 yards per carry
Average
Cougar passing game: 2 completions, 4 passes, 0 interceptions, 27
yards, 6.85 yards per attempt, 14.05 yards per completion
Average
Cougar total yards per game: 55 plays, 431 yards, 7.89 yards per
play
Average
Cougar punt return: 14.15 yards (after 9 games)
Average
Cougar kickoff return: 22.53 yards (after 9 games)
Average
takeaway margin: +2
Week Eleven Review - Cave Spring Knights (Away): The final Roanoke Valley District game produced quite a bang, but for the wrong team. Last year, the Cougars produced a thrilling upset, keeping the Knights from owning the RVD Title unshared with a spotless district record. This year, turnabout was fair play, it seems. The Knights absolutely obliterated the Cougars 49-14, and it was not that close. It was 42-0 at the break, and 49-0 early in the 3rd quarter. In the 22 years of the Joel Hicks Era, only the 56-13 loss to G.W. Danville in 1990 and the 47-0 defeat at the hands of Salem in 1998 outrank this disaster in terms of the final margin. Cave's 24 first downs are the most a Hicks Cougar team has given up in a game. I thought that the Knights, having learned that they would have to forfeit 6 games and miss the playoffs, would come out either extremely flat, or extremely sharp. This Cave Spring team came out on Senior Night with a fire in their eyes, and on a mission. QB Jacob Lewis shredded the PC pass defense for 409 yards and *6* touchdowns! Tom Hagan , Daniel Payne, and Michael Brammer caught a pair of TDs each. That offensive output alone was stunning enough, as Cave scored twice as many points in one half as PC had given up in any single *game* this season. The most shocking thing was the Knights' ability to stop the Cougar rushing game, which was totally unrecognizable on this night. It reminded me a lot of the first half (offensively) against Annandale in the 1993 Championship game, only worse. Antione Meadows got the Cougars on the board in the 4th quarter with a 6-yard run. Josh Calfee scored a late touchdown as well. The worst news of the night was Frank Cobbs. He was taken out of the game with an injury in the 3rd quarter, and may have already been injured before in the 1st quarter. Word is he has a dislocated shoulder. As far as I have been told, he will not be able to play in the playoffs. It would be great if he could play, if he is truly able to. He certainly deserves a shot at the postseason. He finished the regular season with a record 1,809 yards rushing, with a 9.52 per carry average. His final career regular season numbers are 2,607 yards (3rd All Time) with a 9.21 per carry average (1st All Time). Calfee finished with 1289 yards for the season (36 more than the record he set last season, which Cobbs broke), with a 7.41 yards per carry average. He now has a record 3,071 yards for his career, with a whole year left to put it out of reach. Speaking of the Cougar Record Book, take a look at it, and see how many times you see the year 2000 mentioned. |