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Week Five by Ardent Cougar .Friday, September 28 - Blacksburg Indians (Home): Series: First
meeting.
Region
III District Standings
Two games played, six more to go. Again, it's a long season. With a pair of victories In the RVD, PC would already be halfway to another district title. In the Blue Ridge, it's only a beginning. The Blacksburg Indians come to town, eager to avenge themselves for last week's blown opportunity against Salem. QB Brett Smith (No. 11) is excellent at running the option, and is very slick on those deceptive handoffs. A time or two during last week's contest, I think he even fooled himself. Smith can also throw the ball well. Blacksburg has a good running back in Jermaine Rogers (No. 23), who is somewhat small, but quick and elusive. Scott Sterrett (No. 27) is a good receiver, and also kicks for the Indians. Look for a few deep, high-lofted 'moonballs' to be tossed in his direction. Defensively, the Indians shot the gaps well in the first half, stopping rushing attempts cold, leaving Salem with no first downs at the break. Willis White must have found something at halftime, as Salem adjusted in the second half, and moved the ball much better. Blacksburg had around 250 more total yards than the Spartans, but the only stat that really counts, is the final score. Blacksburg moved the ball, and put up points, but committed a sickening 7 turnovers against the Spartans. Both teams were sloppy; Salem coughed it up 3 times. Holding on to the pigskin wins. The Cougars know this very well. Opponent turnovers this season.... 8. Cougar turnovers this season.... NONE. Not a one. Now that's discipline. Hopefully, Josh Calfee will be alright this week. From what little I have heard about it, his concussion last Saturday night appears to have been mild, and he should be ready to play. I have not yet heard anything concerning the availability of Travis Williams. Jeff Wolfe was also at the Salem-Blacksburg game, and files the following report: Pulaski County fans had to find alternative activities last Friday night, since the PC vs. William Fleming game was on Saturday. Many Cougar fans were on hand at Salem’s 31-24 defeat of the Indians in Blacksburg. This writer talked to Blacksburg’s star receiver Scott Sterrett after the game. “It was a tough game. We made some mistakes. We played our hearts out. A couple of turnovers and plays beat us,” said Sterrett. “Say hi to Alan for me,” he added. Wheeling was available for comment after the victory over Fleming. “Scott is a good guy, I like him. We met at three football camps, NC State, William and Mary, and Virginia Tech.” It is likely
that Wheeling will be covering Sterrett at times this Friday night.
“He’s a good receiver, got good hands, and he can get open. I would
love to be challenged by him,” he said.
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You ask a player to be your starting quarterback, play first-string defense as a cornerback, and return punts and kickoffs. That's quite a load, right? Apparently not, at least when we're talking about Alan Wheeling. When our star running back Josh Calfee left the game with a concussion last Saturday night, guess who took his place? A player off the bench, you say? Nah. When the game is close, you need your best players out there. So, in came Joey Radcliffe to take over the QB duties, and Wheeling moved to tailback. When it was over, Alan had rushed 63 yards in 10 attempts, with a 16-yard TD to his credit. The drive was set up with an interception by.... Alan Wheeling. The defense provided a shutout for the second game in a row. The first-string defense has thrown 3 shutouts thus far. It's been 9 quarters since the Cougars were last scored upon. Radcliffe played excellently, going 2-for-2 for 33 yards, including a perfectly thrown 20-yard TD pass to Matt Roan, which gave the Cougars a more comfortable lead early in the 3rd Quarter. The other completion to Matt was textbook as well. Everyone on the team deserves kudos for this win against a tough, hard-hitting Fleming team that's definitely better than its record. But no one deserves credit more than Alan Wheeling. Against Christiansburg, Alan tied a school record for TDs on punt returns in a season. Is there anything he can't do on the gridiron? MVP.
Previous 2001 Articles: FTB
Week One
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