Albemarle readies for North Stafford

Albemarle excelled in all areas in its blowout win over Charlottesville this past Friday, but the Patriots know they have to kick it up a notch as they enter Commonwealth District play at North Stafford this week.
Last year, the Wolverines shut out Albemarle at home, 42-0.
“We played here, and there was an automobile accident on 29, so they were delayed an hour. We were out here warming up and then we had to go back in the locker room — it just killed everything we had,” said Albemarle coach Rick Vrhovac. “We got whitewashed, and I’ll be reminding our kids a lot of that this week.”
Albemarle (2-1) faces a stiff challenge, and Vrhovac knows the Patriots have their work cut out for them. North Stafford (1-2) is coming off a 27-14 loss to Potomac last week.
“They run a very similar offense to us — they’re going to run the spread. They’ll have everybody out, and they’ll run some option,” Vrhovac said. “[North Stafford] beat Gar-Field and lost to a very good Liberty-Bealeton team so I think they’re a very competitive football team.
“I think we’re going to have to play our best to beat them, especially [after] two hours on the road.”
Black Knights’ woes
Charlottesville’s football team had some critical players missing from its lineup in last Friday’s game against Albemarle — and they won’t be back anytime soon.
“We had some administrative issues we had to take with some players that are no longer with the program,” said Charlottesville first-year coach Chris Fraser after the game. “A couple of players parted ways on their own terms. It was a culmination of a lot of things.
“Our goal is to move forward to the future. Right now, we’re moving forward with the folks that are going to help us do that.”
Charlottesville, still searching for its first win, hopes to take a step in the right direction on Friday, as it plays host to William Monroe for its Homecoming game.
Monticello loses squeaker
Brud Bicknell has apparently been catching up on tapes of Mike Shanahan.
With Monticello down 19-18 to Powhatan with under a minute to play after Hines Banks’ 3-yard run pulled the Mustangs within a point, Bicknell called for a two-point conversion, much as Shanahan did in Denver’s 39-38 win over San Diego in the NFL’s week two.
Quarterback Michael Graham and wideout Khiry Washington couldn’t hook up on the two-pointer and Monticello fell to the Indians, but that may be a foreboding sign for Monticello’s future opposition.
If Bicknell already has that much confidence in a Mustang offense that lost two huge playmakers in Daniel Lieb and Takeem Hedgeman already after just three games, Jefferson District opponents will have to be even more wary of the defending state champs than they already were.
Then again, why wouldn’t Bicknell be confident in this offense? Graham is a proven entity at quarterback (he threw for 223 yards and a better than 50 percent completion ratio against the Indians), as is Jacob Pelton at wideout.
With Banks apparently on the mend (16 carries, 52 yards against Powhatan) and a combination of Sam Roller, Washington and Marvin Mills also in the mix at receiver, the Mustangs have weapons.
Not that those weapons will get to ease into Jefferson play. A monster matchup with Orange County looms this week. More on that game in Friday’s edition.
Eagles step up despite loss
Covenant may have proved more in its 21-0 loss to Liberty Christian Academy than Albemarle and Western Albemarle did in blowout victories last Friday. The Eagles hung tight with one of the state’s best before getting knocked out late.
LCA garnered some recognition by blowing out a Valley Forge (Pa.) Military Academy, a traditional power that boasts Arizona Cardinals wideout Larry Fitzgerald and Carolina Panthers offensive lineman Jeff Otah among its alumni.
The loss should be a major boost for the Eagles, who face a tough task Thursday against Blue Ridge. Look for more on this game in Thursday’s edition.
Colberg earns Iron Man honors
Covenant’s Colberg was chosen as the Army Iron Man of the Week last week. The award honors the best two-way high school football player in Virginia.
The senior did a little bit of everything in the team’s win over Kettle Run (70-0). Colberg had two rushing touchdowns, a punt return for a touchdown, and a 99-yard interception return for a touchdown.
Asher gets it done
St. Anne’s-Belfield tight end Alex Asher put together a strong performance against Trinity Episcopal on the road Friday. Asher scored three times, with the first two coming on a 24-yard and a 6-yard pass from Howie Long in the second quarter.
The third came on an 84-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to open the second half that ended any hope of a Trinity rally. Asher finished with 73 yards on four catches. STAB, which is almost surely the best 1-2 team in the area, hosts St. Christopher’s Friday.
One player the Saints will need to find a way to stop is Kurt Fleming, formerly of Louisa County High, who transferred to the Richmond school this year.
Last week in St. Christopher’s 31-12 win over Norfolk Academy, Fleming, a junior, scored all four touchdowns while rushing for 131 yards and hauling in three catches for 69 yards.
Is Madison the real deal?
Madison County (3-0) appears to be gearing up for a monster run through the Bull Run district. The Mountaineers crushed Luray with their one-two punch of a rushing attack, spearheaded by Logan Terrell and Devon Boone.
Boone piled up 135 yards on 16 carries while Terrell gained 126 yards on just 12 carries. That’s an average of more than 9.3 yards per carry.
The pair rushed for more than 600 yards each as sophomores in 2007, and they appear set to best that by a long shot this year.
Madison will take on Page County in its homecoming contest Friday night before beginning a two-game road swing.
Parks good to go
Mitchell Parks, Western Albemarle’s sophomore linebacker is perfectly healthy despite not playing for stretches against William Monroe. Parks simply got poked in the eye according to Western coach Ed Pierce and didn’t return because the Warriors had the game well in hand.
FUMA’s Bodine suffers knee injury
A lopsided loss to Loyola Blakefield (Md.) wasn’t the only blow that Fork Union was dealt this past week.
Junior center Russell Bodine went down in the second quarter on Saturday. He was on the field several minutes before limping off and did not return.
According to Fork Union coach Micky Sullivan, Bodine, of Scottsville, has an MCL sprain and sprained ankle. He is listed as day-to-day as far as availability.
“Anytime you lose a guy that’s your starting center and you have to move a guy in from another position, it messes up your chemistry a little bit,” Sullivan said. “Russell’s a great player, he’s been with our program for a long time and he’s one of our leaders.”
Fork Union plays host to Woodberry Forest this Saturday.