After five weeks of non-conference games, OVC teams will begin their conference schedules this Friday. The conference slate couldn't have come too soon for most, if not all teams, seeing as how no one came out of the first five with a winning record, and in fact two teams are still looking for win number one.
Everyone's playoff chances look bleak at best right now, and even if one team managed to run the table in the conference, it still probably wouldn't be enough to sneak into the playoffs, given the overall weakness of the conference.
Still, a conference championship banner would look good in anyone's gym, and with no one really distinguishing themselves as an out-and-out front-runner for the title, this year might see a dark horse such as a River Valley or a Fairland make a strong move towards the top of the division. After the first half of the season, here are the current standings:
South Point: 2-3 (0-0)
Coal Grove: 2-3 (0-0)
River Valley: 2-3 (0-0)
Chesapeake: 2-3 (0-0)
Fairland: 0-4 (0-0)
Rock Hill: 0-5 (0-0)
WEEK FIVE RECAP
CHESAPEAKE PANTHERS - lost to Portsmouth West; Week 6 - v. Coal Grove - Okay, lets get that OVC Championship plaque up to West Portsmouth. The Senators may very well deserve it after going a perfect 4-0 against the conference this year.
On a serious note, Chesapeake's offense was - well - offensive for a second consecutive week, as they were down 37-0 when the Senators called off the dogs in the fourth quarter. Again, the Panther offense lacked any sign of a consistent offensive threat other than quarterback Aaron Donahoe, who was injured during the game.
Granted, the Panthers faced a defense that had given up a total of 13 points in 4 games coming into week five. But Chesapeake's offense has been non-existent against the first-string defenses of Wayne, Valley, and West. At this point, the Valley shutout concerns me more than all of the other losses because I truly felt Chesapeake was on a much higher level than the Indians, who look very suspect after getting trashed by OVC opponents Coal Grove and South Point by a combined score of 59-15.
Right now, I can't see the Panthers finishing any higher than fourth in the conference unless they find some go-to offensive weapons in a hurry.
COAL GROVE HORNETS - defeated Newport, Ky, 29-14; Week 6 - at Chesapeake - There wasn't anything particularly pretty about Friday's game. Aside from Oakie Haynes' electrifying 85-yard opening kickoff return for a touchdown, Coal Grove really didn't do anything that exciting. Although, at times the game got downright boring, the Hornets' offensive game plan worked to perfection.
With 37 carries and 147 rushing yards from brute running back Frank Delawder, Coal Grove played keep-away from Newport and didn't allow their offense, which was sometimes explosive, hardly any time at all with which to work. Coal Grove's biggest problem at the halfway point of the season appears to simply mistakes and/or allowing the "Big Plays" whether on offense or defense.
Their 4-4 defensive is really meant to stop the run and force teams to pass or go for the "Big Play". Pass defense has been the Hornets' Achilles Heel for a while now and they got a big swig of passes Friday, as Newport quarterback Cody Collins completed 7 of 13 passes for 109 yards and a TD. Newport ran the spread offense, going from the shotgun on every play with at least 3 receivers out wide. If Coal Grove continues to ignore the pass and/or the spread, they will pay for it.
ROCK HILL REDMEN - lost to Wheelersburg, 52-7; Week 6 - v. Fairland - Deep down, we all knew it could possibly get this ugly when the Redmen took on the Burg Friday. No real surprise here with the score. What surprised me was how fast Rock Hill seemed to take themselves out of the game with mistakes and turnovers.
They gave a very good Pirate team early opportunities and momentum and they laid Rock Hill to rest before the end of the first quarter.
The game wouldn't have gotten out of hand so fast without mistakes. I've been rather soft on Rock Hill so far this season, but now I'm going to have to dish out some tough love. They've been outscored 204-51 through the first five. They've been beaten by all sorts of teams - powerhouses like Portsmouth West and Wheelersburg, a very suspect team in Valley, and a couple of early upstarts in Zane Trace and Oak Hill. The Oak Hill and Valley losses look the worst when you consider what the rest of the OVC has done against those teams.
Rock Hill certainly looks like the weakest team in the conference right now, but they are young and the OVC is murky. They could steal a few conference games if teams let their guards down.
FAIRLAND DRAGONS - Week five bye; Week 6 - @ Rock Hill.
RIVER VALLEY RAIDERS - defeated Waterford, 27-7; Week 6 - v. South Point - I kept hearing from folks up Cheshire way that River Valley was much improved from recent years. I was skeptical to say the least and I'm not totally convinced that they're THAT much better. But after back-to-back wins, I'm not totally on the Raider bandwagon, but I'm definitely thinking about punching my ticket.
The reason I'm tempted to do so is the fact that River Valley is not like most of the rest of the OVC. They're kind of like that distant cousin who you might see once every year - you know they're different than the part of your family you live around and you feel uneasy around them since you really don't know them that well.
It makes it even worse that you have to drive all that way to see them. River Valley's pass first, ask-questions-later style of offense can give the run-oriented teams of the OVC fits. They took Coal Grove into double-OT last year and gave Rock Hill fits for a while, as well. Friday, quarterback Clayton Curnutte went 17 of 24 passing for 227 yards and three scores.
His go-to receiver was Jordan Deel who caught 9 passes for 136 yards and 3 touchdowns. The defense seemed to step up for the past two weeks as well, as the Raiders outscored Eastern and Waterford by a combined score of 41-7. Why am I not on the bandwagon yet? Because both of these teams are Div. I and Eastern is actually a pretty lousy Div. I team.
SOUTH POINT POINTERS - defeated Valley, 28-7; Week 6 - at River Valley - After starting off the season with a brutal first 3 games, South Point has faced a couple of softer teams the past two weeks with Point Pleasant and most recently Lucasville Valley, who they thumped 28-7 Friday. The Pointers' defense came alive after giving up a 50+ yard TD pass from Valley in the first quarter.
After going into the half down 7-6, they relied on big plays to pile up the points; South Point's final three touchdowns all came from over 50 yards out. The Pointers were one-dimensional on the offensive side of the ball - as they have been for most of the season - getting most offensive production from the running game, especially Jacob Seagraves. This could play into OVC opponents' hands, especially Coal Grove's, whose 4-4 or 5-3 set-ups on defense are specifically designed to stop the running game between the tackles.
Also, the Pointers gave up 148 passing yards to Valley, including the long TD pass in the first quarter. I guess they made up for the scoring pass when they returned an interception for a touchdown in the fourth quarter, but 100+ yards of passing offense should be taken as a warning to adjust, especially with a trip to throw-happy River Valley next on the schedule. Rush defense looked good on paper against the Indians: 83 yards on 31 attempts. South Point will definitely need similar performances against teams like Coal Grove and Fairland.
LOOK AHEAD TO WEEK SIX
OVC Game #1: Coal Grove at Chesapeake
This week, the Panthers host Coal Grove to open Conference Play and will try to take back the Little Brown Jug after losing to Coal Grove last year for the first time since 1997.
The outcome of last year's meeting was never in doubt for most of the game. But many Hornet Fans are quick to point to the game at Chesapeake two years ago, which saw a whole host of "Mystery Calls" that when in favor of Chesapeake, including an extremely rare "Pushing the Pile" call which negated a touchdown.
Chesapeake will need Donahoe to play in this game if they want to have any shot whatsoever against the Hornets. It hasn't been announced whether or not he'll be able to go but if he can't, Chesapeake had better start working on a way to score points quick or find a way to keep Coal Grove from dominating the time of possession as they have in both of their wins, holding the ball for well over 60 minutes combined in those games.
I look
for the Hornets to run straight at
the undersized Panther Defense,
using their Power I formation. I
expect 30-40 carries from Delawder
and a Time of Possession once again
over 30 minutes. The Hornets need to
stay focused throughout the whole
game instead of getting sloppy
towards the end. They need to go in
and put the game out of reach early,
that way they can assure themselves
that "mystery calls" won't come to
haunt them.
Prediction: Coal Grove 37,
Chesapeake 12
OVC Game #2: Fairland at Rock Hill
After a much-needed bye week, the conference's other winless team is supposed to be completely healthy and at full strength when they begin conference play on Friday.
Although they haven't won a game yet, they have been on the verge of getting some very good-looking wins.
They blew a 24-0 halftime lead against Meigs in Week 2, then blew a 28-0 halftime lead in Week 3 against Sheldon-Clark, Ky. They also fell just short against the Tolsia Rebels in Week 4, 14-21. If Fairland can show up and play hard for four quarters each game and stay healthy, they'll get at least 3 OVC wins this year and they'll have a chance to win every game they're in.
Fairland hasn't beaten Rock Hill since 2003, when they finished sixth in Region 15 and made the State Playoffs. From 2004 to 2007, Rock Hill outscored Fairland, 141-53. Both teams are coming in winless, so someone's going to pick up win number one. Fairland has been way more impressive than Rock Hill has so far this year and since they should be playing at full strength this weekend, I'm giving them the edge. Rock Hill must cut down on turnovers and mistakes to have a shot.
The veteran offensive line needs to step up and allow young McCollister to make plays. Rock Hill also needs a big performance from senior running back Cory Bamer. His hard style of running can help the Redmen control the ball and keep Fairland's offensive threats (as well as their own less-than great defense) off the field. If Fairland jumps out to a big lead early in the game, Rock Hill almost certainly won't be able to dig out of it.
Prediction: Fairland 42, Rock Hill 20
OVC Game #3: South Point at River Valley
Both teams are on two-game winning streaks. This current two-game winning streak is the first of its kind since 2003. Now, River Valley would like to do something it hasn't done since the 2004 season: win an OVC game. Their last conference win came in mid-October of 2004, a 35-6 victory against - you might have known - South Point. As I said earlier, this River Valley team has a lot going for it.
They're much improved from previous years. They play a style of offense that can be confusing for the run-oriented defenses of the OVC. And three of their conference games are at home, meaning South Point, Fairland, and Rock Hill will all have to make the long journey to Raider Country that has been known to take a lot out of teams.
These three factors have the potential to work against South Point on Friday. Lots of people are calling for an Upset Special, but while I expect River Valley to play a very competitive game, I'm reminded that both of their wins are against middle-of-the-road to bad Div. I teams.
Prediction: South Point 34 River Valley 22
