Friday Nights in the Country Roads: Key matchups to watch

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It's officially the first Friday of high school football in West Virginia for the 2023 season, and PrepRedzone West Virginia takes a look at five games across the state to watch closely this weekend. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Huntington vs. Spring Valley</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Arguably the game of the week, Huntington starts their 2023 season looking for a state title by taking on Spring Valley. The Highlanders have gone 26-2 over the last two seasons while being dominant on both sides of the ball, which includes averaging 41.5 points per game over the last two seasons. Their defenses have been just as dominant, allowing just 13.7 points a game. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Huntington is stacked with talent, and key names such as top 2024 prospects [player_tooltip player_id='370280' first='Robby' last='Martin'], wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id='370321' first='Duane' last='Harris'], defensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id='891255' first='Kiyou' last='Jackson'], tight end [player_tooltip player_id='884085' first='Marshall' last='Christus'], and kicker [player_tooltip player_id='370275' first='Jonny' last='Aya-ay'] are just a few names to know. The Highlanders also have the top-ranked 2025 prospect in defensive back [player_tooltip player_id='370477' first='Zah' last='Jackson'] and the fourth-best prospect in the 2026 recruiting class in [player_tooltip player_id='866258' first='Aryn' last='McPherson']. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>While not as successful as Huntington in the last two years, Spring Valley has been a very good program in its own right. Over the last seven seasons, the Timberwolves haven't lost more than three games in any single season, including an 8-3 record last season and a 9-3 record in 2021. They have quite a bit of talent themselves, including 2024 prospects linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='892321' first='Sam' last='Booth'], wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id='323960' first='Tate' last='Adkins'], and defensive back [player_tooltip player_id='863318' first='Ethan' last='Null']. They also will expect big contributions from 2025 prospects, WR [player_tooltip player_id='450994' first='Jalyn' last='Abercrombie'], linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='908994' first='Braeden' last='Booth'], and athlete [player_tooltip player_id='907612' first='Gabe' last='Dixon']. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>James Monroe vs. Wheeling Central Catholic</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This should be an excellent matchup between James Monroe and Wheeling Central Catholic. Last year, James Monroe went 13-1, which included knocking Wheeling Central Catholic out of the playoffs in the state semifinals. Wheeling Central Catholic had a great year themselves, going 10-2. Their only other loss came to Beaver High School out of Lisbon, Ohio. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Notable prospects for James Monroe include 2024 RB [player_tooltip player_id='894275' first='Cooper' last='Ridgeway'], 2025 defensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id='908618' first='Brady' last='Baker'], 2025 ATH [player_tooltip player_id='865708' first='Layton' last='Dowdy'], and 2026 defensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id='894672' first='Cade' last='Dillon']. For Wheeling Central Catholic, keep a close eye on 2024 K [player_tooltip player_id='370292' first='Eli' last='Tucker'], 2025 wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id='907235' first='Braden' last='McWreath'], and a pair of 2026 prospects in defensive back [player_tooltip player_id='895002' first='Joey' last='Hall'] and running back [player_tooltip player_id='862785' first='Isaac' last='Martin']. This should be a great game in Wheeling on Friday night and one that sets the tone of what to expect for both programs going forward. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Jefferson vs. Spring Mills</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We move onto Jefferson vs. Spring Mills, which should be a fun one in Martinsburg on Friday night. Jefferson was 8-4 during the 2022 season, making it into the state playoffs before falling to Huntington. Spring Mills, on the other hand, struggled going 4-6 but are potentially ready for a bounce-back season this fall. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Jefferson offense is led by 2024 wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id='370366' first='Keyshawn' last='Robinson'], who is currently committed to West Virginia. Defensively, they're led by defensive linemen [player_tooltip player_id='891254' first='Quintin' last='Goins'] and linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='160731' first='Nolan' last='Meehleib']. The top talent for Spring Mills includes DB [player_tooltip player_id='893389' first='Zachary' last='Bender'] and LB [player_tooltip player_id='370294' first='Alex' last='Eaton']. They're also stacked in 2025 talent, including ATH Maxx Anderson, RB [player_tooltip player_id='907162' first='Kamren' last='Taylor'], DL [player_tooltip player_id='866664' first='Prophet' last='Guillaume'], DB [player_tooltip player_id='450995' first='Keyon' last='Mills'], OL [player_tooltip player_id='832666' first='Brayden' last='Kirk'], and OL [player_tooltip player_id='908161' first='Peyton' last='Neff']. The Cardinals also have nine 2026 prospects either ranked or on our watch list. This Spring Mills team is on its way up and could surprise many this fall. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Parkersburg South vs. Capital</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Last year, Parkersburg South won this game 59-0 en route to a 12-2 record. Capital will look for payback on Friday night as they look to build upon their positives from the 2022 season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Parkersburg South will be competing for a state championship this fall, led by nearly a dozen players who are either ranked or on our watch lists for the 2024 - 2026 recruiting classes. In the 2024 recruiting class, RB [player_tooltip player_id='370255' first='Gage' last='Wright'], a Virginia Tech wrestling commit, leads the Patriots' offense but is by no means the only one. The Patriots also have WR [player_tooltip player_id='370260' first='Triston' last='Walker'] on the offensive side of the ball while being led LB [player_tooltip player_id='370256' first='Turner' last='Garretson'] and LB [player_tooltip player_id='370261' first='Dylan' last='Fleak'] on the defensive side of the ball. Also, be sure to keep an eye on this week and throughout the season RB Eli Bartley, LB [player_tooltip player_id='894890' first='Kaidyn' last='Johnson'], WR [player_tooltip player_id='894768' first='Taj' last='Joyce'], RB [player_tooltip player_id='894891' first='Logan' last='Mason'], OL [player_tooltip player_id='894892' first='Brody' last='Nesselrotte'], RB [player_tooltip player_id='894889' first='Dedrick' last='Riggs'], and WR [player_tooltip player_id='894769' first='Derek' last='Sandy']. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For Capital, 2024 wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id='370302' first='Taevion' last='Davis'] is one of the bigger names to watch, while 2025 DL [player_tooltip player_id='863520' first='Tucker' last='Van Meter'] and 2026 QB [player_tooltip player_id='894635' first='Fernando' last='Valdivia'] and LB [player_tooltip player_id='894636' first='Camdyn' last='Harris'] are prospects to keep a close eye on. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->