Bluefield’s Record
During the two-week lead up to the playoffs, I noticed a lot of pearl clutching in regards to Bluefield hosting a Class AA playoff game with a 4-5 record. The Beavers were the only sub-.500 team to host a playoff game across all four classes and it came largely on the strength of schedule points they accumulated.
As Abraham Lincoln said, “Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than speak out and remove all doubt.”
A lot of people removed all doubt.
So what did Bluefield do as a 4-5 host team? Beat the 8-2 South Harrison Hawks 20-18 in game where two of South Harrison’s scores came via a pair of poor specials teams plays (a high snap and a 3-yard punt) into the wind. Looking at Bluefield’s record and making that determination is throwing the baby out with the bathwater.
Oak Hill, Princeton and Graham, three of the teams Bluefield lost to, are all still alive in the playoffs while James Monroe and Beckley both finished above .500 en route to playoff berths. The .500 records have led to discussions about the strength of schedule metric that was implemented before the start of last season. It’s to reward teams that play a difficult schedule and Bluefield always has. Bluefield, Fairmont Senior, Independence and to an extent Wheeling Central have become the poster children over the last 10 years for making the playoffs as a lower seed and wrecking the field.
Fairmont Senior won the 2021 title as a No. 16 seed while Independence made a semifinal run last year as a No. 14 seed. Bluefield ran to the Class AA semis in 2021 as a 14 seed, finished runner-up in ’02 as No. 9 seed and did so again as a No. 11 seed in ’05.. Wheeling Central won a title in 2005 as the No. 15 seed and again as the No. 10 seed in 2017.
Bluefield didn’t load its schedule hoping to ride a metric to the playoffs. It loaded its schedule because it had no other choice.
After two weeks of waiting for everything to be solved off the field, Bluefield proved on the field it deserved to host a playoff game. Bonus points for doing it in the elements without your most productive offensive player in Willis Wilson.
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I thought Bluefield head coach Fred Simon made one of the gutsiest calls of the weekend when he went for it on fourth-and-1 from his own 10. When Bluefield’s offense stayed on schedule, it was almost impossible for South Harrison to stop. Simon knew that and with under six minutes to play, his players controlled the outcome of the game.
So he rolled the dice and called a jet sweep that picked up five yards and kept the drive alive. It proved pivotal as South Harrison got the ball back with 16 seconds remaining. You generally don’t see older coaches coach that aggressively. If South Harrison gets the ball back there it’s set up with a first-and-goal in the lower red zone.
“Well, we looked at what we’d done punting all night was and we said, ‘Why are we doing it?'” Simon said. “If we don’t get it, maybe they score and we get the ball back and we got a chance to score again. “Once we talked about it a little bit we had to do it. And I kind of knew it, so we made that choice and luckily it worked out and I’m happy it did.”
It proved to be the right call but not one made lightly. It’s the type of decision you get crucified for if it doesn’t go right. Making the decision even harder was the fact Ty Patton, who rushed for over 150 yards, had to come out because of an equipment issue.
This playoff win will likely fall in the cracks of the pantheon of Bluefield playoff victories but it wasn’t without its signature moments.
Running Backs Matter
It was a great weekend for running backs.
- Ty Patton, Bluefield – 24 carries, 168 yards, 1 TD; 1 reception, 28 yards
- Daniel Jennings, Princeton – 12 carries, 266 yards, 5 TDs; 1 reception, 73 yards, 1 TD
- Sylas Nelson, Independence – 39 carries, 338 yards, 5 TDs
- Saquon Barkley, Philadelphia Eagles – 26 carries, 255 yards, 2 TDs; 4 receptions, 47 yards
I had to sneak that last one in.
The temperatures and elements reminded us of the importance of a strong running game and this past weekend’s showing only reinforced that. Tackling good backs is hard. It’s even harder when it’s cold. All three of those teams have had success passing the ball this year but were able to dictate their wins with explosive ground attacks.
Oak Hill didn’t have one singular back that carried the load but as a team the Red Devils rushed for 258 yards and four touchdowns in a historic playoff victory.
Round 1 Takeaways
There were a few things that stood out from the first round of the playoffs.
For as improved as Bluefield looked on offense, there was still a lot of self-generated adversity. Special teams execution was poor with the exception of a long kick-return, Patton had to leave the field on the critical fourth down because his mouth piece wasn’t in and with under two minutes to go the Beavers took a knee too early, leaving extra time on the clock. At times it felt like they were trying to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory and those margins for mistakes don’t exist once you get to the quarterfinals. Simon commented on the mistakes.
“I never cease to be amazed at some of the stuff we do,” Simon said. “I’m just going to enjoy the ride because we’re not in 2017. It’s 2024 and it’s a whole different ballgame.”
For Independence I wouldn’t be surprised if the remaining Class AA teams look at the first half against James Monroe and think less of the boys from Coal City. I’d caution against that approach. Rewind to 2022 when Independence had to hold off Bluefield 20-12 in a first round game. Independence went on to win its next three games by 35, 39 and 35 points. Bluefield wasn’t a normal 15 seed in 2022 and James Monroe wasn’t a normal 14 seed this year. The Mavericks played for a Class A state title in 2022 and reached the semifinals last year. Add in a rich tradition of playoff success for James Monroe and it’s easy to see why the Mavericks led through 24 minutes.
Oak Hill posted another dominant defensive effort. The recipe was more of the same and when the lights were bright the Red Devils didn’t stray away from the formula that got them to the playoffs. The playoff victory was historic and some coaches will try and outsmart themselves when they get to the postseason. Despite a scoreless tie at the break Oak Hill kept pounding and pushed through to avoid an upset. The Red Devils are dangerous and they’re playing with house money moving forward.
The biggest storyline moving forward is how Princeton’s defense adjusts the deeper the Tigers roll into the playoffs. Over the last two games the Tigers have allowed rushing performances of 239 and 106 yards. That also coincides with injuries to Kalum Kiser and Marquel Lowe, both of whom did not play against Hampshire. Kiser should be ready for the stretch run but the injury Lowe suffered against Parkersburg South will likely keep him out for the rest of the season. Slowing rushing attacks will be paramount with Princeton’s path to a state championship likely going through a trio of teams of teams that want to run the ball.
