Avery is coming off a 38-14 loss to Mitchell at home last week, while Hendersonville took care of rival Polk County 28-13 to clinch its first conference championship since 2003.
Scouting the Bearcats:
Hendersonville is coached by B.J. Laughter and utilizes a version of the wishbone offense. The Bearcats have been successful in 2008 largely due to their experience at most skill positions. Leading the charge for the Bearcats is senior running back Cedrick Allen (171 rushes, 1285 yards, 24 TD in 2008), good enough for fourth in rushing yards and second in scoring in all of Western North Carolina.
An All-Western Highlands Conference player last season, Allen ran for over 1,500 yards in 2007 and scored 23 touchdowns.
Triggering the offense for Hendersonville is junior quarterback Ben Walgenbach (54 for 93, 1,464 yards, 17 touchdowns in 2008). He is a player the coach calls one of the best quarterbacks he has ever coached, describing him as “a true field general.”
When Walgenbach throws the football, look for him to target a pair of talented receivers in Daniel Orr (26 receptions, 736 yards, 10 receiving touchdowns) and James Foster (15 receptions, 498 yards, 7 receiving touchdowns).
The offensive line is anchored by 6’8”, 263-pound senior Wesley Cook.
The Low Down:
For the Vikings to pull off the upset in Hendersonville on Friday, they must first win the battle between their collective ears and believe they have the talent on the field to defeat the Bearcats. Prior to the loss earlier this season, the Vikings had beaten this group of Bearcats twice and were robbed of a third win at Dietz Field in 2007.
The Avery offense will need to find a way to score more than six points against Hendersonville this time around, bucking the recent trend of struggles to get the football into the end zone.
Out of its possible opponents this week, Hendersonville was viewed by most as the “best case scenario”. Now that the Avery has the advantage of having already played its opponent once this season, perhaps it can learn from its earlier loss and shock the football pundits who have written off the Big Red.
Avery may very well be without a number of key starters this week, including Christian Montgomery, Travis Thomas, Paul Townsend, and Chris Eggers, so those players stepping into their shoes will have to step up and play with pride as well as a chip on their shoulders.
The best chance for Avery to win Friday will be if they can find the way to dominate the time of possession in much the way they were dominated last week by their opponent Mitchell. Long drives will not only keep the potent Bearcats offense off the field, but will force the Bearcats to play more plays on defense than they would like.
This week is the time for the Avery squad to rally alongside Darrell Brewer and the coaching staff, giving them its best effort of the season to date.
By the Numbers:
2 – fumbles lost by the Bearcats in last week’s gain against the Wolverines. Also the number of rushing touchdowns scored by Avery’s Adam Pate last week.
3 – rushing touchdowns by Cedrick Allen in last week’s win over Polk County.
241- yards in total offense gained by Avery in last Friday’s loss to Mitchell.
258- rushing yards by Hendersonville on 37 carries last Friday night.
