Central Playoff PREVIEW

LUNENBURG – The Central Chargers got the #4 spot in the 1A East Football Playoffs and with that came a bye week to recover and prepare for their first playoff game this year. It will take place at Charger Field on Friday and it will not be a cake walk as some early games over the past few years have been. This time Central will host the Altavista Colonels. This is a rematch of the first game of the year for both teams that saw Altavista take a 33-19 win.

The Chargers now have a chance to not only advance to the 1A East finals with a win, but they can make up for that earlier loss. It may seem that Altavista has the advantage after beating Central in that first round, but a big home crowd and some changes for both teams on offense makes this game quite a bit different.

The first game was close early on with Altavista leading 14-7 after an early touchdown pass and a couple of long Central drives that stalled out. The Chargers actually had a 19 -14 lead early in the fourth quarter after a completion from Jackson Dalton to Raymond Alexander set up a three-yard touchdown run by Malcolm Brown. A couple of late Colonels scores, including a pick six made the final look much more lopsided than the actual game.

Now fast forward to this week and while there are differences for both squads, it still appears to be a fairly even contest.

Central Offense vs. Altavista Defense—The Chargers will have a different look against Altavista simply because they have two players that were not available in that first game that will be relied upon to carry the offensive load. Malik Foster had an amazing season and totaled over 1300 yards rushing on the ground for Central. By the way he also plays QB for the Chargers in certain sets and has been on the money passing when called upon. With Foster in the backfield, Central is a different team. He was injured in the first game and wasn’t able to play for the Chargers. Keenan Anunay also wasn’t able to play in that first game after just joining the team and he has made a big impact both rushing and receiving on offense, while also playing strong cornerback for Central.

Throw in the fact that the offensive line has gelled over the course of the year and Central will look much different to Altavista this time around on offense. The Colonels have decent size, but aren’t huge up front. If Central can keep their playmakers healthy and avoid silly turnovers on runs that have plagued them at times, I expect to see the Chargers move the ball and put more points on the board this time around.

Altavista Offense vs. Central Defense—The Colonels have a little different look on offense as well late in the season as Jake Adams (#1) has emerged as a star at QB for Altavista. He has swapped roles with Mateo Maulbeck (#3) who was the QB early in the season for Altavista. Adams is a stronger runner and better passer which is a dangerous combination.

The Colonels also like to run the spread, but will use two tight ends and pound the ball with 200 pound running back Johnathan Montague. Altavista likes to run behind 235 pound lineman Steven Farmer. For Central, the key will be stopping Adams as a runner and passer. He likes to throw to Maulbeck the most and so the addition of Anunay and great late season play of CB Tylik Thomas will be key to stopping the Altavista passing attack.

Adams can run, but would rather pass on anything that isn’t a designed QB run. The Chargers need to get surrounding pressure on Adams meaning that they not only need to not allow him to have time to pass, but have to keep him in the pocket and from scrambling around. The front seven of Raymond Alexander, Dion Graham, Kester Long, Jackson Parsons, Chris Fowler, Ben Spencer and Qwazale Jones need to keep the heat on Adams and not miss tackles.

Look for both offenses to put points on the board this Friday night in a clash of styles. If Central can keep Adams under control, they can come away with a big first round victory. The VHSL-Reference.com simulator says Chargers win 35-30. That sounds about right, but a big and loud crowd this Friday surely wouldn’t hurt either.