By Rich Stevens
MaxPreps.com
South Charleston head coach John Messinger might not have considered himself superstitious before the 2008 season.
You can be sure after the first two weeks of his third season that he’ll be collecting rabbit’s feet, avoiding ladders and mirrors and not stepping on any cracks.
“Before the first game (a 28-8 win over Riverside), there was a cricket in a player’s locker. We put it in a shoebox …good luck,” Messinger said. “On Thursday (before SC’s 13-12 win over George Washington), we had a cricket in the storage shed …good luck.
“If I have to drive all over West Virginia this week, I’ll find a cricket.”
Since Messinger took over for former coach and athletic director Vern Redman in 2006, his motto could’ve been: “If it weren’t for bad luck, I’d have no luck at all.”
Last year, South Charleston lost quarterback Marcel Brown to injury before the season started and the Black Eagles finished 5-5.
This year with Brown at the controls, SC is 2-0 entering its game against Parkersburg on Friday night at Oakes Field.
The Black Eagles have victories over two 2007 playoff teams – George Washington, which finished last year No. 1 in the Secondary School Activities computer ratings – and Riverside.
SOUTH
Don’t panic about Bluefield and its 0-2 start.
The nine-time West Virginia state champion hasn’t always opened the season with a flourish.
In 2005, the Beavers lost their first two games – 21-14 to Graham, Va., and 43-24 to Princeton – and reached the Class AA title game before losing to Weir. That year, Bluefield lost its first two games and its final two regular-season games.
In 2006, Bluefield lost the first game 26-6 to Graham and defeated Princeton only 7-0, but reached the state quarterfinals.
Last year, Bluefield finished the season unbeaten, winning its ninth crown.
-- “I’m not going to lie, my mind is not on football,” is what Wyoming East Coach Kevin Grogg told the Register-Herald when his team dropped a 35-14 decision to Scott three days after his brother and Wyoming East assistant Andy Grogg, died of complications following heart surgery.
“I haven’t slept in eight or nine days. The kids, they lost a good friend. We’ve had a tough week. It’s hard on me. I lost my best friend. I wish we had played a little better, but it’s just a game.”
-- Beating Parkersburg is a big deal, even if the Big Reds are rebuilding.
After all, they’re still the two-time defending Class AAA champions.
Parkersburg is 0-2 for the first time since the 1993 after dropping a 31-20 decision to Beckley. The Big Reds have not began the season winless after two games under Coach Bernie Buttrey.
NORTH
The last time Paden City made the Class A playoffs, the year was 2001 and the tiny Wetzel County school – 87 students in grades 9-12 according to 2008 enrollment totals – dropped a 46-0 decision to eventual state champion Moorefield.
Seven years later and the Wildcats are 2-0, coming off a 36-19 defeat of St. John Central (Ohio).
In 2001, it was Tony Cline who was carrying the load, finishing the season with more than 1,000 yards.
This year, it’s Wes Cosper – a Class A All-State player last year.
Against St. John’s, Cosper ran for 277 yards and five touchdowns, caught four passes for 43 yards, completed two passes for 19 yards and had 13 tackles on defense.
-- Weir’s 2-8 season of a year ago is a memory.
The Red Riders are off to a 2-0 start after winning only five games since earning the Class AA championship in 2005.
Senior quarterback Bryant Davidson had 148 yards rushing in Weir’s second consecutive win, 23-6, over Edison (Ohio).
Next up for Weir is Oak Glen, coached by former Red Rider coach Tony Filberto.
Filberto coached the Red Riders to the 2004 Class AA semifinals where they lost to Bluefield 21-20 in overtime.
Weir squandered a 14-0 lead with less than three minutes remaining in that game at Mitchell Stadium, after which both Filberto and his son Joe were handcuffed until fans could leave as a result of an argument the coaches had with fans.
Not long after the post-game incident, the Filbertos resigned their positions at Weir.
Oak Glen is 0-2.
Rich Stevens, a sportswriter for the Charleston Daily Mail, covers West Virginia for MaxPreps
