4 hours Ago
BRIDGEWATER — It’s the story of two teams that saw opposite results from each other in Week 7. East Rockingham (5-2, 2-1 Valley) looks to get back on track after a crushing 45-0 home shutout loss to Valley District rival Spotswood. ERHS head coach Drew Spitzer said the lesson learned from the defeat against the Trailblazers is that they have to execute in all three phases of the game — offensive, defense, and special teams.
Unfortunately for the Eagles, Spitzer said they were unable to settle in and produce in any of the three categories, leading to a difficult loss. “This week, we’ve really stressed being consistent in all three phases of the football game,” Spitzer said. “Just didn’t happen on Friday.
It was not a great night for us.” Turner Ashby (6-0, 2-0 Valley), meanwhile, look to build on their unbeaten season following a convincing 31-6 win over Valley District opponent Broadway on the road. TA head coach Scott Turner has kept it simple for his guys throughout the week of practice — as he has all season — by having them focus on themselves and what they can control.
“We look to get better each day,” Turner said. “Got a good opponent coming in here this week, but we’re focusing on ourselves. We’re going to try to get better each day and then be ready to go on Friday night.
” The two clash this Friday at 7 p.m. in Bridgewater with crucial playoff implications on the line.
Spitzer joked that it would’ve been an inconvenient time to have a bye week following a blowout loss, as he feels it’s the best medicine for his team to wipe the slate clean and focus on another game. With the postseason looming and a formidable district opponent in Turner Ashby, Spitzer believes his guys are excited to get back at it on Friday. “Not only do we get to turn around and get back after it again, but it’s TA,” Spitzer said.
“It’s a game that means a lot to our goals and where we want to get to. Our guys know their guys, we’re familiar with each other. Coach Turner came from over here, there’s still connections there, and it’s another big game.
It’s easy to get back and get refocused when it’s a district game and a big game to focus on.” Turner isn’t taking East Rockingham lightly as he knows they’re an all-around talented team that are well-coached. If they aren’t ready, Turner said they could run into trouble.
“They do some stuff differently defensively that can definitely cause some problems,” Turner said. “They’re a good football team. We’ve got to prepare and be ready to go and get after it on Friday.
” When facing a team the quality of Turner Ashby with skilled players such as senior running back Beau Baylor and senior wide receiver Micah Matthews, Spitzer said they’ve emphasized a next play mentality. “I think we have to understand that those guys are good enough that they’re going to get some plays,” Spitzer said. “We can’t let that affect how we play in our mentality.
If they complete a big pass play, we’ve got to brush it off and go after it again and get to the next play. I think that’ll be crucial to be able to withstand what they do on offense. They’re comfortable, they know what they’re doing, and they have good kids.
That’s a combination that works pretty well for you in high school.” The Knights have remained perfect through six weeks of the season, but Turner knows there’s always room for improvement. You’ll often hear Turner say postgame that there’s some things he’d like to see cleaned up prior to the next week, regardless if they won or lost.
In preparation for the Eagles, Turner is hopeful to see improvements from last Friday’s win over the Gobblers. “We’ve worked on a couple of things that we needed to work on,” Turner said. “Hopefully, that translates into Friday night.
” With only two regular season games remaining after Friday, the Eagles aim to clinch a spot in the Region 3C postseason. Spitzer said his guys know how critical the next few games are to earning a playoff berth, and it starts with Friday against the Knights. “We’ve just got to execute the game plan,” Spitzer said.
“Come out focused and ready to play. We’ve had a good couple of days of practice. We’ll see how the rest of the week goes.
We’ll go down to TA and have ourselves a good ol’ fashioned football game.”.
