Class AA showdown in Weirton
No. 7 Weir hosts No. 2 Frankfort in battle of unbeatens
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WEIRTON -- After successfully starting the season battling local foes for the first three weeks, Weir High now faces a big matchup that has a lot of implications in the West Virginia Class AA rankings and is perhaps one of the biggest matchups in the state this week.
The Red Riders, who are ranked No. 7 in the Class AA standings according to WV Tailgate Central, welcome the No. 2 ranked team to Jimmy Carey Stadium when the Frankfort Falcons come to town Friday for a 7 p.m. battle of the unbeatens.
"When you see Frankfort football, you know you're getting one of the top programs in AA football in the state of West Virginia," Red Riders head coach Frank Sisinni said. "Right now they're No. 2 in the state, they were in the state semifinals last year, we know we're in for a big challenge. These are the games you look forward to on your schedule to see where you're at in terms of the state playoff picture down the road.
"It's a tall task, this is a benchmark game for us. Our kids have done a good job to put us in a good position at this point. There is a long way to go before we're talking about playoff scenarios, but this is a big game and if we're going to meet one of our goals and host in the playoffs, this is a big step in the direction.
"Anytime you have two teams that are ranked (in the top-8) in the state and are undefeated playing one another, you know it's going to be one of the top games in the state."
The last meeting between the teams occurred in Week 2 of 2020, Frankfort winning a close game at home, 37-26. The Red Riders won the last time the teams met at Jimmy Carey Stadium in 2019, 28-27 in overtime.
The Red Riders are coming off a 41-8 win over Indian Creek at home last week, which came after a 23-12 win at Toronto and a 38-7 victory over rival Oak Glen at home on opening night.
The Red Rider rushing attack has been leading the way, racking up 314 yards and six TDs against Creek. Corey Lyons had 147 and three of those scores.
Weir is averaging 34 points per game, while allowing just nine.
The test on Friday, though, will be the toughest yet.
The Falcons have won all three of their games by at least four touchdowns, with an average margin of victory of 31 points. They defeated Moorefield 35-8 in Week 1, took down Hampshire 57-21 then dispatched Charles Town Washington by a 43-13 margin last week.
They average 45 points scored and allow just 14.
"Their system is what makes them so good year after year, they run the wing-T system, and they run it to perfection," Sisinni said. "Their program runs that system from middle school through varsity, and you can tell. They also have had stability in coaches, those two things are why they are one of the top teams in Class AA every year.
"Preparing for the wing-T is unique in itself, because we have to teach our scout team how to run it. We have some wing-T guys on our staff … we have a strong understanding of the system; the challenge is getting our kids to understand the discipline it takes to attack that style. It's all hands on deck to get ready for this one.
"Defensively, they are very quick off the ball and very physical up front. That's going to be our challenge, to match their physicality up front."