Preview: Liberty vs. Dinwiddie
Photo By: GamedayMagazine.com
WHERE: Dinwiddie High School
WHEN: Saturday, November 29th, 2008
KICKOFF: 1:30pm
PREGAME: 1:00pm
MEDIA COVERAGE:
Gameday Radio State Semi-Finals Broadcast Live Worldwide Online at www.GamedayMagazine.com
BROADCAST TEAM:
Derek Goode (Play by Play)
Greg Faith (Color Commentator)
BEALETON, VA - The Liberty Eagles will once again take to the road after knocking off GW-Danville 41-14 last week at Kip Hull Field. Coach Tommy Buzzo's boys are on a roll after dismantling both opponents en route to their first ever AAA Division 5 Northwest Region Title and will now travel to Dinwiddie to take on the 11-1 Generals.
Liberty (10-2) has gotten this far by playing stout defense, and by running the ball effectively. Two weeks ago, the defense allowed just 39 total yards of offense against William Fleming, and last Friday night, the Eagles limited GW-Danville's David Wilson to just 45 yards on 20 carries. Wilson came into the game with 2,231 yards rushing on the season, and was touted as the number six running back in the country. Needless to say, Liberty was not deterred.
Corey Lillard ran for 205 yards against Danville and scored three touchdowns along the way. The Eagles racked up 347 rushing yards in the game and have been running the ball at will all season long. The weather kept the Eagles from passing the ball, but Nick Potts and his quartet of receivers (Derrick Lee, Stefan Ross, James Rogers and Kenny Tapscott) have been connecting for big plays all season long, giving Liberty great balance on offense.
Liberty's defense has been playing as good as anyone in the state, as they feature depth and talent across the board. Senior DT Chris Foddrell has been a force in the middle, and junior John Washington has been wreaking havoc at end. Linebackers Damien Dodson, Cortez Carter, and Corey Lillard have been playing at a high level and played a key role in shutting down Wilson last Friday night. The defensive backfield has been led by 1st team, All-Cedar Run, safety Derrick Lee, as the senior has been great in coverage and has played the run well. Corners Kenny Tapscott, Bobby Newton, and Josh Howell have been applying shut down coverage all season long, and have limited the opposition in the passing game.
On Saturday afternoon, the Eagles secondary will be tested as they take on the best quarterback, statistically, the state of Virginia has even seen in Dinwiddie senior Adam Morgan. Morgan broke the VHSL records for most touchdowns (106), and completions (610) in a career, and is just 61 yards shy of breaking the career mark for passing yards in a career. Morgan also runs well, as he has ran for over 100 yards in both playoff victories. Morgan has yet to verbally commit, but has at least eight Division I offers on the table.
Defensively, the Generals are led by University of Maryland commit Bradley Johnson. The 6'2" linebacker captains Dinwiddie's 4-4 set, and also sees a few carries from time to time on offense. Johnson and Morgan have been playing together since they were 9 years old, and have built the kind of camaraderie that is essential to a team that has state championship aspirations.
KEY MATCHUPS
Liberty Running Game vs. Dinwiddie Run Defense
What makes Liberty so dangerous on the ground is the number of quality backs that Coach Buzzo can use. Corey Lillard and Wayne Fleming have been getting the majority of the carries, but Bryon Williams, Ryan Burroughs, and Shaheem Jones are more than capable of making big plays. Add in two talented fullbacks in Dodson and Carter, and you can see why the Eagles have been so successful this season.
Junior LB Jason Ampy is also a force on the defense, and he showed it in the win against Douglas Freeman two weeks ago. Ampy tallied 11 tackles, 3 going for a loss. Ampy and Johnson will be instrumental in defending the Liberty ground attack. Sophomore DT Corey Marshall has been turning heads and has legitimate D-1 talent. Marshall will need to be on top of his game Saturday afternoon. Advantage: Liberty
Liberty Pass Defense vs. Dinwiddie Passing Game
Adam Morgan has no shortage of options on offense, as he has a talented quartet of receivers as well. Senior Jerrell White leads the Generals in receptions, with 46 for 734 yards. Terron Adams leads the team in receiving yards with 851. Junior Quintaze Jackson has 42 receptions for 649 yards and 6'5" Sam Haskins rounds out the group with 32 catches for 456 yards.
Liberty will have their hands full and will need the defensive backs to play their best game of the year to limit the vaunted General passing game. Ends John Washington and Stefan Ross will need to get to Morgan early and often and create consistent pressure all afternoon. Advantage: Dinwiddie
KEYS TO VICTORY
FOR LIBERTY:
-Slow Down Adam Morgan
-Dominate Time of Possession
-Limit Mistakes
FOR DINWIDDIE:
-Protect Morgan
-Stop the Run
-Avoid Turnovers
OUTLOOK:
When the Eagles board the Scenic America charter buses Saturday morning en route to Dinwiddie, you can rest assured that Coach Tommy Buzzo will have his team emotionally ready to play. The big question in this game is, can Liberty limit or even stop the Dinwiddie passing game.
Dinwiddie has put up 40 plus points in 8 of their 11 games, so one would assume that this AAA Division 5 State Semi-Final will be a high scoring affair. After factoring everything into the equation I expect this to be a highly contested battle.
GAMEDAY PREDICTION: Liberty 40 - Dinwiddie 28
