FACT OR FICTION: YOUR FOOTBALL FIX
Expect a big year for Broad Run's Joey Quigg. Quigg is the fastest player on the Spartan roster, and will get more touches on offense this year. His explosiveness will help fill the void left by Breon Earl's graduation, and his speed will be a major factor in keeping the opposing defenses from stacking the line of scrimmage to stop Peeler...
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Park View coach Andy Hill is confident that the adversity his Patriot's had to overcome last year will help his team to succeed in the 2009 season. Expect the Patriots to be the team to watch out for this year...
Photo By: Marc Gold / Gameday Magazine | VIEW GALLERY
Stone Bridge will once again be dominant in the Liberty District. One guy you will hear plenty from is junior Marcus Harris. He will step out of the shadows so to speak this fall, and will become a force for the Bulldogs...
Photo By: Marc Gold / Gameday Magazine | VIEW GALLERY
ASHBURN, VA - In a recent poll at GamedayMagazine.com, we asked our visitors what they were looking forward to more. Their options were vacation, time at the pool, or football season. 84% of those that voted said football was the most prominent thing on their minds.
So with the start of the 2009 football season just over 20 days away, the Gameday staff has been hard at work with our annual football preview edition of Gameday Magazine. We have also been meeting with several coaches each week as we try to get the clearest picture possible about who will be the teams to beat, and the players to watch.
This week we play a little fact or fiction with some hot topics surrounding the area's teams.
Fact or Fiction: Broad Run Will Be The Team To Beat Again This Year
Fact: Despite losing several amazing players, the Spartans are simply reloading in Ashburn. Broad Run went 14-0 and won the state championship a year ago, but there are some signs that even bigger days are ahead. First, the Spartans have some major college football prospects back at the skill positions. T.J Peeler (Pitt) and Adrian Flemming will give Broad Run plenty of production running and catching the football, but guys like David Weaver, Tyler Johnson, Johnny Meier, and Frank Foreman all return.
One guy I expect to have a big year for Broad Run this year is Joey Quigg. Quigg is the fastest player on the Spartan roster, and will get more touches on offense this year. His explosiveness will help fill the void left by Breon Earl's graduation, and his speed will be a major factor in keeping the opposing defenses from stacking the line of scrimmage to stop Peeler.
Fact or Fiction: Stone Bridge May Go Further This Year Than In 2008?
Fact: I'm not big into believing anything Coach Mickey Thompson tells me about how this will be the year his Bulldogs struggle some. The proof over the last 8 years backs up my belief that Stone Bridge will once again be a powerhouse this fall. They will play some tough competition early, but as usual, I believe they are too much for the Liberty District. They are yet to lose a game since joining the district 4 seasons ago. With former Heritage quarterback Brian Rody transferring in, Thompson will have some options behind center. Rody will compete with Kyle Gouveia in training camp for the starting role, but both will see time this year.
One guy you will hear plenty from is junior Marcus Harris. He will step out of the shadows so to speak this fall, and will become a star in my honest opinion. He's got the skills that the next level guys will be paying close attention to. Defensively, Stone Bridge will once again be tough, and I think this team has the potential to make a run again to the title game. If it happens, you heard it here first.
Fact or Fiction: The Move To Division 4 For Briar Woods Was A Good One?
Fiction: This couldn't have been a worse move for the Falcons, simple because there are so many good teams competing for so few spots in Division 4. Charlie Pierce's program has been a steady playoff team over the past few seasons, but that could be in question this fall as the road to the post-season just got a little tougher. The good news is Region II just expanded to 6 teams, which means two more than last year will get in.
However, Briar Woods will have to trump the likes of Broad Run, Sherando, Liberty, James Wood, Loudoun County, and Fauquier. Most of those teams are expected to be strong again this fall.
The Falcons should be a contender this fall with several solid starters returning, but look out for Briar Woods in the years to come. The freshmen and sophomore classes are extremely talented, and if Pierce can get them to contribute at a high level this year, the Falcons could be in the Second Season yet again.
Fact or Fiction: Park View Will Be Average Again This Year?
Fiction: This is the team to watch out for in 2009. Andy Hill's Patriots went through some adversity last year, and they will be better because of it this season. It wasn't long ago that the Dulles District Championship ran through Sterling, yet many only mention Ashburn as the home to the best football in the area. I wouldn't be surprised to see Park View re-emerge this fall as an elite Dulles contender, and possibly the only team that could unseat Broad Run as the top program.
With Park View's move to Division 3, the Patriots should make the playoffs this year, even if they aren't a district champion. Hill will rely on returning starters Brandon Lee (QB) and Tommy Sedeski (WR) to anchor his offense, and Park View's defense will have some stellar line play with Robert Hayes returning for his senior season.
Fact or Fiction: Loudoun County Is The Sleeper In The Dulles District
Fact: I'm sure the Raider fans aren't happy about being called a sleeper, but that's only because they are thinking this is the year they take over the Dulles District. Todd Hill has resurrected a program that lost every game just a few years ago, to a playoff appearance in 2008. With a solid core of defensive players returning headlined by Chase Williams at linebacker, the Raiders should be tough to score against.
Their biggest questions involve their offensive personnel, and most notably who will take over at quarterback. If the Raiders can find production on offense, they could be a team to watch out for. Is this the year Loudoun County wins a title? Who knows, but after watching Hill take his program to the playoffs last fall, I wouldn't be the least bit surprised.
