WHEELING — King Football is back!
After nearly nine months, the sport makes its triumphant return to the Ohio Valley with the 76th episode of the OVAC Rudy Mumley All-Star Football Game.
The annual summer extravaganza takes place at Wheeling Island Stadium on Saturday with kick-off scheduled for 7:15pm
For the 61 players who have been at camp at Wheeling University since last Saturday, it’s a chance to shine one last time as prep athletes. And to hear both coaches, their respective teams are more than ready.
“It’s been an incredible week with these kids and actually one of the best experiences I’ve had in football but we’re ready to play the game.” That’s what Ohio head coach Mike McKenzie said. “It’s honestly hard to believe that we were only with these kids for five or six days because they gelled so quickly and understood everything.”
West Virginia head coach John Kelley, head coach at University High School in Morgantown, was amazed at how quickly the week went by.
“It was about late in practice on Wednesday when it became clear that these kids were ready to play,” said Kelly. “This whole experience was fabulous. The only negative thing is that we won’t be able to train these guys after (tonight). They were absolutely amazing kids to be with. They are funny, well-behaved and everyone gets along.”
Both teams completed their final formal drills on Friday before having the afternoon off and enjoying a cheer rally on the Wheeling University campus. Aside from packing up their dorms and preparing to move out, today both clubs will have an informal walking tour before boarding the buses for the short trip to the island.
“We’re going to use the passageway to kill some time because it’s tough for these kids to sit around all day.” said Kelly. “The kids are resilient and will be better at handling these things than the coaches but we will go over our special teams again and make sure everyone is on the same page.”
The Ohio roster has been building and working on many team drills every day, and that progression has become quite evident to McKenzie.
“We were a little bit ahead every day and had very formal or personnel problems,” said McKenzie. “We’re going to get out (Saturday) and go through a few things to make sure we’re all on the same page personally, especially with our special teams.”
The hardest thing for the coaching staff was not having anything to do with the players. It’s just about knowing a lot about each other’s opponent. Obviously, University and Beaver Local don’t play each other, so both coaches were in a bit of a bind, which is to be expected.
“This is my biggest concern” said Kelly. “As coaches we are all creatures of habit and it is completely unusual to know very little about what your opponent has planned. On top of that, we haven’t seen any of their guys play yet, so we’ll definitely do a dry run early in the game.”
McKenzie anticipates some degree of spontaneous adaptation.
“Once we found out we were coaches and[the university]was coaching West Virginia, we got a few movies, but it doesn’t compare to the prep we do during the season.” said McKenzie. “In a way, though, we’re going blind on some calls.”
Every player will play a lot in the game and both teams – especially with temperatures in the mid-80s at kick-off – are substituted frequently.
“We want to win, but we want to keep children healthy” said McKenzie. “We feel like we can throw a second group on the field and they will be just as good as the first group.”
In addition to the Heat, West Virginia had to push some players around due to injuries. The Mountain State will only dress 29 players.
“We had some kids who came forward and helped the team by volunteering to change positions and that really helped us.” said Kelly.
McKenzie was non-binding on whether St. Clairsville’s Drew Sefsick or Monroe Central’s Malachi Rose-Burton would get the first series as quarterback. Regardless, both will play.
The running back job will be split between Shadyside’s Wyatt Reiman and St. Clairsville’s Jacob Jordan.
The welcoming group McKenzie raved about is led by St. Clairsville’s Colin Oberdick, Harrison Central’s Trevor Carman, Barnesville’s Spencer Bliss and Shadyside’s Mason VanNest.
Up front, Steubenville’s Greg Mamula will anchor the line down the middle. St. Clairsville’s Joey Balgo and Steubenville’s Ja’Lin Harris are guards, while Fort Frye’s Casey Brooker and Martins Ferry’s Peyton Hores will open in tackles.
The West Virginia defense will counter with Linsly’s Adam Dolata and Brooke’s Daniel Rawson will start the defensive tackle, while Wheeling Central’s Ayden Baker and University’s Daniel Henderson will form the defensive ends.
The linebacking corps will consist of the duo of Wheeling Park’s Hunter Nixon and Colton Thomas, and Linsly’s Brodie Selmon and University’s Corban Cross.
Park’s Nate Shelek will move to safety, while Wheeling Central’s Caleb Ratcliffe and University’s Daminn Cunningham.
If Mountain State has the ball, Madonna’s Santino Arlia will be the quarterback.
The featured running back will be Nixon, while Ratcliffe, Cunningham, Weir’s Carson Yobbagy and Magnolia’s Marcus Barnes will get the call at wide receiver.
In the trenches, Brooke’s Jacob Donley will start at center, while Wheeling Park’s Braden Hupp and Oak Glen’s De’Shawn Gray will be the guards. Cameron’s Christian Bryan, who Kelley raved about, and Weir’s Myles Rice are the starting tackles.
The Ohio defense will be joined by Buckeye Local’s Justin Driscoll and Barnesville’s Gavin Carpenter. Shadyside’s Ryan Florence and Bellaire’s Timmy O’Grady are the ends.
The linebacking group consists of Steubenville’s Brandon Kinney, Buckeye Trail’s Aiden Snodgrass, Union Local’s Dakota Hess and Cambridge’s Caden Kenworthy.
The full-backs will see River’s Austin Creamer, Beaver Local’s Nathan Sprouse, Bellaire’s Jaiden Kesterson and Reiman among others walking around.
Frontier’s Tanner Bills, Beaver Local’s Dorian Jackson and River’s Brody Longwell are expected to serve as defenders.
Ohio’s kicker is Lucas Otto of St. Clairsville, and Jacob Morgan of Weir High will do the seeding and playoffs for West Virginia.
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