WAAY Big Game Friday Night's Game of the Week for Week 8 is Pisgah (7-0, 5-0 Region) vs. Fyffe (6-1, 5-0 Region).
The standard has been set in Sand Mountain. The Red Devils are the team to beat, claiming the region title in 11 of their last 12 seasons. This week, the Eagles have their sights set on the 2A Region 7 crown.
“Anytime you can win your region, that’s something to be proud of,” Pisgah head coach Luke Pruitt said. “And also just having the chance to beat Fyffe will be something to boost confidence for our kids.”
“It’s always a big game when you’re playing for playoff spots,” Fyffe head coach Paul Benefield said.
This year is off to a different start for Fyffe. The Red Devils dropped their first game of the season to Geraldine -- their first season-opening loss since 2013, which also came at the hands of the Bulldogs.
“We lost the first game and kinda been flying under the radar this year,” Benefield said. “[It’ll] probably be one of the first games in a long time we’ve not been favored, so we’re kinda liking that underdog this week.”
Fyffe hasn’t lost a game since, outscoring opponents 319 to 20 over their last six games. But Benefield knows the Eagles will present their biggest test yet, as two of the highest-scoring teams in the classification clash.
“[They’re] very explosive, lots of playmakers, no way that you can stop ‘em,” Benefield said. “You’ve just got to hope they drop a few or something good happens. We’ve got to score with them.”
“We’ve been able to start fast and we’ve been more physical up front on the line of scrimmage and I think that plays into it,” Pruitt said of his offense. “We have to win first and second down and get them in predictable downs and distance. And that’s something that’s hard to do because they’re really good running the football.”
With both teams already locked into playoff spots, the experience of a game like this is something both coaches are hoping their teams can look back on when they’re playing in November.
“That’s gonna be a real advantage for us. You play Geraldine and you got Pisgah and we’ve got Sylvania in a couple weeks. Those are really good teams,” Benefield said. “That’s gotta help you down the road if you stay healthy through all of it.”
“That’s something that we talked to them about and, you know, just soaking it up during warmups and go play and have fun,” Pruitt explained.
We’ll see who’s wearing the region crown on Friday night in Fyffe.
