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Familiar foes Williamstown, Doddridge meet Friday

Williamstown’s Rex Anderson (4) and Jensen Burge (77) combine to bring down Frankfort’s Uriah Cutter during a game earlier this season. (Photo by Jordan Holland)

WEST UNION — The Williamstown Yellowjackets focused on themselves over the bye week.

Coming off a 27-7 loss to Frankfort two weeks ago, Williamstown used the time off to regroup and refocus.

“It was a good week for us,” said Williamstown head coach Chris Beck. “You’re able to go live a bit more in practice and work on some areas we needed to get better at. We really worked on being the best version of the Yellowjackets we could be. It’s more of a week of working within.”

Now, the ‘Jackets (7-1) turn their attention to Doddridge County (7-1), a team they’ve become familiar with over the years, for a 7 p.m. Friday showdown.

Williamstown and DCHS have squared off six times in the past three years — once in the regular season and once in the postseason each year. Though there won’t be a second matchup in 2024 due to Williamstown jumping up to Class AA, this is a borderline rivalry game for both programs.

“We’re very familiar with each other,” Beck said. “There’s not a lot of secrets this week. You’ll see wrinkles from both teams, I’m sure. They’re a very good team that’s well coached.”

The Bulldogs have won six in a row and are looking to finish the month of October strong after wins over Petersburg (40-6), South Harrison (26-6) and East Hardy (13-3).

“Where we were earlier to where we are now, we have seen a lot of improvement,” said DCHS head coach Bobby Burnside. “Men on the team have stepped up and performed well. Looking at the October, we’ve had a pretty good month. Between Petersburg, South Harrison and East Hardy, those are three quality wins.”

Doddridge welcomes the chance to test itself on its home field against a team like Williamstown.

“I think it’s a game that can make your team better,” Burnside said. “They’ll always show you things you need to work on. We’ve got to rise to their level.”

Last year, Williamstown ended Doddridge’s season in the first round of the playoffs, winning 49-6. As Beck pointed out, though, this is not the same Bulldogs unit.

“They’re different in that typically they’re a ground-and-pound team,” Beck said. “This year their skill positions and quarterback are doing a phenomenal job. They’re very balanced offensively. The quarterback is throwing for about 150 (yards) a game. It’s a little bit of a different version of Doddridge.”

Doddridge quarterback Brysen Dixon spreads the ball all over the field. He’s 54 for 91 passing for 1,157 yards with 16 touchdowns and just two interceptions. Landon Thomas (27 catches, 539 yards, nine TDs), Jerod Trent (16 catches, 469 yards, seven TDs) and Aiden James (nine catches, 127 yards, one TD) all are reliable targets for Dixon.

Then there’s the combination of Lyric Blake (67 carries, 590 yards, nine TDs), Talyn Snyder (48 carries, 232 yards, two TDs), Brandon Davis (41 carries, 215 yards, four TDs) and Brycen Eidel (28 carries, 178 yards, two TDs) out of the backfield.

“It makes it a lot more difficult defensively,” Beck said.

“You’ve got to be sound in all the parts. Any given week you’re seeing different guys step up for them. It’s very challenging. We have to try to avoid giving up chunk plays.”

For Williamstown, it all starts with quarterback Lynken Joy. Joy has 114 carries for 834 yards and 12 touchdowns and has completed 50 of 82 pass attempts for 945 yards, 11 touchdowns and two picks.

His top targets are Cooper Martin (16 catches, 304 yards, four TDs), Carson Haines (15 catches, 286 yards, two TDs), Jackson Fulton (12 catches, 196 yards, three TDs) and Danner Hooper (six catches, 169 yards, two TDs).

Complementing Joy in the run game are teammates Cooper Billingsley (75 carries, 593 yards, 10 TDs) and Rex Anderson (44 carries, 387 yards, one TD).

“What you see on film with Williamstown is they’re a very well coached team,” Burnside said. “They’ve got a lot of seniors playing. They’re led by Lynken Joy who’s a very dynamic player. They’ve played a difficult schedule. They’re keeping the tradition of playing good football year-in and year-out.”

Defensively, Hooper leads Williamstown with six sacks while Thomas and Krystian Eidel have four and three, respectively, for Doddridge. James has three interceptions for the Bulldogs while teammate Brycen Eidel has forced three fumbles.

“You’ve got two LKC teams that are 7-1 with a lot of history with each other,” Beck said. “I have a ton of respect for coach Burnside and what they’ve been able to do over the years. This is not an easy task, but it’s one we’re looking forward to.”

Contact Jordan Holland at jholland@mariettatimes.com.

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