Chiefs start two-game road spurt Friday
Published 12:02 am Wednesday, September 21, 2016
For the next two weeks, the Northview Chiefs will hit the road for non-region contests at Vancleave, Miss. and Maplesville.
NHS (2-2) is coming off a 41-6 victory over Chipley, Fla., in which senior quarterback Luke Ward accounted for five of his team’s touchdowns.
Chiefs head coach Derek Marshman said Vancleave, a Class 4A school in Mississippi, is big and plays smash mouth football.
Leading the charge for VHS (0-4) is David Capers, a senior fullback who also plays at linebacker.
Marshman said Capers is a stout player and is a little heavier.
“He’s definitely a really good player for them,” he said.
Xavier Bass is Vancleave’s go to wide receiver. Bass, a junior, is 6-foot-4 and weighs 185 pounds.
At quarterback, VHS has Kenny Goff, a senior.
“He does a good job of managing their offense,” Marshman said about Goff. “Offensively, they’re very, very multiple.”
Marshman said the Mississippi team likes to base its offense on different formations.
Defensively, VHS runs out of a 3-4 with linebackers frequenting the rush.
Last week against Chipley, Ward rushed for 253 yards on 11 carries and scored three touchdowns. He threw for 216 yards and two touchdowns.
“He had great blocking, and made great reads,” Marshman said. “We run a lot of the option with different looks. The offensive line did a great job of making blocks at the front and then down field.”
Ward’s touchdown passes were two Rayvon Bush and Josh Smith.
Chiefs receiver Neikel Robinson also had a good night with a pick six on the first series of the game. He ran it back between 65-70 yards in the first quarter, Marshman said.
The Chiefs led 21-0 after the first quarter, and 28-6 at halftime. NHS won the third, 13-6.