If you’re looking for a marquee matchup on Friday night in the NCHSAA 4A playoffs, U.S. 1 in Rockingham is the spot.
Clayton (10-1) will make the journey to face Richmond County (9-2) in a game that is more suited to an Eastern final than it is for round two. Nevertheless, here we are…
On the road: Google says it’s 105 miles from the parking lot at Clayton to the home of “Raider Magic.” In ideal traffic conditions (read: not Friday evenings) it will take just under two hours.
Media watch: The official email says that both Curtis Media (102.3 FM) and CRN (wearecrn.com) will be on hand for this one.
How they got here: Clayton pulled away from Corinth Holders, 47-18, while Richmond County sent Topsail out to sea, 42-6.
Venue: Raider Stadium is a must-visit for high school football fans. If you can’t get there for a Richmond/Scotland County game, a playoff game is just as good, atmosphere-wise. Fun fact: a playoff meeting there between Crest and Richmond County was the coldest I’ve ever been at a football game (it was in the teens by the end). It also froze my video camera, making my round trip from Shelby to Rockingham ultimately fruitless.
Stat pack: The Raiders didn’t enter passing stats last week. One wonders if they don’t want folks to know that Evan Hodges was back under center. But the rest of the stats should be pretty close:
As for Clayton, recall my post last week about the Comets’ stat policy. But note the following:
Massey Ratings: Clayton -7.5(!)
Key matchup: The two teams that beat Richmond (Seventy-First and Cardinal Gibbons) are very good, and both managed to limit the Raiders’ diverse ground attack. The Comets’ defense is as good as anyone’s against the run, so can they force Richmond into passing situations?
Prediction: Richmond is very good, and I’ve seen enough Raider Magic on that home field to scare me way off that Massey number. I like this Clayton team, though, and assuming it starts a little quicker than it did last week, it might be able to find enough points to escape Rockingham with a win.