NCISAA CHAMPIONSHIP | VILLAGE CHRISTIAN AT STATESVILLE CHRISTIAN, 7 P.M.
Knights seek first title
By Jaclyn Shambaugh
Staff writer FAYETTEVILLE OBSERVER
Village Christian football could make history tonight, claiming the program’s first-ever state championship.
The Knights have taken the hard road to set up their title chance, winning back-to-back playoff games on the road against teams that beat them handily during the regular season.
Now, Village will need to pull off that trick one more time, traveling to Statesville Christian for the NCISAA Division III state final.
“Everybody’s gotten better,” firstyear coach Russell Stone said, “and everybody’s having a good time winning.”
It’s a departure from how the Knights finished their regularseason schedule.
Village lost four straight to finish the campaign upside down at 4-5.
Since then, the Knights have turned a corner, shuffling personnel in search of the right formula to avenge a pair of regular-season losses.
Stone said the key changes have focused on Emery Simmons, a dynamic athlete who started the season at wide receiver and now does, well, a little of everything.
“People were double- and tripleteaming him and taking him away from us,” Stone said. “Now, we line him up at tailback, we line him up at quarterback, we line him up at wide receiver. We do all of those things to try to get him the ball in space. He’s a special guy.”
Simmons, a sophomore, has been prevalent in the Knights’ playoff wins.
Last week, he ran for 115 yards, passed for 118 and caught two passes for 44 yards, accounting for three touchdowns.
“Maybe it just shows how stupid I am,” Stone said. “I had a player like Simmons and I waited until the playoffs to go centric with him.”
Simmons has also joined the defense, along with quarterback Caleb Russell. They both line up at safety to help shorten opponents’ passing prospects.
“At the beginning of the season, my role was just to be a wide receiver and do my job there,” Simmons said. “As the season went on, they needed me to take on bigger roles at other positions. It’s worked out. We’re in the state championship.” Village earned its place in the state final on a pair of upsets. First, the fifthseeded Knights took down No. 4 Concord First Assembly, a team that beat them by 30 points in September, by a score of 56-42. They followed that by knocking out top-seeded Wake Christian, which had handed Village a 34-13 loss in the regular-season finale two weeks earlier.
Simmons isn’t the only Knight to broaden his role. Stone said the team has gotten smaller and faster on defense, especially in the linebacker corps.
Darwin Frett, who’s picked up time as a blocking fullback, has moved over from linebacker to defensive end, improving what Stone said was already a good front seven.
“I do a good job at getting pressure on the quarterback, and that’s what we needed,” Frett said. “When we moved our defense around, we started getting stops. I think that’s the reason we’re winning right now.”
Village’s defense will surely be tested in tonight’s final.
Statesville Christian boasts a 2,000-yard rusher in junior Canaan Cox and a 1,500-yard passer, junior quarterback Brennan Settle.
Cox and Settle combined for 333 yards and three touchdowns in the Lions’ 48-27 win at Village on Oct. 6.
“Cox dominated the game here,” Stone said. “Their quarterback is a good, heady player. He’s a good zoneread player, and he’s tough. He won’t hurt them. He’ll make the right decisions.”
Stone said the team has made improvements to limit the run game, another matter of tinkering with the lineup.
All the personnel moves have come as Stone has gotten to know his players.
“This whole thing has been a learning experience for me,” Stone said. “Figuring out what the kids can do. And now they’re fired up.”
Staff writer Jaclyn Shambaugh can be reached at shambaughj@fayobserver.com or 609-0651.
Knights seek first title
By Jaclyn Shambaugh
Staff writer FAYETTEVILLE OBSERVER
Village Christian football could make history tonight, claiming the program’s first-ever state championship.
The Knights have taken the hard road to set up their title chance, winning back-to-back playoff games on the road against teams that beat them handily during the regular season.
Now, Village will need to pull off that trick one more time, traveling to Statesville Christian for the NCISAA Division III state final.
“Everybody’s gotten better,” firstyear coach Russell Stone said, “and everybody’s having a good time winning.”
It’s a departure from how the Knights finished their regularseason schedule.
Village lost four straight to finish the campaign upside down at 4-5.
Since then, the Knights have turned a corner, shuffling personnel in search of the right formula to avenge a pair of regular-season losses.
Stone said the key changes have focused on Emery Simmons, a dynamic athlete who started the season at wide receiver and now does, well, a little of everything.
“People were double- and tripleteaming him and taking him away from us,” Stone said. “Now, we line him up at tailback, we line him up at quarterback, we line him up at wide receiver. We do all of those things to try to get him the ball in space. He’s a special guy.”
Simmons, a sophomore, has been prevalent in the Knights’ playoff wins.
Last week, he ran for 115 yards, passed for 118 and caught two passes for 44 yards, accounting for three touchdowns.
“Maybe it just shows how stupid I am,” Stone said. “I had a player like Simmons and I waited until the playoffs to go centric with him.”
Simmons has also joined the defense, along with quarterback Caleb Russell. They both line up at safety to help shorten opponents’ passing prospects.
“At the beginning of the season, my role was just to be a wide receiver and do my job there,” Simmons said. “As the season went on, they needed me to take on bigger roles at other positions. It’s worked out. We’re in the state championship.” Village earned its place in the state final on a pair of upsets. First, the fifthseeded Knights took down No. 4 Concord First Assembly, a team that beat them by 30 points in September, by a score of 56-42. They followed that by knocking out top-seeded Wake Christian, which had handed Village a 34-13 loss in the regular-season finale two weeks earlier.
Simmons isn’t the only Knight to broaden his role. Stone said the team has gotten smaller and faster on defense, especially in the linebacker corps.
Darwin Frett, who’s picked up time as a blocking fullback, has moved over from linebacker to defensive end, improving what Stone said was already a good front seven.
“I do a good job at getting pressure on the quarterback, and that’s what we needed,” Frett said. “When we moved our defense around, we started getting stops. I think that’s the reason we’re winning right now.”
Village’s defense will surely be tested in tonight’s final.
Statesville Christian boasts a 2,000-yard rusher in junior Canaan Cox and a 1,500-yard passer, junior quarterback Brennan Settle.
Cox and Settle combined for 333 yards and three touchdowns in the Lions’ 48-27 win at Village on Oct. 6.
“Cox dominated the game here,” Stone said. “Their quarterback is a good, heady player. He’s a good zoneread player, and he’s tough. He won’t hurt them. He’ll make the right decisions.”
Stone said the team has made improvements to limit the run game, another matter of tinkering with the lineup.
All the personnel moves have come as Stone has gotten to know his players.
“This whole thing has been a learning experience for me,” Stone said. “Figuring out what the kids can do. And now they’re fired up.”
Staff writer Jaclyn Shambaugh can be reached at shambaughj@fayobserver.com or 609-0651.
