As winning becomes a way of life for Athens, Alexander and Nelsonville-York, more of the same is the aim.
“We’re preparing for River Valley this week and we’re going about it the same way we did last week,” Alexander coach Sean Arno said. “We’re focused on what we do, and we’re focused on ourselves getting better.”
Ohio’s football team may be 3-0, but Bobcat fans might want to take notes on the Athens-area Tri-Valley Conference Ohio Division teams. All three have unblemished records heading into week five.
Nelsonville-York and Alexander have had success putting points on the scoreboard. The Buckeyes have a combined season score of 180-31, and the Spartans have faired similarly. They piled on 80 points against Frontier last week.
Even with all the success for Athens-area TVC-Ohio teams, coaches guarantee it won’t continue to be this pretty, and their teams are ready for that challenge.
“Certainly we’re going to have obstacles that we’re going to have to overcome this year, and they understand that,” Nelsonville-York coach Dave Boston said. “They are very unselfish and willing to work through whatever we have to work through.”
Athens (4-0)
With a sloppy victory against Chillicothe last Friday, Athens will look to clean up its mistakes and to continue adding victories to its résumé.
“We need to execute better offensively this week, keep playing tough defense, bring our style of football and stay focused,” Athens coach Ryan Adams said.
The Bulldogs take on Waverly, a team that presents size and toughness, which could create problems for Athens.
“They have a real nice tailback who’s about 6-foot-3, 195 and moves really well for his height. They also have two outstanding linemen that could give us some trouble, one of which may be the best we face all year,” Adams said.
Alexander (4-0)
It got pretty for Alexander and got ugly for Frontier last Friday as numerous young players on the Spartans’ squad took to the field and got in-game experience.
“You cannot replicate game experience in practice, no doubt,” Arno said. “It was a big score. When our kids go out there, they’re going to do their best.”
This week, the Spartans will look to continue to spread the ball around and maintain their offensive success.
“The thing we’re looking to do is diversify on offense, special teams,” Arno said. “We focus on them, and they continue to get better at those, and I think we did better this week on those.”
Nelsonville-York (4-0)
The Buckeyes take on a battle-tested 0-4 Logan team this Friday, and even with a reversed record, the Chieftains’ experience against Division I and II teams has Nelsonville-York in full focus.
“They’re competing in those games,” Boston said. “They’re just not winning those games and we understand that they’re playing us and it’s a local game and a lot of community surrounds these types of games, and we know what they’re going to bring to the plate.”
Trimble (1-2)
An outbreak of meningitis cancelled the Tomcats’ game last Friday. This weekend, Trimble takes on winless Miller High School, and like Nelsonville-York’s opponent Logan, the Falcons could be unpredictable.
"Miller doesn't have anything to lose,” Trimble coach Phil Faires said. “I'm sure they're going to come out fired up. It's a big rivalry game for both of us."
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