Watauga dispatches Freedom, 49-14, on Senior Night to guarantee a share of NWC title

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — More than doubling the offensive production of an opponent while controlling possession twice as long is usually a good formula for winning football games. Watauga’s Pioneers did just that on Oct. 21, defeating a large, athletic Freedom High School contingent, 49-14, at Jack Groce Stadium. With the win, Watauga leaves little doubt that they deserve at least a share of the Northwestern Conference championship in 2022 — with one regular season fixture remaining to potentially secure sole claim to the conference title.

It was Senior Night in Boone, a packed grandstand filled with well-wishers for an accomplished senior class of football players, as well as members of the marching band, cheerleading squad, and Pacers dance team. Emotions ran high, with buoyant smiles and tearful eyes recognizing the precious moments heralding the life changes a-coming for the young men and women of the Class of 2023.

For some high school football teams, the Senior Night festivities might prove to be distractions from the task at hand. That wasn’t the case for Watauga, which took care of business early and often against the Patriots. Behind a punishing ground attack and a forceful defense, the Pioneers jumped out to a 35-0 lead at intermission and put an exclamation point on their dominance late in the third quarter, triggering the “mercy rule” running clock at 42-0 before letting their feet ease off the throttle by playing second tier and younger team members.

“Some teams like to run up the score and produce more impressive stats,” acknowledged Pioneer head coach Ryan Habich, after the game. “That isn’t us. We didn’t want to let Freedom stay close because you can see the many good athletes they have. But with a big lead, we want to get our younger backups in. They come to the same practices and put in the same work as the starters and deserve the chance to perform on the field. Plus, that gameday experience helps them develop. We may need them this year when it is time for ‘next man up,’ and at the very least their playing now provides a foundation for next year.”

As North Carolina high schools head into a final regular season weekend before the state playoffs, Watauga left little doubt that it deserves a shot at least a shot at the 4A state title with its decisive win over Freedom. Rolling up 467 yards of total offense, including 395 yards rushing while limiting the Patriots to just 202 yards of offense is certainly persuasive enough, but controlling possession of the ball for 32:00 and allowing Freedom just 15:26 speaks well of both the Pioneers’ offense and defense.

By game’s end, Watauga had two rushers over the century mark behind an impressive offensive line performance. Senior Will Curtis carried the ball 22 times for 137 yards, including four touchdowns, and sophomore QB Maddox Greene rambled 113 yards on 11 carries, with one TD. Senior wingback Trey Thompson didn’t get into the end zone on this night, but contributed significantly to the Pioneers’ early dominance with 12 carries for 66 yards rushing. In that critical second half, senior running back Josh Bollinger added 7 carries and 57 yards to all but complete Watauga’s rushing production.

Of significance in this matchup, the Pioneer defense produced three turnovers, including two recoveries of forced fumbles as well as a pass interception by Morgan Henry on the second play of the third quarter. The two fumble recoveries by the Pioneers occurred on sacks of Patriot QB Landon Cox. On Freedom’s opening possession, Watauga defensive end Brody Martin was credited with the forced fumble that was recovered by Jackson Pryor at the WAT 49-yardline. Later in the first half, Cox was sacked on 1st and 10 by Watauga’s Jackson Lang, the fumble recovered by Morgan Henry.

In a final league test to close out the regular season on Oct. 28, Watauga will take on an always dangerous Ashe County team in West Jefferson. The Pioneers dispatched the Huskies, 55-21, in a final non-conference tilt on Sept. 16, but a more seasoned Ashe County defending their home turf could prove troublesome for Watauga.

“They have a high-powered offense and Coach (Brian) Hampton always throws defensive schemes at us that we haven’t seen,” said Habich of his upcoming opponent,” so this will be a challenge for us. Plus, they are more familiar with playing on their natural grass field.”

After defeating a 4A rival, South Caldwell on Oct. 21 in a 56-48 shootout, the 3A-level Huskies’ offense may well prove a test for Watauga. Look for the Pioneers to control possession with its vaunted rushing attack to keep Ashe County’s offense off the field. And when they are on the field, expect Watauga to be playing “in your face” football, with pressure from the defensive line to disrupt Ashe County’s opportunities.

SCORING SUMMARY

SELECTED TEAM STATS

• • Total Offense – FRE 202, WAT 467
  • Yards Passing – FRE 121, WAT 72
  • Yards Rushing – FRE 81, WAT 395
  • Penalties – FRE 5/50, WAT 7/70
  • Turnovers – FRE 3, WAT 0
    • INTs thrown – FRE 1, WAT 0
    • Fumbles/Lost – FRE 3/2, WAT 0/0
  • Punts/Avg. Distance – FRE 3/34.0, WAT 0/0
  • Time of Possession – FRE 15:26, WAT 32:00
  • 3rd Down Conversions – FRE 1/7, WAT 6/8
  • 4th Down Conversions – FRE 0/2, WAT 1/2

SELECTED INDIVIDUAL STATS

Passing

• • FRE Landon Cox 9-15, 99 yards, 1 INT
  • WAT Maddox Greene 2-6, 37 yards, 1 TD
  • WAT Matthew Habich 1-1, 35 yards, 1 TD
  • FRE Jaylen Barnett 2-2, 22 yards, 1 TD

Rushing

• • WAT Will Curtis 22 carries, 137 yards, 4 TDs
  • WAT Maddox Greene 11 carries, 113 yards, 1 TD
  • FRE Jaylen Barnett 3 carries, 88 yards, 1 TD
  • WAT Trey Thompson 12 carries, 66 yards
  • WAT Josh Bollinger 7 carries, 57 yards

Receiving

• • FRE #18 3 receptions, 59 yards, 1 TD
  • FRE Sacred Baylor 5 receptions, 45 yards
  • WAT Parker Fisher 1 reception, 35 yards, 1 TD
  • WAT Isaiah Shirley, 1 reception, 19 yards
  • WAT Cole Horine, 1 reception, 18 yards, 1 TD

WATAUGA DEFENSIVE HIGHLIGHTS

• • Morgan Henry 4.5 tackles, 1 QB sack, 1 tackle for loss, 1 INT
  • Isaiah Shirley 4.5 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss
  • Brody Martin 1 forced fumble
  • Jackson Pryor 1 fumble recovery, 0.5 tackle for loss
  • Jackson Lang 1 forced fumble, 1 sack