By Mike London
mlondon@salisburypost.com
MOUNT ULLA ó Tonight’s 3A semifinal at West Rowan presents a dream matchup.
Tuscola quarterback Tyler Brosius, arguably the state’s best passer, and West tailback K.P. Parks, a rusher impacting the national record book, won’t be on the field at the same time, but they should present major fireworks.
Brosius (6-foot-3, 233 pounds) and Parks will be teammates in the Shrine Bowl. They were close to becoming college teammates as well.
Parks is firm on his commitment to Virginia despite a coaching change, while Brosius committed early to Virginia before switching his choice to N.C. State.
It’s likely the Falcons have never been up against a passer as good as Brosius.
It’s certain Tuscola, which will make the trip to Mount Ulla from the mountain community of Waynesville, has never been up against a running back as good as Parks.
The team that survives tonight’s encounter will take on the Havelock-Eastern Alamance winner at N.C. State’s Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh next Saturday at 11:30 a.m.
Tuscola went 2-9 with Brosius as a freshman QB in 2006, but it has made the transition to state power the past two seasons. Brosius has thrown for 3,193 yards and 31 TDs with only seven interceptions as a senior. He has 7,618 passing yards ó 65 short of the Western North Carolina record ó and 80 TD passes in his career.
“He’s good,” said Arkansas-bound West Rowan defensive end Chris Smith, another Shrine Bowler. “I’ve seen him at the Shrine Bowl things. He throws accurate passes, quick passes, and we’ll have to get a strong rush.”
Parks, who has rushed for 3,348 yards and 50 TDs this season, is closing in on former Greenville Rose back Andre Brown’s state record of 3,478 yards. Career-wise, Parks has 10,449 rushing yards ó a state record that ranks third nationally ó and he has found the end zone 149 times.
Tuscola coach Donnie Kiefer is in his third year as head coach of the Mountaineers. He made several stops in the eastern part of the state, notably at East Carteret and Roanoke, before making a westward trek that took him to Hibriten and Tuscola. Kiefer was a Wing-T, run-oriented coach in earlier days, but he’s adapted to changing personnel.
“When you’ve got one of the best quarterbacks in the state, you will tend to throw it a little bit,” West defensive coordinator David Hunt said.
Kiefer’s fourth-seeded team opened the season by losing to Polk County and tying Asheville, but the Mountaineers are now 12-1-1.
Tuscola, which shares its nickname and colors (black and gold) with Appalachian State, won an emotionally charged game at No. 1 seed Hibriten last week. The Mountaineers trailed 27-14 in the fourth quarter but scored the winning touchdown in the final two minutes.
“We won by not getting away from what we do and because we kept playing for the full 48 minutes,” Kiefer said. “We’ve got a blue-collar team that plays hard and invests a lot of time to football in the offseason.”
West head coach Scott Young’s second-seeded team is favored to return to the state championship game. The Falcons have won 28 straight, are at home and are healthier than they were last season when they were a M.A.S.H. unit late in the playoffs.
Still, Young, who is on the Shrine Bowl staff, has a lot of respect for Brosius and for the run that Tuscola has made to get here.
“It’s almost like one of those team-of-destiny kind of things,” Young said. “All their playoff games have been close, but they keep finding ways to win them, and that’s the mark of an outstanding team.”
Tuscola beat Hickory 17-10 and Burns 31-22 before nipping Hibriten 28-27.
The early 14-14 tie with Asheville is impressive. Asheville, a 28-14 loser to West last week, challenged the Falcons (14-0) as fiercely as anyone has since Salisbury in September.
Tuscola also has excellent personnel, with solid pass protection and a good running game to support Brosius.
Josh Adams has accounted for 752 rushing yards during an injury-plagued season with his 4.5 speed. Fullback/linebacker John Austin Chambers, the leading tackler, is a Western Carolina commitment, and center Graham Fisher will play at Appalachian State. Eric Nelson has set a school record with 1,469 receiving yards.
Tuscola has scored 457 points while giving up 185. West, ranked No. 1 in 3A most of the season, has scored 582 and allowed 126.
West enters every game with the mission of stopping the run and forcing teams to throw, but obviously Tuscola won’t be uncomfortable putting it in the air from its first snap.
As far as dealing with Parks, Kiefer said the Mountaineers can’t change who they are.
“You can’t put your eggs in one basket and key on him because they’ve got a lot of other weapons,” he said. “They’re the state champions. They’re very athletic. You just try to play sound, fundamental defense.”
West’s other weapons include quarterback B.J. Sherrill, who has thrown for 1,949 yards and 20 TDs. Jon Crucitti (68 catches, 1,107 yards, 10 TDs) is on the verge of several county receiving records. KaJuan Phillips (23 catches, 369 yards, six scores) and tight end Patrick Hampton (15 catches, 252 yards, four TDs) are viable options in the passing game, and Parks is a dangerous receiver when necessary.
It’s a team of destiny riding a 12-game winning streak against a team that appears to have the perfect blend of offense, defense and special teams.
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Common Sense pick: West Rowan 27, Tuscola 21