Roaming the county getting ready for tonight …
MOUNT ULLA — Is there ever a night that West Rowan hits the field that a streak isn’t on the line?
Tonight, two more will be mentioned when Scott Young’s Falcons play host to Carson tonight.
For the record:
• West has won 29 straight North Piedmont Conference games.
• West has won 40 straight against Rowan County teams.
So regardless of how heavily favored West (7-2, 4-0) is in any game, there is always something to play for.
Oh yeah, there’s another streak to talk about. A win over the Cougars will give West Rowan at least a share of another conference crown.
“It’s a game we have to take treat as special in two ways,” Young said. “It’s Senior Night — the last guaranteed home game for our seniors. They’ve been a wonderful group for our program.
“The second point is, with a win we clinch at least a tie for our eighth conference championship. So (with a win) our kids can call themselves champions on Friday night. Those two areas make this game huge.”
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Last year’s matchup at Carson was one for the ages. Carson was on its way to a 10-win season and the stadium couldn’t hold the overflow crowd. An estimated 5,000 bodies tried to squeeze their way into the place. It was quite a sight to see what appeared to be about 5,000 vehicles parked everywhere along the road with people walking a mile to get to the game.
Carson and West have been bringing the county’s largest crowds. Expect more of the same tonight.
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There’s a showdown in the CCC as Salisbury (8-1, 3-0) travels to Thomasville.
The Bulldogs are an uncharacteristic 4-5 overall but at 2-1, they can grab a share of first place.
“Just the name (Thomasville) will strike the fear of God in everybody,” Salisbury coach Joe Pinyan said.
Pinyan wasn’t happy with his team’s 21-13 win at Lexington last week.
Too many mistakes. Six fumbles.
“I don’t think it hurts us, I think it wakes us up,” Pinyan said. “And what better time to wake up than right before you play Thomasville? It’s good to play Lexington and Thomasville back-to-back to test us.”
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We’ll be curious to see how East Rowan responds in its final game tonight at home against dangerous second-place Statesville (4-4-1, 3-1). The Mustangs (1-8) claimed their first victory of the season last week in an impressive 21-0 workmanlike effort against South Rowan.
When the “Roaming the County” camera came out to the school on Tuesday, you could feel the excitement in the air. Those kids were winners. After playing well in so many games, that feeling was way overdue.
Most of the county coaches say the same thing about the Mustangs.
“East plays hard,” Carson coach Mark Woody said earlier in the week.
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East coach Chad Tedder played his high school football at West Montgomery and that’s where North Rowan is headed tonight. At 3-6, and with a depleted roster due to injuries and suspensions, this could be a statement win for Tasker Fleming’s Cavaliers if they could pull it off.
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In other games, Davie County, coming off an excruciating 32-28 loss to Mount Tabor in the final seconds, has its Senior Night against Reagan. A.L. Brown goes to Kannapolis neighbor Northwest Cabarrus. It looks like the Wonders and Concord, both 5-0 in the South Piedmont and 8-1 overall, are on a collision course for a humongous Oct. 28 matchup at Memorial Stadium.
Can’t wait for that one.
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On the air tonight …
• Hall of Famer Howard Platt will call the Carson-West game on WSTP 1490 AM.
• Lance, Glenn, Johnny and the boys at WSAT 1280 will go to Thomasville with Salisbury.
• Carl Ford, the “Commissioner” of high school football, and The Coach, Bob Parker, are usually the voice of South Rowan, but the Raiders are off. So the dynamic duo is headed to West for Carson’s game.
• As always, WRKB 1460 AM will cover A.L. Brown.
Go to a game tonight, folks. And be nice.
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Contact Ronnie Gallagher at 704-797-4287 or rgallagher@salisburypost.com.