What to Expect From The South Point Red Raiders

 TICKET INFORMATION:

Tickets to the 3-A state championship game Friday Night in Kenan Stadium are on sale in the office of Rocky Mount High School for $9.  If you wait to buy at the gate  the tickets will be selling for $10.

If you are interested in riding buses, the Gryphon booster club is sponsoring buses for $25 per person.  This does not include the game ticket they must be bought separately .


Seems as if all the Gryphons have seen the entire playoffs is the so call West Coast offense passing the ball to backs in the backfield and screens to the wide outs.  If you are tired of all of that there is good news as the Red  Raiders are and option running team.  When I say running they have run for over 4400 yards this season and only 500 passing.  They have completed only 38 passes all season.

They are led by their option running quarterback number 7 Dion King who has rushed for almost 1600 yards.  Their fullback number 32 Ryland Etherton is almost at 2000 for the season. Simple offense on the option Rocky Mount  will have  to tackle the fullback on every Play.  Then play the outside looking on the quarterback keepers.  King and Etherton have made 3500 of  the Red Raiders 4400 rushing yards.

What has to impress you that just maybe the two best teams in 3-A are matched up in the finals.  South Point is 13-2 just like the Gryphons.  Their two losses are to Crest playing in the 4-A state championship game Against Rose  and Shelby playing in the 2-A finals against Kinston.  Rocky Mount  lost to Rose still playing and Middle Creek who just lost for the first time last Friday.  So these two are truly great teams as they have only lost to other great teams.

South Point is a member of the Big South 2-A/3-A.  They have won four state titles in football compared to the Gryphons 2.  They have won 12 games in a row while Rocky Mount is up to 10 in a row.  South Point is in Belmont  just south of Charlotte.  South Point and  Rocky Mount are known to each other.  They met in 2010 in Chapel Hill and Rocky Mount won the basketball title.

The Red Raiders run for 294 yards per game.  They complete only 3 of  9 passes for about 40 yards a game.  This game lies in the hands of the Gryphon defense.  If the Gryphon defensive speed can stop the run there's a good chance the Gryphons can win.  Boy won't this be a change not having to stop the short passing game.