MORGANTOWN — It’s one of the most exciting weeks on the calendar for Morgantown High.
This week marks homecoming, and it’s created a buzz around the community.
On Wednesday, there was the annual parade down High Street and Saturday will be the much-anticipated dance.
But, most importantly, there’s a football game to be played. The Mohigans are nearing the midway point of the season with a 3-1 record. While there have been some high points and some low points thus far, things are trending in the right direction for Morgantown.
The team just needs to remain focused on their goals, head coach Sean Biser said.
“It’s definitely a fun week with homecoming and the fans have been embracing that atmosphere,” Biser said. “There’s a lot of excitement, but we know what’s in front of us and we can’t lose sight of that.”
An 0-4 Buckhannon-Upshur team is what stands in front of the Mohigans this week. The Buccaneers come into Pony Lewis Field searching for their first win of the season.
“When we’re game-planning and watching film on our next opponent, we’re not focused on their record at all,” Biser said. “Each week, no matter the opponent, we’re watching what they do but we’re always just focused on us. We need to make sure we’re prepared and ready to play our best each week.”
Morgantown is coming off a hard-fought 21-7 win against Connellsville (PA). In what started as a defensive battle, the Mohigans broke out with three touchdowns by standout running back A.J. Thomas.
The MHS defense didn’t allow Connellsville to score until the closing minutes of the fourth quarter.
“Our defense did a good job and our defensive staff has done well to make sure we’re in the right position. We’ve really focused on fundamentals and fundamental tackling has been a big key for our defense,” Biser said.
A second-half interception by Carter Cooper stopped Connellsville from gaining momentum. His long punt return also set up the Mohigans’ first score of the game.
“Carter has really stepped up and improved this season,” Biser said. “He’s becoming one of our solid players and he’s put a lot of work in to get to this point. He got some good experience as a sophomore last year and he’s now one of our more veteran players on defense.”
Biser said he’s proud of the steps the whole team has taken so far this season. This week is a big opportunity to pick up another win before what looks to be the toughest stretch of the season.
The Mohigans travel to Wheeling Park next week before hosting Martinsburg the following week. On Oct. 18, MHS travels to Parkersburg South.
“We take things one week at a time and we’re not looking ahead yet,” Biser said. “The goal is to go 1-0 each week and that’s what we want to accomplish on Friday. There’s been some good and some bad this season, but we’ve shot ourselves in the foot sometimes. There’s some things we need to clean up and get our pre-snap formation down pat.”
Getting all the steps down on Friday will lead to a happier dance for homecoming on Saturday.
— Story by Matthew Peaslee
