MORGANTOWN — In a rematch of the same season-opener for both teams (just flip home and away teams), the Morgantown High football team will begin its 2022 campaign by traveling Interstate 79 South to the state capital for a game against the Black Eagles of South Charleston.
One year ago, SCHS visited the Mohigans to open the year and went home with a single-digit road victory over MHS, 37-28. That opening loss set a negative tone for the rest of the year for the Mohigans, and, combined with some injuries, they saw just a .500 record in the regular season at 5-5.
This year, however, a healthy and well-prepared MHS squad will look to take advantage of a Black Eagles team under a new coach for the first time in a long time, after Donnie Mays left for Hurricane.
Carl Lee will now run the SCHS team, and despite having a young roster and a tough schedule, the former NFL player and Marshall Hall-of-Famer will take the reins and look to lead his alma mater back to the top of high school football in West Virginia.
Along with its head coach Mays, SCHS saw a number of keys players from last year move on from the team — some of them to schools that are even on the Black Eagles’ schedule. All-state caliber players Wayne Harris, Trey Dunn and Mondrell Dean all moved schools this year, with Harris and Dean going to Huntington and Hurricane, two teams SCHS will face this year.
They will have to deal with the Mohigans first, though, who come into this season with veteran leadership and strong talent on both sides of the ball.
With a good mix of offense both in the air and on the ground, MHS should be able to take advantage of the inexperience of the Black Eagles, who only have six seniors on the roster. The Mohigans list 11 total seniors, but also have many juniors on the team who will look to make an impact in the upcoming season.
The Mohigans and Black Eagles will feature as the Kickoff Classic game this year. The game will kick off at 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 25, and will be streamed live at MetroNews.com.
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