Hard to believe we’ve reached the final week of the high school football regular season, but here we are already. Several games are on tap with teams that need wins to ensure/strengthen playoff berths, while the matchup of Parkersburg’s Class AAA teams will always be relevant, regardless of record. Here’s the full schedule. All game dates/times listed: Parkersburg (6-3) at Parkersburg South (3-6) – Friday 7:00 It’s clear to see that a winning pedigree is back at Parkersburg under head coach Mike Byus. In his first season, Byus has instilled a positive attitude and has made changes that have led to defensive improvements over past seasons. But he’s also pushed the right buttons on offense to make PHS competitive once again in the Mountain State Athletic Conference. The Big Reds have scored 30 points or more in all but two of their games this year, winning all but one of those contests. The Big Reds have won five of their last six games, with the latest coming in a 44-30 win over Riverside in a game that was moved to Ripley at the last minute as a result of the Parkersburg industrial fire. PHS racked up 265 of their 375 total yards on the ground. Shane Miller scored twice, as did Tyler Moler – who picked up 216 yards on 21 carries. Parkersburg South has shown growth under Mike Eddy this season. The Patriots, with a win, still owns an outside shot of making the playoffs – Parkersburg South is one of three teams vying for the final spot in Class AAA (along with St. Albans and South Charleston). The simplest way for the Patriots to get into the top 10 would be to beat the Big Reds and then have South Charleston lose to Woodrow Wilson and St. Albans lose to Hurricane. Wins by both South Charleston and Parkersburg South (plus a St. Albans loss) would come down to bonus points and potential tiebreaker for the final playoff spot. Last Friday at Wheeling Island Stadium, South put together a late rally that fell short in a 35-28 loss to Wheeling Park. Along the way, the Patriots showed a resiliency they didn’t show early in the season – rallying to tie the game at 14 before halftime after falling behind by two scores in the first quarter. After Park snapped a 21-21 tie with two touchdowns in the closing minutes of the 4th quarter, Brayden Mooney connected with Brett Hearn on a 12-yard scoring strike with :20 to play. But South was unable to recover an onside kick that would’ve given the Patriots another shot at the end zone and Wheeling Park was able to come away with the pivotal win. Though South has lost six games this season, they’ve been within a score of the lead entering the final quarter – one way or another – in four of those games. One of the changes Byus has made this year – in the eyes of more than a few observers – is to emphasize putting more athletes on the defensive side of the ball. The end result is a fast group that can seal the edges on opponents in the blink of an eye. The Big Reds have limited opponents to ten points or fewer four times this season. South has a lot of backfield weapons and has opened the playbook a little deeper in recent weeks to find creative ways to share the football. 412 total yards against Wheeling Park last week was a season-high. If the Patriots are to pull the upset, they’ll need to show this same variety on offense early – and be effective at moving the football in a number of ways. If PHS is to keep to its winning ways, they’ll need to try to run the ball down South’s throat. For reference, Byus would be best-served to watch film of South’s game against Point Pleasant. With a possible first round home game on the line, it’s likely the Big Reds defense will rise to the occasion. As with any rivalry, weird things always tend to happen – no matter the record or the team with the homefield advantage. Though the Big Reds have a large advantage in the overall series record, Parkersburg South has won this game in back-to-back years.