Sports Dogs Podcast: Road to Week 1-Frederick County and Winchester football

In Part 2 of our High School Football “Road To Week 1” series, The Dogs feature previews of the Winchester & Frederick County teams.

Ryan and guest Sports Dog Josh Kirby interview coaches:

  • Jake Smith- Handley
  • TJ Rohrbaugh- Sherando
  • Todd Wilson- James Wood
  • Nick Manuel- Millbrook

To look back to Part 1 of “The Road to Week 1” highlighting Skyline and Warren County, click HERE.

For more of Josh Kirby’s interviews and video coverage from high school training camps, click HERE.

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The Duke’s Preview: Millbrook vs Handley ft Coach Smith

The Handley Judges (8-1) head down Route 7 to take on the Millbrook Pioneers (3-5) in the High School Football Game of the Week on The River 95.3, Fox Sports Radio 1450, and streaming on The River 95.3 app and theriver953.com with coverage starting at 6:30 pm for the 7 pm kick-off.

While Handley has a lot ahead of them including a looming showdown against Sherando with playoff seeding and the Apple Cup on the line, they can’t over look Millbrook.

When two Frederick County/Winchester teams matchup, the familiarity and hometown rivalry can overcome any perceived imbalance based on wins and losses.

Millbrook plays tough and physical football, but has been plagued by injuries this season and were missing 16 student-athletes against Sherando last week.

Most notably, the losses have came in the backfield with leading rushers Kyler Jackson and Cameron Clark missing multiple games this season.

Clark returned last week against the Warriors but was unable to finish the game.

The running game will be crucial to maintain possession of the ball and keep Handley’s high-powered offense off the field.

The Judges average 49.6 points per game without even playing the starters for the majority of second halves this season.

The backfield combination of senior running back Hassan Akanbi and freshman quarterback Triston Darling have taken the Valley by storm this season.

Akanbi averages 13 yards per carry and joined Skyline’s Zayden Burks as the lone running backs in the 1,000 yard club this season.

Darling and Akanbi both have reached the endzone 17 times a piece on the ground with Darling adding another 9 passing touchdowns to his total.

Handley’s explosive offense has allowed them to build leads quickly like the 49-0 advantage at halftime against Liberty last week.

If the Judges jump ahead of Millbrook early, the heavy rushing style of the Pioneers has had a difficult time overcoming leads.

Coach Jake Smith will have his team ready to avoid the “look ahead” game and set up a winner take all matchup with the Warriors next week, Judges 49-16.

To listen to my interview with Handley’s Coach Jake Smith, click here.

For a breakdown of all of this week’s games, a look back at last week, and much more, listen to the latest Sports Dogs Podcast here.