It’s hard to tell if Bridgeport High School football Coach Josh Nicewarner knows anything about the late philosopher George Santayana. In fact, he may not even know the words he’s most famous for.
It’s easy to tell, however, that Nicewarner is calling up those words when he thinks about tonight’s 7 p.m. matchup with Class AA No. 6 Keyser at Alumni Stadium. And the quote is this: “Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.”
The No. 3 Indians head to Mineral County in the regular season for the second time in three years. And it was two years ago that Bridgeport headed to battle Keyser when the scenario the Tribe faced was eerily similar to what the situation is right now for the Tribe.
“I would like to think our seniors don’t have very short memories and remember two years ago when we went to Keyser for the first time. We had one loss and that was after playing Wheeling Park and giving them all they wanted and had beaten a good (Robert C.) Byrd team and were battle tested going up there,” said Nicewarner. “We went up there and absolutely got embarrassed. It was the worst loss I’ve ever experienced as a coach or a player. We need to be students of history, recent history, so we don't see the same thing.”
It was a state-ranked Tribe team that got blasted by a 25-0 score at KHS – and the game wasn’t even that close. Incredibly, Bridgeport had just 34 yards of total offense in the game. Because of that beating – and then another one in the Class AA semifinals the same year – Bridgeport had revenge on their minds last year. And they got it to the tune of a 41-0 hammering in a regular season rematch at Wayne Jamison Field.
“We rolled through them last year because we felt we had something to prove after what they did to us. Now, we have to make sure we don’t go up there and let them get us down because it’s just natural for a team, particularly a good one like Keyser is this year, to try and jump out and get momentum,” said Nicewarner. “Quite frankly, this is the type of game where, when we’re done, we’re going to be able to tell what type of team we have.”
The Indians may have to determine what type of team they have without the services of junior running back and defensive back Dylan Tonkery. Tonkery left in the first quarter of last week’s win over Elkins with what was reported to be a rib injury.
“Tonkery, I’d say, is out indefinitely. We’re planning on going without him,” said Nicewarner.
The good news is that they may have running back/defensive back Dante Bonamico. Bonamico sat out the last two games and played mainly on defense against Robert C. Byrd in the game prior to those two due to an injured ankle and Achilles tendon.
“Dante, I’d say, is 50-50. Unless he did some miraculous healing, he’s not going to be 100 percent,” said Nicewarner. “The thing about Dante is that if he’s cleared to play you’d probably have to chain him down to keep him off the field. At the same time, I won’t risk the health of any kid for the purpose of trying to get a win.”
If Tonkery doesn’t play, which is the likely scenario, he takes 513 yards of rushing offense with him. Bonamico is the Tribe’s second leading rusher with 378 yards on 66 carries (5.7 ypc) and leads the team with seven rushing touchdowns. Quarterback Zack Spurlock has become more comfortable with the read option out of the Tribe’s pistol formation with 49 carries for 358 yards (7.3 ypc) and has five scores on the year.
Elijah Drummond (33-for-202) and Mitchell Winkie (18-for-103) will likely be called into a more prominent role based on the status of Tonkery and Bonamico.
The Golden Tornado’s top rusher is Cody Rodeheaver – by far the team’s offensive workhorse. He leads the team with 701 yards rushing on 98 carries (7.2 ypc) and has eight rushing touchdowns.
What has helped KHS to an extent is an above average passing game led by quarterback Ryan Streets. Streets has completed 32-of-62 passes for 480 yards with eight touchdowns against two interceptions. Spurlock, although completing 67 percent of his passes, is just 12-of-18 for 161 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
If Keyser is able to take control early, it will be the only team to do so this year. Although Wheeling Park and Robert C. Byrd both were in first half battles with the Tribe, the Indians – through six games – have yielded just 14 points in the first half this season. The reason for that stems from a defense that is arguably the best in Class AA.
Winkie has emerged as the team’s leading tackler with 33 stops (including 3.5 for loss) but it is defensive end Michael Gray that has turned into the most disruptive force. Gray has 30 stops on the year and more than a third of those tackles – 10.5 to be exact – have been tackles for loss. He has set the opponents back for losses of 47.3 yards and also leads the team with 2.5 sacks.
Brandon Hartz (29), Noah Markley (28), Zach Bombardier (23) and John Wilfong are also showing big numbers on defense. Markley from his tackle spots has 5.5 tackles for loss for a negative 22.8 yards for the opposition.
Along with postseason positioning on the line, Keyser is celebrating 100 years of Golden Tornado football. Ceremonies will take place prior to the game and at halftime.
You can follow in-game updates on Twitter by going to @connectBP. You can also listen to live coverage of the game on 103.3 WAJR FM. Listen to the play by play call of Travis Jones with plenty of analysis from Tim Brady and Ryan Nicewarner.
Click HERE for a story on this year's Talon Steadman Memorial Award winners.
Editor's Note: Top photo shows the BHS Coaching staff, while in the second photo an injured Dante Bonamico welcomes Dylan Tonkery after a touchdown run to the sideline. Those rolls could be reversed this evening. Zack Spurlock has been accurate in his limited passing attempts, while the BHS defense has been solid since the opening week of the season. All photos from www.benqueenphotography.com.
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