High School Football Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

High School Football Playoffs Begin This Weekend

After a week’s delay, the West Virginia high school football playoffs will begin this weekend. The games begin Friday afternoon. The championship games in all four classes will be played in Charleston at Laidley Field Dec. 13 and 14.

This all comes after the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals Tuesday vacated injunctions issued by two circuit courts, reaffirming the West Virginia Secondary Schools Activities Commission’s (WVSSAC) authority to oversee and implement its rules for interscholastic athletics.

The point system that was used for the entirety of the regular season will be used to determine the playoff fields and matchups.

The decision from the court said:

“It is beyond question that the WVSSAC had the authority to reclassify under West Virginia Code of State Rules §127-3-10. Upon our review, we find that the circuit court’s entry of injunctive relief was not based on the WVSSAC’s lack of authority to reclassify, but rather on the timing and manner of that reclassification. We have repeatedly held that the manner in which the WVSSAC applies its rules is not subject to judicial review.”

Read the order from the state Supreme Court here.

Court Of Appeals Rules High School Athletes Can Play Ball

Petitions were filed Tuesday in an effort to stop two lower court rulings regarding the Class A high school volleyball playoffs, which were postponed due to conflicting court orders out of circuit courts in Hardy and Taylor counties.

West Virginia student athletes can prepare to suit up and play ball.

The state Supreme Court of Appeals ruled late Tuesday that high school football championships can proceed as originally planned under the West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission – despite two lower court rulings based on changes to playoff categories.

The rulings in Wood and Mason counties had blocked all football playoffs in the state – Tuesday’s ruling means those playoffs can move forward now.

In part, the Court said Tuesday that the SSAC had the authority to reclassify the teams based on school size. The creation of a fourth athletic class, Class AAAA, over the summer triggered a reclassification of schools in most sports.

Supreme Court Will Rule On Football Rankings

The Supreme Court of Appeals has been asked to resolve conflicting litigation that is delaying football playoffs across West Virginia.

The West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission (SSAC) has filed two petitions for Writ of Prohibition with the state’s highest court in an effort to stop two lower court rulings regarding the high school football playoffs.

On Friday, Justice William R. Wooton voluntarily disqualified himself from participating in both cases, but did not provide a reason. Chief Justice Tim Armstead filed disclosures of his personal relationships related to the cases, including a nephew who plays football at Braxton County High School, but concluded they had “no basis for his disqualification.”

Football playoffs were originally scheduled to begin Friday night. But the SSAC postponed them after conflicting court orders about team rankings were handed down in Wood and Mason counties.

David Price, executive director of the SSAC, said appealing to the Supreme Court became their only option.

“There are so many competing orders from various courts, and it’s not up to us to determine which court order to follow, so the Supreme Court will have to intervene,” he said.

West Virginia currently has four classes for secondary activities, ranging from Class A to Class AAAA. Price said Class AAAA was an expansion created as part of a pilot program in basketball. It was recently added to most sports as part of a new reclassification system implemented just before the start of the fall athletic season.

“The principals of West Virginia voted on and supported, matter of fact wanted, and they wanted to expand that to include football, baseball, softball, cheer and volleyball, outside of girls and boys basketball, and that’s exactly what happened,” Price said.

Price said some schools have been dissatisfied with their reclassification and their ability to compete in the new classes.

“Everything started to domino from that and rulings that were handed to us that we had to implement based on review board rulings, and then they went to court, and it’s brought us to where we are now,” he said.

The petition filed in Wood County Circuit Court by the local Board of Education on Nov. 8 resulted in a court order Nov. 9 requiring the SSAC to seed the playoffs using a methodology from January 2024, before the reclassification.

The SSAC complied with the order and released new seedings for the playoffs the same day. But on Nov. 11 Point Pleasant Junior Senior High School, which had been eliminated from playoff contention by the new rankings, filed a petition in Mason County Circuit Court. That resulted in an order for the SSAC to delay the Class AAA playoffs so “play-in” games could be held, conflicting with the order out of Wood County.

“The Order presupposes that WVSSAC will incorporate the complete reclassification as required by the Wood County Order which would require the WVSSAC to change the calculation system for the football playoffs after all eleven (11) weeks of regular season play and one (1) week before the scheduled start of the playoffs and therefore eliminating Point Pleasant Junior Senior High School,” the SSAC petition for writ against Mason County reads.

“Accordingly, it leaves in place the system which it found to be “arbitrary and capricious” and effectively modifies that order, only to reintroduce two (2) of the schools the Wood County Order would exclude. As a result, it leaves in place the arbitrary and capricious effects of the Wood County Order, particularly with respect to any schools participating in a classification other than AAA.”

Price stressed that the SSAC is purely an administrative body that follows and enforces rules created by its member schools.

“Keep in mind that the rules that are followed are made by the principals of the secondary schools of West Virginia, not by a group of people in Parkersburg,” Price said. “All we do is make sure out of Parkersburg, make sure they’re followed. The principles are the WVSSAC, they are the voting members, and we are the administration.”

In its filings Thursday, the SSAC also sought expedited relief from the court to try and get teams playing again as soon as possible. Friday afternoon the Supreme Court granted both requests, ordering the respondents in Wood and Mason counties to submit their responses no later than noon on Monday, Nov. 18.

A separate legal action that has delayed the Class A volleyball playoffs is awaiting a ruling in Hardy County.

Sports Playoffs Postponed Indefinitely Due To Legal Challenges

The playoffs for two high school sports have been postponed indefinitely by the West Virginia Secondary Schools Activities Commission (WVSSAC) pending ongoing litigation.

The WVSSAC announced Nov. 12 that football playoffs for all four classes have been postponed pending ongoing litigation. The playoffs, which were scheduled to begin this Friday, Nov. 15, will begin after the litigation has been resolved.

“We are extremely disappointed to not be having the playoffs this weekend,” said David Price, WVSSAC executive director in a statement. “We understand the frustration from all of the parties involved, and we want nothing more than to put the focus back on the student-athletes and their pursuit of a championship. However, we must abide by the decisions of the courts and their timeline.”

The WVSSAC posted on its Facebook page Saturday, Nov. 9, that, “following an injunction issued in Wood County today, the WVSSAC is actively updating the football ratings that determine playoff participants and seeding.”

The Wood County injunction triggered filings in other counties, creating the potential for conflicting court orders.

Football is not the only sport to have its playoffs affected by court activity. The WVSSAC announced Saturday, Nov. 9, that the Class A volleyball tournament scheduled to begin Tuesday, Nov. 12, would be postponed indefinitely. Like in football, the postponement is due to several court filings and the potential for conflicting court orders regarding playoff seeding.

The tournaments for the other three volleyball classes are moving forward unaffected.

Cougars Football And EJ Henderson Guitars, Inside Appalachia

This week on Inside Appalachia, Alleghany and Covington high schools were rivals for decades. But now, they’ve merged. This week, we head to a home football game and learn how it’s going. Also, the daughter of a legendary guitar maker didn’t set out to take up her father’s craft — but she’s found it irresistible. And, we take a trip to the mushroom capital of the U.S.

Alleghany and Covington high schools were rivals for decades. But now, they’ve merged. This week, we head to a home football game and learn how it’s going.

Also, the daughter of a legendary guitar maker didn’t set out to take up her father’s craft — but she’s found it irresistible.

And, we take a trip to the mushroom capital of the U.S.

You’ll hear these stories and more this week, Inside Appalachia.

In This Episode:

Cougar Football
A New Generation Of Henderson Guitars
Pennsylvania’s Mushroom Empire
The Migration Of Frijoles Charros

Cougar Football

A consolidated school might be different, but student spirit remains the same.

*Credit: Mason Adams/West Virginia Public Broadcasting*

There’s nothing hotter than a high school sports rivalry. Host Mason Adams grew up in Alleghany County, Virginia and went to Alleghany High School. His school’s biggest football rival was the Covington Cougars, on the other side of the county.

The two schools consolidated this past year. Adams made a trip home to visit the new school during its very first homecoming to see what has changed and what hasn’t.

A New Generation Of Henderson Guitars

Jayne Henderson builds her own future as a guitar and ukulele maker.

*Credit: Janie Witte*

Wayne Henderson has been making guitars since he was a teenager. The guitars he makes are prized by players who are willing to wait up to a decade to get their hands on one.

His daughter, Elizabeth Jayne Henderson, never intended to follow in her father’s footsteps. She went to law school, but now Jayne is carrying on the family tradition in her own way.

Folkways Reporter Margaret McLeod Leef had this story.

Pennsylvania’s Mushroom Empire

Shiitake mushroom.

*Credit: Keith Weller/United States Department of Agriculture*

People have hunted wild mushrooms for generations — but did you know that Pennsylvania is the biggest producer of mushrooms in the U.S.?

WVIA’s Kat Bolus brought us this story about Pennsylvania’s mushroom farms and foraging clubs.

The Migration Of Frijoles Charros

A bowl of frijoles charros sits to the right of a bowl of refried beans. While refried beans are a standard side dish in most Mexican restaurants in Southern Ohio, frijoles charros often accompany the main meal at restaurants in northern Mexico and along the US-Mexico border.

*Credit: Nicole Musgrave/West Virginia Public Broadcasting*

A bowl of brothy pinto beans is comfort food for lots of folks here in Appalachia. There’s a similar tradition in rural Mexico — frijoles charros — or charro beans. Now, the dish has made its way north to the former coal town of Wellston, in southeast Ohio.

Folkways Reporter Nicole Musgrave has the story.

——

Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert. Other music this week was provided by Joe Dobbs and the 1937 Flood, Mary Hott, The Sycomores, Anna and Elizabeth, The Carolina Chocolate Drops, John Blissard, and the Alleghany High School marching band.

Bill Lynch is our producer. Zander Aloi is our associate producer. Our executive producer is Eric Douglas. Kelley Libby is our editor. Our audio mixer is Patrick Stephens.

You can send us an email: InsideAppalachia@wvpublic.org.

You can find us on Instagram, Threads and Twitter @InAppalachia. Or here on Facebook.

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Inside Appalachia is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

W.Va Governor Talks Pfizer Vaccine, Sports As COVID Numbers Worsen

West Virginia is up to 530 reported deaths related to COVID-19. And there are more than 660 new cases of the virus in West Virginia since Sunday.

Gov. Jim Justice gave a grim update in his latest virtual press briefing Monday — 17 more deaths related to COVID-19 reported since Friday, and 27 additional deaths that occurred several weeks ago, according to the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources.

DHHR blamed local county health departments and hospitals for not immediately reporting the deaths, imploring local agencies to respond sooner.

With more than 6,900 active cases of the virus as of Monday night — up by 800 since Friday, state officials are being pressed to decide if current guidelines are adequately protecting the public.

Dr. Ayne Amjad, West Virginia’s state health officer, said it’s up to individuals to adhere to guidelines such as wearing masks, social distancing, and getting tested frequently.

“People need to have their lifestyle, their businesses open,” Amjad said. “We do hear people, what they’re saying; we hear the criticism, we take things into account. But life is not ‘stop-and-go,’ as the governor has mentioned multiple times, that life needs to go on.”

Amjad and other state officials stood by the state’s two color-coded maps, one that is updated daily by DHHR and the other that determines which county schools will be open for in-person school each week, and continued to implore West Virginians to get tested often for COVID-19.

This weekend also kicks off West Virginia’s high school football playoffs. The West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission (WVSSAC) announced official team pairings over the weekend. However, whether teams will get to play will be determined Saturday evening when the latest education map drops.

Any county colored red or orange must forfeit.

“Sports are important, but they absolutely have to be laid to the sidelines just a little bit,” Justice said. “Sports are important. I’m a coach. I get it. But school’s more important. And surely to goodness, if we can’t go to school, we don’t need to be playing. In addition to all that, what is way more important than anything is to try to find a way to keep people from dying.”

The governor, while urging school sports personnel and student athletes to be cautious and follow health guidelines, made no efforts to push any additional restrictions on schools, school sports, or the state as a whole.

In college sports, 17 student athletes at Shepherd University last week tested positive for COVID-19. Shepherd has been administering surveillance testing of employees and students each Monday since Oct. 12. This testing is funded by the governor for all West Virginia’s public two-year and four-year higher education institutions.

The governor shared a bit of bright news, however, on a possible vaccine for the coronavirus. Pfizer announced Monday its experimental COVID-19 vaccine appears to be working — by more than 90 percent.

“This could be the biggest announcement that we have had in our lifetimes,” Justice said. “It is unbelievable to think that we have pulled that off. Pfizer has pulled that off in the timespan that has been out there to make that a reality.”

Justice said he believes, if all goes well with the final trials of the vaccine, it would be available to the most vulnerable and first responders by the end of November or December. He notes, however, it would be “months” before it would be distributed to the general population.