Purple Riders Clash With Red As Ferry Hosts Weir
Trending
MARTINS FERRY -- Two years ago, when he was the head coach of John Marshall, Justin Kropka recalls thinking that the young Weir High team that his Monarchs had just defeated were going to be a good football team when they got a little more experience.
His hunch was right, and that spells a big challenge for his Martins Ferry Purple Riders when they host the Red Riders Friday night at the Dave Bruney Football Complex for a clash of teams that seem to be well on their way to the postseason.
"It’s funny because, when I was at John Marshall for one season, we played them and after the game I looked at my coaches there and said ‘I’d hate to be the guy that has to play them two years from now.’ You could tell the talent was there, they were just pups ... here we go, fast forward two years and I’m at Martins Ferry and I am the guy I didn’t want to be two years ago," Kropka said with a laugh. "Coach (Frank) Sisinni has done a good job of building his program ... he took his lumps early and they kept getting better and better and here they are.
"When we shook hands after that game I told him ‘Just keep doing what you’re doing because it’s coming.’ I had to build a program from scratch at Harrison Central, I get it and he’s done a great job.
"They are everything I thought they would be two years ago. They’re good everywhere, the offensive line is good, their skill guys are obviously very good. There’s not a lot of chinks in their armor."
"He got us that night, John Marshall had a really good night against that night and we were pretty young," Sisinni said, recalling the same game in 2021. "We knew our kids with their work ethic were going to keep improving and have a strong senior year, and now it’s fun to watch because they have come so far because of their work ethic and they have matured. We’ve been able to win some ball games because of their hard work and maturity."
The sophomores that stood out to Kropka that fall evening two years ago at Jimmy Carey Stadium are now seniors that have led Weir High to its best start since 2018, starting with quarterback Malachi Stromile and tailback Corey Lyons.
Both are coming off setting their season-highs for rushing yards in a huge Weir win over Keyser last week which made the Red Riders 5-1. Lyons ran for 191 yards and found the end zone five times, hauling in a long pass to go over 200 yards of offense, while Stromile, who’s improved as a runner each week of the season, went for 101 yards and a score. Weir as a team ran the ball for 402 yards.
"There’s not a lot you can do to stop Weir," Kropka said. "You can try different things, but they’re veteran team that has seen it all by now."
For the season, Lyons has 632 yards and 15 touchdowns, scoring at least two in all but one game and averaging over 6 yards per carry.
Stromile is averaging better than 9 yards per carry with 337 rushing yards and four scores while passing for 562 yards and six more six-pointers.
De’Shjuan Smith had 62 yards and trip the end zone against Keyser as well.
The Red Riders’ lone defeat came to Union Local two weeks ago, something Kropka thinks may have awoken Sisinni’s team and made a good team even better.
"I think they look back at that Union Local game and regret some things," Kropka said. "Sometimes losing is good for you, especially with a senior-laden team. They had a great year last year and only lost a couple starters.
"Sometimes you forget some little things, and that loss may be the best thing to happen to them because look how they played the following week against a really good team, they responded like a great team does. That shows a lot about their character and their coaching."
The Keyser win was Weir’s second over a ranked opponent in West Virginia Class AA, as it also defeated then No. 2 Frankfort in Week 4. The Red Riders also have wins over Oak Glen and Indian Creek at home and Toronto on the road.
WV Tailgate Central has the Red Riders ranked No. 8 in Class AA, which would be enough to host a playoff game in round one if Weir is able to maintain or improve that position.
"This is a big game for both sides," Sisinni said. "We’re both having some success right now and that’s a credit to both programs and both staffs. For us to be in this position at this point in the year is a credit to the kids. We know we have to finish strong and we’ve challenged our boys to finish strong going into the playoffs. We challenged the kids to finish strong last year to get into the playoffs, and it’s a similar scenario for us this year to be able to potentially be able to get a home game."
Meanwhile, the Purple Riders are riding a four-game winning streak after a 1-2 start. That success has surged Kropka’s youthful team into the No. 3 spot in Ohio Division VI, Region 23 in the latest OHSAA computer ratings. The top four in each Ohio region would be In line to host the first two rounds.
They are also led by a dual threat in Ayden Ludolph, who has 783 yards and eight touchdowns passing and another 702 yards and 10 scores with his feet.
"They’re a team that’s playing really well right now, they’re on a four game win streak," Sisinni said. "Them being a 5-2 football team and us going down to Martins Ferry, this is going to be a test for us to try and go down there and get a win.
"Coach Kropka is going to have his guys ready to play, he’s a veteran coach and has a veteran staff. You can see week to week they’ve done a great job with their development. They’ve been able to string together some very big wins."
Tev’n Williams is nearly at the 1,000 yard mark with 973 through seven games, averaging over 9 yards per carry and reaching the end zone 12 times, setting up a showdown of two of the OVAC’s best backs between he and Lyons. He’s also caught 24 passes for 282 yards and two more scores.
Competing with a team like Weir, and being able to maintain or improve that playoff position, Kropka knows is going to be a challenge and will require his young team to perform even better than it has on its current winning streak.
"We’re kind of where Weir was two years ago, we’ve got freshmen and sophomores all over the place and we make some mistakes," he said. "Fortunately we’ve got some really good skill kids, our three juniors are some of the best in the Valley, so we’ve been able to overcome some of those things.
"When you play a team of this caliber, they make you pay for every mistake. My biggest worry is about us, not what Weir is going to do, because Weir is going to do what they do, we have to make sure we’re doing the little things and not making those mistakes.
"For us to be where we are sitting third in the region with the youth we have is beyond my wildest expectations. I’m very thrilled that at this point in our development, we’re getting to play very meaningful games against really good teams.
"Preparing for and playing in these types of games is accelerating our growth and development tremendously."
Martins Ferry started the season with a thrilling win over Shadyside. The four-game win streak consists of wins over Fisher Catholic at home and three-straight on the road over Newcomerstown, Fairfield Christian and Berne Union.
The losses back in Weeks 2 and 3 came to St. Clairsville and Tuscarawas Valley.
The Purple Riders are averaging 31.7 points per game while allowing 28, while the Red Riders score an average of 33.2 and allow just 14.8.
"They have really good players at the skill positions starting with Ayden Ludolph and coach Kropka is getting a lot of mileage out of his young offensive line," Sisinni said. "This is going to be a challenging game for us."
The teams have met each of the last three seasons. Weir winning two of the three, including 35-20 last season. The Purple Riders won the last meeting in Martins Ferry, 38-7, in 2021 and the Red Riders won the first meeting 47-46 in overtime in 2020.