Prior to Nov. 26, 2021, it had been 1,904 days, or five years, since Bluefield had lost a game where it led by multiple scores (9-plus points) at any point.
The streak began following a double-overtime loss to Beckley in 2016 and over that span the Beavers played in four straight Class AA state championship games, winning the 2017 title. It was a renaissance for a storied program that had gone eight years in between title game appearances. But rises are followed by descensions.
Independence caught the Beavers on their way down, snapping that streak.
After spotting Bluefield a 20-7 lead in the first half of the Class AA state semifinals, the Patriots pulled off what was impossible for five years, rallying for a 34-20 victory in what proved to be a turning point for both programs.
Independence finished as the Class AA state runner up that season and won the title the following year, producing a Kennedy Award winner in both seasons. Since that point the Patriots have become an annual contender and power in Class AA, having made it to the state semifinals every year since.
Bluefield has won just one playoff game since 2021 but has formed a rivalry with Independence following that pivotal matchup that changed the trajectory of both programs.
Independence has even suffered from the “Bluefield Effect” where area teams will no longer schedule the Patriots, forcing the program to cross state lines to fill out the schedule.
The Beavers lost the regular season meeting between the two in 2022 but were the only team to compete with the Patriots (they won every other game by an average of 49.8 point per game) that year, falling 20-12. Bluefield claimed its revenge at Mitchell Stadium in 2023 but missed the playoff entirely.
The two teams weren’t able to reschedule their matchup last year following storm damage in Bluefield.
Now four years after their first meeting, the two programs are on the same trajectory.
Fresh Blood
If the 2021 state semifinal was the biggest game Independence had ever hosted, Friday’s matchup is likely the biggest regular season matchup Coal City has ever seen.
Independence entered the 2025 season as a title favorite, ranking atop the first four MetroNews power polls and the first two WVSSAC ratings releases. Bluefield entered as a dark horse with a young, inexperienced core.
With four weeks in the books, both are considered title contenders in a classification that lacks the top end talent to match those two rosters. For Independence it’s been business as usual with a Week 1 win over Class AAA state runner-up Hebert Hoover atop an impressive resume.
Bluefield meanwhile is off to its best start since 2020, sitting above .500 through four games for the first time since the Covid season.
Both teams are led by star sophomore QBs paired with standout receivers and explosive running backs. So, how does this matchup playout?
The Sophomore Signal Callers
Last December when I organized a banquet for a former employer to honor the top athletes in our area, I seated QBs Brock Green (Independence) and Max Simpson (Bluefield) at the same table. Both were coming off impressive freshman seasons in which they had earned individual honors, heading programs with high expectations.
Through four weeks the pair have proven to be the two best quarterbacks in Class AA. Green became the area’s first 1,000 yard passer this season with another strong showing at Scott, coming into Friday’s matchup with 12 touchdown passes to just three interceptions.
An ambitious downfield passer, the Independence sophomore has the arm strength to make throws most of his peers don’t and isn’t afraid to test the tightest windows.
Simpson, who already boasts a Division I offer, is a precise, efficient passer who uses the short game to lull and attack secondaries vertically as the game progresses. His nuance and use of subtle movements – shoulder fakes, etc. – allow him to manipulate defenses.
Both QBs are similar in that they have undying trust in their top receivers – Christian Linksweiler for Green and Pax Calhoun for Simpson. Covered or not, they’ll put the ball up for grabs and trust their guy will be the one to come down with it.
Given the parallels, the two have the ability to become the face of the rivalry. Quarterbacks are what drive the best rivalries and storylines even if they don’t directly oppose each other. Analysis of Bills-Chiefs always starts with quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen. The Patriots-Colts rivalry of the 2000s started with Tom Brady and Peyton Manning.
As observers we’ve been gifted a sophomore class that features the two best QBs in double-A, slotted on a pair of teams that have developed a rivalry and will be title contenders throughout their careers.
Friday’s matchup will garner statewide attention and if the atmosphere is anything like every other highly anticipated game in Coal City, the venue will be packed. But that’s unlikely to shake either young player.
Green’s Independence squad weathered adversities last year and played in an electric atmosphere when it beat Herbert Hoover 37-34. Simpson has played in the Graham game twice, an atmosphere unrivaled by any game – regular season or championship – in West Virginia. I don’t anticipate those exterior factors impacting either side.
The Supporting Casts
If you’re looking for an edge in skill players, it’s hard to find one. For my money Calhoun and Linksweiler are the two best receivers in Class AA and even the No. 2 receivers – Tylee Simon and Jordan Hess for Bluefield and K.J. Viars for Independence – are impact players. Viars, a freshman, already has a pair of 100-yard receiving games through his first four games and leads the team with 312 receiving yards.
Calhoun, a sophomore who missed last season, leads the Beavers with 25 catches for 335 yards and four touchdowns. Linksweiler has caught 14 balls for 307 yards.
Running back is where Independence has the edge with the area’s reigning Offensive Player of the Year in Sylas Nelson, an 1,800-yard rusher and first team all-stater a year ago. He does everything well from running and catching to pass protecting when needed. Nelson comes into Friday’s matchup with 662 yards rushing and six touchdowns.
That said, Bluefield has two really good running backs in Willis Wilson and Jeremiah Jones. The two have combined for 529 yards rushing and four touchdowns, complementing each other with a thunder and lighting style approach. Jones is the power runner while Wilson brings more finesse.
What I’m watching
Where the edge lies in this game is in the trenches.
When Bluefield lost to Princeton in Week 2, it was blitzed into oblivion and couldn’t connect when the plays were there. Independence can generate that same level of pressure, but in different ways. The Patriots are comfortable dropping eight into coverage and still getting a sack or bringing pressure with six.
The talent and versatility up front allows them to do this as they can bring pressure with any of their linebackers and you never know exactly where it’s coming from.
Then there’s No. 22, defensive end Isaiah Conley.
Conley is nothing less than an agent of terror.
He might be the best defensive player in Class AA and he’s hard to game plan for because he’s not stationary. Whereas most defensive linemen lineup in one spot, allowing an offensive to slide or dedicate more players in their direction, Conley will line up on both sides and in different gaps. He’s lethal when he mugs the A gap behind the defensive tackle. That allows Independence to dictate matchups and find the weakest link on an offensive line.
And while Bluefield’s offensive line has performed well in pass protection, it’s still a relatively young unit. I’d expect Independence will try and test their communication and pickups with stunts and games, aiming to force protection busts.
There’s also the timing aspect. Bluefield is still struggling with getting its play calls relayed and everybody lined up correctly. That leaves little time on the play clock, allowing the defense to more accurately time the snap.
This game could look a lot like Week 1 when Hebert Hoover came to Coal City. The Huskies, much like the Beavers, don’t use a tight end or h-back so any additional pass protection will be provided by the back who will need to know his assignments. That’s another interesting wrinkle with Bluefield rotating backs.
One way for Bluefield to neutralize that pass rush is the screen game which has become Bluefield’s calling card. The Beavers lean on their bubble screen game, getting their athletes in space and forcing opposing defenses to tackle them.
Bluefield’s win against Beckley was an evolution of that screen game, though.
With Beckley anticipating those screens, Bluefield burned a Flying Eagle defense that tried to jump them with fade routes over their heads.
I expect Bluefield will try to take pieces of Hoover’s gameplan and implement them Friday. But there’s one missing piece.
For as good as Simpson is as a passer, he’s not the scrambler that Hoover QB Peyton Grigsby is. When Independence took bad pass rush angles, Grigsby was able to extend drives with a first down scramble of 18 yards, another scramble that drew a drive-extending penalty and several other scrambles that extended plays for big pass completions.
Circling back to the Princeton game, that’s likely where Independence starts to build its defensive game plan. Bluefield struggled to execute against pressure, so it will likely see it from teams that feel like they can get home with it and defend on the back end. Plays were there to be made, the execution just wasn’t. If Independence utilizes that same plan, the Beavers will need to hit on those plays to punish Indy and force it out of that attack method. But even if they do, Independence’s defensive line presents issues of its own without blitzing.
For Bluefield, success on defense will largely rely on tackling and playing well in coverage.
Teams have attacked the Beavers in the flats to much success. Beckley had over 100 yards passing and I’m not sure any of its completions went more than three yards past the line of scrimmage. Princeton’s Brad Mossor had 180 yards receiving, mostly attacking the flats with screens.
Even in the Graham game there were open receivers, they just dropped the ball in critical spots.
Independence, which likes to spread its receivers into stacked 2×2 sets and throw to them in space, has likely noticed that. Viars had a pair of touchdowns last week on those type of plays, doing all of the heavy lifting after the pass. With the threat of Nelson running out of the backfield and Independence more than willing to lean into its RPO game to pick matchups, Bluefield will need its defensive backs to tackle in space.
Up front, the Patriots just don’t give up sacks. By my count they’ve yielded just three through four games and that’s with a passing attack that goes vertical quite often. Leading the defensive line is senior Ja’Myere Harris with five sacks on the season. It’s cliche, but Bluefield’s success depends on its ability to play a fundamentally clean football game.
The Prediction
I believe Independence comes away with a win in a game that’s competitive early before the Patriots build their lead late. Bluefield’s path to victory requires a lot to go right.
Slap it on a bulletin board if you’d like.
Simpson and the receivers probably need to play near-perfect and know all of his answers before the ball is snapped. The offense will need to replicate those long t0uchdown drives of 10 and 12 plays that they had last week against Beckley.
I just don’t know how realistic that expectation is right now.
I see this unfolding similar to 2022 where Bluefield struggled late in the regular season matchup and came in with a better plan in the playoffs after getting an up close look at the Patriots.
For Independence I can see numerous paths to victory – the passing offense thrives, the defense puts Bluefield behind the sticks all game, the run game gets going, etc.
This should be a fun game, but regardless of the result I wouldn’t rule out both teams getting homefield advantage for most of the playoffs. Independence still has Class AAA games against Princeton and Nicholas County ahead while Bluefield has Nicholas County, PikeView and Greenbrier East ahead, all worth triple-A points too.
The game matters, but it’ll be more beneficial for reconnaissance purposes in the event of a postseason meeting, a likely prospect given the trajectory of both teams.
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