River Ridge plays for pride in final game
10/31/2017by Cherokee Tribune - Alex Resnak
With the state playoffs not in the picture, Chris Long, left, and River Ridge can close out with pride if they can beat South Cobb on Friday. -Lofton
With the state playoffs not in the picture, Chris Long, left, and River Ridge can close out with pride if they can beat South Cobb on Friday. -Lofton

Nothing but pride will be on the line Friday when South Cobb closes its season with a visit to River Ridge.

 

Both teams have been eliminated from playoff contention but there is still plenty to play for, especially for River Ridge (3-6, 0-6 Region 6AAAAAA), which can win four games in a season for the first time since 2012.

 

“You want to improve every year,” River Ridge coach Tyler Wynn said. “From a program standpoint, we feel like we’ve improved this year, but our numbers aren’t showing it. For the kids, the record is a tangible thing. Any time you can end on a win, it’s a good boost going into the offseason.”


South Cobb (2-7, 1-5) has doubled its win total from last year, but first-year coach Terry Jones said there is also plenty he would like to see Friday.

 

The Eagles have played several close first halves this season before the games slipped away over the final two quarters and, win or lose, Jones just wants to see his team play a complete game.

 

“I want an opportunity to see the kids compete,” he said. “I know we don’t have the playoffs in our future, but I want to get a chance to go get a win on the road. We still haven’t played a complete game, so I want to see that.”

 

For River Ridge, its defensive effort will start with containing South Cobb running back Desmond McDowell. Wynn said McDowell does things no other single back the Knights have seen this year does, and they will have plenty of chances to stop him.

 

“The biggest thing is trying to get our run game going,” Jones said. “That will help in the pass game and make it easier on our quarterback. We have a lot of athletes outside, so we need to find a way to open things up for them. Hopefully, our running game can do that.”

 

If River Ridge can stop the run, the next step is containing dual-threat quarterback Aeneas Dennis and receiver Brysen Boone.

 

“It’s tricky because they have a lot of playmakers,” Wynn said. “Our biggest concern is slowing (McDowell), but after that, you have to keep (Dennis) hemmed in and watch the deep ball.”

 

Offensively, River Ridge will look for a strong performance from quarterback Chase Begin to give hope for next season.

 

Begin was just 1-of-5 for no yards and an interception last week against Allatoona, and he could have trouble again against a talented South Cobb pass rush led by recent Army commit Kwabena Bonsu.

 

“We’ve struggled up front with teams with good defensive lines, and they have a good one,” Wynn said. “We’re going to do everything we can to try to be successful, but you have to go with what you have.”

 

The game will also give Jones one last chance to observe the direction of his program. He said teams can learn a lot from games like South Cobb’s 38-0 loss to Dalton last week, and Friday will give him one more chance to push his program in that direction.

 

“We had an opportunity to see what another top-10 team is like,” Jones said. “Dalton did what they were going to do. We knew what they were going to do. They just played the way that program plays. Those are things we’re trying to do here at South Cobb.”

 

About the Game
Game: South Cobb (2-7, 1-5) at River Ridge (3-6, 0-6), 7:30 p.m. Friday
Last year: River Ridge 55, South Cobb 30
All-time series: River Ridge leads 1-0
Prediction: River Ridge 32, South Cobb 28