The West Greene Buffaloes (3-6, 1-3) strap up for their final game of the 2024 season when they host Happy Valley (6-1, 3-1) for senior night on Halloween this Thursday night.
“They don’t make a lot of mistakes. They’re very well-coached and very disciplined. They do things the right way and they’re a tough team to beat for that. When you do things the right way it makes you hard to beat,” Buffs Head Coach Evan Monroe stated.
For ten seniors, it will be the last time they don the blue and gold. It will be the last time they take the field on The Range as a Buffalo. Their season will come to an end regardless, but they do have the opportunity to maybe play spoiler in this game without any pressure added to them.
Happy Valley will play next week in the TSSAA playoffs, win or lose. They will also host next week, win or lose. But what is on the line for the Warriors is the chance to earn a split for the Region 1-2A Championship if South Greene were to lose to Hampton and they beat West Greene. For the Buffs, there’s no added pressure on Thursday night and it’s the opportunity to have fun on the field one last time.
Happy Valley is coming in hot off two-straight shutout wins over Cumberland Gap and Unaka. Since starting 0-3 last year, they have won 13 of their last 15 and hold a 27-game win streak over the Buffaloes. The Warriors average 30 points per game on offense and have averaged 46 in their last three wins. Their hard-hitting defense only allows eight points per game and have held six of their seven opponents to less than 20 points.
“When Happy Valley comes in they’re going to be big up front. They’ve got some big ole kids. They’ve done a couple different things offensively, but they’ve been primarily a true wing-t team. They run a lot of tosses, fullback dives, the old belly play, the quarterback will follow it up in there and sometimes pull it. They play just simple, sound football,” Coach Monroe stated.
The Buffs have struggled to move the ball on offense and have averaged 15 points per game this season. Their defense allows 31 points per game. They have endured a tough stretch losing three-straight. They have only scored seven points in those three games and want to finish strong for the senior group playing one last time.
“For us we’ve got to come out and just execute better. For the last several weeks we’ve just come out and not executed well,” Coach Monroe mentioned. “We still have the chance to come out and finish on a strong note. We still have the opportunity to come out and play with pride, play with passion, and play with excitement. Come out and finish your senior season with a win.”
Kickoff is set for 7:00 at West Greene High School. Senior night festivities will be held prior to kickoff.
