Strasburg Rams Face Wet Conditions and Winless Page County

Hurricane Isabel, now a tropical storm, pounded the area overnight, dropping up to six inches of rain and forcing Strasburg to postpone its third game of the year to Saturday evening. But this one-day reprieve could be short-lived.

An even bigger worry for the Rams is their recent performance. No Strasburg team (1-2, 0-0 Bull Run) in the past two decades has had a losing record, let alone lost back-to-back games. A hard-fought loss to county rival Stonewall Jackson now seems like a minor setback compared to the 53-0 drubbing they suffered last weekend at Handley.

The Rams, along with their loyal fans, must now regroup and prepare to face winless opponent Page County (0-2).

The Panthers have historically posed little challenge to Strasburg. The average score of the past seven meetings has been 32-11 in favor of the Rams. However, this year could be different.

Page, though winless, has been competitive in both of its games. Against James River, the Panthers lost by a mere eleven points, a significant improvement over their usual blowouts. Last weekend on a wet field, Page went head-to-head with second-ranked (VirginiaPreps.com poll) Manassas Park. The Panthers kept the Cougars’ high-powered offense in check, holding them to just 19 points.

Because head coach Barry Pangle’s squad lost two prominent players out of the backfield, their offense might struggle.

Quarterback Brennan Comer and running back Adam Pettit graduated, and together they accounted for 116 of Page County’s 231 total yards in last year’s meeting.

Panther’s halfback Rusty Breeden is returning. The 5-foot-5, 145-pound senior rushed for 51 yards on 13 carries (3.92 avg.) against Strasburg in 2002.

Blocking for him is fullback Josh Turner (5-5, 167). Turner, a senior, was a former offensive guard before being converted to fullback last season. Another viable weapon for the Panthers is tight-end Brandon Comer. Standing at 5-foot-10, Comer provides a passing threat in a mostly ground-oriented double-wing offense.

Page’s defense should look familiar to Strasburg. Both teams run the 4-4 – four linebackers with four down linemen – as their base formation.

Breeden, Comer, and Turner are all key two-way players. Breeden starts at cornerback, while Comer lines up at outside linebacker. Turner also plays outside linebacker. Returning senior offensive lineman Chad Merica (5-8, 252) doubles as a defensive tackle. So far this year the Panther’s defense has yielded 54 points in two games, a 27 points-per-game average.