Just how shaky is the ground in Grayson County?
A magnitude 2.6 earthquake was felt in Grayson on Tuesday with the epicenter in the community of Baywood.
That’s between and somewhat south of Independence and Galax.
All season, Grayson County’s football team has been threatening the foundational hold Galax has built over its Region 1C challengers.
Finally, the numbers will register in the next two weeks. On scoreboards, not seismographs.
Grayson County (8-0) leads the Region 1C standings ahead of No. 2 George Wythe (5-3) and No. 3 Galax (5-3).
The Blue Devils play at Wythe this Friday and they close the season at Galax. It is possible that Grayson still might need to win both to finish No. 1.
A double loss by Grayson in the next two weeks might have the computer that tracks the VHSL Rating Scale creating a major aftershock.
Here are this week’s official VHSL numbers. Warning, the needle is still moving:
REGION 6A Place School Record Games Points Average 1 Oscar Smith 7-0 7 232 33.14 2 Manchester 7-1 8 258 32.25 3 Thomas Dale 8-0 8 256 32 4 Western Branch 8-1 9 275 30.56 5 Franklin County 5-3 8 232 29 6 Floyd Kellam 4-4 8 195 24.38 7 Cosby 3-5 8 189 23.63 8 James River-Midlothian 3-5 8 187 23.38 9 Landstown 3-5 8 184 23 10 Grassfield 1-7 8 164 20.5 11 Ocean Lakes 1-8 9 179 19.89
Region 6A outlook: Franklin County’s loss last week to William Fleming was a big blow to the Eagles’ hopes of securing a home game in the first round of the playoffs. Franklin County now must win at 7-1 Lord Botetourt this week to have any chance of hosting a first-round game or sharing the Blue Ridge District title. But even if the Eagles finish 7-3 and Western Branch loses to unbeaten Oscar Smith, then Franklin County would have only the slimmest chance of obtaining the No. 4 seed. A trip to Western Branch for a first-round game is the most likely outcome for the Eagles. Oscar Smith probably will need a sweep of Western Branch and Phoebus to lock up the No. 1 spot over No. 2 Manchester, which has a much softer closing schedule. No. 3 Thomas Dale probably needs to sweep L.C. Bird and unbeaten Dinwiddie to have a shot at moving up.
REGION 5D Place School Record Games Points Average 1 Stone Bridge 7-1 8 255 31.88 2 Mountain View 7-1 8 232 29 3 Riverbend 7-1 8 229 28.63 4 Albemarle 7-1 8 222 27.75 5 Briar Woods 6-3 9 244 27.11 6 Patrick Henry-Roanoke 6-2 8 215 26.88 7 Woodgrove 5-3 8 205 25.63 8 Independence 6-2 8 192 24 9 Brooke Point 3-5 8 187 23.38 10 William Fleming 3-5 8 177 22.13 11 Stafford 3-5 8 165 20.63 12 Riverside 2-6 8 161 20.13 t13 Potomac Falls 2-6 8 160 20 t13 Massaponax 2-6 8 160 20 15 North Stafford 1-7 8 158 19.75 16 Harrisonburg 0-8 8 136 17
Region 5D outlook: Patrick Henry’s chances to move up from No. 6 to No. 4 hinge on a sweep of Pulaski and Salem in the last two games. Even that might not be enough if No. 4 Albemarle is able to defeat unbeaten Louisa County in their Jefferson District showdown this week. Even with a split against Pulaski and Salem, the Patriots should be able to overtake No. 5 Briar Woods. No. 7 Woodgrove is lurking, hopeful of joining the with two victories and a loss by one or more of the other contenders for the No. 4 spot. A bigger note might be that William Fleming is still alive for the No. 8 spot. The Colonels would need wins over Staunton River and William Byrd, plus two losses by No. 8 Independence and at least one by No. 9 Brooke Point to have a chance. It is not farfetched scenario.
REGION 4D Place School Record Games Points Average 1 E.C. Glass 7-1 8 222 27.75 2 Salem 7-1 8 221 27.63 3 Louisa County 8-0 8 214 26.75 t4 Amherst County 6-2 8 187 23.38 t4 Orange County 6-2 8 187 23.38 6 Jefferson Forest 3-5 8 173 21.63 7 Western Albemarle 4-4 8 170 21.25 8 Halifax County 4-4 8 168 21 9 Pulaski County 4-4 8 166 20.75 10 George Washington 3-5 8 162 20.25 11 Mecklenburg Couinty 1-7 8 141 17.63 12 Blacksburg 0-8 8 123 15.38
Region 4D: E.C. Glass, Salem and Louisa County are still locked in a race for the No. 1 spot. All three teams have a potential roadblock. If No. 1 Glass sweeps Brookville and unbeaten Liberty Christian, it would be very unlikely that No. 2 Salem could move up, even if the Spartans win at Patrick Henry in Week 11. Louisa County could move up from No. 3 if either Glass or Salem loses, but that would require a home win over 7-1 Albemarle. Based on the schedule, Orange County might have an edge on the No. 4 spot over Amherst County as the Lancers finish with LCA and Heritage in the brutal Seminole District. Spots 6-10 are up for grabs. The remaining schedule might seem to favor Western Albemarle and Halifax County for two of the final three playoff spots. Two remaining games will be huge here: George Washington at home this week vs. Magna Vista, and Pulaski County at Christiansburg in Week 11.
REGION 3C 1 Liberty Christian 8-0 8 238 29.75 2 Heritage-Lynchburg 6-2 8 220 27.5 3 Brookville 6-2 8 200 25 4 Staunton 7-1 8 191 23.88 5 Turner Ashby 6-2 8 184 23 6 Spotswood 6-2 8 179 22.38 7 Wilson Memorial 5-3 8 168 21 8 Rustburg 4-4 8 157 19.63 9 Rockbridge County 3-5 8 139 17.38 10 Fort Defiance 3-5 8 133 16.63 11 Charlottesville 1-7 8 124 15.5 12 Monticello 1-7 8 123 15.38 13 Waynesboro 1-7 8 120 15 14 Broadway 2-6 8 119 14.88 15 Liberty-Bedford 0-8 8 109 13.63 16 Fluvanna County 0-8 8 106 13.25
Region 3C outlook: Liberty Christian needs a win over Amherst County or E.C. Glass to clinch the No. 1 spot. Heritage figures to keep the No. 2 spot ahead of Brookville as the Seminole District dominates this region. Don’t bet against No. 5 Turner Ashby and No. 6 Spotswood, and maybe even No. 7 Wilson Memorial passing Staunton and sending the Storm tumbling after a 7-1 start. Rockbridge County should learn its fate Friday. If No. 8 Rustburg does not lose to Jefferson Forest, the Wildcats are not making the postseason.
REGION 3D 1 Lord Botetourt 7-1 8 207 25.88 2 Bassett 6-2 8 189 23.63 3 Magna Vista 5-3 8 187 23.38 4 Christiansburg 5-3 8 183 22.88 5 Cave Spring 5-3 8 182 22.75 6 Staunton River 5-3 8 154 19.38 7 Abingdon 4-4 8 149 18.63 8 Hidden Valley 3-6 9 156 17.33 9 William Byrd 2-6 8 135 16.88 10 Carroll County 1-7 8 122 15.25 11 Northside 0-8 8 116 14.5 12 Tunstall 0-8 8 102 12.75
Region 3D outlook: Lord Botetourt can nail down the No. 1 seed with a win at home Friday against Franklin County. A loss could open the door for No. 2 Bassett to move up. Otherwise, Bassett, Magna Vista, Christiansburg and Cave Spring are jostling for the next four spots. Bassett has potential points with games against Halifax County and once-beaten Martinsville. This week’s Cave Spring-Christiansburg game at Dwight Bogle Stadium will put the winner in the top four for now. Looking forward, Hidden Valley has an edge over William Byrd for the No. 8 spot. The Terriers likely will have to defeat William Fleming in Week 11 to outpoint the Titans.
REGION 2C 1 Radford 8-0 8 218 27.25 2 Martinsville 7-1 8 199 24.88 3 Appomattox County 6-3 9 187 20.78 4 Glenvar 5-3 8 166 20.75 5 Floyd County 6-2 8 163 20.38 6 Alleghany 5-4 9 167 18.56 7 Dan River 4-4 8 134 16.75 8 Gretna 3-5 8 133 16.63 9 Chatham 4-4 8 130 16.25 10 James River 3-5 8 125 15.63 11 Patrick County 2-6 8 112 14 12 Nelson County 1-7 8 89 11.13
Region 2C outlook: Floyd County’s failed two-point conversion in last week’s 28-27 not only cost the Buffaloes on the scoreboard and in the Three Rivers District race, it dropped them to No. 5 in the region behind fast-charging Appomattox County and Glenvar. The win by Radford put the Bobcats in position to clinch the No. 1 spot Friday if they defeat Glenvar. Martinsville would have an outside shot otherwise, but that also would take a victory in Week 11 over Bassett. Alleghany and Gretna should be in the top eight when the smoke clears. The winner of Friday’s Dan River-Chatham game probably will get the other spot.
REGION 2D 1 Graham 8-0 8 220 27.5 2 Ridgeview 8-0 8 204 25.5 3 Gate City 6-2 8 174 21.75 4 Virginia High 6-2 8 171 21.38 5 Union 5-3 8 164 20.5 6 Lee 5-3 8 163 20.38 7 Tazewell 5-4 9 168 18.67 8 Richlands 2-6 8 122 15.25 9 Central-Wise 3-5 8 118 14.75 10 John Battle 1-7 8 109 13.63 11 Marion 1-7 8 93 11.63
Region 2D outlook: Graham has only winless Blacksburg and one-win Marion in its way to a 10-0 season and another No. 1 seed. Ridgeview would have to lose to No. 9 Central-Wise and No. 3 Gate City to fall out of the No. 2 spot.
Virginia High has the No. 4 spot now. The Bearcats could move up to No. 3 if Gate City loses to Ridgeview, or they could fall to No. 5 behind Union. Lee and Tazewell are safely in the field. The last spot is between Richlands and Central-Wise. A win by either in one of its last two games would go a long way to clinching the No. 8 seed.
REGION 1C 1 Grayson County 8-0 8 164 20.5 2 George Wythe 5-3 8 151 18.88 3 Galax 5-3 8 145 18.13 4 Narrows 6-1 7 123 17.57 5 Giles 3-5 7 110 15.71 6 Bath County 4-4 8 116 14.5 7 Fort Chiswell 2-6 8 102 12.75 8 Covington 1-7 8 97 12.13 9 Parry McCluer 2-6 8 94 11.75 10 Eastern Montgomery 2-6 7 78 11.14 11 Craig County 2-4 6 64 10.67 12 x-Auburn 0-6 6 55 9.17 x-Bland County 0-2 2 16 8
Region 1C outlook: Grayson County, George Wythe, Galax and Narrows will be the top four seeds, but not necessarily in that order. Giles figures to be the No. 5 seed and a rematch with county rival Narrows in the first round is a definite possibility. Fort Chiswell is the team on the hot seat. The No. 7 Pioneers might need to sweep Tazewell and Honaker to stay above No. 8 Covington and No. 9 Parry McCluer. Wins for Covington over Eastern Montgomery and Craig County would give the Cougars a berth and extend the final season in school history. Parry McCluer would have to sweep Bath County and EastMont to have a chance over overtaking Fort Chiswell. EastMont has the same chance for upward movement, so stay tuned.
REGION 1D 1 PH-Glade Spring 5-3 8 154 19.25 2 Grundy 5-3 8 152 19 3 Rye Cove 6-1 7 129 18.43 4 Twin Springs 5-2 7 121 17.29 5 Holston 5-3 8 136 17 6 Honaker 5-3 8 130 16.25 7 Lebanon 5-4 9 140 15.56 8 Rural Retreat 4-3 7 108 15.43 9 J.I. Burton 4-4 8 121 15.13 10 Hurley 4-4 8 119 14.88 11 Northwood 3-5 8 101 12.63 12 Thomas Walker 3-5 8 97 12.13 13 Castlewood 1-7 8 79 9.88 14 Eastside 0-9 9 81 9 15 Chilhowie 0-8 8 70 8.75 16 x-Twin Valley 0-2 2 18 9
Region 1D outlook: Tuesday’s earthquake might have been felt miles to the east, but the real upheaval on the Rating Scale was felt in Region 1D after Honaker’s 52-49 win in regulation over Patrick Henry-Glade Spring last Friday. Honaker’s Aidan Lowe had an entire season in one game with four rushing touchdowns and four receiving TDs. The win vaulted Honaker from No. 8 up to No. 6. PH-Glade Spring still has an edge over No. 2 Grundy for the top spot, but it’s not as comfortable as it was. No. 3 Rye Cove remains a factor if it can sweep Twin Springs and J.I. Burton. On the down side, Hurley dropped from No. 7 to No. 10. It looks like No. 7 Lebanon, No. 8 Rural Retreat and No. 9 Burton are fighting for the last two spots.
NOTE: VHSL Rating Scale points are used to determine qualification and seeding for region playoffs. Each team’s average determines its position. Eight teams qualify in each of the following regions. Games played against non-VHSL-recognized opponents do not factor into the ratings.
You can find previous rankings here.
