GAME OF THE WEEK FOOTBALL BROADCAST SCHEDULE 2018

As announced first exclusively Monday night on the debut of "In The Red Zone" on 102.9 The Mater, WHAN Radio, here is the projected broadcast schedule for the 17th season of the High School Football Game of The Week, which premieres on Friday August 24th when Hanover opens the season at Monacan in a Region 4B battle.

All Game of The Week broadcasts will begin with the "On The Sidelines Pre-Game", airing 30 minutes before kickoff, on 102.9 FM, 1430 AM, online on the @TuneIn Radio App on "Radiall" and at links available both on this website and at RVASportsNetwork.com. Marc Davis of NBC12 joins Rob Witham each week with the most in-depth preview of high school football action in the area, only on the "Game of The Week" 30 minutes prior to kickoff!

This season, it is also the return of Collegiate Cougars football on 102.9 The Mater (102.9 FM/1430 AM) beginning September 7th. We'll have live doubleheaders throughout the season, an exclusive to WHAN Radio and The RVA Sports Network!

SCHEDULE (all broadcasts begin at 6:30pm unless otherwise noted):

Friday August 24: Hanover at Monacan (special airtime of 7pm, kickoff 7:30)

Friday August 31: Caroline at Patrick Henry

Friday September 7:
Collegiate at Trinity Episcopal, 4pm (On The Sidelines Pre-Game airs at a special time of 4pm, with kickoff at 4:30)
Atlee at Mills Godwin, 7pm

Friday September 14:
Collegiate at Bishop O'Connell, 3:15pm
Glen Allen at Lee-Davis, 6:30pm

Friday September 21:
Collegiate at Flint Hill, 3:45pm
Henrico at Patrick Henry, 6:30pm

Friday September 28:
Episcopal at Collegiate, 3:45pm
Atlee at Patrick Henry OR Hanover at Lee-Davis, 6:30pm

Friday October 5:
Collegiate at Woodberry Forest, 3:45pm
Henrico/Atlee, Hanover/Highland Springs, or PH/Varina, 6:30pm

Friday October 12:
Benedictine at Collegiate, 3:45pm
Patrick Henry at Hanover OR Atlee at Lee-Davis, 6:30pm

Friday October 19:
Fork Union Military Academy at Collegiate, 3:45pm
Lee-Davis at Varina or Highland Springs at Atlee, 6:30pm

Friday October 26:
To Be Announced, 6:30pm

Saturday October 27:
Collegiate at Norfolk Academy, Tape Delay, time TBA

Friday November 2:
The 60th Tomato Bowl: Lee-Davis at Patrick Henry, special 6pm airtime with one-hour pre-game show featuring "History Of The Tomato Bowl"

Sunday November 4:
St. Christopher's at Collegiate, Tape Delay, time TBA

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Coverage of the 2018 playoffs will begin on Friday, November 9. 102.9 The Mater and RVA Sports Network reserve right to flex to different game due to playoff implications weekly beginning October 5th.

Listen LIVE: "In The Red Zone" Debut Broadcast

We are LIVE on 102.9 The Mater, WHAN Radio, with the debut broadcast of "In The Red Zone", our brand new live and local sports talk show, which will be heard each Monday from 6 to 7pm.

Our first special guest is Randolph-Macon head football coach Pedro Arruza, as we'll talk live about the upcoming college football season.

CLICK HERE to listen live if you are outside of the Richmond area.

Top 10 Moments of 2017-18: #1: Shirey's Touchdown For The Ages

Sepp Shirey always wanted to be one of the neighborhood gang when he was little. If there was a football game going on in someone's front yard, he was there.

One day, Shirey, who has cerebral palsy, joined in the game. It immediately stopped play.

Not because of fear, but because of an impromptu celebration which saw the players race to the Shirey household to pound on the front door to tell the rest of his family to come out and see what was happening.

"We're playing football in the yard, and I got tired of dragging the walker over the bumps of grass and stuff," Sepp said when we interviewed him for the December 29, 2016 edition of The Herald Progress. "I just left my walker. Nothing else would have piqued my interest to do that."

Sepp's football career was underway, and it didn't stop as he grew up. Our first encounter with Shirey was Atlee football's first practice before the 2016 season, running drills with his teammates using his walker. No one was more committed to the Raider program than Shirey.

Fast forward to the 2017 season. Shirey had seen in-game action on multiple occasions. On October 27, Sepp's Senior Night, he entered the game in the fourth quarter of what would be a disappointing loss to a playoff Varina team. Shirey had no idea that he was about to go viral.

On a handoff to Shirey, he began running up the middle of the field. Soon, not only were his teammates running with him, so was the Varina defense. The crowd began to react and come to their feet. Shirey would run 80 yards to the end zone, scoring a touchdown in his final game at home. Before the night was over, the courage of Sepp Shirey, coupled with the great sportsmanship of the Varina Blue Devils, was shown not just in Richmond on NBC12's "On The Sidelines", but began to be seen around the world.

To see NBC12's Marc Davis with a great report and commentary about the play, and to see the play itself, CLICK HERE.

To read a portion of our 2016 interview with Shirey, CLICK HERE.

Now headed to the University of Alabama, where he will no doubt make his mark again, we will not soon forget Shirey's fighting spirit, commitment to excellence, and the shining example he gives to everyone who deals with a disability day in and day out.

A moment that was a decade plus in the making, The Sepp Shirey Touchdown, the number one moment of 2017-18. It combined courage, teamwork, sportsmanship, and respect. And that is why we have high school sports.

Top 10 Moments Of 2017-18: #2: Mark L. Fischer Field

The night of October 13, 2017 was an important milestone in one of the, if not the most, emotional high school football season in Richmond-area history.

When a head coach, who has defeated cancer, only to find himself fighting the battle again, announces to his team that the season about to begin would be his final on the sidelines, it is a monumental task for teenagers to process the stark reality of what he is facing, then find a way to emotionally funnel their support, their anger, and their love, into an historic season.

But the Louisa Lions not only poured their heart and soul into their 2017 campaign, by October 13 they were running opponents off the field. Coming off a 40-13 win over Powhatan, the Lions entered Homecoming against another undefeated team, Monticello. Before the game, the county renamed the home of the Lions as Mark L. Fischer Field.

Later, the Lions ran wild, posting a 62-21 victory that only added fuel to a championship desire fire. Louisa finished 10-0 in the regular season, but so did three other teams in their own region. They defeated two of them en route to the Class 4 State Championship Game on December 10th. Only then did the Lions find an opponent they could not conquer.

The ability of the Lions to channel all of the conflicting emotions they faced to take Fischer to the brink of a state title, all the while worried about their head coach, was nothing short of phenomenal. And among all the highs of their 14-1 season, perhaps, at least in the minds of some, the one that will be remembered longest is the one that produced a new sign that future Lions will see every time they practice, and every time they take the field for Friday Night Lights.

Mark Fischer changed Louisa County football, and, through a physical battle now six years long, one he certainly did not ask for, his resolve, positive personality, and unique ability to deflect attention from him to his players, no matter the circumstance, Mark Fischer has changed Louisa County. For the better. Period.

RVA Sports Network salutes Coach Fischer and the 2017 Louisa Lions for a season to remember, and our #2 Moment of 2017-18. The field at Louisa County High School will always be a reminder of how one should live life during great uncertainty; with incredible grace.

Top 10 Moments of 2017-18: #3 and #4

A day to remember at the Siegel Center and a night to remember for one of the best girls basketball players this decade in the RVA, as our Top 10 Moments Countdown continues.

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#4: TRIPLE PLAY AT VOLLEYBALL: The Siegel Center was the epicenter of celebration for Patrick Henry, Deep Run, and Cosby boys volleyball as all three teams won their respective state championships. For Patrick Henry, it was a second straight title after moving down from Class 5 to Class 4, sweeping Midlothian in three sets for another ring. After downing Class 5 power Princess Anne in the state semifinal, the Deep Run Wildcats succeeded Patrick Henry as Class 5 champions, defeating Indian River in four sets. The afternoon concluded with Cosby taking the Class 6 title with a four-set victory over Frank W. Cox, who had eliminated James River in the state semifinal.

CLICK HERE for photos from an unforgettable afternoon at VCU!

#3: BOYD BALLS OUT, BREAKS RECORD: Teams will double team, and triple team, Appomattox Regional Governors School rising senior Jada Boyd, and usually to little success. But nothing could stop Boyd on January 10th, her first game since before winter break, as Boyd broke the single-game Virginia High School League record for both points (69) and rebounds (33) in the ARGS victory in overtime, 79-77. Exactly one month later against Greensville, Boyd scored 66 points and grabbed 18 boards. She already has more than 2,000 career points. It will be amazing to watch her continued progress when the 2018-19 season begins in late November. As for her next home, she plans to announce her college choice before the start of the regular season.

CLICK HERE for an interview with Jada courtesy of our friends at NBC12 about the 69 and 33 game in January.

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Our #2 Moment, which represents a milestone during a very long and arduous journey, is released Thursday, and our top moment arrives on Friday.

Top 10 Moments of 2017-18: #5 Through #7

We continue our look back at the Top 10 Moments of the season gone by with three events all courtesy of Henrico County teams, two from championships, and one out of nowhere.

#7: RUNNING WILD: J.R. TUCKER VS GLEN ALLEN FOOTBALL: When the season began, no one knew what exactly to expect from football teams in Henrico County west of Hermitage. Deep Run had a playoff appearance from 2016 to build upon, Glen Allen and J.R. Tucker suffered disappointing campaigns that year, while Mills Godwin had a new coach. The Eagles started slowly, while Douglas Freeman stumbled out of the gate. But the back half of the season provided for some pretty wild Friday nights in the West End, from the Deep Run/Douglas Freeman comeback thriller to this November 3rd game that closed the regular season for the Tigers and Jaguars. J.R. Tucker still held out some hope for a postseason berth in Region 5B, and did its part due to a record-setting night by Keyonte Thompson, rushing for a Richmond-area record 467 yards. Glen Allen countered with a team performance just as enthralling, the two teams combining for over 1,100 rushing yards in a 63-56 Tigers win. But when Meadowbrook upset eventual Class 3 state champion Hopewell that same night, it ended their postseason dream.

Suddenly the 2018 season is filled with wonder, and a lot of questions, as to which teams in the West End can break out of the pack and be serious playoff contenders in Region 5B.

#6: JOHNSON'S STATEMENT: Sunday December 10th, Highland Springs had just completed its third straight run to a state championship, defeating Tuscarora 40-27 at Hampton University. The win placed the Springers into the realm of dynasty, which was only a dream five years ago, while L.C. Bird was in the midst of doing the same thing. The most potent, powerful statement from the team came, though, during the postgame press conference, as head coach Loren Johnson made it abundantly clear not only who his Highland Springs Springers are, but what impact that program is making on individual lives, on and off the roster, and throughout their community. Listen to Johnson for the first 2:41 of the conference, as posted on our YouTube Channel, to hear the impact sports can truly have, life changing impact, which Johnson plans to continue this fall as the Springers bear the weight of going for a fourth straight championship. Bearing the responsibility of becoming a man, a productive society contributor, continuing to turn the perception of a community around. These Springers carry much more than three rings on their fingers, and we all should be proud of their efforts.

#5: LACEY'S FACE: Varina boys basketball, over the past four seasons, has been a tale of tenacity and purpose. While rivals like Henrico and L.C. Bird captured headlines, and a state title apiece, the Blue Devils quietly grew their team, following their Blue Devil blueprint, feeling confident it would take them, too, to the promised land. In 2017-18, it did. Varina almost knocked off a Trinity Episcopal squad in the Times-Dispatch Invitational final in a rematch of a game where the Titans blew the Blue Devils out of the Richmond Coliseum the year before. In the calendar year of 2018, Varina built a 22-game winning streak. Expecting a playoff showdown with L.C. Bird, they got, instead, their pesky upset-minded rivals from Highland Springs. Twice. Through it all, head coach Andrew Lacey's mix of youth and experience worked perfectly, down to the championship game, using a second half comeback for a 64-60 win over Wakefield.

When Lacey was given the Class 5 State Championship trophy, a look came on his face that likely mirrored the look he would give as a young child on Christmas morning. Some coaches remain stoic, others smile, but Lacey beamed. His team believed, and now Varina was atop the high school basketball world. Watch the postgame press conference at the video below:

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TUESDAY: Our #3 and #4 Moments of the Year, featuring an unbelievable game performance, and, appropriately, a "championship sweep".

#1 Team of 2017-18: Highland Springs Football

After two state championships, Highland Springs football entered the 2017 season missing their quarterback, their top receivers, their best offensive lineman, now starting for Lamar Jackson and Louisville, and more to graduation, the Springers began play not the favorite to turn two titles into three.

Add to that an opening night loss to Hermitage, a team primed, and eager, to knock the Springers off their perch, and it would be an uphill climb, plus a learning curve for new starters. But head coach Loren Johnson and his staff built, and built well, as Highland Springs got better each week, and never left the championship conversation.

The August loss meant a Thanksgiving Friday trip for Highland Springs to Chester Fritz Stadium, where the Springers dominated the second half to avenge their only loss, and head back to the state semifinals. Eight days after a home win there, Highland Springs captured their third consecutive title, defeating Tuscarora 40-27.

Following the victory, Johnson took time out at the beginning of the postgame press conference to note the impact off the field of his players, and the program. His comments can be seen on our YouTube Channel by clicking here.

Congratulations to Highland Springs Football, now a three-time champion, and laser focused on winning a fourth when the 2018 season begins for real on August 24.