Portsmouth @ Portsmouth West

[D_Journey9]

Portsmouth had a good offense showing and west is coming off tough loss after their defense played great but the offense couldn't get anything going..this one should be a dandy what's everybody's thoughts?

[courier]

Classic battle between these two teams...The Trojans will score...Can the Siders match them and create enough turnovers to overcome the big plays...

[noreply66]

West defense should equal out Portsmouth offense so can West get something going on offense against the can't stop Portsmouth defense

[Game day]

One thing for sure West will be at the game on time.

There is alot of talent at West this year 16 or 17 Seniors should help them win this one. Plus the new coaching staff has a game under their belts should help also.

[Westfan]

Our roster shows 11 seniors.

Portsmouth has so much offensive ability. Valley didn't stop Portsmouth much. Portsmouth stopped Portsmouth with turnovers. When Portsmouth executes they can be next to impossible to stop.

West does play good defense and the 4-4 scheme West is using should give West a good shot to slow them down. But West's and Valley's defense are similar so does Portsmouth already having played a game against a similar defensive team help West or Portsmouth?

[BurgGrad6]

West should win because defense wins ball games. Portsmouth has no defense. If west can capitalize on mistakes they will win big. Limit turn overs! Portsmouth has an explosive offense but only execute about 70% of the time. West should be able to find their identity on offense this week!

[noles_fan]

West needs to clean up the silly mistakes and they will be in this one with a real chance to come out on top.

[LICKING COUNTY FAN]

West I.M.O. needs to get their passing game working early to give themselves a chance in this one.

[Ironman25]

Does anyone know what style of offense the team west played last week was? For people to say West can stop the Trojans because they played good defense last week seems like wishful thinking. I'm not saying West can't defend, just saying two different styles could mean two different results. Also if West runs a 4-4 defense, I would look for Portsmouth to spread the field a little more and pass more on the perimeter. I remember watching these two teams play last year and Portsmouth was way too fast on the edge.
I look for Portsmouth to be much more disciplined on offense and make fewer mistakes mentally and with the speed of the skill guys I find it hard to believe they will score less than 30+. Of course I would hope the defense would come out a little tougher than their last outing.

[Ironman25]

Anyone have any details on the style of offense West has? Who are their "go to" guys and what skill sets do they have? If I'm not mistaken they had a RB last year that destroyed the Trojans. Is he back?

[Westfan]

NC ran a triple option offense from a pro set. Not very similar to the spread Portsmouth is running.

The 4-4 that West is running is very versatile. It will match up well with Portsmouth scheme wise. But Portsmouth has so much ability if they make the correct reads on that option and execute it's difficult to stop. Similar to what Navy did at times to OSU with a passing game and burner wide receivers.

Looks like the Dan Johnson is mainly responsible for the defense. Until the last 3 weeks I thought Dick Tipton was the best defensive coach West had in my lifetime. I've changed my mind on that as these guys definitely know defense.

Offense West is pro style. Pretty balanced offense running and passing. Looked great in first two scrimmages. Last week not so much. Descent speed. Average size. West isn't going to wow anyone with individual talent. They have to play good team ball and execute.

Totally new backfield except for quarterback and back up tailback.

[noles_fan]

West defense is leaps and bounds better than they were this time last year. If portsmouths defense doesnt tackle well West can put up big numbers. Should be another classic!

[LetsGoPSU]

Just hope everyone gets out of this one healthy, long season ahead and I doubt either team can afford to lose a weapon, I like The Trojans this week, think the speed will make up for the defense

[dreamweaver]

West did fine offensively against Johnson Central. The Qb is inconsistent by history so hopefully this is a a good week at home for him. Solid receivers in #2 #9 and #19 but I think #9 is injured. #44 as a tailback is strong straight forward runner who does a good job while #24 is small but was successful last year. Defensively I like 4-3 better but these boys are experienced and knowledgable even though there is not a lot of depth like Ptown.

[coop]

I'm on the fence about this game. I know Portsmouth will score at least 21 points, probably more....so West will have to put the ball in the endzone.

Early nod to the Trojans.

Trojans 27
Siders 20

[WestSideFan2002]

The boy who ran well last year was Bricker, and he graduated but Hurd also had a good game against the Trojans last year, the defense is way better this year, the new coach has done a great job, the offense just looks slow, Welch IMO opinion is a good full decent at best tailback, hes so strong and very top heavy, would make a great lead blocker for a small quick guy like Hurd or Frasure , but hey I'm not the coach, Quarterback Steven Irwin is an excellent runner, but lacks confidence in his arm, not sure if that will change. Michael Davis is an exemely talented athlete, but seems a bit gun shy. West has the talent to win Friday night and several other Friday nights, but will they click ? Who knows, is there a chance it happens Friday ? Yes, even at that West will have to score 3-4 times to win Friday night, the defense is very strong but I just think Portsmouth has way to much speed to contain for 4 quarters

If west comes together Friday night on offense

West 27 portsmouth 20

If not: portsmouth 27 West 13

[osu 77]

Good post but the defense is still up in the air for me. You played one game and NC threw the ball 2 times. Lets see what happens when they have to play a team that has speed and will throw the ball.

[WestSideFan2002]

I agree 100% OSU 77, portsmouth spread attack is not something to compare to Newark Catholics wing t, Portsmouth has loads of talented kids, I wish we both could watch a half and we would both know the answer then, but we can't so this game is up for grabs in my honest opinion

[headhunter]

WestSideFan2002, couldn't have said it better!
Irwin is very inconsistent, he is an excellent runner but is so hesitant in the passing game. He will have someone wide open and wait too long to hit them cuz he is scared to make a mistake. By doing that he ends up throwing a pick instead of a TD. Hopefully he gains some confidence in his arm of this could be a very very long season. Welch is a workhorse, he has the Power while Hurd has the speed. Welch lead blocking with Hurd behind him is a nice combo. Hurd lacks the size of Welch but that kid has a hell of a motor. He isn't scared of anyone on that field that's twice his size. Davis has a great set of hands, a little hesitant when he knows he's about to take a shot. West has some talent on offense they need to just learn to utilize it and believe in themselves. Portsmouth has some deadly speed, hopefully west can handle them spreading the field. Should be an interesting game. Good luck West!

[TrojanXplosion]

I look for the Trojan D to remain consistent with the last decade. Poor tackling and bad angles. Until the kids buy into a defensive scheme, all the speed in the world adds up to a hill of beans. I predicted the Men of Troy to go 5-5 this year. I didn't have them winning this game at the start of the year and my mind hasn't changed. With these issues on defense, I see only two winnable games.
Burg might hang 60 pts on them in two weeks.
For now....

West - 37
Portsmouth - 36

Would love to be proven wrong.