The Vance County Vipers host the Franklinton Red Rams on Friday on what will be Senior Night for the Vipers. Red Rams Head Coach Michael Justice is celebrating his own group of seniors as the team travels the short distance up U.S. 1 to take on the Vipers.
The Red Rams have 18 seniors, and Justice told WIZS’s Scout Hughes and Doc Ayscue that they’re a special group.
“This has been a great class,” Justice said on Wednesday’s segment of SportsTalk, adding that he predicts some will find themselves playing in college. They’re “high-character guys,” he said, adding that he’s enjoyed watching them develop on the field, but more importantly, how they’ve developed their character.
“We want these guys to be bigger than football,” Justice said, noting that numerous players have GPA’s better than 4.0 and are in the school’s National Honor Society.
“That’s been fun to see the fruits of their labor,” he said.
Although Franklinton (2-2 in conference play) came out on the losing end last week against Wake Forest High, Justice said he was super proud of his defense. “They had a great game plan. Wake Forest was tough – we knew they were going to be,” he said. “It was good to see the boys fight hard,” he said, saying “they played with heart to the end.”
This Friday’s matchup against the Vipers needs to be just as gritty on defense, with the Vipers now having had almost a whole season of honing their wishbone offense.
“Vance County plays tough, they play hard – that offensive line blocks hard,” Justice said.
The team watched a lot of film on Monday, then had to practice inside Tuesday because of the rain, but Justice said his guys are fired up for Friday. “They’re ready to roll.”
He praised quarterback Keith James and receiver Jamaal Epps for the connection they’ve created. James is in the top 30 of quarterbacks in the state when it comes to passing yards and his go-to guy is Epps, who is 6th in the state in receiving yards.
Epps, Justice said, is “fast and sure-handed.” Justice prefers to execute a fairly balanced offense, 60 percent running game and 40 percent passing.
The two players took it upon themselves to develop that chemistry, Justice said. “They’ve done a really good job and it’s started to show.”
With a 1-3 conference record, the Vipers will most likely be looking at Friday’s matchup like a playoff game, Justice said. “We’re going to be ready for that – ready to move the ball, ready to score points.”
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